A few words about…™ Bend of the River – in Blu-ray

4 Stars

Kino’s new Blu-ray of Anthony Mann’s 1952, 3-strip Technicolor, Bend of the River, takes on a bit of a beauty and the beast affair, when compared to Becky Sharp.

Presumably produced from a master delivered by Universal that may have been made for the DVD market, the film almost appears to have been shot in 3-D.

Universal has been doing such brilliant work the past few years, that it pains me to see an old master making its way to Blu-ray.

Registration errors abound, and the entire film has the appearance of having be recombined by some fly-by-night outfit.

On a large screen, it borders on being unwatchable.

The pity is that this is a good film. Not a great one, mind you, but a good one, deserving of better treatment.

Image – 2

Audio – 5

Pass / Fail – Fail

Upgrade from DVD – Absolutely not

RAH

Robert has been known in the film industry for his unmatched skill and passion in film preservation. Growing up around photography, his first home theater experience began at age ten with 16mm. Years later he was running 35 and 70mm at home.

His restoration projects have breathed new life into classic films like Lawrence of Arabia, Vertigo, My Fair Lady, Spartacus, and The Godfather series. Beyond his restoration work, he has also shared his expertise through publications, contributing to the academic discourse on film restoration. The Academy Film Archive houses the Robert A. Harris Collection, a testament to his significant contributions to film preservation.

Post Disclaimer

Some of our content may contain marketing links, which means we will receive a commission for purchases made via those links. In our editorial content, these affiliate links appear automatically, and our editorial teams are not influenced by our affiliate partnerships. We work with several providers (currently Skimlinks and Amazon) to manage our affiliate relationships. You can find out more about their services by visiting their sites.

Share this post:

View thread (104 replies)

OliverK

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2000
Messages
5,760
I bought the German Blu-ray as I finally wanted another Tony Mann western on Blu and I will say that while detail is improved the added detail makes the registration errors rather more obvious.

I agree with Robert that the German disc is still somehow watchable but mostly because the DVD is even worse (I have that one, too and made a few comparisons after watching the Blu-ray)

Certainly this fine western deserves better but apparently nobody wants to pay for the necessary work.
 

Alan Tully

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2008
Messages
4,650
Location
London
Real Name
Alan
It sounds like the same old transfer that been on UK TV quite a bit in the past few years (& the same as the German release), it looked okay(ish) on a smaller screen, but I suppose on a larger screen these faults are exaggerated (& of course after a while, you're looking for them). A great fifties western, it really needs the Universal Deluxe treatment.
 

Pictureman

Agent
Joined
Apr 12, 2017
Messages
31
Real Name
Frank
I have the German one and it does indeed look like 3d without the glasses. It starts abruptly too, they managed to miss the opening notes of the music. Got it cheap, but still very disappointing.
 

Nick*Z

Screenwriter
Joined
Apr 30, 2003
Messages
1,818
Location
Canada
Real Name
NICK
Extremely disappointing, but hey - Uni hasn't exactly been leading the pack in quality for some time. The Glenn Miller Story from Shout! is a travesty, as was For Whom The Bell Tolls. No point to releasing mis-aligned Technicolor in 2K to Blu. It isn't watchable. Thanks for the heads up, Robert. Will definitely pass.
 

Robin9

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2006
Messages
7,687
Real Name
Robin
I'm disappointed and annoyed, but not especially surprised. Universal is so hit and miss with their HD transfers that you never know what to expect from them.
 

Robert Crawford

Crawdaddy
Moderator
Patron
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 9, 1998
Messages
67,856
Location
Michigan
Real Name
Robert
Keeping the DVD is fine, but it looks much worse than the Blu-ray. I suspect Kino is going to have a sale at some point in which you might be able to pick it up much cheaper at around $10 or so. The following are my comments about the German Blu-ray.

https://www.hometheaterforum.com/community/posts/4651271/
 
Last edited:
Most Popular