Is it legal for me to download a torrent of a movie if I own it?

The simple answer is yes.

It’s about as legal as driving 66 MPH in a 65 MPH zone.

There isn’t sufficient case law to say whether it’s legal or not. There are reasonable arguments to be made on each side. The reason there isn’t sufficient case law is because cases are so rarely brought. Perhaps the MPAA has learned from the RIAA’s mistakes: that it can’t stop piracy by suing its customers.

I think you should let your personal ethics guide you, not an antiquated copyright act that wasn’t crafted with digital media in mind.

Can you recommend a good site to get movie torrents at and sites with safe torrents like axxo etc. and what caution should I take?

www.isohunt.com if you really want to be careful scan all your rars and files before opening them, but ive never came across a virus from any torrent ive gotten.

If you’re on a Mac, I’d highly recommend Xtorrent. It has built-in search, so you don’t have to search for torrents separately at sites like isoHunt or Torrentz.

what if the DVD isn’t defective? Would it still be legel?

sferik already answered all the possible scenarios you can think of. Its all a big gray area really.

If one can download something for free, it’s public domain. It’s the company’s responsibility to charge you for it.