A Few Words About A few words about...™ The Searchers -- in High Defintion (1 Viewer)

[Gary Miller]

I saw this movie for the first time as a teenager, and, as a huge Westerns fan, was originally put off by The Searchers. I wasn't used to morally ambiguous heroes or Westerns that brought a tear to my eye. In adulthood it became one of my favorite movies. It remains so.

Without equivocation, the HD-DVD is the most satisfying experience I've had in 20 years as a home theater fanatic.

BTW, while high def might be too much to hope for, I'm still waiting for a decent transfer of the flawed, but underrated Marlon Brando western, One Eyed Jacks. The current public domain releases range in quality between crappy & crappier.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

I watched my copy of The Searchers last night. What an excellent viewing experience this was! This movie sets the standard for what other classic movies on the HD formats can acheive, and hopefully, even improve on.

Makes me want to view other large format movies (which shall remain nameless ) in HD as soon as possible.

 

[Efrain Lopez]

I watched this movie for the first time last night and really enjoyed it. That said, I could see the ending coming sort of, didn't really expect for Ethan to kill his neice
.

Some of the scenes were a bit strange like kicking the Indian lady in her sleep, but overall I liked the portrayal of the Indians and the colors and the themes of racism the movie maintained.

Can't wait for more John Wayne HD DVD releases.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

What's really funny is the "dead" Indian they uncover under the rock, who you can easily see breathing!

 

[Bob_L]

I finally got my copy today.

I had no idea how spectacular this would look. The opening shot is just like opening a door and walking into Monument Valley. Breathtaking.

I can't recommend this too highly. It really shows what an astonishing revolution we can look forward to with high-def discs and HD DVD, in particular. We'll be seeing all our favorites--old and new--in an entirely new way.

 

[Douglas Monce]

I first saw this movie on TV when I was about 7 or 8 years old. It was one of those movies that my whole family would watch when ever it was on.

I really think John Wayne is one of the most under rated actors in Hollywood history. He was such a huge star that people forgot what a good actor he was. Island in the Sky is another one that might surprise people who aren't particularly John Wayne fans.

He had brilliant comic timing. Check out McLintock! or Hatari! for a taste of the lighter side of Wayne.


As for the HD-DVD I honestly think this is the best looking disk I have seen so far. Even better than Batman Begins if I dare say that!

Doug

 

[Matt Hough]

Watched it on Blu-ray this afternoon. It was the first Blu-ray of TRUE quality that I've seen, and I was dumbstruck. Never thought the film could look like this; many shots look like three dimensional paintings.

Warners, please bring us NORTH BY NORTHWEST (another Vistavision classic).

 

[KurtEP]

Curious. I'm watching this on HD-DVD right now. On my TV, it looks perhaps a bit too bright. However, based on Mr. Harris's opinion of the movie, I think it's time to look into calibrating my picture.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

A quick note to this point. In addition to the gorgeous image quality of the HD presentation which is due to the stunning film elements themselves and WB's excellent digital transfer of them, WB is using and will continue to use the exact same VC1 compression stream for both HD DVD and BD. In other words, the picture you see from one format is exactly the same as the picture you'd see from the other (player/hardware issues not withstanding of course).

So anyone interested in an HD DVD title can read a BD review of a WB disc and they know what it looks like... and v.v. from HD DVD impressions extended to BD as well.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

What do you mean by WB "is using and will continue to use the exact same VC1 compression stream for both HD DVD and BD"?

I don't know if you chose your words carefully here on purpose, or whether you mean to say that WB will be using the same VC1 codec on both HD-DVD and Blu-ray.

Using the same "stream" isn't the same as using the same codec, is it?

 

[DaViD Boulet]

I mean "stream".

Codec just means the algorithm used to compress the video. The same "codec" could be used on two formats, but used at different bit-rates which would produce different results. Think of a regular Sony DVD versus a "super bit" DVD... both use the same codec... MPEG2. But the super bit and the regular DVD use a different MPEG video *stream*.

My point is that beyond using the same codec for compression, WB is actually, literally, using the same exact compressed *stream* (resulting data file) for both formats. There's no bit-level difference between the VC1 stream they compressed and used on HD DVD versus BD... the same stream gets authored on both formats.

This is true at least for now. So far when WB has an HD DVD that uses more than 25 gigs they are using 50 gig BDs to fit the same stream rather than recompressing at a lower rate.

What may change in the future is that WB starts to use the extra 20 gigs of dual-layer BD for additional features or for a higher-quality compressed stream rather than the same stream used on HD DVD. However, no indication by the studio has been made in regards to this at present as their current course is to give equal support to both formats and not artificially tip the scales in favor of one or the other based on mastering practices. It's assumed that the few differences that exist.

Not intending this to become a format-war debate so please don't mis-interpret my comments. I only mean to clarify that WB is committed, at present and for the foreseable future, in providing the *same* video compressed stream on both HD DVD and BD... literally... so they are exactly even in image quality regards.

This is significant because not all dual-support studios are taking this approach. For instance, Paramount has released some HD DVDs using VC1 that use MPEG2 for the same title on BD. There is lots of NDA surrounding these choices so it's hard to get insider information as to the reasons behind these decisions. But at the very least it complicates the job of objective a/b comparisons between the two formats. And even if the same codec were used, if the studio re-compressed using a higher bit-rate for one format over the other, that still wouldn't provide a level-comparison.

Warner has eliminated this kind of curve-ball by using the same exact data-file, or compressed stream, for both.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

Several of us had a HT meet where we compared several HD-DVD and Blu-ray titles (on a Sony Qualia 004). We compared MI:3, Corpse Bride, and Aeon Flux (Paramount and Warner titles). For all practical purposes, there was virtually no difference in PQ (I believe Corpse Bride is VC-1 on both formats). We did notice a very slight increase in color saturation on the BD copy of Corpse Bride, but that was probably due to the difference in the Panasonic BD player and the Toshiba (note that each input was individually calibrated by an ISF tech to each player before the meet, and he was also present).

So, all the people who cry that VC-1 is superior to MPEG-2 in terms of PQ are wrong as far as I am concerned.

 

[Eric F]

Just watch Kung-Fu Hustle to confirm that and prepared to be amazed.

 

[dkny75]

There's no VC-1 version of Kung Fu Hustle to compare it to so that would be a little pointless.

 

[Douglas Monce]

I have no doubt than MPEG-2 file can look exactly the same as a VC-1 file. Its just going to take up more real estate doing it.

Doug

 

[Rob Tomlin]

Exactly!

 

[dpippel]

How about we get back to discussing THE SEARCHERS. If you guys want to debate VC-1 vs. MPEG-2 why don't you start a new thread?

 

[ppltd]

I couldn't agree with you more. If all they ever produced in either HDformat were these classics, it would make the purchase price of the hardware well worth while.

 

[Douglas Monce]

The Searchers is the film that got me to buy an HD-DVD player. If there was some equivalant film out on BD I would buy a BD player. So far there is nothing I really want to see on BD.

Doug

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Well, the Searchers is out on BD. I think by definition that would be considered an "equivalant" film...