hipsterdoofus1026 wrote:Does Blu-ray make a difference in the quality between a standard dvd reissue of an old movie and a blu ray reissue? Like if Warners issues Mildred Pierce in Blu Ray and the current standard, would it really make that much of a difference? I mean, with most of the movies made in the thirties and forties, with how many different owners they've had and for whatever other reasons, you can't even find the negatives to the films. I wonder if Blu-ray will be the standard for contemporary movies made in the last say, 20 or 40 years (arbitrarily speaking) and the previous standard will stay for old movies. Just wondering.
The resolution of a piece 35mm film from 80 years ago is still many times higher than the resolution of the very best 4k hi-def projection systems today. Neither standard def DVD or Blu-ray can even come close to replicating the resolution of a piece of properly projected celluloid, but Blu-ray can come a lot closer.
<<The resolution of a piece 35mm film from 80 years ago is still many times higher than the resolution of the very best 4k hi-def projection systems today.>>
Well I'm sure I'm asking a question many others are asking, but isn't it problemmatical for people (such as David Lynch) to be talking about digital moviemaking supplanting film moviemaking? Also maybe I have digital moviemaking confused with digital movies being displayed.
There is a difference, but the problems with both are essentially the same: neither quite compares to actual film.
Now, it's assumed that digital technology will reach a point, probably not far in the future, where it can imitate and even exceed the resolution of 35mm film (or even higher resolutions of film). Filmmakers like Lynch, who are going digital now, have to accept an inherent lack in visual quality, but they're preparing for and engaging a future where film will presumably be supplanted by technically superior digital alternatives. Aside from that, digital films have the advantage of being less difficult to handle, less volatile, less expensive (especially considering stuff as simple as DV), and more versatile.
A few years ago, the New York Times reviewed a reissue of the 1956 The Man Who Too Much and said that it was so far gone that only a digital restoration was possible. And I also remember reading something about Time Warner, about ten years ago, saying they were constantly cleaning and repairing the films they own from the pre 1986 MGM library and Warner Brothers movies they own and the few United Artists and the RKO pictures they distribute. I can't imagine they know where the negatives are to most of this material. Are digital restorations of old movies comparable to restoring the negative? Thank you for the previous posts. I was always under the (naive) impression that owning the dvd of a movie was like owning the original print.
Beaver comparison of Sunset Boulevard.
I'm not seeing many improvements in the picture quality. Blacks are noticeably blacker in the new edition, but it seems unjustifiable to replace the older DVD. None of these new extras seem enticing, either.
contrast and black levels look noticeably improved to me. the captions from the old disc lean towards a greenish hue. I'd say it seems like a marked improvement in image and I'll be happy to upgrade. Too bad the cover art and even menu screens were better on the old disc!
I've gone through the three Centennial Collection titles released thus far and all have excellent transfers. Unfortunately, the improvement from previous releases is somewhat minor (possibly excepting Sunset Blvd.), and the price is a fairly significant increase. The extras are largely insubstantial. I don't think anyone halfway familiar with these films will learn much from the talking heads Paramount brought in. The Roman Holiday set has a pretty good Dalton Trumbo piece and another on Audrey Hepburn that isn't bad, but most everything else is forgettable. Sunset Blvd. is loaded with supplements that give little to no insight, and certainly nothing any better than what was found on the previous disc.
The "Dalton Trumbo: From A-List to Blacklist" featurette on Roman Holiday did raise a real interesting question for me. There are some prints of the movie with his name restored in the credit sequence. How should this be handled? We want to give full credit to the real person who wrote the screenplay, but we certainly don't want to forget that the blacklist happened.
And furthermore! If Dalton Trumbo is the real commie-pinko who gave us Roman Holiday, then let's get more of them.
Commentary by Charlie Matthau and Chris Lemmon
In the Beginning…
Inside The Odd Couple
Memories from the Set (~tbd)
Matthau & Lemmon
The Odd Couple: A Classic
Galleries
Theatrical Trailer
To Catch A Thief - Centennial Collection Spine 6
Commentary by Dr. Drew Casper, Hitchcock Film Historian (New)
A Night with the Hitchcock's (New)
Unacceptable Under the Code: Film Censorship in America (New)
Writing and Casting To Catch a Thief
Behind the Gates: Stars of the 50's (New)
The Making of To Catch a Thief
Behind the Gates: ?? (tbd) (New)
Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation
Edith Head: The Paramount Years
Theatrical Trailer
If You Love To Catch Thief, You’ll Love this Interactive Travelogue
Galleries
There you go, another version of To Catch A Thief already....
May 19:
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (Centennial Collection)
SYNOPSIS:
"This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend." Behind the camera? John Ford, a director whose name is synonymous with "Westerns." Gathered in front of it? An ideal cast – James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles and Lee Marvin. Now presented on two discs, with all-new special features, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance rides into town as classic entry in the Paramount Centennial Collection. Director Ford brings us to the lawless frontier village of Shinbone, a town plagued by a larger-than-life nemesis, Liberty Valance (Marvin). Stewart plays the bungling but charming big-city lawyer determined to rid Shinbone of Valance, and he finds that he has an unlikely ally -- in the form of a rugged, local rancher (Wayne). The two men also share the same love interest (Miles). But when the final showdown becomes inevitable, one of the two will attempt to get the gunman … but the other one will wind up getting the gal.
BONUS FEATURES:
* Commentary by Filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich along with his archival recordings with John Ford, John Wayne and James Stewart
* Selected Scene Commentary with intro by Dan Ford along with his archival recordings with John Ford
* The Size of Legends
* The Soul of Myth
* James Stewart and Lee Marvin
* Galleries
* Theatrical Trailer
El Dorado (Centennial Collection)
SYNOPSIS:
"I'm paid to risk my neck. I'll decide where and when I'll do it. This isn't it." Now a two-disc presentation with all-new special features, this Paramount Centennial Collection edition of El Dorado delivers the goods. Legendary producer-director Howard Hawks teams up with two legendary stars, John Wayne and Robert Mitchum, in a classic Western drama. Mitchum plays to perfection an alcoholic but gutsy sheriff who relentlessly battles the "dark side" of the Wild West – ruthless cattle barons and crooked "businessmen." The Duke gives an equally adept performance as the sheriff's old friend, one who knows his way around a gunfight. Featuring a supporting cast that includes James Caan, Charlene Holt, Paul Fix, Ed Asner and Christopher George, and filled with both brawling action and unexpected humor, El Dorado is pure gold.
BONUS FEATURES:
* Commentary by Filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich
* Commentary with critic and film historian Richard Schickel featuring actor Ed Asner and author Todd McCarthy
* Ride, Boldly Ride: The Journey to El Dorado:
* The Artist and the American West (1967) - Vintage Featurette
* Behind the Gates: AC Remembers John Wayne
* Original Theatrical Trailer
* Galleries
I'll wait to see how substantial the featurettes on the disc for The Odd Couple are before I consider a purchase. Considering how inexpensive the current disc is, the price point on these Centennial editions doesn't sit well with me. The commentary participants, while surely well intentioned, don't appeal too much to me, and I doubt they'll have much luck improving on the already stellar picture quality.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is my favourite western but I'll pass on this one unless the picture looks noticeably better or if the extras, against expectations, turn out to be actually worthwhile.
Anyone interested in upgrading their copy of The Odd Couple should save their money. The featurettes are all pulled from the same bland hyperbole-filled interviews, and there is a lot of overlap.
Beaver and Glenn Kenny have posted screen caps of the Liberty Valance CE and I definitely prefer the grittier look of the 2001 release: the CE looks too bright and while it does have more information at the bottom of the image, it appears to be slight. If anyone buys this still, I'd appreciate opinions on whether the archival interviews are really worth having a second copy of the film because I'm going to hold on to the old release.
The news about The African Queen has already been posted in that thread, but The Digital Bits also reports that it will join Chinatown and Sorry, Wrong Number as Centennial Collection releases in October.
Svevan wrote:Obvious sentiment: do we need another edition of Chinatown in SD?
No, not a stand-alone SD - we definitely deserve a BD, too. It's a gorgeously photographed film, but that has never came through as it ought to on video so far.
