BD 123 Shane

[John Doe]

Coming Nov 16



One of the landmark and most enduring Westerns of the 1950s, George Stevens' Shane struck a chord with audiences at the time of its release, and continues to influence admirers today, even as it served as a template for the series of groundbreaking spaghetti-westerns of Sergio Leone.

Alan Ladd plays the titular gunslinger, the archetypal ''man alone'' who wanders into town and shortly afterward becomes embroiled in a conflict between a group of Wyoming homesteaders and the nefarious cattle baron who has designs to wrest away their land. As the conflict escalates, and a romance develops between Shane and homesteader Marian Starrett (Jean Arthur in her last screen role before an early retirement from motion pictures), a who's-who of studio system character talent revolves through the production - Van Heflin, Jack Palance, Elisha Cook, Jr. - before the proverbial ride into the sunset...

Writing in The New York Times in 2001, Woody Allen said: ''Shane, I think, is [Stevens'] masterpiece. I've seen it many, many times. Certainly more than 20.'' The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present George Stevens' Shane in this special edition, for the film's first release on Blu-ray in the UK.

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Gorgeous 1080p presentation of the film on Blu-ray
• Full length audio-commentary by George Stevens, Jr. and Ivan Moffat
• Original theatrical trailer
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• 24-PAGE BOOKLET containing writing on the film, archival imagery, and more!

[manicsounds]

Been wanting an MoC version of "Shane" for years. Although this doesn't seem to add any new extras from the US BD besides the booklet.

[PfR73]

So I asked on blu-ray.com "Eureka, if you are reading this: please include Shane in both 1.33:1 OAR & the 1.66:1 version that George Stevens Jr recently prepared."

They responded: "Two versions of the film would be slacking, we're planning on three!"

Probably 1.33:1, the original 1.66:1, & the new 1.66:1 version?

[domino harvey]

Sounds like a joke?

[tenia]

It seems there would be 2 1.66 versions : one done on a matte basis and another one where the change from 1.37 to 1.66 has been supervised on a shot-by-shot basis by Stevens Jr.

Jr.s' version is reframed from the original 1.66 version

[criterion10]

Wasn't Shane always intended to be seen in 1.33? I was under the impression that the 1.66 cropping was done merely as a form of widescreen revisionism, in which case it would be rather silly to release this in 3 different aspect ratios (this is certainly quite different from something like Criterion's release of On the Waterfront).

[PfR73]

Yes, Shane was composed for 1.33:1. If only 1 ratio were to be offered, it should be that, as the US Blu-Ray from Warner did. However, it's a pretty big component of the film's history that it was the first film to be shown in widescreen* when the process began in the 1950's. So I think many fans are interested in seeing both how it was composed & how it was exhibited. Then, when it was being prepped for Blu-Ray, George Stevens Jr. prepared a new 1.66:1 widescreen version that composed for the matte on a shot-by-shot basis rather than just slapping the matte on like the original exhibition did. As an MOC release, I'd like to see them use the opportunity to present these version for comparison & I'm glad it seems they are (unless Domino's right & they were just joking).


*Not counting earlier attempts/experiments like Napoleon & The Big Trail

[EddieLarkin]

But tons of Academy ratio films were exhibited in widescreen in 1953 and '54. Unlike Shane, some of them will have been seen primarily in widescreen across the country, despite that being the wrong ratio. Why should Shane get this treatment and not all of the others?

[PfR73]

IMO, because of the historical significance/curiosity of it being the first.

[rapta]

Sounds like a joke?

That's why I responded to Kevin with "What's that?!" and he replied "Jr.s' version is reframed from the original 1.66 version.", so I responded to him with "So you or aren't including 1:37:1, 1:66:1 and 1:85:1 versions on the MoC release?" and then no further comment from him. So yeah, it's not confirmed...I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not but everyone's talking in other threads about there being 3 versions on the Shane disc even though it isn't mentioned in the current specs at all. I guess we'll just have to wait and see if Kevin responds, or Eureka update the specs, or we get an eventual review of the disc.

[manicsounds]

1.33;1, 1.66:1, and the 3D version perhaps.

[tojoed]

I think it will be, Academy, 1.66, and Storarovision.

[domino harvey]

If they're including the bastardized 1.66 just because it was displayed like that regardless of intent, I'm hoping for a fuzzy B&W version since that was how it first aired on TV

[JAP]

Latest Eureka newsletter confirms Shane will have alternate aspect-ratios:

Also in November we have one of the landmark and most enduring Westerns of the 1950s, George Stevens’Shane. Both releases will feature new special features and in the case of Shane, multiple versions of the film.

[rapta]

Latest Eureka newsletter confirms Shane will have alternate aspect-ratios:

Also in November we have one of the landmark and most enduring Westerns of the 1950s, George Stevens’Shane. Both releases will feature new special features and in the case of Shane, multiple versions of the film.

Yep! Specifically:

1.37, Steven's Jr.'s 1.66 reframing and the original 1.66 is the plan.

[rapta]

UPDATE: full specs for Shane! This is now a 2-disc Blu-ray edition, but only a limited run of 2000 - the second run will only have one disc and a reduced booklet too.

Still, this initial 2000 probably won't sell out straight away, but it's still something to bear in mind if you're a gradual collector of MoC titles. But anyway, it seems the only things the later edition will be missing are the alternate versions of the film, and the essay on the different ratios in the booklet - otherwise, the same extras are all included in the second run.

The Special Features for our Masters of Cinema edition of SHANE have been confirmed as follows:

Limited First Run Edition featuring a two Blu-ray set (2000 copies)

• Stunning high-definition restoration in three aspect ratios: The intended 1.37:1 presentation (disc one); the 1.66:1 original theatrical presentation; and an alternate 1.66:1 framing optimised for this ratio, supervised by George Stevens, Jr. (both disc two, limited edition exclusive) • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing • Uncompressed mono and stereo soundtracks • Audio commentary by George Stevens, Jr. and associate producer Ivan Moffat • Video interview with film scholar Neil Sinyard • Complete Lux Radio Theater adaptation of Shane • Original theatrical trailer • 36-PAGE BOOKLET featuring writing on the film by critic Penelope Huston, an unpublished interview with Stevens, a treatment for an unfilmed prologue to the film, an essay on the different ratios, and archival imagery.

Standard Edition One-Disc Set (Available once stock of the Limited Edition First Run have been depleted)

Stunning high-definition restoration 1.37:1 presentation • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing • Uncompressed mono and stereo soundtracks • Audio commentary by George Stevens, Jr. and associate producer Ivan Moffat • Video interview with film scholar Neil Sinyard • Complete Lux Radio Theater adaptation of Shane • Original theatrical trailer • 28-PAGE BOOKLET featuring writing on the film by critic Penelope Huston, an unpublished interview with Stevens, a treatment for an unfilmed prologue to the film, and archival imagery.

The release date for SHANE has been put back, and will now be released on 30 November 2015. Available to pre-order now http://amzn.to/1EgXP2v" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MichaelB]

I've been spending some time with all three versions, and it couldn't be more obvious that 1.37:1 is the intended framing.

Although it's been quite fun seeing the differences between the two 1.66:1 versions - they're mostly identical (handily, since it made it clear beyond any doubt how it would have been framed at the premiere), but every so often there'll be a readjusted shot, the most common tactic being to rack the image down slightly so that mountain tops are visible in the background.

[chatterjees]

So, the order I placed on amazon, was for one disc edition? I can't find the two-discs edition on amazon? Can I get some help? From the post here it seems that the one I ordered should be the 2-discs edition, because there is no one-disc edition to be released initially. Right?

[MichaelB]

Eureka has confirmed elsewhere that the one-disc version won't be made available until after the two-disc version has sold out, and that all current orders are for the two-disc version.

[chatterjees]

Eureka has confirmed elsewhere that the one-disc version won't be made available until after the two-disc version has sold out, and that all current orders are for the two-disc version.

Thanks Michael, that's what I thought. Again, the amazon page says that the item listed has one-disc. So, I guess I should be good with my current order.

[swo17]

The Amazon page also calls it a limited edition and includes the limited edition specs.

[rapta]

Yes, there should be no problems getting the 2-disc version...same goes for the upcoming 3-disc edition of A Touch of Zen.

I'm actually glad Eureka aren't doing concurrent editions of these, as it will encourage people to pre-order or get the titles earlier than planned (and therefore we're more likely to get more releases of this standard). It does seem like they've ditched steelbooks for the moment, but A Touch of Zen looks like it'll be getting the deluxe treatment, and we already know Man with a Movie Camera is too.

[chatterjees]

Got my copy from amazon today, and its a 2-discs set.

[manicsounds]

There seems to be issues of occasional audio dropouts and crackling sounds on the stereo track. Some people are reporting it on blu-ray.com, and watching it now, it also affects my copy.

[TMDaines]

1x Disc Blu-ray Edition Coming 6th June 2016