Re: Exciting Discovery of DRACULA Film Element!
Because people still remember BLADE RUNNER (or at least have a desire to own such a thing), and there's also enough of a major difference between the versions to warrant a 5-disc set.Frankly, this is apples and oranges. There's no way Universal is ever going to put out a four disc set of essentially the same film with slight variation in quality (particularly when they've issued it... what.. three, four times now?).
Honestly, I know the film pretty well. Unless this story is true (which I really tend to doubt at this point), what you see is what you get. The film has looked like garbage for decades (having seen a 1951 print, I can attest to that), and will continue to, unfortunately, unless better material shows up. A marginal quality difference would mean going back to the earliest element for transferring, rather than the preservation element that was used as the transfer material, but the problem then is one of handling a rare element and the disasters that may impose themselves on such a situation.
Universal should focus their efforts towards films that HAVEN'T been released yet, in my opinion, or at the very least, work on titles that can benefit from new masterings at this point (like THE INVISIBLE MAN, for example). I think the DRACULA well is dry, for now.
and not just some jerk messing us all around then I for one shall be re-dipping into the very dry inkwell of Universal's beloved Drac.
