WHERE FOR ART THOU CLASSICS? (2 Viewers)

[TJPC]

Be warned however, it is mostly advertising, and strange to relate, everything they talk about is WONDERFUL!

 

[Robert Crawford]

Amazon dropped the pricing to $14.72 for The Bridge on the River Kwai!

The link below will take you directly to the product on Amazon. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

 

[Brian Kidd]

I think something we often forget to take into account as well, when wondering why certain films haven't been released, are the limitations imposed by the work that goes into a film to video transfer. There are only a relatively small number of people who are capable of performing the high quality of work that is necessary to do a really nice digital transfer/restoration. Even transfers of non-problematic elements involve color timing, compression, etc. With all of the films that currently lack decent digital scans, rights-holders have to prioritize which films can be put into the pipeline. Once a film is in the pipeline, it still has to wait until there is an opening in the schedules of the people who have to perform the necessary work. Sometimes a film may be in the pipeline but has to take a back seat to a more important (in the eyes of the studio, at least) film. Everything takes time and resources are limited. We've heard many times on this forum from people within the industry that they want to put out a particular film but that, given current circumstances, it isn't possible. By all means, we should voice our desires and support actual releases of films that do come out but we have to temper our desires and expectations as film fans and be persistent but patient. We also need to be realistic. Some films will never be re-released and, sadly, many will eventually disappear entirely.

I am a big fan of Cinerama and was disappointed that Brothers Grimm wasn't easily accessible. I finally bought a used copy of the laserdisc so that I could see it. It looks terrible. I searched for a decent digital copy of one of TCM's airings, because I had heard that the transfer they show at least looks better than the laserdisc. Alas, even that search has been fruitless. I would love to see a really nice HD copy of Brothers Grimm, even though I don't think anybody would classify it as a great film, but I just don't think it's ever going to happen. I'd love to be proven wrong, but I totally understand the many reasons why such a release is unlikely.

 

[Matt Hough]

I think the TCM broadcast of The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a better transfer than the laserdisc: marginally sharper and with better color. I recorded a TCM showing some years ago onto the hard drive of my DVD recorder but never got around to burning DVDs from it. When I want to watch the movie, I just watch it off the hard drive. It's also a lot more convenient than watching the laserdisc.

 

[Worth]

Brothers Grimm is on TCM this Thursday at 10pm.

 

[cinemiracle]

I think the TCM broadcast of The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a better transfer than the laserdisc: marginally sharper and with better color. I recorded a TCM showing some years ago onto the hard drive of my DVD recorder but never got around to burning DVDs from it. When I want to watch the movie, I just watch it off the hard drive. It's also a lot more convenient than watching the laserdisc.

But it ain't legal,is it?

 

[cinemiracle]

I think something we often forget to take into account as well, when wondering why certain films haven't been released, are the limitations imposed by the work that goes into a film to video transfer. There are only a relatively small number of people who are capable of performing the high quality of work that is necessary to do a really nice digital transfer/restoration. Even transfers of non-problematic elements involve color timing, compression, etc. With all of the films that currently lack decent digital scans, rights-holders have to prioritize which films can be put into the pipeline. Once a film is in the pipeline, it still has to wait until there is an opening in the schedules of the people who have to perform the necessary work. Sometimes a film may be in the pipeline but has to take a back seat to a more important (in the eyes of the studio, at least) film. Everything takes time and resources are limited. We've heard many times on this forum from people within the industry that they want to put out a particular film but that, given current circumstances, it isn't possible. By all means, we should voice our desires and support actual releases of films that do come out but we have to temper our desires and expectations as film fans and be persistent but patient. We also need to be realistic. Some films will never be re-released and, sadly, many will eventually disappear entirely.

I am a big fan of Cinerama and was disappointed that Brothers Grimm wasn't easily accessible. I finally bought a used copy of the laserdisc so that I could see it. It looks terrible. I searched for a decent digital copy of one of TCM's airings, because I had heard that the transfer they show at least looks better than the laserdisc. Alas, even that search has been fruitless. I would love to see a really nice HD copy of Brothers Grimm, even though I don't think anybody would classify it as a great film, but I just don't think it's ever going to happen. I'd love to be proven wrong, but I totally understand the many reasons why such a release is unlikely.

Having seen it in cinerama many times, I may be in the minority , but I consider it to be a great movie and having unforgettable music. I have lost count of the times that I watched it on disc. I do believe that it will eventually emerge on bluray. It's one of the most requested titles wanted by movie buffs. It's part of cinema history and needs to be restored for future generations to enjoy. A new Cinerama print would be a revelation. The film was made for Cinerama, so watching it on a tv screen detracts everything that made seeing it in a cinema ,such an memorable experience.

 

[Matt Hough]

But it ain't legal,is it?

I'm not quite sure what your comment means. Recording television broadcasts for private home use with no intention of using them for commercial profit was found to be legal during the VHS era. Unless I missed it, I don't think anything has changed.

 

[Brian Kidd]

Having seen it in cinerama many times, I may be in the minority , but I consider it to be a great movie and having unforgettable music. I have lost count of the times that I watched it on disc. I do believe that it will eventually emerge on bluray. It's one of the most requested titles wanted by movie buffs. It's part of cinema history and needs to be restored for future generations to enjoy. A new Cinerama print would be a revelation. The film was made for Cinerama, so watching it on a tv screen detracts everything that made seeing it in a cinema ,such an memorable experience.

Oh, I quite agree that it would be a different and better experience seeing it in true Cinerama. I was lucky enough to catch How the West Was Won a couple of times when the New Neon in Dayton was running Cinerama films back in the 90's and it was a revelation. Brothers Grimm has some very nice moments in it. It certainly isn't a bad film, by any means. It's just not a great film, especially outside of the spectacle of a true Cinerama screening. From my understanding, it would cost quite a bit to get the existing elements into shape for a HD release. Considering that very few people under the age of 50 know the film, I just don't see that happening. I agree that, for historical purposes, every Cinerama film needs to be preserved. Unfortunately, the likelihood of that happening with this film is pretty low. On the day when it is announced that it actually is happening, I'll be very happy.

 

[DP 70]

The only 3 panel Cinerama print of Brothers Grimm in the world is screening in Bradford this weekend.
I have seen it twice and it looks fab on screen.

 

[RolandL]

....But, HTF's own David Strohmaier has done a brilliant job of remastering the Cinerama travelogues for HD and BD, and has managed to do so at a fraction of the cost of what Warner spends. He has the experience and the knowledge to do the job at a cost that Warner could reasonably hope to recover. If it might not be at the level of "How The West Was Won," based on Strohmaier's other Cinerama work,based on Strohmaier's other Cinerama work, I don't think it's a stretch to say that it could still look better than anyone would have imagined.

I talked to Dan Sullivan of Image Trends at the 60th Anniversary of Cinerama film festival in 2012. He thought his company, David Strohmaier and other staff, could have done a better job on the How the West Was Won restoration.

 

[DP 70]

I think the WB version is one of the best BD I own, when I saw the DCP version projected on the Cinerama screen in Bradford it
was a bit cropped but a few people said this DCP looked better than the 1971 70mm version.
All I want is a BD or UHD of The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm and I don't care who brings it out.

 

[OliverK]

I talked to Dan Sullivan of Image Trends at the 60th Anniversary of Cinerama film festival in 2012. He thought his company, David Strohmaier and other staff, could have done a better job on the How the West Was Won restoration.

I think what they might have meant was that with the financial means that Warner had at their disposal they could have done a better job for the same amount of money or a similar quality job for less.
Or to put it another way: With the budget that Warner had for How The West Was Won they would have given us 4k versions of not only HTWWW but also The Brothers Grimm, Raintree County and The Alamo

 

[JediFonger]

funding's dried up man .

without consumers willing to purchase the products... there is no longer incentive for any content holder to dump any $ into releasing any classics.

 

[murrayThompson]

So there are no BD prints of El Cid is that correct? My BD copy is terrible on my 145" curved scope screen!

 

[Rodney]

Amazon dropped the pricing to $14.72 for The Bridge on the River Kwai!

Well, that didn't last long. It is now Temporarily out of stock and the price is back up to $22.99.
Must have been some sort of price-matching.

 

[yairisan]

Really good write up .............my guess is that many of these major film studios employ numerous young people with little or no interest in the movies of yesterday and who have zero interest in the Golden Age of Cinema and additionally films that are most wanted on Bluray ........they probably think the name errol flynn is a shaving cream......

Lousy guess, and an even more ridiculous notion—as if it costs more to hire someone with an interest in movies. Of course they hire people who are fit for whatever position. As for 'many major film studios', how many of the, let's see, 6 or 7 do you think are using the McDonald's hiring metric?

 

[RolandL]

I think the TCM broadcast of The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a better transfer than the laserdisc: marginally sharper and with better color. I recorded a TCM showing some years ago onto the hard drive of my DVD recorder but never got around to burning DVDs from it. When I want to watch the movie, I just watch it off the hard drive. It's also a lot more convenient than watching the laserdisc.

The laser disc has the sound from the prologue but no picture, TCM has both.
The laser disc is cropped on both sides compared to the TCM broadcast.
The laser disc is missing the overture and intermission music, TCM has both.

Click on the link below my signature, then click on the The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm to see more info and examples of the difference at the bottom of the page.

​

 

[RolandL]

The only 3 panel Cinerama print of Brothers Grimm in the world is screening in Bradford this weekend.
I have seen it twice and it looks fab on screen.

I think that was the same print they showed at the 60th Anniversary of Cinerama in LA at the Cinerama Dome in 2012.

 

[DP 70]

I think that was the same print they showed at the 60th Anniversary of Cinerama in LA at the Cinerama Dome in 2012.

Hi Roland, that's correct the print is ok but not perfect and has shrunk pretty bad in some sections, so when its projected it needs to be
watched all the time. The last time I saw it at Bradford the centre panel ripped about 5 mins before the intermission .
Also as you know The END title is missing from the original print and they have added one then putting black spacing in A and C panels.

Thanks as always for you great Cinerama Website

regards

Derek.