Still waiting for Land of the Pharaohs and The Egyptian (1 Viewer)

[Douglas R]

I'm still waiting for two of my favorite films, Warner's LAND OF THE PHARAOHS and Fox's THE EGYPTIAN to be released on DVD. They are both marvellous examples of '50s spectacle with lavish sets, huge production values, great casts and wonderful music scores. What's the hold-up with these.

 

[Joe Caps]

Warners has some neat moder spectacles that have not seen the light of day.
Besides Land of the pharoahs, they have the Miracle, King Richard and the crusaders, and The Silver Chalice.
I think Land needs some major restoration.

 

[john a hunter]

The Egyptian is my far the best of the films mentioned although Pharaohs certainly is campy fun. The titles Joe mentions are all pretty dire,IMO,so I would like Warners to use their resources for Pharaohs and Fox forThe Egyptian. It should be in good shape as I believe that it was restored for theatrical release in the 70's to coincide with a Tut exhibition.

 

[Paul Linfesty]

Concerning LAND OF THE Pharaohs, would someone know (Joe Caps, perhaps) what was up with Joan Collins' voice? I watched this on TCM, and it sometimes sounds like her very distinctive voice, other times completely different. Was she dubbed by another actress for some reason? Or am I just imagining this?

 

[Charles Ellis]

No, you're not hearing things- I've noticed that too over the years. At times Joan has her usual voice, but early on in the film, you hear this weirdly bass voice coming out of her. Look like someone dubbed her voice in several spots!! Kinda like when Rosalind Russell did Gypsy for Warners: in some numbers it's all Roz, in some others it's Lisa Kirk's voice doing the singing, while in "Rose's Turn" it's a mixture of the two.

 

[Matt Hough]

Well, if we're talking Fox spectacle, how about THE VIRGIN QUEEN?

And I know Warners is working on QUO VADIS though supposedly it needed a lot of resoration work.

 

[Doug Bull]

LAND OF THE PHAROAHS was recently run on Digital TV here in Australia, in a really nice looking Anamorphic/Dolby Digital Stereo Print and although the ratio was all wrong at about 1.85:1, the print certainly didn't look as if it needed restoration.

I made the most of it's rare appearance and recorded it straight to DVD.

 

[Derek M Germano]

Great 50's entertainment in CinemaScope. Put me down for both!

 

[Simon Howson]

Maybe Warner could put together a CinemaScope epics collection, I'd be buying for sure.

I'd love to see Land of the Pharoahs, the clips in the Scorsese American Cinema documentary are amazing. That type of epic cinema is a lost art, replaced by CGI...

If they did do a CinemaScope epic themed box, what other films do they have, other than those already mentioned?

I'd like to see the first Warner Bros. CinemaScope film The Command, which was shot with Zeiss lenses, and was apparently going to be released under the WarnerScope banner, before they decided to license Bausch & Lomb lenses, and the CinemaScope name from Fox.

I'd also like to see I Died A Thousand Times, which could be a left field candidate for a future Film Noir box. I know it is an unlikely release until Warner have been through all the RKO stuff, but I like the idea of Warner showing how varied the late noirs became.

Another early Warner Bros. CinemaScope is Pete Kelly's Blues. I saw a print a few years ago, but it was completely pink. It contains some amazingly experimental CinemaScope compositions.

If you can play back PAL, get the Region 2 version! The quality is stunning. My guess is when it gets a R1 release they may add some extra features, but I can't see how the image or quality could be any better.

On the Fox side, I hope King of the Khyber Rifles and Beneath the 12-Mile Reef get official releases. I know I've said it before, but Fox really should put out an early CinemaScope box with The Robe, How To Marry a Millionaire, Beneath the 12-Mile Reef and King of the Khyber Rifles. Plus any and all surviving CinemaScope test reels and publicity materials (for example, the re-shot CinemaScope version of Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend), as well as a disc with an in depth documentary on CinemaScope.

Khyber Rifles has an amazing exterior romance scene between Power and Moore shot in windy conditions, and with the actors photographed in sillhouette. The first time I saw it I thought it was just one of those magic sequences that leaps out off the screen and gives you a very strong impression of the location. It made me wish even more so that I could've been at a first run theatre in 1953 watching the film on a giant CinemaScope screen.



King of the Khyber Rifles (1953)

 

[Douglas R]

I agree with everything you say Simon. A Warner Bros Cinemascope epic/historical set could also include, Diane, The King's Thief, Moonfleet, Quentin Durward and Beau Brummell.

 

[JPCinema]

THe Egyptian. I sure hope Fox releases that soon. It recently was shown on the INHD channel but was panned and scanned to fit 16X9!!!!!!! A real travesty!

 

[Charles H]

BEAU BRUMMELL was not in CinemaScope.

 

[Simon Howson]

Although it was pan and scan, did it look like a good quality recent transfer? As if they had done a preservation process on that film, but just hadn't decided to release it on DVD at this stage?

Or did it look like an old master perhaps made for LaserDisc?

 

[ChristopherDAC]

Very few LDs were made from High Definition transfers, and if it isn't in HD, it doesn't show in INHD. Even if you count the High Definition MUSE discs, I'd be prepared to guess it's fewer than 500 out of 40 000+. The Egyptian, as a 1992 LaserDisc release, is unlikely to have been one of them ; in any case, the Fox LD was letterboxed to the full CinemaScope ratio.

 

[Simon Howson]

I have a DVD of the film which is probably a port of that LD transfer, it is about 2.5:1 but may be cropped.

Desiree is another film I hope Fox releases, Koster is much more experimental with 'Scope on that film rather than The Robe. And the performance by Brando is equal parts brilliance and hilarity. It is like watching Brando, impersonating Laurence Olivier, playing Napoleon.

 

[Daniel BARBIEUX]

Peter Ustinov said about this film (The Egyptian): It was like being on a monstrously huge set of "Aida" and not being to find the way out. About Moonfleet, I bought this MGM classic two years ago in Belgium. It also includes a documentary about Fritz Lang and was released through Warner Bros. A superb widescreen version (16x9) and also remastered in 5.1 Dolby surround (english version).

 

[Matt Hough]

INHD has been doing that to a lot of Cinemascope/Panavision films. In the past few weeks, I've noticed ROBIN AND THE SEVEN HOODS, THE KING AND I, and THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS in high def but cropped to fit 1.78:1 widescreen TV ratio, a REALLY infuriating development (though HBO and Showtime do to their widescreen HD movies as well).

Warners first Cinemascope musical was LUCKY ME with Doris Day. Seems like that's one of the Doris films mentioned at a chat that will be in her next boxed set.

 

[Dick]

I've always had a soft spot for PHARAOHS in spite of its idiotic dialog and bad acting. The whole business of the building of the pyramid is full of mystique and wonder for me, and that ending makes every preceding minute of ridiculousness well worth enduring. Million Dollar Movie ran this in New York (16 times in a single week), and I watched it through a dozen times just for those last five minutes. Joan Collins deserved everything she got in that movie for one of the worst performances of the fifties.

 

[Charles Ellis]

Oh, Dick, don't give away the ending- I don't think Linda Evans has seen the film yet!

 

[Bonnie*F]

Hey, John, like it could tie-in with the TUT exhibit currently in the US right now?? Yea, that would be a great idea. But the exhibit has been in the United States since Dec 2005 and leaves in Sept 2007 so the studios need to get a move-on if they want to get a few extra sales in...
Okay, now removing the proverbial tongue in cheek.
I've been waiting for several of those movies listed and The Egyptian and Land of the Pharaohs is just the beginning.