Warner chat at HTF 2006

[Jeff]

Warner executives will chat with the membership of Home Theater Forum on February 21. These chats are always a source of lots of information on upcoming titles. The admins at HTF won't allow any discussion of potential questions on their boards, but that doesn't prevent us from doing so here. Best to be specific in your questioning, and avoid wasting your question on things that we already more or less know about. You're fortunate if you get to ask one question, but it's a good idea to have a couple prepared in case yours has already been asked. And hey, if you don't have a question of your own, please feel free to ask one of mine. Post your questions here, so that we will have a bank of them to choose from, and hopefully they will all get asked. You can string two or three titles together, but it's best to avoid any more than that.

Potential Questions for Warner (You can see the questions that we came up with last year, along with their answers, or lack thereof, here)

With Robert Altman receiving a Lifetime Acievement award at this year's Oscars, will Brewster McCloud finally be released on DVD?

They are working on creating a new 16:9 transfer of it, so that it can be transferred to dvd

How about cult favorites like Performance, The Boyfriend, or Lisztomania? And do they own the rights to Mahler?

Performance will be out in "the next 12 months or so." Others not asked about

Other than Lady in the Lake, what titles will be included in the next Noir collection?

"at least one nifty Mitchum RKO film, and an MGM film
you might not expect"

What does Warner plan to do with all the British films they're sitting on (O Lucky Man!, the last few Ealing films, The Loved One, etc.)

not asked about

At last year's chat, it was mentioned that Greed and The Big Parade were being prepared for possible release. Will we be seeing either or both of those titles in 2005, and is there a chance that we may also see other silents such as The Wind and The Crowd, or perhaps Flesh and the Devil or other Garbo silents as part of the planned Garbo box set?

Greed, The Wind, Scarlet Letter, The Big Parade, Show People, and The Crowd are all schedule for late 2006 or early 2007

Will there be another Errol Flynn boxed set (Gentleman Jim, Virginia City, Charge of the Light Brigade, Northern Pursuit, Uncertain Glory)?

There will be a second Flynn set in 2007. Charge of the Light Brigade and Gentlemen Jim were specifically mentioned

Are there plans for The Sea Wolf?

It is coming, but they are looking for a 35mm print of the full length version

Warner is seriously lagging in their presentation of their silent film catalogue. Any plans for Greed, The Merry Widow,The Marriage Circle, Student Prince at Old Heidelburg, So This Is Paris, The Big Parade, The Crowd, The Patsy, Show People, La Boheme, The Wind, The Scarlet Letter, He Who Gets Slapped, The Devil's Circus, or Seven Footsteps to Satan?

Yes to most of these...see above

Does Warner intend to release Claude Lelouch's Les Miserables (1995) on DVD?

Not asked about.

How's work going on those Orson Welles titles? Does Warner own any more Welles titles (apart from Ambersons and Journey into fear) that are still unreleased?

Still looking for good elements on Ambersons. Journey into Fear will be released at the same time

Is Zabriskie Point going to be released this year?

Probably not, but they are aware of its popularity among Antonioni fans, and it is under consideration

Any chances of more Kazan, namely America America and The Arrangement? Will Warner also revisit his Splendor in the Grass?

There will be "more Kazan in the future."

Which titles will be released as double-features?

Not asked about

Any chances of Gene Kelly's Invitation to the Dance getting a DVD release?

Not asked about

Is That's Dancing going to be released soon?

They hope to release it next year

Is Paul Mazursky's Alex in Wonderland in the pipeline?

Not asked about

Does Warner hold the rights for John Huston's Wise Blood or John
Ford's Wagonmaster and the Fugitive?

Not asked about

Any chance for Vincent Sherman's the Hard Way or for that matter an Ida Lupino collection?

Lupino was asked about, but Warner did not address

Is Petulia still coming in 2006?

yes

Is The Devils still coming in 2006?

plans not solidified, but it's still under discussion

Any plans for The Merry Widow, The Smiling Lieutenant, or other Lubitsch?

Not asked about

Is Warner planning to release Elvis on Tour? And will they revisit Elvis: That's the Way it is?

Not asked about

Will Lolita, Barry Lyndon, and Full Metal Jacket get any love, or at least shed their snapper cases for Amaray keep cases?

It is very likely that they will revisit these titles in the Future

Will the movies that still use snapper cases ever be converted to keep cases?

Not asked about

Any plans to release Bernardo Bertolucci's 1981 film "Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man?"

Not asked about

Any chances of a Broadway Melody Boxset containing The Broadway Melody (1929), Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935), Broadway Melody of 1938 (1937), Broadway Melody of 1940 (1940), and Broadway Rhythm (1944) aka "The Broadway Melody of 1944"?

Not asked about

What about Heart is A Lonely Hunter?

Not asked about

Any plans for SHY PEOPLE, THE DEAD, THE NEW AGE, RACHEL RACHEL, TAKING OFF, or LAST SUMMER?

Rachel, Rachel is likely for 2007. Last Summer being discussed

Any plans for John Cromwell's Caged?

coming in 2007

Any plans for On Borrowed Time (1939)?

Not asked about

Any plans for Howard Hawks' The Big Sky (1952), Anthony Mann's The Tall Target (1951), or Jacques Tourneur's 1950 Stars in My Crown?

Not asked about

Any plans for Undercurrent, Clock, Two Weeks in Another Town, Some Came Running. Tea and Symphaty, Cobweb, Pirate, or Home From The Hill?

Some Came Running likely for Sinatra set, Home from the Hill in a Mitchum box, Cobweb hasn't begun restoration yet. Others not asked about.

Any plans for Seventh Cross. Act of Violence, Search and the Sundowners?

Not asked about

What about Michael Curtiz's "Four's a Crowd" or Hawks's "Ball of Fire"?

Not asked about

John Ford's Wagonmaster, and 7 Women?

Not asked about

Any plans to release Jan Troell's The Emigrants and The New Land?

Not asked about

Any plans to release to release The Illustrated Man?

Not asked about

Any plans to release the 1929 version of The Letter?

Not asked about

Are there still plans to revisit Bonnie and Clyde?

40th Anniv. set due in 2007

[justeleblanc]

How about cult favorites like Performance, The Boyfriend, or Lisztomania? And do they own the rights to Mahler?

[Ashirg]

Any Animanics or Pinky and the Brain news?
July 25th for both.

And here's a question to add - Which titles are going to be included in the next Film Noir set besides Lady in the Lake?

[tryavna]

At last year's chat, it was mentioned that Greed and The Big Parade were being prepared for possible release. Will we be seeing either or both of those titles in 2005, and is there a chance that we may also see other silents such as The Wind and The Crowd, or perhaps Flesh and the Devil or other Garbo silents as part of the planned Garbo box set?

Dear God, I hope somebody over there asks an intelligent question about what Warner plans to do more generally with their silent catalogue. To be sure, there are a few big titles that need specific mention, but I really get tired of the whole is-my-favorite-unreleased-title-coming-soon-? routine.

Hopefully, someone will also ask about what Warner plans to do with all the British films they're sitting on (O Lucky Man!, the last few Ealing films, The Loved One, etc.).

[Jeff]

Dear God, I hope somebody over there asks an intelligent question about what Warner plans to do more generally with their silent catalogue. To be sure, there are a few big titles that need specific mention, but I really get tired of the whole is-my-favorite-unreleased-title-coming-soon-? routine.

That intelligent question could come from you. The chats are just done on an IRC channel. There's nothing to prevent non-members from joining in the fun.

Hopefully, someone will also ask about what Warner plans to do with all the British films they're sitting on (O Lucky Man!, the last few Ealing films, The Loved One, etc.).

They mentioned tentative plans for O Lucky Man! in last year's chat, and Malcom McDowell has supposedly recorded a commentary track in the interim.

[Gregory]

Which titles are going to be included in the next Film Noir set besides Lady in the Lake?

Last year the titles in the annual film noir collection were announced within a couple of weeks of the chat, if memory serves. If it's going to be roughly the same this year that may not be the most strategic question.

That intelligent question could come from you. The chats are just done on an IRC channel. There's nothing to prevent non-members from joining in the fun.

I hope everyone who can will show up and try to ask questions from the list. In previous years most of the questions have been either TV-related or trying to squeeze out information about upcoming titles they'd already announced but hadn't given specs for yet. This is a chance to find out what their plans are for a lot of films that seem to be in limbo, and I hope it won't be another opportunity pretty much wasted. That's just my two cents.

[kblz]

I hope everyone who can will show up and try to ask questions from the list. In previous years most of the questions have been either TV-related or trying to squeeze out information about upcoming titles they'd already announced but hadn't given specs for yet. This is a chance to find out what their plans are for a lot of films that seem to be in limbo, and I hope it won't be another opportunity pretty much wasted. That's just my two cents.

I'd just like to second the above, and add that with regard to the film noir material, Eddie Muller posted the following lists yesterday on another forum, saying that these are the films that he'd bet would comprise the next two Warner noir sets. He emphasizes that these are just guesses, but considering that he recorded a commentary for the last Warner noir set (and possibly has already done so for a future set or sets), odds are that they're pretty well-educated guesses:

Act of Violence '48
Big Steal '49
His Kind of Woman '51
Lady in the Lake '47
On Dangerous Ground '52

Crime Wave '54
Decoy '46
Mystery Street '50
Tension '50
They Live by Night '49

[bjeggert82]

Someone needs to ask about possibly more Errol Flynn discs/another boxed set.

Gentleman Jim
Virginia City
Charge of the Light Brigade
Northern Pursuit
Uncertain Glory

And also The Sea Wolf with Edward G. Robinson...

[Alain3000]

I like to see a question asked about Pedicab Driver/Golden Harvest titles that they have the rights to.

[chaddoli]

I feel like we should keep pestering them about this: Blade Runner Director's Cut

[Ashirg]

I feel like we should keep pestering them about this: Blade Runner Director's Cut

From here:

And finally, here's a bit of news that's going to get a lot of you excited (and I made a point to specifically ask about this title, believe me)... Ridley Scott's Blade Runner (1982) is currently on track for release as a multi-disc special edition in time for its 25th anniversary in 2007. The release is far from certain (as usual, there's a lot more that I can't post about this title yet - think of the old saying, "Loose lips sink ships"), but Warner says that work is proceeding, most of the key players are involved and things are "looking good" for release next year. We'll see.

It's unlikely they'll give you any more info

[starmanof51]

Looks like HD and TV product-related questions will be out of bounds this time, which should help immensely.

[What A Disgrace]

Warner is seriously lagging in their presentation of their silent film catalogue.

Greed
The Merry Widow (would make a great dual release with a certain Lubitsch film)
The Marriage Circle
Student Prince at Old Heidelburg
So This Is Paris
The Big Parade
The Crowd
The Patsy
Show People
La Boheme
The Wind
The Scarlet Letter
He Who Gets Slapped
...any number of other Lon Chaney films
The Devil's Circus
Seven Footsteps to Satan

[Caligula]

I'll repeat my question of last year:

Does Warner intend to release Claude Lelouch's Les Miserables (1995) on DVD? Or do they still expect us to buy the VHS?

[Dorian Gray]

It's nice to get re-releases/SEs, but what about previously unreleased films ?

I mean : a nice "Power of Media" boxset is coming out soon, but those three films were already available on DVD (regardless of video/extras quality) while we're still waiting for Prince of the City or The Hill from Sidney Lumet...
The same with Robert Aldrich : re-releases of Dirty Dozen and Baby Jane have just been announced, but there's still no mention of Lylah Clare or All the Marbles...

[Lino]

Some questions:

- How's work going on those Orson Welles titles?

- Does Warner own any more Welles titles (apart from Ambersons and Journey into fear) that are still unreleased?

- Is Zabriskie Point going to be released this year?

- Any chances of more Kazan, namely America America and The Arrangement? Will Warner also revisit his Splendor in the Grass?

- Which titles will be released as double-features?

- Any chances of Gene Kelly's Invitation to the Dance getting a DVD release?

- Is That's Dancing going to be released soon?

- Is Paul Mazursky's Alex in Wonderland in the pipeline?


I'm sure there are more but these are it for now.

[tryavna]

That intelligent question could come from you. The chats are just done on an IRC channel. There's nothing to prevent non-members from joining in the fun.

I hope everyone who can will show up and try to ask questions from the list. In previous years most of the questions have been either TV-related or trying to squeeze out information about upcoming titles they'd already announced but hadn't given specs for yet. This is a chance to find out what their plans are for a lot of films that seem to be in limbo, and I hope it won't be another opportunity pretty much wasted. That's just my two cents.

I did not realize that non-HTF members could participate. If I'm able, I will certainly ask my question.

[Max von Mayerling]

Certainly no question is as pressing as the arrival of some of the works of the dearly departed Tex Avery.

Except perhaps the Greed matter that has been discussed at length here and elsewhere. Really, if they don't do something about this by the end of the year I'm liable to drop my monocle in my pudding.

[dx23]

Certainly no question is as pressing as the arrival of some of the works of the dearly departed Tex Avery.

Except perhaps the Greed matter that has been discussed at length here and elsewhere. Really, if they don't do something about this by the end of the year I'm liable to drop my monocle in my pudding.

Yep, somebody should ask about the Tex Avery classic cartoons, since it has been almost 10 years for the DVD format and they haven't been released. Also, somebody should ask if they taken into consideration or at least seriously, the polls at TCM.com. That will probably give us an answer on when Greed, along with the other catalog titles, are going to be released.

[FilmFanSea]

Yep, somebody should ask about the Tex Avery classic cartoons, since it has been almost 10 years for the DVD format and they haven't been released.

Animation questions are not allowed at the chat on Feb 21st:

Per request of the studio: This chat is restricted to THEATRICAL CATALOG product only.
An additional chat is being planned with other WHV execs to discuss TV, Sports, Classical Animation and other Franchise titles.

[bergelson]

Does Warner hold the rights for John Huston's Wise Blood or for John

Ford's Wagonmaster and the Fugitive?

Also, any chance for Vincent Sherman's the Hard Way or for that matter an Ida Lupino collection?


Thanks

[Brian Oblivious]

Animation questions are not allowed at the chat on Feb 21st:

With that in mind, three things.

1. Avery's centennial is in 2007. (Friz Freleng's is in 2006, despite some sources that will tell you it was last year).

2. You can find some of the Avery cartoons as extras on various discs (Battleground, High Society, etc.), but you knew that.

3. It would be nice if someone reminds those of us here who don't go to HTF very often when the "animation-approved" chat is going to take place.

[Zumpano]

Here's my question:

Is Petulia still coming in 2006?

[justeleblanc]

Will the Kubrick DVDs be presented in their theatrical ratios?

[Lino]

This goes without saying but someone please ask about The Devils.