Someone mentioned on alt.movies.silent that the 1927 silent epic, Wings, is coming to DVD... Is there any truth to this? (I know it was mentioned before in a poll, but nothing concrete...)
I was under the impression Paramount were giving it the royal treatment later in the year. Damned if I can remember where, though I have a feeling it was on this board.
No, Martin said it on DVDTalk almost a year ago. The original thread seems to be gone, but here is some evidence of it.
Wings is currently being restored and will be the last film in the AMPAS Diamond Jubilee series at the Academy. RAH
Can't remember where I read it, but I thought the Academy was pushing to have all best picture winners released on DVD this year to help celebrate the 75th anniversary.
The DVD release is only a rumour at this point; the AMS poster lifted it out of Barrie Maxwell's Db from the Digital Bits, Rumoured section, but posted as a confirmed announcement. Still, sounds promising, Tim
Interestingly, this movie is available on DVD in Japan, although its Amazon.jp page now lists it as being out of print. However, it was definitely available around last christmas because I bought it then. If there is a rumor about a better edition coming I would wait as this one is bare bones, with very average picture quality. I
The current DVD out in other regions is a public domain or bootleg copy. It supposedly has the tranfer used for the laserdisc Paramount made.
The AMPAS screenings are going to be on May 15 & 16, in between The Godfather and The Sting. The last film in the series will be Chicago, on December 8. I think tickets for Wings were in high demand, as there was a special mail-order form sent out. I don't know if they were ever available at the box office. It's not every day that you can see a screening of a restored silent movie, with orchestral accompianment, for $5!
