- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,425
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
With few exceptions, Criterion is known for their quality, and not releasing a title until either the elements or the technology to make them shine are available.
Alfred Hitchcock's original 1934 The Man Who Knew Too Much is one of those titles.
Around 2006 I supplied them with an original nitrate 35mm print that had been struck directly from the camera negative. Great full sound (for 1934), and an image that portrayed the negative for what it was at that time -- well-printed. Minus density dirt was the norm, along with occasional tears in the original printed through. Every other reel had a cut through scratch at the far left of the frame, that would have necessitated a great deal of hand painting to eliminate.
So they waited.
And finally, with access to an original lavender at the BFI, they began testing. 2k scans of the lavender on a pin-registered scanner, which looked very nice. But it was found that the element was too shrunken to go through safely.
So they waited.
They tested printing the lavender to a dupe neg, but the result wasn't as good as the earlier scans.
So they waited.
And finally, the BFI installed a wet-gate scanner with pin registration or sprockets, and the project moved forward.
The final result, as color corrected and digitally cleaned is quite superb. The main title sequence is a bit soft, and actually to my eye, looks to be a dupe, but it is what it is. Get into the body of the film, and things look and sound great. A very nice gray scale is in place, with quality black levels. The image is quite steady, and overall pleasing.
A great classic British Hitchcock production that should be in every serious collection.
Image - 4.25
Audio - 4.5
If only the Universal (two decades newer) re-make looks one-tenth as good.
Very Highly Recommended.
RAH
Alfred Hitchcock's original 1934 The Man Who Knew Too Much is one of those titles.
Around 2006 I supplied them with an original nitrate 35mm print that had been struck directly from the camera negative. Great full sound (for 1934), and an image that portrayed the negative for what it was at that time -- well-printed. Minus density dirt was the norm, along with occasional tears in the original printed through. Every other reel had a cut through scratch at the far left of the frame, that would have necessitated a great deal of hand painting to eliminate.
So they waited.
And finally, with access to an original lavender at the BFI, they began testing. 2k scans of the lavender on a pin-registered scanner, which looked very nice. But it was found that the element was too shrunken to go through safely.
So they waited.
They tested printing the lavender to a dupe neg, but the result wasn't as good as the earlier scans.
So they waited.
And finally, the BFI installed a wet-gate scanner with pin registration or sprockets, and the project moved forward.
The final result, as color corrected and digitally cleaned is quite superb. The main title sequence is a bit soft, and actually to my eye, looks to be a dupe, but it is what it is. Get into the body of the film, and things look and sound great. A very nice gray scale is in place, with quality black levels. The image is quite steady, and overall pleasing.
A great classic British Hitchcock production that should be in every serious collection.
Image - 4.25
Audio - 4.5
If only the Universal (two decades newer) re-make looks one-tenth as good.
Very Highly Recommended.
RAH