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Lonesome Dove

#1
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5/11/08 at 2:00pm
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I see on Amazon's pre-order list Lonesome Dove is to be released on 8/19 in Blu-ray as a 2-disk collector's set, the studio being Genius Products (TVN). Never heard of them - has anybody seen any examples of their work? The reason I ask is that I bought this series a while back( since gone) and the release studio was either Lionsgate or Live/Artisan. In any case, the transfer was just awful. Worse than either Outland or Heaven's Gate. Hence my question about the forthcoming release. If it's the same old same old, I'll pass.

That would be too bad as this is one of the best Westerns out there and it deserves special treatment, especially in the transfer department.

Brad
From the rocking of the cradle to the rolling of the hearse, the going up was worth the coming down.
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#2
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5/11/08 at 6:55pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad Vautrinot
I see on Amazon's pre-order list Lonesome Dove is to be released on 8/19 in Blu-ray as a 2-disk collector's set, the studio being Genius Products (TVN). Never heard of them - has anybody seen any examples of their work? The reason I ask is that I bought this series a while back( since gone) and the release studio was either Lionsgate or Live/Artisan. In any case, the transfer was just awful. Worse than either Outland or Heaven's Gate. Hence my question about the forthcoming release. If it's the same old same old, I'll pass.

That would be too bad as this is one of the best Westerns out there and it deserves special treatment, especially in the transfer department.

Brad
Genius has the distribution rights for the Hallmark library. Lions Gate had the rights previously. I'm also curious about the transfer since I'm pretty sure OAR is 1.33. I would be willing to bet this release will be cropped to 1.78, but I'll withhold judgement until I read something concrete.
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#3
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5/11/08 at 7:33pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

It's obvious, but it bears repeating:

No OAR=no sale. That applies to TV material as well as film.

STOP THE MADNESS! STOP THE BUTCHERING AND ABANDONMENT OF TV SHOWS ON DVD!

My DVD List at DVD Aficionado, Now Featuring Blu-Ray

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#4
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5/12/08 at 1:00pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I'm willing to bet this will be its original aspect ration of 1:33:1, just like Casablanca, Robin Hood and Star Trek: Season One.
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#5
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5/12/08 at 1:10pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I just did several searches for this on amazon.com and it was nowhere to be found.
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#6
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5/12/08 at 1:53pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

HiDefDigest has it listed for an August 9th release. Genius Products is the distributor for Weinstein and apparently this will be Weinstein's first Blu-ray release.

Brad
From the rocking of the cradle to the rolling of the hearse, the going up was worth the coming down.
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#7
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5/12/08 at 3:22pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Yippie !

More Diane Lane in HiDef !

Glad it's got some neat extras this time too.

Norris

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#8
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5/13/08 at 6:29am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad Vautrinot
I see on Amazon's pre-order list Lonesome Dove is to be released on 8/19 in Blu-ray as a 2-disk collector's set, the studio being Genius Products (TVN). Never heard of them - has anybody seen any examples of their work? The reason I ask is that I bought this series a while back( since gone) and the release studio was either Lionsgate or Live/Artisan. In any case, the transfer was just awful. Worse than either Outland or Heaven's Gate. Hence my question about the forthcoming release. If it's the same old same old, I'll pass.

That would be too bad as this is one of the best Westerns out there and it deserves special treatment, especially in the transfer department.

Brad

Here's the press release on TVShowsOnDVD.com This is good news as I threw away that first release, which looked like you were watching the series through a sandstorm.

Lonesome Dove (mini-series) DVD news: Announcement for Lonesome Dove - 2-Disc Collector’s Edition on DVD and Blu-ray Disc | TVShowsOnDVD.com
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#9
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5/13/08 at 8:10am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Uh oh. The report on TVShowsonDVD.com says this release will be available for the first time in WIDESCREEN. Bad News.
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#10
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5/13/08 at 10:08am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

The inaptly-named Genius Products makes history with the first MAR Blu-Ray disc.

STOP THE MADNESS! STOP THE BUTCHERING AND ABANDONMENT OF TV SHOWS ON DVD!

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#11
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5/13/08 at 10:48am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Yeah, my reaction went from elation when I saw the headline at TVShowsOnDVD, to dejection when I read the widescreen comment. A remastered Blu-Ray of "Lonesome Dove" is a dream come true; a cropped version of LD is likely to be a nightmare.

Not surprising this is from the Weinsteins, who have a history of butchered films and bad transfers on DVD.
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#12
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5/13/08 at 10:55am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I'm sure Lonesome Dove is intended to be seen at 1.33 but isn't it possible that it was shot 1.85 and this release will show the empty space on the sides of the frame for the first time? It still is altering the image but it would be better than cutting the tops and bottoms of the frames off.
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#13
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5/13/08 at 11:08am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by TravisR
I'm sure Lonesome Dove is intended to be seen at 1.33 but isn't it possible that it was shot 1.85 and this release will show the empty space on the sides of the frame for the first time? It still is altering the image but it would be better than cutting the tops and bottoms of the frames off.

It is conceivable, but unlikely. Furthermore the IMDb has no technical data on this title.

STOP THE MADNESS! STOP THE BUTCHERING AND ABANDONMENT OF TV SHOWS ON DVD!

My DVD List at DVD Aficionado, Now Featuring Blu-Ray

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#14
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5/13/08 at 12:28pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by TravisR
I'm sure Lonesome Dove is intended to be seen at 1.33 but isn't it possible that it was shot 1.85 and this release will show the empty space on the sides of the frame for the first time? It still is altering the image but it would be better than cutting the tops and bottoms of the frames off.

There's a thread at AVS where they compare the old SD release with the new one (which is apparently already out in the UK) and the new release does show much more info on the sides of the frame. See here: Lonesome Dove re-mastered - Page 2 - AVS Forum
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#15
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5/13/08 at 1:30pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Those screengrabs actually look quite good and will look even better on BD. It looks as though there was definitely more to the original film element than we saw on TV. I know others will convulse, protest and throw up their breakfast, but I'm going ahead and getting this BD release with its widescreen presentation. I think the compositions look better actually in this particular case. It does not look claustrophobic and actually looks *right* to me. Let the hatemail begin.
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#16
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5/13/08 at 5:01pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I don't think there is any question that this is a tilt-and-scan job. You can tell by the way the framing changes in different scenes. There is a bit more information on the sides, but that's probably because the orginal 4:3 release was slightly zoomed. It's a shame because the transfer itself looks goregous.

I'm surprised that people are so forgiving of MAR for HD but not for DVD. The Roy Orbison disc was hacked up and most people just said "Looks good to me!"
I also remember people defending the HDNet broadcasts of "Hogan's Heroes".
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#17
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5/13/08 at 5:08pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I gotta admit, those screengrabs are encouraging. The PQ is vastly improved, and the reframing appears to have been done with skill. None of the chopped-off heads I was concerned about. There is supposedly a commentary on the disc with director Simon Wincer. I wonder how much he was involved in this effort.

LD is absolutely my favorite Western, and IMO one of the finest productions EVER filmed for television. I have to admit, though, that I always wished it had been filmed in a wider aspect ratio, as the material just begs for it. I know we're supposed to be OAR-only here, but given what we've seen so far I'm going to go ahead and give this disc a shot. If it turns out to be a travesty I've always got the old DVDs to fall back on... (UGH).
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#18
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5/13/08 at 5:35pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Craig, for all the same reasons you mentioned, I'm all over this release, even with its widescreen presentation. It looks vastly superior to the original DVD release, the cropping (and opening up in other places) doesn't seem to malign the picture, and actually looks like it was done with a great deal of care.

And it's my absolute favorite western and favorite mini-series of all time.
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#19
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5/13/08 at 6:43pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Williams
Craig, for all the same reasons you mentioned, I'm all over this release, even with its widescreen presentation. It looks vastly superior to the original DVD release, the cropping (and opening up in other places) doesn't seem to malign the picture, and actually looks like it was done with a great deal of care.

And it's my absolute favorite western and favorite mini-series of all time.
It's in my Top 5 for sure. I'm not happy about the MAR, but I may just break down and buy this. The colors look fantastic. Since I plan on getting The Last Emperor, I should probably buy this one too. Although if they end up doing this to Twin Peaks, I'll have to draw the line.
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#20
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5/14/08 at 12:52am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Apparently the Blu Ray has the 6 hour director's commentary as an exclusive

Toastmasters International

Communication is Everything

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#21
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5/14/08 at 1:14am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Unless the director wanted it to be in this aspect ratio, forget it. And you may draw the line at the idea of an MAR Twin Peaks, but who's to say Paramount wouldn't? Although since they already remastered it in 4x3 (presumably for HD), they could release it that way.

My OAR purism extends to TV as well as movies.

STOP THE MADNESS! STOP THE BUTCHERING AND ABANDONMENT OF TV SHOWS ON DVD!

My DVD List at DVD Aficionado, Now Featuring Blu-Ray

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#22
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5/14/08 at 6:27pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

So far, from what I've read this will be released in 1.66 which will be a decent compromise. Ah well, better than nothing.
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#23
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7/1/08 at 8:45am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

What was the original run time for this movie?

imdb has it at 384 min

The original DVD has it at 360 min

The new Blu-ray has it at 372 min

Are we still losing 12 min from the original movie on the Blu-ray?
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#24
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7/1/08 at 12:34pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Quote:
Originally Posted by DanMel
What was the original run time for this movie?

imdb has it at 384 min

The original DVD has it at 360 min

The new Blu-ray has it at 372 min

Are we still losing 12 min from the original movie on the Blu-ray?
I wonder if the 384 minute runtime includes some recaps from when it was shown over multiple nights on TV?
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#25
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7/29/08 at 8:44pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

the disc has a 373 runtime.
no mention of a dir commentary, unless that was a joke.
"Apparently the Blu Ray has the 6 hour director's commentary as an exclusive."
does that mean the commentary was previously somewhere else?

i see listed;
making of 50 minute featurette

original interviews on the set

a new interview with the dir

blueprints of a masterpiece -sketches and concept art

interview with mr. McMurtry
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#26
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7/30/08 at 5:14am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

I don't doubt that this isn't OAR and I understand that is usually the kiss of death. But... look at these BD screenshots from dvdbeaver Lonesome Dove - Blu-ray Robert Duvall Tommy Lee Jones
This will never be your gold standard BD demo disc but the PQ is vastly better than the current OAR release. I may wait for another review or two but I'm a hair away from purchase.
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#27
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7/30/08 at 4:24pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Having checked out the specs on DVDBeaver, I, for one, am horrified. They've put Parts 1, 2 and 3 on the first BD-50, with only Part 4 and standard def extras on a BD-25. That's over four-and-a-half hours of video and audio on a single BD-50. That's absurd! Each part eats up roughly only 15-17 GB of disc space. I think we've been shafted here, and for no real apparent reason.
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#28
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7/30/08 at 8:19pm
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Re: Lonesome Dove

i only watched about 45 minutes of the first sd release and stopped because it looked miserable.

this br looks miles better then that old dvd.

there are going to be those who still won't like it becauase
it still looks soft, but i bet it will never look any better then whats on this blu-ray.

my complaint is the dialog and the subtitles.
dialog is very low compared to the rest of the sound and sometimes words get cut off.

also most of the subs are skipping a lot of words.

i never understood why subs aren't exactly whats said on screen.


i think there/s going to be some complaining about this release.
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#29
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8/5/08 at 8:49am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

Tony, I have no doubt this Blu-ray could have looked better than it does by giving it two BD-50s with Parts 1 and 2 on Disc One and Parts 3 and 4 on Disc Two, with the 50 minute doc on one of the discs and the other extras on the other disc. I really can't imagine what the geniuses and Genius were thinking when they decided to put 4 hrs., 39 mins., on a single BD-50. But in my opinion, they've seriously crippled what could have been a great release. I'll see for myself tonight how it actually looks, but there's no doubt in my mind that it could have looked better.
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#30
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8/5/08 at 8:57am
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Re: Lonesome Dove

you're proaly right about that mike.

i did notice from one part to the next a difference in pic quality.

part 2 was much better then part 1 and part 3.
there were a lot of scenes that looked to me may have been filmed
with natural lighting, candles only, and these scenes suffered.

as for the show.
this was the first time a made it all the way through and i was just moved
by every performance and character in this.

Towards the end i kept having a Les Miserables feel from this.
that is a compliment as i love that story(the show not the book).
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