Once Upon a Time in the West 4K UHD (1 Viewer)

[Christian D66]

It's all about the color, folks. The Blu-ray is not quite accurate and I want completely accurate. As to the Blu-ray being "director approved" that would be some feat as the director died in 1989. I hear orange and I worry. I don't want to hear orange, I want to hear about the blue skies and Mr. Fonda's blue eyes.

I watched for the blue eyes specificaly and they were blue. My favorite shot in the film is with Jill on the stagecoach riding into Monument Valley and it's the best I've ever seen it.

 

[haineshisway]

I couldn't wait, so I rented it - couldn't view in 4K but did view in HDX 1080. I knew instantly from the Paramount logo that things were put right and they were put right. BLUE skies smiling at me - when the blue is dye transfer blue I'm happy and the entire print looks like the IB prints and that is a thrill. It's clean as a whistle, too. This may push me over the edge to 4K but I would imagine they'd include Blu with the new transfer. The old Blu is just that - old. Never liked it and therefore never really wanted to watch it. Everyone's gonna be very happy with this.

 

[Robin9]

I couldn't wait, so I rented it - couldn't view in 4K but did view in HDX 1080. I knew instantly from the Paramount logo that things were put right and they were put right. BLUE skies smiling at me - when the blue is dye transfer blue I'm happy and the entire print looks like the IB prints and that is a thrill. It's clean as a whistle, too. This may push me over the edge to 4K but I would imagine they'd include Blu with the new transfer. The old Blu is just that - old. Never liked it and therefore never really wanted to watch it. Everyone's gonna be very happy with this.

Thank you for that. I might now upgrade. I'm not a major fan of this film and so far I've stuck with the DVD.

 

[JPCinema]

I’m glad I purchased it. I’ve been using OUATITW to show my friends how extraordinary the 4K restoration is even thought it’s digital.

 

[cineMANIAC]

I've gotten so used to fantastic restoration work from small boutique labels that every time a major studio announces a big "tentpole" release like OUATITW I actually get a little depressed. Rarely do Hollywood studios produce stellar results overall when it comes to physical media. If it's not one issue it's another - always something. It's a good thing boutiques don't conduct consumer surveys because then everything would look like a Pixar film.

 

[johnmcmasters]

There are always so very many conflicting facts shared about this film and its versions. I had thought per Tim Lucas that the music cue issue was indeed corrected on the last blu-ray release of this film. I am quoting this not from the Video Watchdog publication but from DVD Beaver:

"NOTE: Thanks to Daniel in email "I was reading the comparison piece about Sergio Leone's 'Once Upon A Time In The West' on your website and I think you have missed an interesting difference between the new Blu-ray version and the original DVD.

In 1984, the restorationists, confused as to why the Finale music lasted 4 seconds longer than the negative solved the music synchronization problem by replacing the last 74 seconds of the correct exit music with the last 70 seconds of the tonally inappropriate Cheyenne's Theme. This alters the whole operatic sweep of the ending. I know there is a story about how Leone played Morricone's the music on set and choreographed the camera movements to the music in order to get the maximum emotional fusion of the two elements. Whether he did this on the final scene I don't know, but watching the scene with the two conflicting music cues is as different as night and day.

In the new issue of Video Watchdog, Tim Lucas's editorial cited the new 'Once Upon A Time In The West' Blu-ray as one of the key releases of the past year and noted that it does indeed fix the music mishap that flawed the original DVD release. Your comparison review doesn't note this, and not having the Blu-ray, I have no way of confirming whether this is accurate or not, but I thought the information might be of interest to you nevertheless."

I have the blu-ray release as mentioned in the Beaver review that offers two versions of the film, the 2:45:24 and the 2:46:01 versions. I haven't watched it in years, and will pull it out tonight, and thanks to this thread I have also purchased the VUDU version. If I can come up with any info about that darn end music, I will of course post. I also recall that there were many folks who believed that the opening sequence set in the train station has been missing seconds of interaction between the trio of assassins and their surroundings that added to the suspense and humor of the opening. I've never been able to determine exactly what was missing, and what extra frisson those seconds might give to the film. In any event, this is usually the film that I name now as my all time favorite when asked for an opinion. So glad that Mr. Kimmel and others are reporting the 4K version looks to be something special.

 

[Edwin-S]

If I can make another suggestion go as big as you can - within financial reason of course - as long as you are at least 2 screen diagonals away.

Based on that, the sitting distance from a 116" diagonal screen is 19.3'. That seems excessive.

 

[OliverK]

Based on that, the sitting distance from a 116" diagonal screen is 19.3'. That seems excessive.

This would be the minimum screen size that in my experience works in almost all use cases even with less than great content like DVDs or lower quality broadcast TVs. The better the content the closer you can get of course but that would depend on a number of factors.

 

[OliverK]

Thank you for that. I might now upgrade. I'm not a major fan of this film and so far I've stuck with the DVD.

Looks like you'll be in for a treat.

I have been saving this one up for some time hoping that it would get a UHD release. The Blu-ray while not horrible is nothing special either and I happen to think this is a special film and so I am glad that I waited.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Looks like you'll be in for a treat.

I have been saving this one up for some time hoping that it would get a UHD release. The Blu-ray while not horrible is nothing special either and I happen to think this is a special film and so I am glad that I waited.

Wow. That took me by surprise. The Blu-ray is regarded as spectacular. I just quickly looked at some online reviews to confirm that.

 

[OliverK]

Wow. That took me by surprise. The Blu-ray is regarded as spectacular. I just quickly looked at some online reviews to confirm that.

I spot checked mine when I got it years ago and Paramount did some funny stuff with the Techniscope grain texture.
I am aware that some people do not mind but it annoys me and should prevent the ratings that the film got.

Here is an example:

Obviously this happens in a lot of movies and it is not like the Dollar movies are doing much better for the many of their releases but it still isn't something I appreciate and I hope that we will see an improvement with the UHD version. The added resolution should help to better resolve those textures without making them look like compression noise.

Can't wait to get that UHD as I have been waiting to rewatch this for a long time since my last viewing on laserdisc!

Edit: Forgot to mention that the colors look a bit dated, too although I would not have called them horribly wrong, just not that great either.

 

[JPCinema]

There are always so very many conflicting facts shared about this film and its versions. I had thought per Tim Lucas that the music cue issue was indeed corrected on the last blu-ray release of this film. I am quoting this not from the Video Watchdog publication but from DVD Beaver:

"NOTE: Thanks to Daniel in email "I was reading the comparison piece about Sergio Leone's 'Once Upon A Time In The West' on your website and I think you have missed an interesting difference between the new Blu-ray version and the original DVD.

In 1984, the restorationists, confused as to why the Finale music lasted 4 seconds longer than the negative solved the music synchronization problem by replacing the last 74 seconds of the correct exit music with the last 70 seconds of the tonally inappropriate Cheyenne's Theme. This alters the whole operatic sweep of the ending. I know there is a story about how Leone played Morricone's the music on set and choreographed the camera movements to the music in order to get the maximum emotional fusion of the two elements. Whether he did this on the final scene I don't know, but watching the scene with the two conflicting music cues is as different as night and day.

In the new issue of Video Watchdog, Tim Lucas's editorial cited the new 'Once Upon A Time In The West' Blu-ray as one of the key releases of the past year and noted that it does indeed fix the music mishap that flawed the original DVD release. Your comparison review doesn't note this, and not having the Blu-ray, I have no way of confirming whether this is accurate or not, but I thought the information might be of interest to you nevertheless."

I have the blu-ray release as mentioned in the Beaver review that offers two versions of the film, the 2:45:24 and the 2:46:01 versions. I haven't watched it in years, and will pull it out tonight, and thanks to this thread I have also purchased the VUDU version. If I can come up with any info about that darn end music, I will of course post. I also recall that there were many folks who believed that the opening sequence set in the train station has been missing seconds of interaction between the trio of assassins and their surroundings that added to the suspense and humor of the opening. I've never been able to determine exactly what was missing, and what extra frisson those seconds might give to the film. In any event, this is usually the film that I name now as my all time favorite when asked for an opinion. So glad that Mr. Kimmel and others are reporting the 4K version looks to be something special.

Yes it is

 

[JPCinema]

S

 

[JPCinema]

As shown after the Paramount logo, at the end of the VUDU 4K HDR version of Once Upon A Time in the West

 

[Lord Dalek]

So its the 2009 restoration.

 

[JPCinema]

So its the 2009 restoration.

Hardly, the PQ is exponentially better than any version I have ever seen.

 

[haineshisway]

The PQ is exponentially better than any version I have ever seen.

Correct. This really feels like an entirely new scan, not something that was done twelve years ago. Re the opening scene, yes there are a handful of additional shots but they have NEVER been in any version shown anywhere but Italy. Yes, there are additional shots in the Claudia Cardinale arriving at the station but they have never been seen in any version other than the Italian. Yes, the end music is complete and correct but I have never heard it that way in any version other than the Italian, where there are also additional shots and the end titles start in a different place. I haven't watched the old Blu-ray in a decade but I'm pretty sure the music on both versions is the added Cheyenne music and my memory of my 35mm IB Tech complete (as in 1969 complete) version that's the way it played in that print, so... I have the Italian DVD of the film - no subtitles and completely brown and awful color but everything is complete there in terms only of how it was shown on its original release in Italy.

Now, there's a UHD of the original West Side Story there - is that a NEW transfer none of us know about with fixed overture?

 

[JPCinema]

I've watched it twice and it is a revelation! I suspected there were new shots during the ending shots in the VUDU streaming version. Thanks for confirming this!

 

[OliverK]

Correct. This really feels like an entirely new scan, not something that was done twelve years ago. Re the opening scene, yes there are a handful of additional shots but they have NEVER been in any version shown anywhere but Italy. Yes, there are additional shots in the Claudia Cardinale arriving at the station but they have never been seen in any version other than the Italian. Yes, the end music is complete and correct but I have never heard it that way in any version other than the Italian, where there are also additional shots and the end titles start in a different place. I haven't watched the old Blu-ray in a decade but I'm pretty sure the music on both versions is the added Cheyenne music and my memory of my 35mm IB Tech complete (as in 1969 complete) version that's the way it played in that print, so... I have the Italian DVD of the film - no subtitles and completely brown and awful color but everything is complete there in terms only of how it was shown on its original release in Italy.

Now, there's a UHD of the original West Side Story there - is that a NEW transfer none of us know about with fixed overture?

An entirely new scan it is and it also popped up as a 4K DCP:

Once Upon A Time In The West | Park Circus

Now, for the first time, Sergio Leone's original uncut version of this monumental epic can be seen. The picture itself is as big as its Monument Valley locations, as grand as its fine, distinguished cast, as tough and bawdy as every kid imagines the Old West. Henry Fonda plays the blackest...

www.parkcircus.com

 

[haineshisway]

Is someone gonna bite the bullet on West Side Story? I can't imagine they'd have a UHD of the old horrible thing.