- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
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- Real Name
- Robert Harris
For those new to Technicolor, let's get some of the process's anomalies out of the way to aid in better understanding what's on screen.
An American in Paris (AAiP) was photographed in the Technicolor three-strip process, which pre-dated Eastman Color negative stock by two decades. The process was able to achieve a highly controlled image in either natural or manipulated color via printing from its three black and white negative images to matrices to a clear receiver stock.
Because there were three separate rolls of film, registration could be a problem -- it was never perfect -- which became more difficult after the original elements would shrink differentially over the decades.
To make things even more difficult two of the records were photographed in bi-pack, meaning that the image made its way through the first before hitting and exposing the emulsion of the second (the cyan negative, controlling red), which was flopped, and never achieved perfect focus.
All of this had little impact on original prints, which because of the early optics used to create the matrices, the dyes, mordant and blanks in use during the era, were not sharp. There was an "apparent" sharpness via contrast, but not anything close to the resolution of the image exposed to the original negatives. This became even less of a problem when one adds projector weave, optics and focus into the mix.
What this means is that in 1951, when AAiP was released, the problems were there but the viewer couldn't see them.
I'm mentioning this because Warner's new Blu-ray release of the M-G-M Academy Award winning Best Picture is sharper than anyone has ever seen it, which means that for those with a tendency to check out the image a foot from the screen, that there will be occasional fringing of red, having nothing to do with registration, which is handled beautifully via Warner's proprietary Ultra-resolution process.
The bottom line is that those lucky enough to have large screens and 1080p systems, will see AAiP in a way that audiences in 1951 could not have imagined. And you're in for a treat.
Considered one of the finest musicals from the Dream Factory, Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron and compatriots, directed by Vincente Minnelli has been brought to Blu-ray with perfection.
While I still don't understand why it was delayed domestically, with only a standard definition release, I'm pleased that it finally arrived.
An American in Paris on Blu-ray is a remarkable film, brought to Blu with perfection.
Very Highly Recommended!
RAH
An American in Paris (AAiP) was photographed in the Technicolor three-strip process, which pre-dated Eastman Color negative stock by two decades. The process was able to achieve a highly controlled image in either natural or manipulated color via printing from its three black and white negative images to matrices to a clear receiver stock.
Because there were three separate rolls of film, registration could be a problem -- it was never perfect -- which became more difficult after the original elements would shrink differentially over the decades.
To make things even more difficult two of the records were photographed in bi-pack, meaning that the image made its way through the first before hitting and exposing the emulsion of the second (the cyan negative, controlling red), which was flopped, and never achieved perfect focus.
All of this had little impact on original prints, which because of the early optics used to create the matrices, the dyes, mordant and blanks in use during the era, were not sharp. There was an "apparent" sharpness via contrast, but not anything close to the resolution of the image exposed to the original negatives. This became even less of a problem when one adds projector weave, optics and focus into the mix.
What this means is that in 1951, when AAiP was released, the problems were there but the viewer couldn't see them.
I'm mentioning this because Warner's new Blu-ray release of the M-G-M Academy Award winning Best Picture is sharper than anyone has ever seen it, which means that for those with a tendency to check out the image a foot from the screen, that there will be occasional fringing of red, having nothing to do with registration, which is handled beautifully via Warner's proprietary Ultra-resolution process.
The bottom line is that those lucky enough to have large screens and 1080p systems, will see AAiP in a way that audiences in 1951 could not have imagined. And you're in for a treat.
Considered one of the finest musicals from the Dream Factory, Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron and compatriots, directed by Vincente Minnelli has been brought to Blu-ray with perfection.
While I still don't understand why it was delayed domestically, with only a standard definition release, I'm pleased that it finally arrived.
An American in Paris on Blu-ray is a remarkable film, brought to Blu with perfection.
Very Highly Recommended!
RAH
