A Few Words About A few words about...™ The Picture of Dorian Gray -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

Robert Harris · Nov 7, 2014

Reviewing Warner Archive titles is getting about as boring as reviewing those from Columbia.

There isn't much to talk about, and zero complaints.

Scanned from a superb element, with generally beautiful black levels, shadow detail, grain structure, and creamy luscious whites, viewing Albert Lewin's tale of an ageless gentleman and his problems is never less than a delight.

This is also one of the studio pictures which enables completists to gather the work of many great motion picture artists at a single purchase.

Based on the odd novel by Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray was photographed by the great Harry Straddling, Sr. (Make Shift Maisie), music by Herbert Stothart (Come Live with Me), Editing by Ferris Webster (Rationing), and stars some of the more important young talent in the M-G-M stable, who would go on to even greater productions...

Donna Reed - The Love Boat

George Sanders - Green Hell

Angela Landsbury (in her third film) - If Winter Comes

Peter Lawford - Exodus

and...

Hurt Hatfield as The Beaver

A wonderful film, and another excitingly gorgeous example of what the folks at The Warner Archive can put together for us.

And those Technicolor sequences are perfect!

Image - 4.75

Audio - 5

Pass / Fail - Pass

Highly Recommended

RAH

Matt Hough · Nov 7, 2014

I got my shipping notice from Amazon a couple of days ago saying it would be here on the 11th. Really looking forward to enjoying this in high definition.

Andrew Budgell · Nov 7, 2014

A favourite of mine. I look forward to adding this new Blu-ray to my collection.

Robin9 · Nov 8, 2014

I'm delighted this is a really good disc. This is a marvellous film, truly the kind they don't make any more. Among many treasures in this film, there is a riposte George Sanders delivers to a pompous politician that is one of the best one-liners in movies. On its own, it's worth the price of this disc.

Reed Grele · Nov 8, 2014

SOLD!

That reminds me, I'll have to check on my picture up in the attic and see how it's progressing.

theonemacduff · Nov 9, 2014

I love the house set for this film, with its huge circular atrium, and the views up and down, and the way the film only slowly explores the totality of Dorian's house. Neat. And of course the scene in the country where the brother (I think it is the brother) is shot, but staged in such a way as to be almost off-stage, with just the windy heath to mourn for him. Unless my memory is totally off. Thought the DVD of this was pretty good too, but it would be nice to have it all nice and sharp.

Mark-P · Nov 12, 2014

RAH, when you say you have zero complaints, have you given up condemning the practice of windowboxed credits? It mars the presentation on this Blu-ray as well as Christmas in Connecticut. I don't know why Warner is so stubborn about hanging on to this practice.

atfree · Nov 12, 2014

I arrived home yesterday afternoon and was surprised to find an Amazon shipment containing this BD.....a full week before street date! Will be watching this Saturday!

Johnny Angell · Nov 12, 2014

Reed Grele said:
SOLD! That reminds me, I'll have to check on my picture up in the attic and see how it's progressing.

Considering your avatar, I don't think it's working.

Will Krupp · Nov 12, 2014

atfree said:
I arrived home yesterday afternoon and was surprised to find an Amazon shipment containing this BD.....a full week before street date! Will be watching this Saturday!

Street date WAS yesterday!

I sampled a bit of it last night and it looked absolutely gorgeous. There's so much going on each frame and such depth to the picture I can't wait to give it a proper spin.

atfree · Nov 12, 2014

Will Krupp said:
Street date WAS yesterday!

I sampled a bit of it last night and it looked absolutely gorgeous. There's so much going on each frame and such depth to the picture I can't wait to give it a proper spin.

I coulda sworn the original street date was 11/18/2014 (I even had it entered as such on the archive I have of my BD library). WBShop and TCMShop STILL has that as the street date:

http://shop.warnerarchive.com/product/picture+of+dorian+gray,+the+(1945)+(bd)+1000537539.do?sortby=ourPicks&refType=&from=fn

http://shop.tcm.com/the-picture-of-dorian-gray-blu-ray/detail.php?p=740511&v=tcm_warner-archive-collection_new-releases

ahollis · Nov 12, 2014

Will Krupp said:
Street date WAS yesterday! I sampled a bit of it last night and it looked absolutely gorgeous. There's so much going on each frame and such depth to the picture I can't wait to give it a proper spin.

Received mine yesterday as well.

Conrad_SSS · Nov 12, 2014

Got mine yesterday as well (through Amazon) and only got to sample a few sections, but the improvement over DVD is amazing, both in terms of picture and sound (the DVD had lots of crackle at points). Image is spotless....as it should be. It's a knockout presentation.

Matt Hough · Nov 12, 2014

Mine came late yesterday afternoon, so I didn't have time to watch even a second of it, and was busy today with reviewing and tonight with catching up with all of LAST night's TV. So, I likely won't get to mine until this weekend.

Powell&Pressburger · Nov 12, 2014

"Quiet Please" the Tom and Jerry short is in HD video with HD 2.0 mono.Update: According to Mark P. it is only in 480i as an upconvert.

Mark-P · Nov 13, 2014

Powell&Pressburger said:
"Quiet Please" the Tom and Jerry short is in HD video with HD 2.0 mono.Another reason Warner Archive titles are flawless in their presentation. The work WAC does on BLU makes me wish every WB title could be up to these standards.

Bet you were fooled by that high bitrate! Quiet Please and the other extras are only 480i.

Powell&Pressburger · Nov 13, 2014

That is odd that they would do it at 480i upconvert when it was already released in HD. I didn't watch it though only pulled up the info and noticed the audio listing. Oh well.

Matt Hough · Nov 14, 2014

I watched the Blu-ray of the movie last night, and it's a perfectly beautiful transfer. The Technicolor inserts (especially for the degenerated portrait of Dorian) are especially vivid and the most detailed I've ever seen for this movie. They jump off the screen! The mono sound is quite robust, too. Even though I had listened to it before, I watched the whole thing again just to hear the Angela Lansbury commentary and see that gorgeous imagery. No wonder it won the cinematography Oscar that year!

Alan Tully · Nov 14, 2014

Sounds lovely, I've ordered it (come on Amazon, get it in the post!). The first few times I saw it was in the b/w TV days, so no colour at the end. I think it was the eighties before I saw it on TV with the colour inserts, but they didn't look so good, very harsh, like an old print.

Kyrsten Brad · Nov 15, 2014

On my Amazon Christmas List!

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