NTSC playback better than PAL?

Hi, this is a question about DVD Player (4.6.5) rather than iDVD but I hope you can help.
I've got a 20" Intel iMac and I often use it to watch commercial DVDs as I don't currently have a TV (poor me) it seems that if I watch an NTSC DVD the picture quality is usually acceptable, but sometimes (often?) with PAL discs the image is blockier. I don't think its the display as I've watch the HD downloads on Quicktime and have been impressed, so it must be something to do with the discs. The Pal discs all look great on a regular DVD/TV set up back in the UK.
Has anyone else noticed this? are there other DVD player applications that prvide a better image for PAL discs?
Intel iMac   Mac OS X (10.4.6)   Dell Inspiron 4000 Win2000/MacDrive LaCie Porsche HD

I own one Region 1 NTSC commercial DVD that plays poorly on my Aluminum 1.5GHz PowerBook. I think it's the LCD that can't refresh quickly enough. It's this one:
http://www.netflix.com/MovieDisplay?movieid=70010995&trkid=147042

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