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So...Is Anyone Working On TOM JONES? (1 Viewer)

Dick

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This was an Oscar-winner in 1963, and is a funny movie with several terrific performances. Where the hell is it on Blu-Ray? Yes, I understand the source material might be a bit rough, but it was THE BEST PICTURE OF 1963 (and in my opinion actually was). No one's bothering to restore this? This movie has been discussed on HTF often, but no progress appears to be happening toward a Blu-ray release. The DVD is a crappy-looking non-anamorphic disaster. Any insiders here know what might be getting done, if anything?
 

Vahan_Nisanain

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Someone said that all the home video versions (including the Magnetic Video version from 1981) were edited from the film's original presentation in Theaters. Were they really?
 

trajan

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lar
Ask Twilight Time. I believe they said they had the rights to it.
 

bujaki

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Tony Richardson did re-edit the film at some point. I don't know whether the original cut still exists (I hope it does), and that some company will eventually present us with a beautiful transfer of this great film.
 

Chuck Pennington

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Vahan_Nisanain said:
Someone said that all the home video versions (including the Magnetic Video version from 1981) were edited from the film's original presentation in Theaters. Were they really?
Incorrect. The Magnetic Video VHS and Laserdiscs releases were the original cut, then the late '80s-early '90s "restored" VHS and Laserdisc was of a shorter cut that Richardson made at the time. The first dvd release was cut as well. The most recent MGM DVD is the original longer cut.
 

Dick

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Cremildo said:
The upside is that just about every niche company is licensing titles from MGM. This could eventually, therefore, come from Criterion, TT, Shout! and possibly others. The United Artists catalog is rather rapidly becoming available of late, and I hope that at least a decent transfer of TOM JONES will come out before I drop dead. I can't bear to watch the letterbox DVD anymore...I'm spoiled, as most of us are.
 

MatthewA

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I'd like to be able to retire my HBO laserdisc (as a child, this was the first time I realized Albert Finney actually had hair :P ).
 

Chuck Pennington

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I posted the differences between the cuts on IMDB as I did an analysis between the longer Magnetic Video Laserdisc and shorter HBO DVD.When I get home from work, I'll see if I can dig up the timecodes that went along with the comparison and post the info here.
 

Robert Harris

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The original survives as a dupe element. The original is in great need of a full digital restoration.Love the film!
 

Chuck Pennington

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The HD version released to streaming platforms is of the 1989 edited reissue with remixed soundtrack. It is odd that the MGM DVD reissue of more than 10 years ago quietly restored the film to its original length, yet the dvd prior to it (1997 HBO) and now the HD streaming version is of the shorter version with stereo soundtrack.I made this comparison between the 1997 DVD and 1981 Magnetic Video Laserdisc back in 1997. If memory serves, I believe the time codes correspond to a location on that first DVD release that is long out-of-print.
 

Chuck Pennington

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ImageUploadedByHTF1419647902.315010.jpg
ImageUploadedByHTF1419647914.398924.jpg
ImageUploadedByHTF1419647933.469300.jpg
ImageUploadedByHTF1419647943.069753.jpg
 

Vahan_Nisanain

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Excellent job, Chuck! Thumbs up!

I believe this film originally began with the United Artists Hexagon. It may have looked like the below image:

GW216_H153.jpg


On the Magnetic Video version, the Transamerica T from 1968 (the studio's 2nd year under Transameica ownership) is there.
 

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