How the West Was Won (2 Disc) is Amazing! (1 Viewer)

[benbess]

Originally Posted by ahollis





The Cinerama Dome (Arclight) in LA shows this about every other year for a week's engagement in the fall. I believe they showed it this past September and they had some sound issues the first day. They also show THIS IS CINERAMA on the alternating years. I have had the opportunity to see HTWWW twice at the Cinerama Dome and words cannot describe the experience. I would like for them to also show some of the other Cinerama travel films and there is always hope (slight) that Warner's will be able to overcome the serious negative problems with THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM and allow that to run through the three projectors again.

Thanks, ahollis, for this report. Yeah, if they show it again maybe some of us will show up for it even if we have to fly across the country. Maybe I can think of some work I need to do in LA...? I'd really like to see it in the original way. The smile format is great, but I know it's a pale reflection of the real thing.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

That certainly is awesome news ahollis !


I really thought Brothers Grimm was a goner for sure according to the Wiki page.You can view small clips on youtube,but thats about it i guess.



And benbess ? if i ever get the money for a 120 inch screen,believe me that'll mean i have some left for popcorn and chocolate (there's ALWAYS money for chocolate.)


i'm wondering which one i should see,a Cinerama travelogue or a Cinerama western.I love water,any screenings of Windjammer ?

 

[ahollis]

Originally Posted by montrealfilmguy

That certainly is awesome news ahollis !


I really thought Brothers Grimm was a goner for sure according to the Wiki page.You can view small clips on youtube,but thats about it i guess.



And benbess ? if i ever get the money for a 120 inch screen,believe me that'll mean i have some left for popcorn and chocolate (there's ALWAYS money for chocolate.)


i'm wondering which one i should see,a Cinerama travelogue or a Cinerama western.I love water,any screenings of Windjammer ?

Grimm could be gone for good as everyone says, I always look for the bright side to everything and hope for the best. If you ever have a choice see HTWWW. You won't regret it.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Grimm shows up on TCM every now and then -- it's obviously sourced from a 35mm composite print (not sure if that's the correct technical term) rather than from the three individual panels, so it doesn't look quite right, but at least it's out there in some form. It would be great if someone were to find it sitting in a can somewhere, but I probably shouldn't hold my breath on that one.

 

[Matt Hough]

Originally Posted by Josh Steinberg

Grimm shows up on TCM every now and then -- it's obviously sourced from a 35mm composite print (not sure if that's the correct technical term) rather than from the three individual panels, so it doesn't look quite right, but at least it's out there in some form. It would be great if someone were to find it sitting in a can somewhere, but I probably shouldn't hold my breath on that one.

And the Brothers Grimm laserdisc seems to have been taken from the same source as it has the same wan color and lackluster presentation. But it's better than nothing.

 

[ahollis]

This is why I keep my hope up on TWWOBG: This is copied over from a HTF thread concerning Grimm.


From Dave Strohmaier, Director of Cinerama Adventure:

I actually never said the most of negs on Grimm were trashed, but some of the negs are water damaged from a vault flood. I saw a sample of the damage as a print was made at Crest Labs 6 years ago to check this out, damage was only on the very edge of one of the panels (pretty sure it was Baker). They also have YCM seps. of the Cinerama negs for Grimm but that would cost quite a bit to restore.

All in all with the right kind of money and time Grimm could be restored but it would cost much more that they spent on West.

The cost would appear to be the main stumbling block.

 

[benbess]

Originally Posted by ahollis

This is why I keep my hope up on TWWOBG: This is copied over from a HTF thread concerning Grimm.


From Dave Strohmaier, Director of Cinerama Adventure:

I actually never said the most of negs on Grimm were trashed, but some of the negs are water damaged from a vault flood. I saw a sample of the damage as a print was made at Crest Labs 6 years ago to check this out, damage was only on the very edge of one of the panels (pretty sure it was Baker). They also have YCM seps. of the Cinerama negs for Grimm but that would cost quite a bit to restore.

All in all with the right kind of money and time Grimm could be restored but it would cost much more that they spent on West.

The cost would appear to be the main stumbling block.

Interesting.

 

[RolandL]

Originally Posted by MattH.




And the Brothers Grimm laserdisc seems to have been taken from the same source as it has the same wan color and lackluster presentation. But it's better than nothing.

The showing of TWWOTBG on TCM is very different than the laser disc. Check out the differences on this page on my web site - http://www.cineramahistory.com/wwotbgld.htm

 

[RolandL]

Originally Posted by montrealfilmguy

That certainly is awesome news ahollis !


I really thought Brothers Grimm was a goner for sure according to the Wiki page.You can view small clips on youtube,but thats about it i guess.



And benbess ? if i ever get the money for a 120 inch screen,believe me that'll mean i have some left for popcorn and chocolate (there's ALWAYS money for chocolate.)


i'm wondering which one i should see,a Cinerama travelogue or a Cinerama western.I love water,any screenings of Windjammer ?

Windjammer was recently restored digitally by David Strohmaier and Rand Gitsch. Shown in Hamburg this month - http://www.in70mm.com/news/2011/metropolis/report_uk/index.htm


Video - http://www.davidstrohmaier.com/review/Mini%20Doc-iPhone.m4v

 

[montrealfilmguy]

Again,im always fascinated,amazed and grateful that people devote their time to do this kind of work.Providing the funds for this kind work are raised.


If i wasn't a writer,i'd probably be in restoration.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

Finally watched the film (not in smilebox ),the Cinerama doc and the butt-ugly trailer (which is good for comparison again the flawless bluray-well...99% flawless PQ )


I just got in for my evening shift at IBM,but later i'll write all my notes and thoughts which should provide some fun read for y'all.


Later.

 

[benbess]

Originally Posted by montrealfilmguy

Finally watched the film (not in smilebox ),the Cinerama doc and the butt-ugly trailer (which is good for comparison again the flawless bluray-well...99% flawless PQ )


I just got in for my evening shift at IBM,but later i'll write all my notes and thoughts which should provide some fun read for y'all.


Later.

Looking forward to your review!

 

[montrealfilmguy]

Gee i guess i've set myself up haven't i ?


ok,so its 1/3 review of the film,1/3 technical achievements and 1/3 notes and trivia and goofs oh my !

 

[benbess]

Great review! Thanks. Very amusing and perceptive. You're right the guest stars are almost a little like Police Squad once in a while. It's a long movie, and of its nature episodic, but sometimes I wonder if it might have worked better with maybe another well chosen 15 minutes to flesh out a few of the performances a bit. But, maybe not.


To me it's one of the great Westerns of the 60s, but it does have some flaws. The last seconds of the freeways leave me cold, for instance....

 

[Cinescott]

Fabulous review, Ben. Thanks. There sure are a lot of stars in this movie. I kind of like the episodic nature; it keeps things interesting for the rather long running time. Beautiful blu-ray.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

oh wait,i did say goofs but the only single goof i did notice was near the end.As Jason Robards is about to exit Lee J. Cobb office,watch Cobb holding his glass,it switches

hands from one cut to the next.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

couldnt help myself but here we go,


I started another thread about Debbie Reynolds collection going for auction at Profiles-in-history...


you have to download the pdf and look at pages 239 to 243.


I'm starting to think that i might have some moolah for some of this stuff.


but yes,it if starts at 2 grand,im ok,but if bidding for some of this goes way up,then im back to dreaming again.


I'd probably go more for the Star wars posters on the last pages though.Its mentioned that ,of course

one of those 3 she got from her daughter princess Leia.Nice.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Originally Posted by benbess

To me it's one of the great Westerns of the 60s, but it does have some flaws. The last seconds of the freeways leave me cold, for instance....

I agree completely there - although I can't help but wonder if that might have been part of the point.


In general, I'm not a huge fan of framing devices that take a mostly historical movie and give us a few "modern day" scenes thrown in. Take "Titanic" for instance; I happen to love that movie, but I think the period piece part of it is so engrossing that I hate when they cut back to the present - I kind of understand what they were going for, but I think the scenes that take place in the past are compelling enough that they don't need a modern day segment to tie them together. Not that HTWWW and Titanic are equal films - but it's that same idea of creating a really immersive historical setting, and then ripping the audience out of it that I don't like.

 

[Cinescott]

In the 1950s and early 60s, the freeway system was seen as a huge step forward in modern transportation, not the tangled mess of blight it's viewed as today.

 

[Garysb]

The 2 disc blu ray of "How The West Was Won" Digi book is apparently available at GRUV. This first release on blu ray was the only time the smilebox version has been available on disk.
At $19.99 this is a good deal for something believed long OP.
Hope it is not some kind of error.

How the West Was Won (Blu-ray Book Packaging) [Blu-ray]

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The link now shows the set is sold out. Maybe it was an error or a few people ordered the remaining stock after I posted about it. They should rerelease the 2 disc set or maybe 4K? TCM has been showing the smilebox version of HTWWW after the Brothers Grimm Warner Archive set was released which also includes a smilebox verstion of that film.