UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - The Apu Trilogy -- in 4k UHD (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

Between 1955 and 1959, Satyajit Ray directed three films - each one a masterpiece not only of Indian, but of world cinema.

Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar are films about which if you're unaware, you need to pick up this set and experience greatness.

In the 1990s, AMPAS moved to properly preserve the films, and the original negatives were moved to a lab in London.

Before they could be accessed, much of the footage was destroyed in a fire that also claimed a number of British productions.

Hence began and epic project to salvage what could be found, and access other elements to fill in thousands of feet that had burned.

This was a major restoration. Possibly not up to the miracles that saved Out of the Blue, but close. Some material is from fine grains and dupe negs, so there are small imperfections, but it's all fine, and I couldn't be more pleased.

I grew up on these films, studied them in college, and am now thrilled that Criterion has taken it upon themselves to release them, not in Blu-ray, but in full 4k.

No need to go on. My advice is to get a set and enjoy.

Image – 7- 9

Audio – 9

Pass / Fail – Pass

Plays nicely with projectors - Yes

Makes use of and works well in 4k - 5

Worth your attention - 10

Upgrade from Blu-ray - Yes

Slipcover rating - heavy paper holders with plastic inserts in box

Very Highly Recommnded

RAH


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https://www.amazon.com/Trilogy-Crit...5577766&sprefix=the+apu+trilog,aps,107&sr=8-1

 

[bujaki]

One of the great cinema trilogies. Follow RAH's advice and get acquainted with the trilogy ASAP, if you don't already know and love it.

 

[Patrick McCart]

These are extraordinary films and it's easy to see why Ray stood out as a filmmaker. Somehow, these are beautiful films in terms of naturalistic visuals and acting, while not in the same league of artifice like a Lean or Kubrick. These feel like cinema that just "happened" in front of the camera, yet somehow perfectly captured. There's an excellent piece on one of the discs about the restorations where you get to see some of the burned and damaged reels (not for the faint of heart), what the most warped footage looked when scanned, and how Criterion managed to make 35mm that survived a fire look nearly pristine.

Did they need to bring out a 4K edition of this? Perhaps not at the top of the list, but I hope the availability in 4K persuades those mainly looking for eye candy, even if a bit more high brow, to discover these masterpieces. Great to see Criterion taking chances on films like this and The Rules of the Game.

 

[dpippel]

I grew up on these films, studied them in college, and am now thrilled that Criterion has taken it upon themselves to release them, not in Blu-ray, but in full 4k.

As I'm sure you're aware, Criterion already released a very nice set of all three films on Blu-ray back in November of 2015. Has more work been done on these great films since then?

 

[Angelo Colombus]

Satyajit Ray received a well deserved Honorary Award Oscar in 1992 a month before his passing and i viewed Panther Panchali for the first time years ago when the cable channel Bravo was showing foreign films. Will purchase the box set soon.

 

[ahollis]

I have the Blu-ray set, but your warm review immediately had me ordering this set. I really enjoy these films and need to dig deeper into them.

 

[titch]

As I'm sure you're aware, Criterion already released a very nice set of all three films on Blu-ray back in November of 2015. Has more work been done on these great films since then?

No. But it's a wondrous trilogy and deserves its place in the pantheon of cinema in the highest possible quality. There is little difference between the blu-ray and 4K discs, apart from superior compression, grain management and greyscale. But that was enough for me. I gifted the blu-ray box, as a late Christmas present to a friend.

Press Release - Criterion Press Release: The Apu Trilogy (4k UHD Combo)

A breathtaking milestone that brought India into the golden age of international art-house film, Satyajit Ray’s The Apu Trilogyfollows one indelible character, a free-spirited child in rural Bengal who matures into an adolescent urban student and, finally, a sensitive man of the world. Ray’s...

www.hometheaterforum.com

 

[Robert Harris]

As I'm sure you're aware, Criterion already released a very nice set of all three films on Blu-ray back in November of 2015. Has more work been done on these great films since then?

I am, but the difference afforded by 4k in this situation, (I’ll use a tech term) eeks out enough more information from the data files to warrant the new release.

That noted, for those who already own the Blu-rays, and may view the films (or screen them for budding cinephiles) infrequently, the 2015 may suffice. Also as noted, one must wonder if the same extraordinary archival personages behind Out of the Blue had taken on this archival crusade, might the results have been even superior?

Possibly if scanned in 13k, and via the use of their magical elixirs to return the films to their former glory. But then, the same tens of thousands of hours of hand labour and 30-40 million dollars may have made an even greater improvement.

For those, like myself, who can only conjure the basics of film restoration, this set will do nicely. But I fail to fully understand the full skillset of those behind the Out of the Blue restoration, and am left to ponder the what ifs of their wonders.

 

[jayembee]

Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar are films about which if you're unaware, you need to pick up this set and experience greatness.

Amen.

 

[jayembee]

Satyajit Ray received a well deserved Honorary Award Oscar in 1992 a month before his passing and i viewed Panther Panchali for the first time years ago when the cable channel Bravo was showing foreign films. Will purchase the box set soon.

Thank you for reminding me of those Glory Days when Bravo was a true arts channel. I saw many wonderful foreign productions for the first time back then, though the Apu Trilogy wasn't among them (but Berlin Alexanderplatz was).

I can't recall my first theatrical viewing...might've been at the Brattle Theater in Cambridge, MA or the Harvard Film Archives. But until Criterion's BD set was released, I had the UK DVD set from Artificial Eye to comfort me.

On edit: Speaking of Ray, Criterion, and Artificial Eye, I wish Criterion would get around to releasing Blu-rays of The Coward and The Holy Man. They've long released the other three films that were in Artificial Eye's The Satyajit Ray Collection (which I failed to acquire before it went OOP and started going for crazy bucks).

 

[titch]

Thank you for reminding me of those Glory Days when Bravo was a true arts channel. I saw many wonderful foreign productions for the first time back then, though the Apu Trilogy wasn't among them (but Berlin Alexanderplatz was).

I can't recall my first theatrical viewing...might've been at the Brattle Theater in Cambridge, MA or the Harvard Film Archives. But until Criterion's BD set was released, I had the UK DVD set from Artificial Eye to comfort me.

I've never been privileged to be able to experience the Apu Trilogy in a cinema, but I know for certain that the quality we can now experience from Criterion's 4K UHDs, will probably surpass anything that has previously been screened from a film print. Much of the World Cinema masterpieces are in woeful shape. Few developing countries have the resources to archive and preserve them. Martin Scorsese and the World Cinema Foundation are doing stellar work, but there is so much that is being lost.

 

[Robert Harris]

I've never been privileged to be able to experience the Apu Trilogy in a cinema, but I know for certain that the quality we can now experience from Criterion's 4K UHDs, will probably surpass anything that has previously been screened from a film print. Much of the World Cinema masterpieces are in woeful shape. Few developing countries have the resources to archive and preserve them. Martin Scorsese and the World Cinema Foundation are doing stellar work, but there is so much that is being lost.

Very nice set, but it does not surpass the original quality of the films in 35mm.

 

[madfloyd]

Very nice set, but it does not surpass the original quality of he films in 35mm.

Why is that?

 

[Paul Penna]

Very nice set, but it does not surpass the original quality of the films in 35mm.

Why is that?

Like he said in his review:

"In the 1990s, AMPAS moved to properly preserve the films, and the original negatives were moved to a lab in London.
Before they could be accessed, much of the footage was destroyed in a fire that also claimed a number of British productions."

 

[titch]

Very nice set, but it does not surpass the original quality of the films in 35mm.

It's an interesting thought: would an original, projected, black and white film from a 35mm print be superior to the picture quality from the best digital projection equipment today? I'm aware that the negatives in The Apu Trilogy were badly damaged and that the restoration is based upon these badly damaged negatives. But this production did have inherent challenges: a low budget production, shot on location by an inexperienced crew, in India. It's quite possible, that the picture quality of Pather Panchali, upon its premiere screening on 3 May 1955, during an exhibition at New York's Museum of Modern Art, was better from a (undamaged) 35mm print, than what you are now able to see on your screen at home, via your JVC projector. But maybe it wasn't. Heresy?

I would argue that mainstream vintage Hollywood or European productions in black and white would battle to compete with the picture quality from a top-notch DCP or 4K UHD. I'm not a film expert or insider. I just have my eyes and fifty years of filmgoing experience.

I saw many of Ingmar Bergman's black and white films from DCPs in a retrospective arranged by the Swedish Film Institute in 2018. I wouldn't bet that they looked as good, when originally projected in an Oslo cinema from 35mm film in the 1950's and 1960's. And I can say from personal experience, that Schindler's List did not look much better, when I saw it projected from 35mm, upon it's premiere in 1994, compared to the DCP and 4K UHD I saw last year. I'm not a betting man, but I'd reckon it would be safe to bet that quality digital projection will trump celluloid, every time.

 

[madfloyd]

Like he said in his review:

"In the 1990s, AMPAS moved to properly preserve the films, and the original negatives were moved to a lab in London.
Before they could be accessed, much of the footage was destroyed in a fire that also claimed a number of British productions."

Oops, my bad, sorry - and thanks.

 

[Kilgore]

Why is that?

Film doesn't involve pixels and it can resolve much finer detail and RGB resolutions than even 4K digital. Some have argued that to fully capture the full resolution of film you would need 8K. Mind you, for many films, this is possible with 4K. I'm no expert, but that is the way I see it.

 

[PMF]

I placed The Apu Trilogy on my “next” list last year; but somehow sensed that Criterion would take this BD boxed set to the 4K/UHD level. And they did. I am so relieved in having held out for just a bit longer. Eager to discover The Apu Trilogy; and now, to my great satisfaction, in its finest presentation (outside of a 35mm print).

 

[titch]

In the previous blu-ray release thread in 2015, Derrick King posted a link where Lee Kline said that the Criterion Collection was looking at restoring other Indian and Bollywood classics. Eight years later, they haven't announced anything new.

The Apu Trilogy (Blu-ray) (Criterion) (1955-59) Available for Preorder

Pather Panchali Aparajito The World of Apu The link below will take you directly to the product on Amazon. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

www.hometheaterforum.com

 

[Michel_Hafner]

In the previous blu-ray release thread in 2015, Derrick King posted a link where Lee Kline said that the Criterion Collection was looking at restoring other Indian and Bollywood classics. Eight years later, they haven't announced anything new.

The Apu Trilogy (Blu-ray) (Criterion) (1955-59) Available for Preorder

Pather Panchali Aparajito The World of Apu The link below will take you directly to the product on Amazon. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

www.hometheaterforum.com

Which is a shame. There are many worthy Indian films that are not Western style art house cinema and not part of a Western critics canon but deserve proper restoration and presentation. What is available from Indian commercial sources is usually digitally overprocessed remasterings of classic films or nothing in HD resolution. For starters Criterion could release the restored "Pyaasa" without the watermark of the Indian release. And have a proper go at "Mughal-E-Azam" whose Indian "restoration" is atrocious. And please, restore "Umrao Jaan".