A Few Words About A few words about...™ 2001: A Space Odyssey -- in BD & HD (1 Viewer)

[ROclockCK]

2001 is my 'desert island' film too Josh.

Unfortunately, whole generations now know it only from home video, threadbare baggage and all. However one day, I hope they'll finally get it right. Its 50th anni is in 2018, so here's hoping...

 

[Josh Steinberg]

2001 is my 'desert island' film too Josh. Unfortunately, whole generations now know it only from home video, threadbare baggage and all. However one day, I hope they'll finally get it right. Its 50th anni is in 2018, so here's hoping...

Hopefully my desert island comes with a giant screen In a sense I feel lucky that "2001" is my favorite movie, at least as far as theatrical screening opportunities go: it comes around fairly often, and up until a couple years ago it was usually a print that looked pretty good. The DCP and Blu-ray aren't terrible by any means - it's not Spartacus bad - but they're not Lawrence Of Arabia good and that's what I'd like to see one day.

 

[Dave H]

I watched the Blu-ray fairly recently on my front projection set-up (117.4" diagonal scope screen) and this transfer is really showing its age. Edge enhancement and noise reduction are evident and it just takes on that older transfer look we see on so many of these earlier Blu-ray releases. It doesn't look terrible, but it certainly does not look good nor nearly as film-like and detailed like many remasters I have seen. This goes for most of the Kubrick titles I've seen for that matter. Hopefully Warner addresses his movies at some point.

 

[Paul_Warren]

Unfortunately, myth. It wasn't "painted" on. The massive front projection screen for 2001* was composed of rolls of 3M ScotchliteTM which had to be cut up into irregular sections and applied patchwork style - the theory being that over such a huge surface any straight edge roll lines would be more noticeable than this 'crazy quilt' solution if there were minor variances in surface density roll to roll.

And this unconventional solution did work...on screen. What has been lost through multiple video releases - possibly just a problem with video transfer characteristics regarding white balance - is that these front projection scenes (especially during the dawn of man sequence) were very bright...again as projected via film on screen. Yet on video, these scenes have always been printed down, which just exacerbates the problem Kubrick and his team had solved via very careful light levels plus testing, testing, and more testing. Disguising the ScotchliteTM has been further hampered on video by some noticeable age-related yellowing in the corners of the frame, drawing even more attention to it.

All of this was discussed in detail in the book "The Making of 2001", and confirmed personally by Fx lead Wally Gentleman when he graciously visited our film class at York U. in the early 70s...and of course by my own eyes during those 13 roadshow CINERAMA viewings. When properly projected, with Kubrick's precise exhibition specs, you could not see those ScotchliteTM patches. That aberration is strictly an artefact from 2001's after life on home video...which is another reason for a full, archival-class restoration of this film plus a new transfer.

* To date, still a record IIRC.

Thanks for the detailed explanation Steve lets hope someone @ WB can do something about this for the next new release. I wonder what print BFI will be using as they are showing the movie in several cinemas on 28th November this year here in the UK?
http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/announcements/bfi-rerelease-stanley-kubricks-2001

 

[ROclockCK]

Hopefully you get to see it on film in 70mm Paul. But these days, I wouldn't bet on that...fingers crossed for you though.

BTW, there's also another area where the digital video transfers* of 2001 haven't served Kubrick's effects perfectionism particularly well; their rendering of Trumbull's slit-scan star gate. Once again, it looks like the brightness is down a stop or two, or the contrast is up, because now you can distinctly see banding and strobing along Trumbull's slits (note the darker vertical lines in the red areas to the right of the frame, less so in the green):

I'm not denying their existence - obviously they were captured on the film, so they're in the scan. But until 2001 hit home video, that little giveaway about the nature of Trumbull's Fx technique was never this noticeable. On film, with the correct light levels, those bands simply never stood out like they do now.

* including the current Blu-ray; I've never seen the DCP.

 

[DP 70]

It will be showing in 70mm for some screenings at the BFI Southbank in Nov/Dec and some screenings in 2K DCP.

 

[Paul_Warren]

2001 UK limited theatrical release details are now up for anyone who has never seen this on the big screen its a great experience. No info on the transfer or scan I suspect its digital probably the upscaled BD master:
http://www.bfi.org.uk/whats-on/bfi-film-releases/2001-space-odyssey

 

[Sam Favate]

Saw 2001: ASO on the big screen Jan. 1, 2002, at what had to be one of the last shows ever at Loews Astor Plaza in NYC, before it became the Nokia Theater ($#@&^%$!!!!). It was glorious.

 

[Worth]

If anyone's in the Toronto area, 2001 will be playing in a new, 70mm print:

http://www.tiff.net/cinematheque/stanley-kubrick-a-cinematic-odyssey/2001-a-space-odyssey

 

[David_B_K]

Interesting that two old 2001 threads have been resurrected today. I saw the film a couple of times in theaters, bought two laserdisc versions, 2 DVD versions, an HD DVD version and a Blu-ray. I will never buy a remastered version of 2001 unless it comes in a box with an action figure.

 

[Brian Dobbs]

What are the chances we'll see a longer cut of the film?
http://www.thewrap.com/deal-central/column-post/wb-uncovers-lost-footage-kubricks-2001-space-odyssey-23309/

Apparently WB has a new restoration?
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/69207

 

[Keith Cobby]

Do you think if Stanley Kubrick were still with us he would be meddling with his masterpiece, producing different cuts and improving on the special effects? Difficult to improve on perfection isn't it.

 

[Paul_Warren]

Do you think if Stanley Kubrick were still with us he would be meddling with his masterpiece, producing different cuts and improving on the special effects? Difficult to improve on perfection isn't it.

I doubt it other than insisting on the colour timing so we do not see the 3M backgrounds. Perhaps a seamless branching BD with the newly found 19 mins of missing footage what else could you change & make it better most of the opticals are fine as they are the moon looks a little too bright in places but a decent colour timing pass could probably fix that!

 

[Sam Favate]

Speaking of Kubrick, has everyone seen the Kubrick segment from this year's Simpsons Halloween special? It was brilliant. It was called "A Clockwork Yellow," but it included references to many Kubrick classics. Worth checking out.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I want that Monolith toy!!

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Until this I've read and heard nothing of any new restoration work - I would assume this is going to be a presentation of the DCP that has show in repertory theaters in the US for the past few years, which is a 2K DCP from the same master as the Blu-ray. I'd absolutely love to be wrong about that.

 

[ROclockCK]

Ditto Josh. But I doubt you're wrong:

[*]At 0:18 in the new BFI trailer, you can still see banding and strobing in the foreground of the slit-scan for the stargate.
[*]At 1:36 when Moonwatcher tosses the bone, you can still see some yellowing in the upper left corner of the frame - not a good sign that any new work has been done to correct those visible ScotchliteTM patches.
[/list]
Until 2001 gets definitively restored and remastered, best to stick with 70mm showings rather than the current DCP.

 

[SilverWook]

Wished I could have bought one of these beauties many years ago...

The small company that was making these G.I. Joe scaled costumes apparently couldn't keep up with demand, and closed up shop. When these come up for sale today, they are horribly expensive.

 

[DP 70]

What are the chances we'll see a longer cut of the film?http://www.thewrap.com/deal-central/column-post/wb-uncovers-lost-footage-kubricks-2001-space-odyssey-23309/ Apparently WB has a new restoration?http://www.aintitcool.com/node/69207

The 2K DCP showing this November is not a new Restoration but they are showing a 70mm print on 30/11 and the 2nd and 7th of December.In November at The Cinerama Dome they are even screening from DCP not 70mm.

 

[Dr Griffin]

The AFI Silver in Silver Spring, MD is showing a 70mm print in November. I hope it's a better print than the last one I saw there, which was in bad shape.

http://www.afi.com/silver/films/events.aspx#2001a