Paramount Catalog Titles on Blu

[Murdoch]

And still no option to remove Mickey Rooney

[matrixschmatrix]

I think he's automatically edited out if you put Japanese subtitles on

[eerik]

That's a nice set: slipcase, soundtrack CD, script and three postcards. Too bad that Japanease releases (even without the shipping price) are twice as expensive as I'm willing to pay. Hopefully a similar set will be released in other countries.

[matrixschmatrix]

There's probably no bigger fan of ONE EYED JACKS on this forum than myself (saw it on original release at the tender age of 7!) but the last time I saw it theatrically was sometime in the '80s. It was all over network TV from 1966 till the '80s and even made it to cable. The last time I recall it surfacing was on AMC in the late '90s and the transfer was letterboxed to 1.85. It may well have been the last Paramount film shot in VistaVision.

As zedz has reminded us the copyright is the hangup here. The film was produced by Brando's company, Pennebaker Productions, with financing and release through Paramount so the title very likely reverted to Brando after the 2nd copyright renewal. As Brando's affairs, both personal and financial, were in more or less shambles even before his death, it's a lead pipe cinch that the film is in public domain by now. If not, it's certainly in the final days and if the Brando estate (either with the assistance of Paramount or not) has not yet made the effort to proclaim ownership and issue cease and desist orders to the many scavenger types hawking these awful pan'n'scam DVDs then I doubt they'll ever make the effort.

I agree with zedz also that unless ONE EYED JACKS is somehow rescued by some high profile champion (shout out to Martin Scorsese!) it will continue to languish on the shelf at Paramount. At least I hope it's still languishing at Paramount. Worst case scenario would be its elements turning to Technicolor soup in some shed on that goddamned island of Brando's! And don't look to Criterion to lead the charge. As Matt (or was it Jeff?) has intimated before, there's something of an antipathy to Brando by one of the top dogs at Criterion. They're much more interested in personal faves such as ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS (now in Blu too!) and THE NAKED PREY (to name but two other Paramounts from the same era) than ONE EYED JACKS.

Apparently, there is a blu coming, although it may be region B and at the listed price I wouldn't be surprised if it were an upconverted shitty print like the US blu of The Stranger. Still seems like good news, though.

[BobCashill]

Criterion also released BURN!, with Brando, on LD. I've heard talk of a Criterion special edition on DVD/BD.

[domino harvey]

My Fair Lady and Little Big Man November 15

[domino harvey]

And Scrooged November 1!

[AfterTheRain]

Don't forget about Airplane!, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, and The Naked Gun on September 25th!

[mfunk9786]

Those are going to be Best Buy exclusives, FYI

[dx23]

And Scrooged November 1!

I wonder if they are going to finally release the extras that were supposed to be included in the unreleased 2006 Special Edition. Never understood why that DVD was canceled at the last minute.

[MoonlitKnight]

And Scrooged November 1!

I wonder if they are going to finally release the extras that were supposed to be included in the unreleased 2006 Special Edition. Never understood why that DVD was canceled at the last minute.

Alan Parker's "Bugsy Malone" was another title they mysteriously cancelled at the last minute; still no word on that one. #-o

[AfterTheRain]

And Scrooged November 1!

I wonder if they are going to finally release the extras that were supposed to be included in the unreleased 2006 Special Edition. Never understood why that DVD was canceled at the last minute.

Alan Parker's "Bugsy Malone" was another title they mysteriously cancelled at the last minute; still no word on that one. #-o

Also, Michael Mann's The Keep was another title called off at the last minute; as far as I know, it still languishes in the "when will it happen" category.

[manicsounds]

Well, I got the "Breakfast At Tiffany's" yesterday. Looking at early reviews, some claim heavy use of DNR dvdbeaver, dvdtalk etc. Checking it out for myself, it's not as waxy as some make it out to be. Grain is still visible, vibrant colors, but this is only sampling a few places. Haven't watched the movie in full yet.

[Zot!]

And Scrooged November 1!

I wonder if they are going to finally release the extras that were supposed to be included in the unreleased 2006 Special Edition. Never understood why that DVD was canceled at the last minute.

Alan Parker's "Bugsy Malone" was another title they mysteriously cancelled at the last minute; still no word on that one. #-o

There is a region B Blu of Bugsy available.

[manicsounds]

"Footloose" is not exactly a movie to be talked about seriously, but Paramount's super-digital-scrubbing is a call for question.

[Feego]

Paramount is releasing Wings (1927) on DVD and Blu-ray in January!

Here's the artwork.

[knives]

I refuse to get my hopes up, but my hopes are really getting up.

[SamLowry]

Paramount is releasing Wings (1927) on DVD and Blu-ray in January!

Here's the artwork.

Nice artwork, so I guess that rules out Criterion releasing it....or was this photo hinting at something else?

What I want to know is will Paramount be releasing La Dolce Vita themselves or letting Criterion release it?

I refuse to get my hopes up, but my hopes are really getting up.

You can do one better, you can pre-order it on Amazon

[Feego]

Nice artwork, so I guess that rules out Criterion releasing it....or was this photo hinting at something else?

That photo was hinting at Godzilla.

[Jeff]

Paramount presents Wings in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio with a newly-restored musical score by J.S. Zamecnik in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and an organ score by Gaylord Carter in 2.0 Dolby Digital. The disc also has the following bonus features:

Three behind-the-scenes featurettes:
- Wings: Grandeur in the Sky
- Dogfight!
- Restoring the Power and Beauty of Wings

Street date is January 24th.

[fdm]

Paramount presents Wings in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio with a newly-restored musical score by J.S. Zamecnik in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and an organ score by Gaylord Carter in 2.0 Dolby Digital.

I was checking out Warner Archives' The Merry Widow a week or two ago, and it has an organ score played by Dennis James. I didn't know that it was actually him until the film was over, but a few times while watching/listening to the film I was reminded of when I saw Wings at IU Auditorium with Dennis James providing the organ accompaniment, back in the mid-70s. Would have been pretty cool if he had somehow managed to make it onto this release as well.

[PillowRock]

The full Paramount press release is here.

[manicsounds]

I always thought that Paramount sold off their older back-catalog to Universal years ago, but then there is this announcement, and also that Criterion Von Sternberg set that says it is licensed from Paramount.

So does this mean there are a select few films that Paramount still owns in their back catalog?

[Jonathan S]

Paramount's silents were not part of the MCA (later including Universal) deal, so they still own them, except for those now in the public domain. As the MCA deal was primarily for TV, I assume the silents were regarded as of insufficient commercial value, especially as many would have needed scores and restoration. Otherwise, most pre-1950 Paramounts were included in the package, though there are some exceptions (especially 1948-49 titles), notably The Miracle of Morgan's Creek.

[Brian C]

Love Story Blu in February.

I just don't get Paramount.