- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,411
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
John Ford's 1952 The Quiet Man is consummate Ford / Wayne. Photographed in three-strip Technicolor on location in Ireland, with interiors at Republic Studios in Hollywood, it was Mr. Ford's fourth use of the Technicolor medium since 1939's Drums Along the Mohawk. When he chose to use color, he used it. Every past video incarnation of this film has unfortunately been worse than abysmal, but finally we get something decent. Not perfect, by any means, but decent. Color seems to be in line with where it should be, but fit and registration are occasionally off, and in today's digital world, they should not be. Even if the original materials are acetate as opposed to nitrate, there should be no problems of compositing the image. The 1952 award season was kind to the film, with Mr. Ford taking the Academy Award for Best Director, and Winton Hoch and Archie Stout sharing Best Color Cinematography. Mr. Hoch was known for his three-strip Technicolor work, photographed three of Mr. Ford's Tech productions, Three Godfathers, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and The Quiet Man, and went on to shoot The Searches in VistaVision. The Quiet Man is a great film. Considered, and rightfully so, to be a classic. I'm pleased that Olive has put in the work to create a Blu-ray of more than acceptable quality. Final point. I'd love to see Olive get rid of those nasty cardboard sleeves that they use, as they serve no purpose whatsoever. They don't hold the disc case, which falls out. All that they accomplish to to add to ecological problems.I've taken another look at TQM and have come away less pleased. The film, which should have a lush, velvety image, comes off as brittle and strident-looking.What I'm seeing is an unfinished image, which appears unprocessed for any final look or texture, and more like a raw scan that has gone through a very basic composite for registration, without receiving any final steps.My initial thoughts were buoyed by the belief that Olive had actually made an attempt, and I was thrilled to give them credit for that.The final image lacks both texture, as well as any real cohesiveness. Image - 3 Audio - 4 RAH