Paramount UK's Sleuth re-release?

[Alkaline]

As some of you undoubtedly know, the 1972 classic was just re-released in R2 by Paramount UK on April 28. Very disappointingly, I can't seem to find a single shred of info regarding specs, let alone a full blown review. I'm very curious if this is derived from a new master or merely a port of the long-oop Anchor Bay US/UK release, as well as the situation regarding special features. Does anybody have any light to shed?

Needless to say, talk about a prime candidate for a dvdbeaver comparison (wink wink)!

[Person]

I saw a copy of Sleuth in new packaging, but I assumed it was simply an Anchor Bay re-release. So it's a Paramount release, eh? Interesting. How did that come about? No reviews come up at DVD Basen and I cannot ascertain any detailed specs, ie. is it 1.66:1 anamorphic or 1.78:1 anamorphic. Great film. Love it. Watch it at least once per year - a masterclass in reactionary acting and one of the great 'two-handers' of all time. I have the second AB USA editon which has a superb interview with the wonderful, though now sadly deceased Anthony Schaffer. That edition goes for $75 on Amazon's Used and New section, so I can see why people would be interested in a new editon - and one that perhaps has a superior transfer to second AB edition, which some say isn't as detailed as the first AB edition, which was non-anamorphic 1.66. There were some other criticisms of the second AB transfer, but I cannot recall what they were - could have been the colour timing.

Oh, and am I the only one who feels that the events in Sleuth feel like they take place out of time? It has a brilliantly odd atmosphere that is hard to define.

[domino harvey]

Well it has that timeless feeling I get from most filmed plays. I watched the AB disc via ILL a couple months ago, it must have been one of the first DVDs ever released-- Though I was familiar with the concept, I'd never actually experienced a flipper disc that split the movie in half on either side until this one!

[Cronenfly]

According to Alkaline (see bottom post) the new Paramount R2 is (except for the opening credits) anamorphic 1.78:1/1:85:1, not the (seemingly) original 1.66:1, and is completely barebones. If you're around, Alkaline (or anyone else who has seen this disc), does the film look okay at that ratio?

DVD Times claims that the R1 Anchor Bay reissue (and I assume the R2 AB) are in a 1.85:1 ratio, though, so maybe it is correct...

[domino harvey]

As I said, I watched the original flipper disc and it was definitely a non-anamorphic 1.66, that sucks if they're rematting it for widescreen TVs.

[Alkaline]

According to Alkaline (see bottom post) the new Paramount R2 is (except for the opening credits) anamorphic 1.78:1/1:85:1, not the (seemingly) original 1.66:1, and is completely barebones. If you're around, Alkaline (or anyone else who has seen this disc), does the film look okay at that ratio?

DVD Times claims that the R1 Anchor Bay reissue (and I assume the R2 AB) are in a 1.85:1 ratio, though, so maybe it is correct...

Hey Cronenfly. Yup, same alkaline. As you can see I've been active over at dvdtalk awhile now, but am new (at least in terms of actually posting) here. This new Paramount release is the only dvd version I've watched, but from what I understand the 1.66:1 found on the orginal non-anamorphic Anchor Bay R1 flipper is the true preferred ratio. I don't know this for sure, but I do know that 1.66:1 is (or at least was) a very common ratio in Europe, and I've read various reviews and posts over time that have claimed 1.66:1 as the original ratio.

That being said, nothing looked 'wrong' with the 1.85:1 framing. If I had to guess I'd say nothing crucial is probably lost in the 1.85:1 version since the two ratios are fairly close. and I'd actually go as far as to guess this is yet another example of a film shown theatrically in Europe at 1.66:1 and in the U.S. at 1.85:1 from the beginning (e.g. Robocop amongst a million other examples). But I didn't exist when Sleuth was in theaters, so I can't say for sure. Also as you can see from my other post over at Dvdtalk, I was hoping someone who has seen/owns the oop 1.85:1 Anchor Bay R1 or R2 release could verify if those releases had the 1.66:1 windowboxed credits also, in hopes of clarifying if this is a new transfer or a port. Anway maybe someone older and wiser can clear up the ratio business, but as far as simply owning a good-looking verison of the film, I wouldn't hesitate on this release.

[ratcatcher]

I just checked my Anchor Bay copy (cat no ABD4110) and it appears to have the same 1.66:1 opening credits and 1.78/1.85:1 for the rest of the film that you mention.

I'm not sure if I have the R1 or R2 or NTSC or PAL version as my DVD and TV will cope with both. It has a BBFC '15' cert it so I'm thinking R2, though Amazon UK say this is in 1.33:1!