"My Fair Lady" Blu-ray November 15th - Page 4

For the roadshow Super Panavision showings the OAR would be 2:20

If the 35mm IP that we produced in '94 is used, the AR would be closer to 2.3+.

 

RAH

 

MFL is back up for pre-order on the Walmart web site.

Barrie Maxwell over at the digital bits has a lot to answer to my bank manager for. He turned me on recently to VCI's ongoing releases of cleaned-up/remastered British gems. No masterpieces, any of them, but they're like catnip to me. Prices run in the $14 - $18 range. As luck would have it, the ones I've been buying have mostly been at the highest end of the scale, including The Black Tent, coincidentally scheduled for a widescreen release on the 20th. (WW2 story filmed, topically, in Libya!). So thanks for exacerbating the gold outfllow, Robin, though you did warn that it's 'feeble' (a reviewer at Amazon rates it 'mildly entertaining'). The gem Brian will mostly be remembered for is the Alastair Sim 'A Christmas Carol - aka Scrooge'.

VCIs purchased so far include Candlelight in Algiers (Mason); The Malta Story (Guinness - another of Brian's); Tiara Tahiti (Mason) and Sea of Sand (Attenborough). Sadly, this last starts as widescreen then defaults to 4:3. Does anyone know if they've zoomed in or opened it up for the full frame? (If that makes sense - my technical knowledge/ vocabulary is zero. I don't know one matt from another, hard, soft or open!).

Apologies for using up MFL space on this, but have to take advantage whenever presented.

With all due respect to Audrey Hepburn and Julie Andrews, Cheryl Kennedy was the best prepared of the three going into that role. In an ironic reversal of what their characters had to endure, Audrey and Julie had to be coached to speak and behave like Cockneys, and the compressed training shows in the movie and clips I've seen of the stage production. Neither actress is totally comfortable in those segments despite, in Audrey's case, having the full support and attention of the 'woman's director', Cukor.

Hepburn is my all-time favorite female star, and I wouldn't trade her for anything, but she didn't have the massive range or stage experience of a Dench, Mirren or Blanchett that allows them to take on a variety of roles with comparative ease.

Greg's problem (#80) with Julie in the romantic stakes is mind-bendingly evident in the bedroom scene at the beginning of Torn Curtain. Torquemada never imagined the cruelty Hitchcock visited on us with that particular strip of celluloid.

Don't let me discourage you too much. The Black Tent is visually first class. I believe - I might be wrong - it was filmed in Vista Vision and when I've seen it, the movie has always had very clear and colorful images. I hope for your sake that VCI have sourced their DVD from good elements.

Its funny that I wish they were producing a big box set for MFL. Not that I would want it, its just that I would think Paramount was making an event of this release. . It makes me think this is just a blu ray of the single disc DVD with little work done to it. Hope I am wrong, but this seems like the least hyped release of a classic motion picture on blu.

I tend to agree. Regardless of what some people think of the film (I do think it's a bit static, over-reverential to the stage version and Audrey isn't up to the material in the first half), it was the most eagerly anticipated Hollywood release since Gone with the Wind, was the motion picture event of 1964, took a good share of the Oscars that year and has been an event-film ever since. I do think it warrants the same treatment given GWTW, The Sound of Music and the forthcoming Ben-Hur. I'm glad I kept the laserdisc boxset.

I did see Cheryl in the role. As I implied in an earlier post, she left almost zero impression on me. I dunno; I did see it on a Wednesday--maybe she was saving the good stuff for the weekend. But the audience only seemed to respond to Harrison and was generally polite to the rest of the cast. They all came to see Rex. So did I. I also recall nodding off for a few minutes in the middle of Act 2 lol

I agree with everything you've been saying about the revival. My saying Cheryl was the most competent of the three MFLadies was not to imply she had an ounce of star quality, something Hepburn had coming out of her pores (that face didn't hurt, either). On the other hand, I've seen many film legends (and actor heavyweights) get swallowed up on a stage or those I've met seem very prosaic relative to their screen personas.

The biggest star of MFL for me is Lerner (with suitable acknowledgement to GBS). I'd still get a kick out of Alan Jay's ingenious lyrics were my neighbor to read them over the phone to me. Ditto for Camelot.

I promised myself I'd wait for the reviews, but I bit the bullet in the wee hours of the morning and pre-ordered the blu on Amazon, if only to guard against an increase in price before release. I got stung with an increase on Man Who Would Be King by not jumping in when first announced.

Does anybody know whether Paramount has plans on rolling out the Blu-ray of "My Fair Lady" worldwide as quickly as they are with "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (which is being released quite soon in the UK to the US street-date)?

 

 

Amazon Preorder Link

It would be sad if the transfer is from 35mm elements.

The problem is far less with the 35mm element, and more with corrections that can now be made.  The 35 IP can yield a gorgeous Blu-ray.

 

RAH

Just placed my pre-order using the link above. Glad to help out the HTF. I'll bet the Amazon price will even drop a few dollars before release day, but if not it's still a pretty good deal at that price.

ill it come in a digibox with booklet like the WB releases?

This isn't a Warner release, it's Paramount. Not sure if they are as receptive to digi-book packaging as Warners are.

Have any reviews come out yet for this release? It comes out in two weeks.

I am tentatively scheduled to review this title, but the review copy has not arrived.

 

Matt-

If the news isn't good, please read this - carefully - before you decide to publish it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_the_messenger

Signed: 'A friend'.

we look forward very much to see if this blu ray lives up to Paramount's promise of a restoration. I have my doubts.... roll on your review

The review disc did arrive today, but I'm in the midst of a pile of 3D Blu-ray sets which come out next week, so they get first priority. If I get a moment, I'll try to give it a quick look to see what I can see.

Please do. Let us hope it will a a good surprise, not the disappointment that the WEST SIDE STORY blu ray apparently is.