Paramount - ONE new oldie !! (1 Viewer)

[Eric Peterson]

I gave up on Paramount after their recent announcement about the re-release of the Billy Wilder boxset that includes a new SE of Stalag 17, but everything else is the same including the boxart. They own four Wilder titles and they release three of them in a boxset. If that doesn't tell you that they are clueless than nothing will. Especially when the title left out "Ace in the Hole" is much more highly regarded than Sabrina and by many moreso than "Stalag 17".

I would also love to buy all of the silents that were mentioned above.

...and just in case some studio exec is reading this thinking that I'm some bitter old man - I'm 33!!!

Until Paramount gets their shit together, I will not be buying any more of their titles. This gives me more cash to spend at WB.

Thanks for nothing Paramount!

 

[ted:r]

While I can understand (at least theoretically) why Paramount may not want to release its film library, what I can't understand is them just sitting on it. Couldn't they lease out their films to a company that is willing to take the financial risk? Or even just outright sell the library? If they think the films won't sell on DVD, why not sell them to someone who think they will and just pocket the cash?

About that preservationist...that is simply a chilling story. While I understand sometimes hard choices have to made given time and resources, I would have hoped that factors such as historical importance and quality would take precedence over what someone's revisionist view of history should be, and that a balance should be struck embracing all genres.

 

[Charles H]

Paramount's Republic library has some terrific titles that have yet to make dvd: Lang's SECRET MEYOND THE DOOR, Nicholas Ray's JOHNNY GUITAR, George S. Kaufman's THE SENATOR WAS INDISCREET, Andre DeToth's terrific noir PITFALL and RAMROD, Milestone's NO MINOR VICES and ARCH OF TRIUMPH, John Ford's uncut THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT, Borzage's THE MAGNIFICENT DOLL and MOONRISE, Max Ophuls' CAUGHT and LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN, CASBAH, THE MIRACLE OF THE BELLS, Endfield's TRY AND STOP ME, Orson Welles' MACBETH, Siodmak's THE DARK MIRROR and THE STRANGE AFFAIR OF UNCLE HARRY, Leo McCarey's GOOD SAM, Boettcher's THE BULLFIGHTER AND THE LADY, THE LOST MOMENT, IT'S IN THE BAG, Robert Wise's THREE SECRETS, SPECTRE OF THE ROSE, Renoir's DIARY OF A CHAMBERMAID, THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES, GUEST WIFE, THE PRIVATE AFFAIRS OF BEL AMI, and a non-pd print of PENNY SERENADE. It is sad to think of these being purchased by Paramount--only to languish as they did with Artisan.

Paramount is rereleasing/"repackaging?" LOVE HAPPY in addition to JULIUS CAESAR. Hopefully, they'll take another crack at Preminger's letterboxed THE COURT MARTIAL OF BILLY MITCHELL. A marginally superior print was shown on TCM recently, but still misframed.

 

[Patrick McCart]

Actually, I kind of wish the silents were with Universal since we'd actually get a release more likely.

Paramount would more than make their money back on TCM Archives styled sets...

The Josef von Sternberg Silents Collection:

- Underworld (written by Ben Hecht)
- The Last Command (starring Emil Jannings and William Powell)
- The Docks of New York (with George Bancroft and Olga Baclanova)

The James Cruze Epic Collection:

- The Covered Wagon
- Old Ironsides (George Bancroft, Wallace Beery, Boris Karloff)
- The Pony Express

The W.C. Fields Silent Comedy Collection:

- It's the Old Army Game (co-starring Louise Brooks)
- So's Your Old Man (directed by Gregory LaCava)
- Running Wild (directed by Gregory LaCava)

The rest would be marketable on their own:

Wings (Starring Gary Cooper and Clara Bow, directed by William A. Wellman)

The Wedding March (directed by Erich von Stroheim, starring him and Fay Wray)


To be honest, Paramount should at least let Criterion handle some of these. I know they'd love to get their hands on a von Stroheim.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Of course, the problem with preservationists being selective based on their own tastes isn't anything new. Henri Langlois was notorious for this. As a result, if Langlois liked an early film, it still exists. If he didn't, chances are good that it doesn't.

 

[dana martin]

Siolents with Universal, and get them released???

New Line and WB are the only "Major" Studio releases, i know that Fox releases sunrise, but really no other silent from them since. all of the silents that were made from universal, seem to come from image or milestone, and Columbia/ Sony hasn't a clue, i know how this starts get the 3 stooges right Columbia and my wallet will talk, paramount has great things that it could release, maybe we can get luck and actually have them on here for a chat, would love to have all the studios show up, and God Bless Warner, best damn one out there, consistent with the chat!

 

[Danny Burk]

How I'd love to get high quality DVD copies of those (and so many other) Paramount silents too! Sadly, the word from David Shepard is that they have an absolute policy against licensing out their films to third parties. Idiotic? Yes indeed, it is. David has commented several times in alt.movies.silent that he's talked to everyone possible at Paramount, trying to convince them that they should license out their silents since they have no interest in doing anything themselves, but no go. What I've heard is that Mike Schlesinger, who worked at Paramount back when, persuaded them to release the silents that did get put out on laser and VHS. Apparently they took a loss on them and have no interest in repeating the experience. I'm really surprised that they're including the silent TEN COMMANDMENTS with their latest triple-dip...either they're testing the waters or, more likely, it's because one of their marketing geniuses figured out a way to sell everyone another edition a la BEN-HUR.

I'm guessing that Patrick's comment re: Universal refers to the fact that U. is willing to license their films to third parties such as Kino, as they did with THE MAN WHO LAUGHS and several other films.

 

[Bradley Newton]

Please, please, please, Paramount, give me Lindsay Anderson's "if..."
Malcolm Mcdowell has already recorded the commentary.
What gives????????

 

[Greg_M]

I doubt Paramount's home video division is run by kids. I've actually worked for some of the big ones (I won't name names) but for the most part they are run by individuals who have been in the business a great many years (it's a small community)

One reason Warner titles sell so well is that for the most part they are well known due to Warner Bros and MGM's efforts in the past to get these films released on VHS/laserdisc and screened on cable channels such as TCM. (Paramount/Universal sit on these titles and people forget about them)

Older Paramount titles are not so well known (there are probably two dozen films that Paramount has that haven't been released that most members on the forum have heard of, the rest are pretty obscure)

Much of the decision making falls to the retail stores Wal-Mart and Best Buy. If they're willing to carry a title it'll get released, maybe Wal-mart empolyees have little knowledge of the film industry - but I would image the vast majority of their customers don't have much more. So what we get is what Walmart is willing to sell (Walmart is bigger than you ever imaged)

Write to Wal-mart, tell them you will buy these obscure titles (then when people don't, they'll stop releasing them)

 

[Thomas T]

Hopefully the rumored Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis set is still on schedule and Paramount would be crazy not to release DeMille's Samson And Delilah on DVD.

 

[ted:r]

I understand the power of Wal-mart and Best Buy in the decision of releasing classic DVDs. But I doubt that Wal-Mart puts many Criterion DVDs on their shelves (I know that Best Buy only occasionally does.) Obviously, Criterion (and Kino) has a marketing strategy that keeps them going.

Paramount should either follow this boutique-ing strategy (say, a Paramount Classics line for a higher SRP) or lease them to a company that would be willing to do so. Sitting on them does nobody any good.

I know that Paramount's catalog is slim due to the fact they don't own the majority of their pre-1950's catalog. But they can make hay by releasing, one way or the other, what they have.

 

[dana martin]

That would work except that paramount classics seems to be their indi branch, or foreign features, as a matter of fact they have a website, and not a classic is listed on it, kind of ironic.
What is funny about all of this is Universal doesn't own all of the pre 50's catalog. paramount still owns the silents, a lot of Danny Kaye, the wilder's, items from DeMille, all ofe these would fall into this category.

I know that some might think that is sort of a niche that only a select group will buy these, but i have seen more than three or four different titles from criterion at walmart.

I think the problem is in marketing, they don't know what they have, and once they do, they don't know what to do with it.And i can come on here and bitch about this as much as the next person till i put Sunset Blvd in the player and see that god they did such a great job with it. Same could be said for the SE of War of the Worlds that just came out.

The Republic Library has some gems that need a decent release, and with the exception i dont see to many more westerns on the horizon, once they are done with the John Wayne's, and that is a damn shame.not to slight that genre but honestly i thing those sale better in the states.

I wonder who from Dreamworks, was incorporated in the recent merger, could that help or hinder the fact that they are sitting on so many classics.

 

[Joe Caps]

something from the republic library that I will never see - a proper restoration of the Dorid Day Frank Sinatra film, Young at Heart.
This was originally a Warners release. Problem is, the negative and the master magnetic mono track is still at Warners !!

 

[FrancisP]

I would also look at Anchor Bay and Image Entertainment as well. They release a broad array to catalog titles. Their product is generally available in Best Buy. They range from Criterion type films to more mainstream titles. Beginning of the End was a cheap b-flick that featured giant grasshoppers. European versions of films such as Black Sunday and Black Sabbbath have been released. The studios license their films and collect royalties while the companies take the risk. Image Entertainment wanted to release Night Gallery a few years before Universal did and
they would have paid for the remastering.

Look at Warner. They have 6100 films, around 2,100 were released on VHS and around 1,200 have been released on DVD. I suspect that most of the 1,200 would generally overlap the 2,100 on VHS. That leaves approximately 4,000 films, the bulk of which will probably never be released by Warner. When you add that to Universal, Paramount, and other studios, you probably have over 10,000 films that have not been released. The studios could offer some of these titles to third party companies and take the royalty with no financial risk.

 

[dana martin]

maybe warner will release it, funny about that though, WB is really good about there catalog titles, but not everything distributed by warner is theirs, case in point i have a PD copy of this is the army, first thing that pops on the screen it the WB logo, i wish this was actually from them, because it is a nice sat afternoon kind of thing with lots of Berlin tunes, and Reagan to boot.

 

[dana martin]

Anchor Bay , poor man's criterion, and that is not a slam on them, they do a great job especially in attaining the Brit films in my collection, Herzog all Anchor Bay

 

[JPCinema]

DVD releases dictated by Walmart consumers? What is going on here!! Disgusting, Shame on you....Paramount!!!!