UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ My Fair Lady-- in 4k UHD Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

I still have this laserdisc boxed set. Never have played the CD. If memory serves, my prints are of Eliza’s looking at the back of Henry when she re-enters the living room at the end.

Those thousands of 70mm clip were cut by hand by my long-time assistant Joanne and her wife Linda. They were quite particular, and hundreds of feet of that first AP ended up as trash.

The overall concept of that boxed set came from CBS-Fox exec Ken Ross. A class act. The set also contained a hardbound copy of Cecil Beaton’s book.

 

[Robert Harris]

Not quite. While the 4K home video spec is 3840 X 2160 (1.78:1) the theatrical 4K DCP spec is 4096 X 2160 (approx 1.90:1). While 2.39:1 uses the full width, 1.85:1 does not. The 2.21:1 ratio doesn’t exactly conform to either of the automatic projector settings that theaters use. To avoid being cropped using an automatic setting, the DCP would need to be slightly windowboxed within the 1.90:1 frame.

A bit more complex, as a decision must be made whether to use the real estate in spherical or anamorphic. MFL remains spherical.

 

[Robert Harris]

I talk about being too young to attend roadshow films and in any case my parents refusing to pay such ridiculous prices when we could see the same film at a drive in! What I left out and I've written it before and maybe on this thread(!) but I don't have the patience to go through the thread was that I was supposed to be taken one day in the summer of '65 to the NY World's Fair by a couple of aunts. Imagine a little boy's heartbreak when he woke up to see it was raining. One of my aunt's decided to take my cousin and I to see MFL at the Criterion in Times Square. I never knew such a world existed! Unfortunately it was just about to vanish with the destruction of the Astor Hotel, Claridge Hotel, the Paramount and the Capitol, the twinning of the Warner(really tripling) and Loew's State. And of course the end of roadshow exhibition. And Times Square suddenly turned into the world of Taxi Driver.
To be honest I remember little about the movie except for Eliza's revisit to Covent Garden which I found so sad. What I remember most was how different it was the surrounding classiness of the theater itself, the people so well dressed, the usherettes in their black dresses with white lace collars and the man in a tuxedo selling the hardback souvenir book. I fell in love with the theater. But of course when I was a teen and able to go into the city by myself the Criterion was showing films like The Possession of Joel Delaney(to this day I am shocked by the scene with the little boy. Didn't this young actor have parents?) and Mandingo. Very very sad. At least the live theater was still great and to this day I consider myself lucky to have seen all the original productions of the Sondheim/Prince musicals, the Prince productions of Candide and Twentieth Century and the great performance of Cliff Gorman in Lenny. Unforgettable. Now Times Square is even worse than it was in the 70s! How was that even possible?

Ever make it to the Ziegfeld?

 

[Robert Harris]

I only had 1 other person in my screening at a Pennsylvania Regal on Monday night. Still a great experience, and it definitely was impressive to see it in the extremely wide aspect ratio. I'd only seen the movie once before, in a high school class decades ago on an old square TV. But I've listened to the Broadway version of the songs a few times, and watched the old TV show clips of Julie Andrews singing the songs on various shows on YouTube. I'm a Team Julie person, but I still admire Audrey Hepburn's acting, especially her facial expressions. They tell the story perfectly during some scenes, like the one where Higgins and Pickering are ignoring her after the ball. I just wish we didn't have those awkward transitions when a song starts and Marni Nixon's voice replaces hers.

I love the big size of the movie and its epic-scale story. It's got a full-blooded introduction, peaks with Eliza's pivotal public performance and then spends a lot of time trudging through the aftermath of that. I find it so profoundly culturally subversive that the Henry and Eliza relationship completely and explicitly eschews all notions of sex and money as motivating factors. They're clearly in love with each other, but in a pure and intellectually elevated way that you never see in movies today. I think when you appreciate the unique and deep connection that they formed, then you can appreciate the ending. They could never form a bond with anyone else the way they did with each other. I think their characters will keep changing for the better over time, the movie just didn't want to try and claim that it happened overnight.

For my money, the "I Could Have Danced All Night" sequence is the best scene in the movie and truly one of the best scenes in movie history. The lyrics, the music, Audrey's performance, the staging and direction of it is all just extraordinary, powerful, moving and uplifting. This girl achieved something and felt loved and appreciated for the first time in her life on both counts. The later scene after the ball becomes such a dark mirror image of it, that adds to the strength of the movie's storytelling.

I feel like if Julie had done the movie, it would've shifted more to being a screwball comedy, and had less pathos. Which I think would've been great still, but maybe in a different way. The clip on YouTube of Julie singing "Show Me" on a full stage with someone playing Freddy shows much more of a slapstick, comic flair than the movie scene did. Julie has real comedic chops, while Audrey Hepburn wasn't any kind of a comedienne. That Freddy scene probably would've played better as full-blown comedy (and the dorkier actor in that clip made a better Freddy for Eliza to reject than the soap opera-like guy in the movie). But Audrey's Eliza does give me an Eliza that my heart can break for, which is worth something too.

Have you seen Pygmallion?

 

[RichMurphy]

There isn't a ton of marketing for these Fathom re-releases of old movies. But they are listed online at Fathom Events website and at the websites for participating theaters. It would be easier if they marketed more heavily, but if you want to know what is going to be shown. I don't think it is worth the effort for Fathom to launch a traditional multimillion-dollar ad campaign for this kind of thing because they're not going to draw huge crowds. But they seem to have found a loyal niche audience. Oftentimes, (but not always) these types of re-releases are confirmed months in advance, so that helps. Mean Girls (the original, not the recent musical remake) is already on the schedule for October 3rd.

Sadly, marketing for movies in theatres has changed drastically over the years. Display ads in the Sunday paper are non-existent, and newer theaters don't even bother to submit their listings to the Movie Directory in the Washington Post. (I once wrote Alamo asking why they only listed their outlying theatre in the movie directory as opposed to the new one about a mile from the DC city limits. Was told they would "look into it". I guess they're still looking.)

The problem here is that fans of these older films are older themselves, and are often not attuned to the more modern methods of advertising.

 

[jayembee]

Sadly, you're right, of course.

My local Cinemark where I saw My Fair Lady this weekend masked the screens when I was on vacation here in 2014. By the time I moved permanently in September 2016, the same theater wasn't masking anymore. They could do it. They just don't want to be bothered.

The two different screenings of My Fair Lady at my theater on Sunday (afternoon and evening) happened in different auditoriums. Unfortunately, I think they want to be able to move things around on different screens without having to adjust the masking for different films that might share an auditorium but are in different aspect ratios.

And some people wonder why a lot of film fans would rather watch a movie in their home theater instead of "going out to the movies".

 

[Jim*Tod]

Sadly these Fathom events in my experience have been disappointing at least in the theaters here in Richmond, Va. I would have to agree with vintage films I am happier with my 4K system and surround sound at home (and this is none too fancy) for watching things like MY FAIR LADY.
Even sadder my treks to Silver Spring for AFI screenings (about 120 miles from here) for recent 70mm showings of STAR! and 2001 have been terrible---dim images on the screen and blah sound. At one time their 70mm presentations were superb. And in the long run it is cheaper to buy the 4K disc.

 

[Wayne_j]

There isn't a ton of marketing for these Fathom re-releases of old movies. But they are listed online at Fathom Events website and at the websites for participating theaters. It would be easier if they marketed more heavily, but if you want to know what is going to be shown. I don't think it is worth the effort for Fathom to launch a traditional multimillion-dollar ad campaign for this kind of thing because they're not going to draw huge crowds. But they seem to have found a loyal niche audience. Oftentimes, (but not always) these types of re-releases are confirmed months in advance, so that helps. Mean Girls (the original, not the recent musical remake) is already on the schedule for October 3rd.

There is a floor display in my local Regal with Fathom's entire 2024 Big Screen Classics series slate listed on it. People just have to actually go to the theater to see it.

 

[Jimbo.B]

I still have this laserdisc boxed set. Never have played the CD. If memory serves, my prints are of Eliza’s looking at the back of Henry when she re-enters the living room at the end.

I too still have this laserdisc set. It replaced the terrible first laserdisc version I bought where the film image was largely pink! I redeemed the coupon for the poster. It hung in my bedroom for years. I still have it.

I tried returning the first set because of the appalling color but they wouldn’t take it back. To date I have purchased this title on physical media four times—twice on laserdisc, once on dvd and once in 4k. That doesn’t include iTunes! Talk about double dipping!

 

[roxy1927]

Ever make it to the Ziegfeld?

Well of course many times starting with Cabaret through your great restorations multiple times each. But may I be forgiven but it was not the Criterion, Rivoli(2001 there on its 150 D screen was a religious experience) or Warner Cinerama. It was a wanna be. A big disappointment. Such a small screen for such a large theater. Though the only time it had a screen which did justice to the size of the theater itself was the revival of This is Cinerama in 70mm when it installed a huge curved screen. The print itself was not very good and the experience a disappointment to someone who had never seen a Cinerama film before. But how I wish they had left that screen in. Then all the subsequent 70mm films the theater was going to show would have been presented in their original first run glory. You didn't see that screen did you? Anyway it was removed for a revival of Franco's R&J. So back to the puny 50 ft wide screen. A 70mm needs at the very least 65ft. I think the Warner Cinerama was 80. The best thing about the Ziegfeld was the memorabilia. I wonder if it was given to the Museum of performing Arts.
I love that photo of you with Lean and the stars of Lawrence. Wow.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Historically, movie screens were not necessarily and uniformly as large as we think today. Many modern viewers would find the screens at single auditorium venues to be much smaller than they expected. I think a lot of movie fans would frankly be shocked if they could take a time machine back to view Academy ratio films in their original venues.

I would agree that by the time it finished limping to closure, the Ziegfeld was not an ideal venue to see a movie - it wasn’t even the best theater in that neighborhood to see a film. The owners of the Ziegfeld were content to keep it as a loss-leader for the prestige of hosting New York premieres of Hollywood films, and did not evolve with the times as new seating, screen and sound formats became the new standards. They didn’t even upgrade the venue to make it ADA compliant. They brought their own obsolescence upon themselves.

 

[roxy1927]

Now this is what I call a movie theater.

 

[Charles Smith]

Those thousands of 70mm clip were cut by hand by my long-time assistant Joanne and her wife Linda. They were quite particular, and hundreds of feet of that first AP ended up as trash.

The overall concept of that boxed set came from CBS-Fox exec Ken Ross. A class act. The set also contained a hardbound copy of Cecil Beaton’s book.

How wonderful to know that about the clips.

And if I recall correctly, I had the privilege of meeting Ken Ross at the store where the Blu-ray of the restored MFL was introduced. (I believe he was also responsible for the Twin Peaks set not long before? And no doubt much more than I'm aware of.)

 

[Robert Harris]

How wonderful to know that about the clips.

And if I recall correctly, I had the privilege of meeting Ken Ross at the store where the Blu-ray of the restored MFL was introduced. (I believe he was also responsible for the Twin Peaks set not long before? And no doubt much more than I'm aware of.)

Twin peaks and I believe the big Star Wars boxed set. Value Electronics.

 

[Jimbo.B]

Those thousands of 70mm clip were cut by hand by my long-time assistant Joanne and her wife Linda. They were quite particular, and hundreds of feet of that first AP ended up as trash.

I was disappointed with the clip included in my set. I really wanted something with Audrey Hepburn. Instead I got Rex Harrison and Wilfred Hyde-White at the ball. Oh well!!

 

[cinemel1]

Have you seen Pygmallion?

It was just on TCM a few days ago.

 

[VisionMan]

Those thousands of 70mm clip were cut by hand by my long-time assistant Joanne and her wife Linda. They were quite particular, and hundreds of feet of that first AP ended up as trash.

The overall concept of that boxed set came from CBS-Fox exec Ken Ross. A class act. The set also contained a hardbound copy of Cecil Beaton’s book.

I have a prized copy of the LaserDisc boxed set which you can see below. I also sent for for beautiful one sheet size poster that you could obtain if you bought the box, which as you can see is proudly displayed in the"lobby" of my home theater. Many years ago, I was an amateur projectionist at the Redford Theater in Detroit Michigan. Around 1990, we were fortunate to obtain for exhibition one of the 70mm prints based on Mr. Harris' restoration that CBS had made. It was my honor to project that gorgeous print on our 40 foot screen via our DP-70 projectors, with 5 Altec A-9 speaker systems behind the screen. It was the high point of my projection career at the Redford. Thank you, Mr. Harris!

 

[Robert Harris]

I have a prized copy of the LaserDisc boxed set which you can see below. I also sent for for beautiful one sheet size poster that you could obtain if you bought the box, which as you can see is proudly displayed in the"lobby" of my home theater. Many years ago, I was an amateur projectionist at the Redford Theater in Detroit Michigan. Around 1990, we were fortunate to obtain for exhibition one of the 70mm prints based on Mr. Harris' restoration that CBS had made. It was my honor to project that gorgeous print on our 40 foot screen via our DP-70 projectors, with 5 Altec A-9 speaker systems behind the screen. It was the high point of my projection career at the Redford. Thank you, Mr. Harris!

Thank YOU! Regardless of everything done to create a perfect print, it all comes down to quality projection. Without it, nothing that we’ve done matters.

 

[trajan007]

Thank YOU! Regardless of everything done to create a perfect print, it all comes down to quality projection. Without it, nothing that we’ve done matters.

I attended one of the showings. They were having sound problems that night but it got fixed.

 

[KPmusmag]

I too still have this laserdisc set. It replaced the terrible first laserdisc version I bought where the film image was largely pink! I redeemed the coupon for the poster. It hung in my bedroom for years. I still have it.

I tried returning the first set because of the appalling color but they wouldn’t take it back. To date I have purchased this title on physical media four times—twice on laserdisc, once on dvd and once in 4k. That doesn’t include iTunes! Talk about double dipping!

At least you skipped the VHS and the two different blu-rays (the first was garbage and then they wisely brought on Mr. Harris). Oh that first laserdisc was awful, wasn't it? Not only was it pan and scan and dreadful color, but the sound was so unstable - you could really tell if you played it through a Dolby Prologic decoder - it bounced around from speaker to speaker. I think I finally hit the mono switch.

And in point of fact there were THREE laserdisc editions - pan and scan with dreadful color, widescreen with horribly faded color (but better sound than the first) and then the box set laser from Mr. Harris' restoration.

So my tally is: VHS, laser, laser, laser, DVD, blu, blu, 4K. I win. (LOL)

Don't even ask me how many times I have bought The Sound of Music. Remember CED?