A Few Words About A few words about...™ 12 Monkeys -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[BillyFeldman]

Michael, I hate to be the one to tell you, but every post you've made in response to me comes off as argumentative. I have no idea why, really, but if that's your deal, I'll stop responding to you. You have been completely defensive in every post in response to me - and what you note as "innaccuracies" is peculiar to you - others don't find my statements "innaccurate" at all.

Originally Posted by Michael Reuben


Not as odd as that statement, which is simply untrue. I don't consider it "defensive" to note inaccuracies.


The same is true of every post in this thread.

 

[Brian Borst]

Originally Posted by Peter Neski

Well I didn't think the HD DVD version looked good at all,I don't remember the way it looked in
the theater,
Out of Africa was
grainy in the New York Theater I saw it at,yet the dvd looked fantasic,

If this is the way it looked (12monkeys) and thats makes sense,why do we
have to settle for that? Can't they Improve it? They did this wit the Bond films,and other
films.Why can't they at least try,
Sometimes the original isn't the Best Version,and 12 Monkeys dosn't look like a good transfer
to me,

Films should be put onto Blu-ray the way it was shot, I believe. Terry Gilliam didn't want 12 Monkeys to look like a James Bond film, so why alter the film to make it look like one on Blu-ray? Scrubbing of grain gave us The Longest Day and Patton, so I'd rather they just leave the grain alone.

 

[Michael Reuben]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillyFeldman

Michael, I hate to be the one to tell you, but every post you've made in response to me comes off as argumentative. I have no idea why, really, but if that's your deal, I'll stop responding to you. You have been completely defensive in every post in response to me - and what you note as "innaccuracies" is peculiar to you - others don't find my statements "innaccurate" at all.

I understand why you might feel that way, but the posts (yours and mine) speak for themselves.

 

[Michael Reuben]

Let's see if we can reboot this thread.

Obviously a lot of us are here because of interest in the Blu-ray of 12 Monkeys. Now, it's been a while since I saw the HD DVD, but I remember that it looked quite good. An important question was asked above for anyone who held onto their HD DVD and is debating an upgrade:

Originally Posted by Stephen_J_H

On a side note, RAH, do you still have the HD DVD and the equipment to play it and can you compare the two to determine if they're the same encode? I love the HD DVD and would see no reason to upgrade if it's the same encode.

I'd certainly be interested in RAH's thoughts on this, or those of anyone else who's received the Blu-ray.

There was also a question above about a "truncated" commentary. Having never listened to the commentary on HD DVD, I'm not familiar with the details, but it sounds like a question that's worth attention.

 

[DaveF]

Originally Posted by Michael Reuben

There was also a question above about a "truncated" commentary. Having never listened to the commentary on HD DVD, I'm not familiar with the details, but it sounds like a question that's worth attention.

In the original DVD commentary, the audio commentary goes past the end of the credits. Or it should have: when the credits end the commentary is cut off, mid-sentence. I'm not sure if that was ever fixed in subsequent DVD release; I'm curious if the Blu Ray has the old, truncated commentary or if it includes those closing words.

 

[Robert Harris]

Originally Posted by Michael Reuben ">[/url]

Let's see if we can reboot this thread.

Obviously a lot of us are here because of interest in the Blu-ray of [i]12 Monkeys[/i]. Now, it's been a while since I saw the HD DVD, but I remember that it looked quite good. An important question was asked above for anyone who held onto their HD DVD and is debating an upgrade:

[QUOTE]Originally Posted by [b]Stephen_J_H[/b] [url=/forum/thread/290588/a-few-words-about-12-monkeys-in-blu-ray#post_3587362]

 

[Jeff Swindoll]

The commentary runs into the blue "R-rated" tag at the very end of the film and didn't seem "cut-off" to me. However, I've never experienced the cut-off commentary. I did sound whole to me and not that Gilliam's commentary partner (forgot his name, mea culpa) was cut off in mid-sentence.

 

[Peter Neski]

gary just put this up on DVD Beaver http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare11/12monkeys.htm
,and says this:


:"This came out in the now defunct HD-DVD format but this is surely a new transfer (although also VC-1 encoded) as the film takes up over 38 Gig of space on the dual-layered Blu-ray disc - surpassing the capacity of that other 1080P format."

 

[ScottJH]

Reading that statement, I think he means encode not transfer.

 

[DaveF]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff Swindoll

The commentary runs into the blue "R-rated" tag at the very end of the film and didn't seem "cut-off" to me. However, I've never experienced the cut-off commentary. I did sound whole to me and not that Gilliam's commentary partner (forgot his name, mea culpa) was cut off in mid-sentence.

Thanks. It sounds like they've fixed that problem.

 

[seely]

I love 12 Monkeys and enjoyed its presentation on blu-ray.


I think the PQ and AQ of the 12 Monkeys blu-ray is quite good and very accurately, but not perfectly, replicates Gilliam's and Pratt's intentions when they made the film. It is by far the best quality home video version of the film to date.


Some say that the image is soft, but I believe this to be the manner in which the film was originally shot.


The filmmakers used various forms of diffusion to "soften" the image. I believe the intention of shooting in this way was to connect the audience with the film's protagonist, played by Bruce Willis. He is jumping back and forth in time. He has been called insane and placed in a mental institution. He doesn't know up from down and is losing his grip on reality. His world is "hazy." All the disorientation that Willis' character goes through is nicely presented to the audience with the "hazy" visuals which are meant to connect the audience to the mindset and emotions of Willis' character. His reality is "hazy or diffused," thus, our view of the film is "hazy or diffused."

To dislike the "soft" look of the film is to miss a vital theme within the film and to lack a certain emotional connection to the film. It is a misunderstanding of the film. The filmmakers shot the film this way because it deepens the audience's relationship with the film and the protagonist. I for one love their visual choices and applaud their techniques.


Could a new scan and encode look better? Possibly, but it will never look like a film shot cleanly (without filters) on today's film stock or on high definition digital video because it was shot on 90's film stock with diffusion filters. That is why I believe that fans of the film should be quite satisfied with its current presentation on blu-ray.