Warner Archive Discussion Thread (The Announcements/The Films) - Page 11

They should at least do a new transfer of whichever one sells the best.

Agreed!! 

They should give the pressed discs to "early adopters" of the popular MOD titles and (ever-cautious) supporters of the program, like me, free of charge. I must be lucky, though; of the numerous WA titles I've bought I've never had a serious quality issue, though I'm sympathetic to those who have. 

Warner should make crystal clear on their website which movies are coming from a new digital transfer and which are not.
 

Does anyone have a definitive list as to which titles actually feature new transfers? There are not that many, but there are few.

Yeah I agree. And they should have feedback on their webpage so people can grade the technical quality of each disc, as well as grading the movie.

It seems to me that a lot of the anamorphic widescreen 1950s films are new transfers.

The two films I have purchased from 1980, CARNY and HEART BEAT, appear to be relatively new anamorphic transfers.  HEART BEAT is much better looking than the old VHS transfer, with improved color.  I couldn't compare CARNY with the old VHS, but as someone said on the complaints board, the Archive disc of it is very sharp and colorful.

I wrote two reviews for titles at the WB store focusing almost solely on A/V quality. One was a glowing review for a Tarzan film, which they posted. The other was a scathing technical review for Under The Rainbow, which amazingly enough they haven't posted. Looks like the only way we will get honest feedback on these is from outside sources like this forum and others.

Since I was under the impression that all widescreen films would have necessitated new anamorphic transfers/masters, I was under the assumption these would be the 'safest' to order.
Wrong.
As UTR shows, there are still plenty of ways to ruin using these including the mis/over-use of digital tools like edge enhancement, as well as poor compression.
And then there are titles like Soldier In The Rain. While it is 16:9 enhanced, I'm not so sure it was from a true anamorphic master. It looks far too much like a 4:3 letterboxed transfer that was upconverted.

Surely you jest! I clearly recall the boffins at Warner saying that they would stand by their product!

More seriously, Warner should accept and encourage feedback on the technical standards of the discs, because it will simply help them sell a better product.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch..........

For anyone still interested in the regular, pressed, SD DVDs of classic WB, MGM and RKO titles, Amazon is having a huge sale for many of them through December 22, 2009.  Lots of individual titles at $5.79 (almost as good as Big Lots, if you can still find any there) and box sets priced at $18.99 and 23.39. 

Seeing as how WB appears to be scaling way back on any classic releases outside of a handful of Blu and the increasingly misguided Archive program, this might be a good time to stock up on some good old releases from the heyday of classics on DVD.  Some are already out-of-print and others headed for the same fate, which means the surplus right now is providing fantastic price points, but months from now,  who knows, watch out as the secondary markets might soar. 

DVD Savant gives a thumbs-up review to the WA's ANGEL BABY today. But he adds this: "Readers hoping that the Archive Collection has access to all of Allied Artist's releases need to curb their enthusiasm a bit, as many AA shows -- including some notable genre titles by directors like Roger Corman -- were independent pickups that reverted back to their producers." 

www.dvdtalk.com/dvdsavant/s3078baby.html

 

Question: Now that the third Tuesday of the month has come and gone, does anyone know whether we'll be getting another set of Archive titles before January? Just wondering ...

I was thinking the same thing.  Then I realized there are five Tuesday's in December so the release Tuesday may be mixed up.  I guess we will see on Tuesday December 22nd.  However, I would done a release on on the 15th with the holidays invading so much time.

There is a 5 for $55 sales pack going on right now. They have 410 discs to choose from for the sale.

here's a link to that 5 for $55 sale(I couldn't find it right away when I went to the site, but I may be dumb):
http://www.wbshop.com/Buy-any-5-of-these-DVDs-for-Just-$55/WAC5for55,default,sc.html

OK no new Value Paks.Which were pretty much $10 a dvd. The last 2 sales they had were 5 for $50 and 10 for $100. Why is it 5 for 55? I don't get the extra buck per dvd.

Before someone says it.I know a buck more a dvd isn't going to kill you. But why?

I wonder what Warner will release this Tuesday. I was hoping for more war classics.

Didn't the e-mail sent out for WBSHOP mention that this was it for the rest of the year and that next year will bring lots of surprises..

Here are a couple of observations on some recent releases.

Journey For Margaret - The transfer looks great, though there are minor speckles through out the film. The sound is clear and sharp. I did not have any problems with the execution of the disc. This was an enjoyable film with the kid's acting taking full stage and overshadowing Robert Young in just about every scene. Back to the transfer, I almost think that this was re-mastered with a thought for a standard DVD release at one time.

Dondi - Another good transfer presented in Widescreen with clear sound. The disc did not have any problems, but I wanted to shoot the harmonica player for the background music for I personally found it irritating and detracting from the film. David Janssen does a good job and Gale Gordon is always welcome on the screen. The actors making up the company each brought their special talents to the forefront with Arnold Stang doing his outstanding job as and outcast. David Kory is a little to sweet and needed some roughness for his character.

So Long Letty - It looks like it was made in 1929 but is a better transfer than The Show of Shows. The disc did not have any problems playing. The cast is the best thing about the film. Not only can you see the great Charlotte Greenwood recreating her stage role, but Claude Gillingwater, Patsy Ruth Miller, and Grant Withers are also standouts. After years as a silent screen actress Patsy would leave the film business behind in 1931. Her exuberance in the film leads me to believe we were shorted on what could have been some great acting.

The Show Of Shows - This is the exact transfer used on the laserdisc and while it played well, there was not any effort to clean up the print. As an example of early sound and film history, it is wonderful, but you have get over the scratches,dirt and splices. The only remaining 2-color segment was stunning and made an impact when it arrived with the entrance of Rin-Tin-Tin. One can only wonder at what the audience felt watching an all color, all talking film. The sound also leave a lot to be desired, but Winnie Lightner's song "Pingo-Pongo" is a highlight and makes you forget about the below average sound.

Over the last couple of days, I've watched The Hollywood Revue of 1929 and Everybody Sing. For the former, it looked better to me than the DVD-R I burned when the movie was shown on TCM. It's plenty damaged, of course, but it looked better than I ever remembered it looking, and the Technicolor sequences are all there.

Everybody Sing looked really nice. Aside from some specks of dirt and some minor scratches, it's in good shape picture and sound-wise.

WBShops site as part of their Happy Holidays streamer sez "Warner Archive Collection Next New Release 1/12/10" is good in a way, gives me a chance to catch up in viewing titles already purchased. 

I received my copy of THE SHOW OF SHOWS from the Warners Archive, and I am sorry to say that it looks like this job got bungled pretty badly.

I was looking forward to finally seeing this unique all-star Warner Brothers revue from the dawn of the sound era, but I was dismayed to find out that the Warners Archive DVD that I received, although its box lists the running time as 123 minutes, only runs about 64 minutes.  Most of the true highlights described by Warners in its blurb on the site and on the DVD boxcover, such as John Barrymore's Richard III segment, Winnie Lightner's rendition of "Singing In The Bathtub", and the surviving Technicolor footage with Myrna Loy, were missing from my DVD.  Something definitely went haywire when this project traveled from Warners to whoever is handling the preparation and production of this DVD... Almost one hour missing from the disc!  Not good, not good at all.

After reading the previous post about missing scenes on SHOW OF SHOWS, I popped my copy into my Mac and it's fine --
 All the scenes are there and the running time is correct. Either you got a bad copy or your player is having problems reading the disc.
Try to check it on another player. Good luck!

No, it's not a player issue.  The feature runs 64 minutes but includes the closing numbers and the end title, so it's a bad copy.  I will contact Warners Archive and get an exchange.

It seems as though there's a glitch in at least one batch of SHOW OF SHOWS transfers --- half of the film is missing on the DVD received today.  With six chapter stops I knew something was amiss --- and sure enough, the film cuts from the last moments of the "Meet My Sister" number to the second half of the "Lady Luck" finale, then simply ends.

I've gotten about fifteen of these early talkie WB Archive discs today --- and you can be sure I'll be examining them carefully.  My advice for anyone else who ordered these titles is to do likewise.

Now, I suppose we need to see how WB will address such an issue.  Poor print quality is one thing, but half the content missing is another!

Jeff

I'm another one who got the 63 minute version. I posted a warning note on the WB Archive Site for that title. Glad to hear there is a correct version. I'll now return mine and hope they can send a full-length copy.

Yes, I am at least relieved to know that the entire run of SHOW OF SHOWS hasn't turned out like the copies I and others received, although I dread the possibility of getting another copy, checking it out, getting another, checking it out, on and on until finally I get the lucky disc with the entire 123-minute feature on it.  I submitted my review to Warners Archive yesterday about SHOW OF SHOWS and my own warning to others to check their copies, but so far the site hasn't posted the review.

For what it's worth, my copies of the early talkie musicals SALLY and IT'S A GREAT LIFE were fine, and the features were complete.  IT'S A GREAT LIFE in fact proved to be a delightful film, and I really enjoyed the one-time showcase for the Duncan Sisters, a real gem from the dawn of sound.

Curious to know how you make out with your replacement copy of SHOW OF SHOWS.  WB customer service was quite helpful, and offered to immediately send a replacement and didn't ask me to return the defective one.

The replacement arrived in a few days --- but it turned out to be another defective 64 minute version.

I've written WB Customer Service again... the saga continues!

Jeff

Well, according to the UPS tracking information, I have about another week to wait for the arrival of my replacement copy of SHOW OF SHOWS.  Early returns are showing that I have a good (bad?) chance of receiving a fresh copy of... the same 63-minute botched job.  But hope springs eternal.

I am also displeased that my review submitted to the Warner Archive store site, even as a Verified Reviewer, has not been posted, nor has anybody else's expression of dissatisfaction with the SHOW OF SHOW discs holding a feature with nearly 60 minutes missing from its running time.  Unless a potential customer also visits this forum or some other internet site where they might find out about the potential for getting a defective disc, all they will see on the Warner Archive site is a glowing four-star review for SHOW OF SHOWS and think everything's just dandy.  And, it's far from dandy...

Any news of Warner Archive putting out their old TV shows like Maverick, 77 Sunset Strip, etc?

No luck for me either, Vitaphone.  The SHOW OF SHOWS replacement disc I received today was another copy of the truncated feature, so it was time to contact Customer Service for yet another exchange.

At least now the WB customer reps are acknowledging that yes, this release has been a problem with these 64 minute botch jobs.  The rep I spoke to mentioned a figure of around 70 orders which had been filled with this defective version.