Best software for watching DVD on Pismo?

Hello all

I've resurrected an old Pismo (G3 Powerbook - Firewire). I have upped the RAM to 768MB and swapped the 400MHz processor out for a blindingly fast G3 500MHz from another unit. 🙂 (Yes, it makes a difference!). I have swapped out the original DVD-ROM (which seemed to be on its way out) with a nice slot load DL DVD-R/W unit, complete with appropriate faceplate. The Pismo is running 10.4.11 Tiger with all updates on one partition, and OS 9.2 on another. I default boot into OS X and when I insert a DVD (using Apple DVD Player) all I get is the initial audio (that jingle you hear when the menu pops up) and that's it - NO video (just a black screen) and nothing else. I have tried VLC for Tiger, and I can get audio but NO video. In the VLC menus, I have fiddled around with the video settings to no avail.

Here's the kicker - when I boot into OS 9, the DVD plays just fine using Apple DVD player (I think it's 2.7), so I know the hardware is all good and the disk isn't scratched or anything. (And the symptoms in OS X happen with various DVDs - I've tried a few).

What software can I try to watch DVDs in OS X? Or is there some secret to getting either Apple DVD player or VLC to work properly?

thanks