What Classic Musicals do you most want WB to release on Blu? (1 Viewer)

[Robin9]

Summer Holiday - an underrated classic. Just to be sure, we are referring to Cliff Richard?

It's always wise to have a sense of humor when referring to Cliff Richard!

I don't think either film is an underrated classic but the first one does have a brilliant score. Anyone who wants to hear The Stanley Steamer at its best should listen to Jo Stafford's recording.

 

[Keith Cobby]

I hadn't realised The Stanley Steamer had been sung by Cliff and the boys, but then it has been a very long time since I saw Summer Holiday even though it is given a regular outing on UK television.

I agree that Jo Stafford's recording is good, probably definitive. I love her voice and her version of The Trolley Song is definitive for me.

 

[RolandL]

The Student Prince (1954)

 

[Edward Weinman]

The Student Prince (1954)

...the MGM soundtrack (LP) of "Deep in My Heart" had a booklet in which it indicated that Mario Lanza and Jane Powell would be cast...I wonder if any pre-recordings/footage were ever made with the pair?...

...perhaps not...Lanza may have been too heavy at that point in his life...

(...it may be of interest that Howard Keel and Jane Powell were to have starred in "Robin and Marian." but...)

 

[battlebeast]

ANYTHING BEST PICTURE NOMINATED!

 

[Doug Bull]

Joke or no joke, let's not get derailed or confused.
While I do enjoy the light hearted fun of the later Cliff Richard movie, which other than the shared title has nothing to do with the earlier film, it is however the 1947 "SUMMER HOLIDAY" which is clearly the definitive version.

It's a truly wonderful piece of Eugene O'Neill's Americana, beautifully directed by the great Rouben Mamoulian and produced by the brilliant Arthur Freed unit.
Sadly ignored at the time, this film desperately needs to be studied and re-assesed.
I just hope the existing elements are good enough for a Blu-Ray release.

 

[Mark-P]

As Summer Holiday has already been relegated to the WAC, its chances for Blu-ray are pretty slim. I can't think of a single title that has made the jump from MOD to Blu.

 

[Doug Bull]

It's sad, but I think you are right Mark.

At least we do have a watchable DVD.

I just wish that this film was better known today, as it was clearly ahead of it's time in 1947.
The drinking/ seduction sequence with it's subtle color changes of the sets, makeup and costumes is one of the most brilliant bits of direction you'll ever see.
It's almost a 3 strip Technicolor orgasm.

Doug.

 

[Rick Thompson]

Bells are Ringing
Damn Yankees
Finian's Rainbow
Pajama Game

What makes Damn Yankees in particular worthwhile is that it includes the only example of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon dancing together ("Who's Got the Pain?") -- and Finian's Rainbow is Fred Astaire's last screen dancing.

What would also be nice if they redid the awful blu of the That's Entertainment four disks.

 

[Nick*Z]

I have to say that I too have not been particularly impressed with WB's commitment to the classics of late in hi-def, particularly the great MGM musicals which have all but vanished from their roster for consideration.

I mean, Blu-ray debuted in what 2003/04. Can it really be ten years later and we still don't have so many immortal movie musicals out in 1080p. Don't get me wrong. I like Camelot. But given the choice between it and so many of the other aforementioned titles still MIA I don't see how Warner could have pushed it to the front of the line.

But WB has also been guilty of releasing less than perfect hi-def classics with little or no new restoration plugged in to get the image as snappy as possible. Their release of Little Caesar comes immediately to mind. I mean, it's the say digital files used to master the DVD just bumped to a 1080p signal. They didn't even take the time to go in and remove the vertical scratches in the scene where Rico gets his new apartment.

The studio would argue, its only a couple of minutes of screen time. If that's the logic then my reply is "hey, it's only a couple of minutes of screen time so fix it!" The flip side would be, it's too much money to fix. But I am of the reasoning and logic that if a title is good enough to make it to Blu-ray than it's worthy enough to get the utmost consideration. That means a NEW hi-res scan of original elements with all the clean up our current state of the art technologies can offer. Nothing less ought to be accepted.

Is this costly? Arguably, yes. Time consuming? No question. But necessary. MGM's old studio motto suffices here "Do it right. Do it big. Give it class."

I didn't see much class on WB's release of Easter Parade; its contrast harsh, its colors curiously garish and its mislabeling of the disc containing the 2 hr. comprehensive bio on Garland when no such bio was included. Badly done. Easter Parade on Blu looks nothing like it did in theaters or should on home video. But again, it looked about as awful on DVD and this disc pretty much appears to have been struck from the same flawed digital files. WB's done fine work in the past and can do so again. But lately they've been skimping - both on output and quality.

Their release of the 70s Gatsby is horrendous. Muddy colors, too dark and infrequently suffering from edge effects. Yuck! Who wants to watch any movie looking like that?!?!?

Here's to hoping they're just not taking a poll of titles they quickly want to pump out in whatever condition they currently exist. The real problem, of course, is that WB has become a repository for too many great movies. They manage the rights to currently their own extensive library, plus the old MGM backlog, and that of RKO, Selznick and now, Paramount. Too much! The responsibility of cataloguing and maintaining such a library alone is daunting, much less deciding what to restore, when and how much to spend on it.

I've been after WB for years to hire someone with an extensive knowledge of the library and some marketing savvy (okay, namely me!) to start putting together new ways of packaging the classics to home video. You can't just reissue the same old stuff with the same old extras in the same old box sets and expect that the public is just going to run out and buy the same titles all over again. Those days where a company could just pump out the same title multiple times with different cover art are over!!!

The economy has shifted and so has the consumer base. The consumer base for classics has become smaller. Die hard fans are really the focus group now - or should be. Others will follow, to be sure. But die hards are really the only ones willing to shell out for the good stuff if they deem it worth their while and dollar. Giving us 720p transfers bumped to 1080p signals with identical extras and very CRAPPY cover art isn't the way to appeal to this market share. It's about time the powers that be at WB clued into this.

Oh, and incidentally, re-releasing The Wizard of Oz in 3D for its 75th isn't the way to win us back either. Those of us who bought the 70th limited edition box have NO desire to re-buy a film NOT originally shot in 3D just so that we can see it in 3D and most who still don't own a 3D set will be quite happy to get the $19.99 single still readily available everywhere and forego the repurchase. Besides, all that wasted money spent of retooling and repackaging a movie that really didn't need either could have been spent bringing more classics as yet unseen in hi-def to hi-def. Dumb! Really dumb!

No, I sincerely hope that WB gets more proactive and smarter with the classics they choose to give us in the next six months of this year and twelve of the coming year. As Edward astutely pointed out - none of us is getting any younger.

Frankly, it's insulting that it is 2013 and we still have no comprehensive DVD (not MOD DVD-R) box set of Clark Gable's work at MGM. Ditto for Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, Greer Garson and Norma Shearer!!! It's just plain wrong that such superb melodramas and musicals like Weekend At The Waldorf, The White Cliffs of Dover, Mrs. Parkington, The Valley of Decision, Honky Tonk, Rosalie, Holiday in Mexico, The Merry Widow and That Forsythe Woman (to name but a few) have gone straight to MOD DVD-R. It's utterly heart-breaking to realize how many truly outstanding works of art are not even blips on the radar for the ultra-hi-def treatment. Selznick's Prisoner of Zenda, The Women, Marie Antoinette, Romeo and Juliet. Honestly, did we really get Baz Luhrman's glam-bam before the immortal and iconic Shearer/Howard version with Barrymore to boot?!?!

And let's not even talk about the misfires. The edge effects on WB's Doctor Zhivago and The Music Man - both requiring an upgrade in their image immediately and for starters. So, yes - I want to see more classics from WB made available yesterday. But I really don't want them looking like these aforementioned titles do. The Blu-ray format has proven it can offer the home enthusiast movies in mint condition. That claim was made by the studios themselves and I am afraid now they are stuck with it.

We don't need another format on the horizon (Red Ray, anyone?!?). What we need is for all of the studios - Warner included - to simply stick with the format at hand and make a concerted effort to honor their commitments to it! If it were up to me I'd concentrate less on the archive and more on the hi-def market. WB has made a lot of stuff available through the archive. Time to put it on the back burner for a bit and allocate funds for more ultra-res stuff in the pipeline. I'd also scrap the whole 'digital copy' thing. Those of us who want portable movies will simply take a DVD or Blu-ray in the car. I can't imagine anyone except the extreme techi wanting to watch Doctor Zhivago on his iPhone!

 

[Nick*Z]

PS - almost forgot - I am a huge proponent for a Mario Lanza box set in hi-def. In my opinion Lanza has been sadly overlooked on home video for far too long. We need hi-def versions of That Midnight Kiss, The Toast of New Orleans, The Student Prince, The Great Caruso and Because You're Mine.

PPS - I cannot believe that High Society did not make the cut in this voting list - the biggest and brightest money maker for MGM of 1956. For shame!!!!

 

[Fozziwig]

... I mean, Blu-ray debuted in what 2003/04. Can it really be ten years later and we still don't have so many immortal movie musicals out in 1080p. Don't get me wrong. I like Camelot. But given the choice between it and so many of the other aforementioned titles still MIA I don't see how Warner could have pushed it to the front of the line.
...

Blu-ray officially launched in June 2006 and did not become the sole HD disc format until 2008, so not quite as bad as 10 years! But otherwise, yes I would love to see more Blu-ray classic musicals (all the Busby Berkely musicals for a start - assuming decent elements are still around - and 'Paint Your Wagon') but I don't mind waiting as long as the releases are done well.

 

[Rob_Ray]

I'd love to see several of the films already mentioned, especially "The Band Wagon" and "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers", plus the Busby Berkeley films not yet mentioned, such as "Footlght Parade."

 

[Keith Cobby]

I note that Silk Stockings remains in the lead as it has since the poll started. I looked at the DVD recently and I think it is in good shape, therefore if not too much work is required to transfer to blu-ray I can't see why this shouldn't be released soon. The poll won't give Warners a lead on volume of sales but will tell them which titles are the most popular.

I have been requesting High Society in many threads and I still cannot understand why this title hasn't been released. Bing, Frank, Grace and VistaVision - a winning quartet.

 

[John Morgan]

Was the original intent of this list is to only mention MGM titles. Others have brought up some Warner Bros., and RKO titles, which I would love to have come out on Blu ray, either sets or individually.

**All the classic Rogers and Astaire RKO films

**Melody Cruise (RKO)

**Yankee Doodle Dandy (WB)

**Rhapsody in Blu (WB) great looking and sounding on the MOD release

**This is the Army (WB) from upgraded materials found in England after the DVD release

**By the Light of the Silvery Moon and On Moonlight Bay (WB) a perfect twofer.

**42nd Street and other Busby Berkeley films (WB)

**It's a Great Feeling (WB)

 

[ahollis]

With the death of Esther Williams today we should mention Dangerous When Wet and Easy To Love as Blu-ray hopefuls.

 

[FoxyMulder]

Its not mentioned but i think Warner Bros now distributes them, Annie Get Your Gun and Calamity Jane.

 

[Rob_Ray]

With the death of Esther Williams today we should mention Dangerous When Wet and Easy To Love as Blu-ray hopefuls.

And Million Dollar Mermaid and Neptune's Daughter.

 

[Matt Hough]

Yes, since the original post was mentioning MGM musicals, I didn't mention any musicals from other studios which I would love to have. But the Fred-Ginger RKOs and Calamity Jane and The Pajama Game would definitely be among the other studio titles (controlled by Warners) that I'd love to see on Blu-ray.

 

[Ed Lachmann]

And, since Warners now have the Goldwyn titles, I want PORGY AND BESS, PORGY AND BESS and PORGY AND BESS!