173 The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp

[eerik]

Ugh, the UK steelbook is ugly.

[HerrSchreck]

That's rancid.

[reaky]

That's just the old DVD cover with a bluray band slapped on top. Possibly an artwork-to-be-confirmed placeholder?

[hearthesilence]

I really, really hope so. That's the kind of design you'd expect from a public domain release.

[reaky]

Honestly, why would you offer a steelbook and then stick a recycled cover on it? People buy these for the design, not the durability of the case.

[Roger Ryan]

That's just the old DVD cover with a bluray band slapped on top. Possibly an artwork-to-be-confirmed placeholder?

But look at the way Deborah Kerr's hat overlaps the "Restoration Edition" banner; this doesn't appear to be a throw-together placeholder. If the cover was used for the DVD release, then it's already been approved once. " If it's good enough for the DVD, it's good enough for the Blu-ray steelbook" may be the thinking.

[NABOB OF NOWHERE]

That's just the old DVD cover with a bluray band slapped on top. Possibly an artwork-to-be-confirmed placeholder?

But look at the way Deborah Kerr's hat overlaps the "Restoration Edition" banner; this doesn't appear to be a throw-together placeholder. If the cover was used for the DVD release, then it's already been approved once. " If it's good enough for the DVD, it's good enough for the Blu-ray steelbook" may be the thinking.

I fear greatly that this is the finished article as the Amazon listing shows the TBC cover (which is better than this) so why produce two different temporary editions?

[warren oates]

The quality and texture of the cover image actually make it seem like not so much a color film as a colorized one. Ick.

[Matango]

And only third in the credits for poor old Roger?

[MichaelB]

And only third in the credits for poor old Roger?

I don't have my copy of the actual film to hand right now, but this poster, presumably from the original release, also places Livesey third.

In fact, the list is in the same order, presumably to reflect the fact that Anton Walbrook would have been by far the biggest name of that particular trio: Deborah Kerr would eventually outstrip him, but not for several years.

[Professor Wagstaff]

For those in the NY/NJ area, the restoration will be playing at the Lafayette Theatre in Suffern, NY October 6th and later in the evening Robert Osborne will be present for a discussion on the life and career of Gene Kelly. The Lafayette is the sort of classic movie palace I grew thinking only existed in some far off memory of when going to the movies was an event with true grandeur infused into it (which I always equated to that awestruck feeling in Radio Days when the boy visits Radio City Music Hall for the first time). It's an ideal venue for a film of this type, a real cathedral for cinematic devotees.

Here's an appreciation by Glenn Kenny.

[rwaits]

Judging from the Beaver grabs from the ITV release we have a lot to look forward to from Criterion. This looks incredible.

[peerpee]

It's a complete ripsnorter. Unbelievable. The little restoration piece with Scorsese is very good. He's quietly beaming about what they've achieved. It's astonishing. A ton of work, and it now looks like new.

[rwaits]

I knew the transfer on the DVD was far from ideal, but these grabs are astounding. I love this movie, and I'm realizing I've never seen it close to as intended. Can't wait to get this.

[rwaits]

David, which thread are you referring to?

[Matt]

This one.

[DeepSouthDan]

A very special film for me. Does anyone have any further information about a Criterion release? If it's definitely coming in the next few months then I'll hold fire on buying the ITV disc.

[Matt]

Nobody knows exactly when it's coming, but it is coming.

[DeepSouthDan]

In that case I think I'll hold out. I'm confident that it'll be worth waiting for..

[Matt]

And there you go: Blu-ray and DVD upgrade announced for March 19.

[DeepSouthDan]

Great timing!


As a matter of interest, I assume the specs of the old version are no longer on the Criterion site, so...
...can anyone say whether it's just the transfer itself that's been updated on the DVD, or are there new extras?

[Tommaso]

Great! While everything else among the new announcements leaves me entirely cold (and damn it, again no Eclipse!?), this of course is a major upgrade which I can't wait to put into the player to see good old Blimp finally without his seriously sunburn-like overheated face... (assuming the colour scheme is the same as on the British disc).

[Shrew]

In answering the guy on the last page that I can't be bothered to look up, it looks like a new Scorsese intro, a Thelma Schoonmaker interview, and a demo of the restoration with Scorsese.

Anyway, glad to see this coming quick. Does anyone know what Scorsese and crew are considering restoring next? They seem to be focusing on the technicolor pieces, so I could see Tales of Hoffmann or one of the other 50s films, but I really hope I Know Where I'm Going and A Canterbury Tale are coming next. I know available prints and everything has a big impact, but surely it should take less time and money to restore the black/white films than technicolor.

[matrixschmatrix]

I feel like I've heard Tales of Hoffman, which would mean a StudioCanal blu if we were lucky. I've got my fingers crossed for I Know Where I'm Going in the near future too, though honestly I'd go for something you can't even get here (like The Elusive Pimpernel) as I think the extant version is far from awful.

[colinr0380]

While Oh, Rosalinda!! doesn't seem to be anyone's favourite film, I would love to see someone pay more attention to restoring and releasing that.