- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,437
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
Reviewing this particular release is a difficult task, as there is far more going on behind the scenes than will ever be evident on screen.
There were a myriad of problems, beginning in pre-production, with the decision to produce 35mm dye transfer prints with a unique appearance, mimicking that of 19th century whaling engravings and illustrations. Monochromatic, but still having color.
While that process was heralded as something new, in reality it was something old.
The concept was to shoot the film normally on Kodak's Eastman Color 5248 stock, and then manipulate the image during the Technicolor dye transfer printing process, by adding a fourth image -- black & white -- to tone the entire look of the film down. That fourth image was derived from the magenta dye layer of the negative, and was a return to the earliest three-strip dye transfer process, for which a silver record was necessary to yield the desired image.
That process was used from c. 1934 through the mid-1940s, when a new formulation of printing dyes made it unnecessary.
Prints produced in that process had a magnificent look to them, and both Mr. Huston, and his DP, Mr. Morris, were well aware of the look of prints during that era. The only question was, could Technicolor take a step backward and once again, print the three dyes on top of a modified black & white print?
They could.
And it was magnificent.
The problems began, when the process was only used for the initial prints, normally 300-400. Any reprints would be problematic.
At a certain point, the look of the film seemingly no longer mattered.
While there was legend and lore, few people actually did their homework.
The film was printed normally, in Eastman Color, possibly given a sepia look, and that was it. For video release, things became even more obtuse.
And then there's the MGM situation. I can almost hear someone at the current company, being asked about how the problem might be solved, and ending up sounding much like General Murray -- "I may as well tell you it's my considered opinion, and that of my staff, that any time spent on [Moby Dick] will be time wasted."
Over the decades, the unstable stock faded, and at some point, someone, presumably at MGM, decided to make a duplicate printing negative from the separation masters.
Only it was improperly produced, and yet accepted. Odd black levels, mold damage, and poor registration of the records, made for a lovely image.
Then that negative went through a telecine, adding more layers of problems.
That master was delivered to our friends at Kino Lorber, for use on their DVD of the film, and their release perfectly replicates that video element. It is what it is, and especially at DVD quality reproduction, any time or expense to alleviate the problems, would have gone virtually unseen. That's not saying that anything incorrect was done at KL. It wasn't. They put out what was given to them.
The next problem was that for a Blu-ray release, in which the resolution grows six-fold, every wort, scratch, mis-registration, and screwy level of image reproduction would now scream at viewers.
In that form, the MGM master would have been totally unreleasable.
The point must be made, that beginning with a poorly produced film element, and then putting that element through telecine in probably the cheapest way possible ("image? check!") now gave the folks at Twilight Time a possibly headache-inducing problem.
The film is important. There is no way, outside of an expensive full-on six-figure restoration, to make it look as it did in 1956.
So the video master was sent in for an eight month spa treatment.
Creating a perfect representation of the film from the element supplied would be an impossible task. Can't happen.
So the question really came down to, "Can lipstick is put on a pig, and have it come away looking far better than the pig that it is?"
The answer, within reasonable parameters, was yes. But that's also why the project took eight months.
This was a pig that wanted to stay pig, and every time Mr. Kimble worked to solve a problem, that pig would end up rolling in mud again, and then return for another spa treatment.
We're talking layer upon layer of baked-in crap.
To my eye, there is absolutely nothing else, that has not been done, that might have helped the film in any way.
To the uninitiated, it may appear quite gorgeous, and it does do a wonderful job of mimicking the original, while never quite getting there, which is an impossible task.
Registration errors have been removed. Scratches and YCM dirt eradicated. Black levels massaged, where possible.
But most important, original prints protected at the Library of Congress, were accessed and examined, as a guide to the proper look and textures of this incredible film.
And that look, has been reasonably returned.
Some might ask, "Where does that leave us?"
Easy.
It's doubtful that MGM will do anything about Moby Dick, it's an old whaling picture, with no current stars. Nary a Walther PPK in sight, nor bloodied boxing gloves. There is nothing here that speaks to popular entertainment.
In the end, Twilight Time's Blu-ray, and Mr. Kimble's work, are a success, as that pig has been roped and held in place while all of the lipstick was digitally applied, in an absolutely beautiful, meticulous and consummately professional way.
Make no mistake, this is not a restored film.
But the amount of digital work performed, has not only brought this video master back from the precipice, but along the way, has yielded a lovely looking Blu-ray of a superior entertainment.
Twilight Time has stepped up to the plate on this one, and chosen to handle a problem, not of their making.
It was done out of the love for cinema, and respect for their Blu-ray audience. What they, and Mr. Kimble have given us, is a wonderful job, allowing us to get far more than a glimpse what might have been.
Image - 3.5
Audio - 4
4k Up-rez - 3.75
Pass / Fail - Pass
Highly Recommended
RAH
There were a myriad of problems, beginning in pre-production, with the decision to produce 35mm dye transfer prints with a unique appearance, mimicking that of 19th century whaling engravings and illustrations. Monochromatic, but still having color.
While that process was heralded as something new, in reality it was something old.
The concept was to shoot the film normally on Kodak's Eastman Color 5248 stock, and then manipulate the image during the Technicolor dye transfer printing process, by adding a fourth image -- black & white -- to tone the entire look of the film down. That fourth image was derived from the magenta dye layer of the negative, and was a return to the earliest three-strip dye transfer process, for which a silver record was necessary to yield the desired image.
That process was used from c. 1934 through the mid-1940s, when a new formulation of printing dyes made it unnecessary.
Prints produced in that process had a magnificent look to them, and both Mr. Huston, and his DP, Mr. Morris, were well aware of the look of prints during that era. The only question was, could Technicolor take a step backward and once again, print the three dyes on top of a modified black & white print?
They could.
And it was magnificent.
The problems began, when the process was only used for the initial prints, normally 300-400. Any reprints would be problematic.
At a certain point, the look of the film seemingly no longer mattered.
While there was legend and lore, few people actually did their homework.
The film was printed normally, in Eastman Color, possibly given a sepia look, and that was it. For video release, things became even more obtuse.
And then there's the MGM situation. I can almost hear someone at the current company, being asked about how the problem might be solved, and ending up sounding much like General Murray -- "I may as well tell you it's my considered opinion, and that of my staff, that any time spent on [Moby Dick] will be time wasted."
Over the decades, the unstable stock faded, and at some point, someone, presumably at MGM, decided to make a duplicate printing negative from the separation masters.
Only it was improperly produced, and yet accepted. Odd black levels, mold damage, and poor registration of the records, made for a lovely image.
Then that negative went through a telecine, adding more layers of problems.
That master was delivered to our friends at Kino Lorber, for use on their DVD of the film, and their release perfectly replicates that video element. It is what it is, and especially at DVD quality reproduction, any time or expense to alleviate the problems, would have gone virtually unseen. That's not saying that anything incorrect was done at KL. It wasn't. They put out what was given to them.
The next problem was that for a Blu-ray release, in which the resolution grows six-fold, every wort, scratch, mis-registration, and screwy level of image reproduction would now scream at viewers.
In that form, the MGM master would have been totally unreleasable.
The point must be made, that beginning with a poorly produced film element, and then putting that element through telecine in probably the cheapest way possible ("image? check!") now gave the folks at Twilight Time a possibly headache-inducing problem.
The film is important. There is no way, outside of an expensive full-on six-figure restoration, to make it look as it did in 1956.
So the video master was sent in for an eight month spa treatment.
Creating a perfect representation of the film from the element supplied would be an impossible task. Can't happen.
So the question really came down to, "Can lipstick is put on a pig, and have it come away looking far better than the pig that it is?"
The answer, within reasonable parameters, was yes. But that's also why the project took eight months.
This was a pig that wanted to stay pig, and every time Mr. Kimble worked to solve a problem, that pig would end up rolling in mud again, and then return for another spa treatment.
We're talking layer upon layer of baked-in crap.
To my eye, there is absolutely nothing else, that has not been done, that might have helped the film in any way.
To the uninitiated, it may appear quite gorgeous, and it does do a wonderful job of mimicking the original, while never quite getting there, which is an impossible task.
Registration errors have been removed. Scratches and YCM dirt eradicated. Black levels massaged, where possible.
But most important, original prints protected at the Library of Congress, were accessed and examined, as a guide to the proper look and textures of this incredible film.
And that look, has been reasonably returned.
Some might ask, "Where does that leave us?"
Easy.
It's doubtful that MGM will do anything about Moby Dick, it's an old whaling picture, with no current stars. Nary a Walther PPK in sight, nor bloodied boxing gloves. There is nothing here that speaks to popular entertainment.
In the end, Twilight Time's Blu-ray, and Mr. Kimble's work, are a success, as that pig has been roped and held in place while all of the lipstick was digitally applied, in an absolutely beautiful, meticulous and consummately professional way.
Make no mistake, this is not a restored film.
But the amount of digital work performed, has not only brought this video master back from the precipice, but along the way, has yielded a lovely looking Blu-ray of a superior entertainment.
Twilight Time has stepped up to the plate on this one, and chosen to handle a problem, not of their making.
It was done out of the love for cinema, and respect for their Blu-ray audience. What they, and Mr. Kimble have given us, is a wonderful job, allowing us to get far more than a glimpse what might have been.
Image - 3.5
Audio - 4
4k Up-rez - 3.75
Pass / Fail - Pass
Highly Recommended
RAH
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