WHV Press Release: SORCERER (Blu-ray Book) (1 Viewer)

[Harry-N]

With apologies to Gary Tooze (for "borrowing" his work) who's posted his review at DVD Beaver: http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film4/blu-ray_reviews_61/sorcerer_blu-ray.htm

...I've taken his small screencaps and matched them up with the same shots from the old 1998 4:3 DVD for comparison purposes. Take this for what it is: a comparison of one man's DVD using VLC screen captures, versus posted shots from someone else's Blu-ray. My main goal here is to at least show the opened-up width of the images, but there are also color differences for which I'm less certain about. The new Blu-ray seems to have a decided shift in the palette toward the green in comparison with the old DVD, but this may indeed be what Friedkin intended all along.

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Harry

 

[Felix Martinez]

Surprising amount of cropping on the original 4:3 DVD for a film shot without anamorphic lenses.

 

[Mark Cappelletty]

The one screenshot that looks off is the one of the truck on the rope bridge-- that was the shot that was used as the key art poster and it looks over-saturated and gloomy compared to the print I saw last year at the Aero in Santa Monica.

 

[Harry-N]

The one screenshot that looks off is the one of the truck on the rope bridge-- that was the shot that was used as the key art poster and it looks over-saturated and gloomy compared to the print I saw last year at the Aero in Santa Monica.

The large version at DVD Beaver makes a nice wallpaper for the computer!

 

[Moe Dickstein]

The colors look way off on the old DVD - FAR too red. Look at the jungle in the one shot - the Blu looks properly green, and the DVD looks very muted and red in comparison

 

[Harry-N]

The colors look way off on the old DVD - FAR too red. Look at the jungle in the one shot - the Blu looks properly green, and the DVD looks very muted and red in comparison

Agreed. Based solely on these photos, my biggest concern is the shot of the wreckage with the tire. The greens seems far too pushed giving the tire a teal look and the green vegetation looks almost flourescent. But most of these shots look really good and fairly natural color-wise.

Harry

 

[hanshotfirst1138]

I can't shake concerns about some teal and orange here, and having recently discovered it on many releases and seeing how...aesthtically unappealing, shall we say, it is, I hope this isn't the latest victim (Aliens...shudder). As most of those screenshots are in the jungle, there's lots of green anyway, so it's difficult to tell.

 

[rsmithjr]

Looks somewhat too green but it looks adjustable, which is all that I ask for.

 

[Moe Dickstein]

I can't see how anyone doesn't vastly prefer the look on the Blu color wise. It looks fantastic from those pics!

 

[Charles Smith]

It sure does! Those from the DVD look almost monochromatic in comparison.

And yes, there are a lot of greens in the jungle. I have that on the best authority.

 

[Alan Tully]

I much prefer the look of the new Blu-ray, except the iconic shot of the truck on the bridge, where it looks like they've gone a bit overboard on the blue.

 

[cineMANIAC]

I've learned not to put too much stock in screenshots - computer monitors are not the same as 50 inch plasma TVs. Plus I already know this Blu-ray will blow any previous release out of the water. There's just NO comparison. Having said that, the bridge scenes do look blue but isn't it supposed to be stormy and rainy during that segment? I've only seen the film once but I remember that scene vividly and I thought it didn't look right the way it was on the DVD. It didn't look "stormy" enough.

 

[ahollis]

I can't see how anyone doesn't vastly prefer the look on the Blu color wise. It looks fantastic from those pics!

While I am not a cap guy, I do love the look of the caps of the Blu-ray. We played it in Theatres and while it was years ago, I distinctly remember the blue night tint during the jungle scenes. It have a really creepy feeling to those scenes.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I just watched this and I didn't get the feeling that any "new color timing" had occurred. Yeah, the jungle's green - jungles tend to be that way. Yeah, the scenes on the bridge are blue - they take place in the middle of a heavy storm, so the colors make sense.

I whine as much as anyone when I think an older movie has been "re-colored" for teal and/or orange, but I didn't get that sense here. I thought the colors made perfect sense for the movie and didn't come across as "updated" for modern palettes...

 

[Harry-N]

I just watched this and I didn't get the feeling that any "new color timing" had occurred. Yeah, the jungle's green - jungles tend to be that way. Yeah, the scenes on the bridge are blue - they take place in the middle of a heavy storm, so the colors make sense.

I whine as much as anyone when I think an older movie has been "re-colored" for teal and/or orange, but I didn't get that sense here. I thought the colors made perfect sense for the movie and didn't come across as "updated" for modern palettes...

Thanks Colin. I'm pretty sure I can trust your judgment. Looking forward to getting this next week. I've waited a long time.

Harry

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Thanks Colin. I'm pretty sure I can trust your judgment. Looking forward to getting this next week. I've waited a long time.

Harry

Thanks! It's a pretty terrific transfer, IMO. Too bad the disc includes virtually no extras - we get a director's note and the "book" but nothing on the BD itself.

Friedkin claims this is his favorite movie (of the ones he made) - why not at least record a commentary?

 

[cineMANIAC]

Friedkin claims this is his favorite movie (of the ones he made) - why not at least record a commentary?

I'd like to be AWAKE while watching the movie - his commentaries always make me drowsy.

 

[Harry-N]

I've never really cared all that much for extras on DVDs or Blu-rays. I'm one of those "give me the movie" guys. Extras, if present, might get partly looked at once, but it's the film I bought that'll bring me back again and again.

Harry

 

[TravisR]

Friedkin claims this is his favorite movie (of the ones he made) - why not at least record a commentary?

You can make your own William Friedkin commentary by just describing exactly what you're seeing onscreen and giving no other info.

 

[Bob Cashill]

Or better yet just read his autobiography The Friedkin Connection for the full lowdown. He may have felt written out on the subject.