- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,428
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
Let's begin with numbers:
1948 saw the release of 51 3-strip productions. Four from Universal.
The most important for the format in that year - The Adventures of Don Juan, Blanche Fury (a UK production shot by Guy Green and Geoffrey Unsworth), Easter Parade. Joan of Arc, The Paleface, The Pirate, The Red Shoes, Rope, So Dear to My Heart, A Song is Born, Three Godfathers, Three Musketeers, Words and Music...
and Tap Roots - a film that I'd never previously seen in color outside of a 16mm Kodachrome reduction.
To be honest, I was expecting it to appear much like the rest of the 3-strips from Universal, a quality recombine to an Eastman dupe, reasonably representative of the format.
This was far more.
The image harvest is either highly maneuvered, or of recent heritage.
Stability, color, shadow detail, black levels, all in their proper places. My only small complaint is that I felt it appeared a point or two heavy at times, but generally beautifully attained that 3-strip look.
One could try to go with the basics, and call it a lower-budgeted GWTW wanna-be, but this is a very decent film. Not great. But very decent.
The overall image resolution made it obvious that Boris Karloff as a Mississippi Choctaw, wasn't doing his own riding.
Susan Hayward is magnificent in 3-strip, as is her older sister played by Julie London.
Ward Bond, Van Heflin, Richard Long and the newly minted Whitfield Connor round out the main cast. Look for Elmo Lincoln in a bit as a Confederate sergeant, and Hank Worden in a bit.
Not one of the greats, but with an interesting history, and in this case a rarity as a film that actually digitally mimics Technicolor
Image – 4.5
Audio – 4.5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Recommended
RAH
1948 saw the release of 51 3-strip productions. Four from Universal.
The most important for the format in that year - The Adventures of Don Juan, Blanche Fury (a UK production shot by Guy Green and Geoffrey Unsworth), Easter Parade. Joan of Arc, The Paleface, The Pirate, The Red Shoes, Rope, So Dear to My Heart, A Song is Born, Three Godfathers, Three Musketeers, Words and Music...
and Tap Roots - a film that I'd never previously seen in color outside of a 16mm Kodachrome reduction.
To be honest, I was expecting it to appear much like the rest of the 3-strips from Universal, a quality recombine to an Eastman dupe, reasonably representative of the format.
This was far more.
The image harvest is either highly maneuvered, or of recent heritage.
Stability, color, shadow detail, black levels, all in their proper places. My only small complaint is that I felt it appeared a point or two heavy at times, but generally beautifully attained that 3-strip look.
One could try to go with the basics, and call it a lower-budgeted GWTW wanna-be, but this is a very decent film. Not great. But very decent.
The overall image resolution made it obvious that Boris Karloff as a Mississippi Choctaw, wasn't doing his own riding.
Susan Hayward is magnificent in 3-strip, as is her older sister played by Julie London.
Ward Bond, Van Heflin, Richard Long and the newly minted Whitfield Connor round out the main cast. Look for Elmo Lincoln in a bit as a Confederate sergeant, and Hank Worden in a bit.
Not one of the greats, but with an interesting history, and in this case a rarity as a film that actually digitally mimics Technicolor
Image – 4.5
Audio – 4.5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Recommended
RAH
