American Graffiti Blu-ray DNR issues? - Page 6

German PAL DVD vs USA BLU-RAY (mouse over to compare)

American Graffiti is one of my favourite films. One of the reasons that I love it is the way it was shot on my favourite format, 2-perf Techniscope at 2.35:1. For years I have hoped to see an original Technicolor dye-transfer print but they no longer seem to be out there. Has anyone here seen it in 35mm in the last 10-15 years?

I always liked the original DVD but the comparison above really surprised me*. The liquor store scene shows how soft the DVD is. But as many of you have said, a Blu being "better than the DVD" is not a good standard - 1080p vs. 480p NTSC (or 576p PAL) just as comparing DVD to VHS was a red herring. But I absorbed the Blu of Graffiti two weeks ago and it felt amazing. I didn't scrutinize the image but I never saw something that bothered me. However, I agree that it is a fudgy, less-than-optimal transfer. I paid $12 for my copy to be shipped to my Scottish Castle Greyskull so I don't feel bad about it. As I say, I'd love to see it on a HUGE screen in 35mm or 4K but as it is on Blu on my idiot box, it feels good as I watch it. Maybe in 2013 we'll see a flawless image, but the world wil have ended by then so why worry?

*That site is maintained and supported by highly knowledgeable Germans; be sure to check out their recent MGM Blu vs the Italian Blu of The Good the Bad and the Ugly, btw)

After months on my "to-see" shelf, I popped this in tonight. I don't have issues with the transfer, looks good to me. But why is it that every blu-ray I own from Universal takes a really long time to load? This must have taken 12 minutes tonight. A real pain in the ass. What's more, every Universal BD has the same menu design, which is lame, not to mention features that I'll never, ever use. 

 

I've decided that hereon out, I probably don't need to upgrade from DVD if the blu-ray is from Universal. It's just stunning to me how inferior their products are in comparison to the other studios.

You're looking for a Technicolor IB print made in the last 10-15 years? And you said "but they no longer seem to be out there." I'm curious if you EVER saw one from the initial run?

I can tell you that I ran "American Graffiti" when it first came out in 1973. While it's possible that I could be mistaken (not very likely ) to the best of my recollection the release print of "American Graffiti" (4 track mag) that I ran was on Eastman stock and was NOT a Technicolor IB print. However, the print was still made by Technicolor. The last Technicolor IB prints of a new film that I ever ran was "The Godfather II" and a loser called "3 Tough Guys" (aka "Tough Guys"), both in 1974. I know the print of "3 Tough Guys" was made in Italy and I believe "Godfather II" was also made there . Technicolor had already stopped making dye prints here in the U.S. While I'm aware that they were still making IB prints here in 1973 when "American Graffiti" came out, I can't account for why the print of "Graffiti" would have been made on Eastman stock. One possible reason could be that at the time, Universal thought the film would be a loser and it was cheaper to make Eastman prints when making a lower number of release prints, as opposed to Technicolor's process, which becomes cheaper with higher volume. If there are Technicolor IB prints that were made, they must have made them AFTER the film became a hit.

Although I was no longer working anymore at the time, I was told that Technicolor had started to make dye prints again, but, it was only for a short period of time beginning around 1997, and was mainly for archival purposes, not release prints. While I doubt if they would have made prints of "American Graffiti" at that time, it's possible since the film was on the AFI's 100 list.

Back in the late 60s there were many movies that were filmed in Techniscope. While some looked sharp, most always seemed to have a very grainy look, which obviously came from the Eastman negative and not a result of the Technicolor IB process. Most, if not all, of the Techniscope films from the mid 60's on were Technicolor IB release prints. Some of the films that I recall running that were made in Techniscope were; "Once upon a Time in the West" , "Your Turn to Die", "Counterpoint" and "Tobruk". There were MANY more at the time, but I just don't remember anymore these days. We used to call them "poor mans Cinemascope" because of the grainy look.