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

[Robert Harris]

As Criterion makes its slow, methodical tour of the Chaplin library - so far, we have  six in release, out of a possible total of ten or eleven - we are presented with probably the most melancholy of his work, Limelight (1952).

As I was sampling the release, I found myself thinking about the reams of publicity garnered by Heat for putting together two major actors, who had never shared screen time, although strangely, they'd been in the same film.

In Limelight, we find ourselves with one of the greatest pairing in the history of cinema - the two major king of comedy of the silent era - Chaplin and Keaton.  Seeing them finally together is an extraordinary experience, alone with the price of admission.

Purportedly derived from a scan of the original negative, Criterion's Limelight looks generally superb, with wonderfully rich blacks, and lovely shadow detail into the grays.

Grain structure appears just a tad less than one might expect from an OCN, but it's fine.  Occasional scratches (very rare), mostly in transitions are the only noticeable defects.

Note should be made that the functions are not short-cut into the original, but rather, like films such as Giant!, run the entire length of the transitions.

For those who have never had the opportunity to see Limelight, now is your chance, and for those who do not yet own the rest of Criterion's Chaplin library, shame on you.  Your ID as card-carrying cinephile may not be renewed.

Chaplin's Limelight is one of the great films of cinema history.

Image - 4.25

Audio - 5

Pass / Fail - Pass

Very Highly Recommended

RAH

 

[Robin9]

When Limelight first came out, it was criticized for being sentimental and the film's reputation has been dogged by this assessment ever since. I first saw it in the 1970s and decided the judgement was silly. First, the film is not particularly sentimental and second, sentimentality is central to Chaplin's art.


The whole film is worth watching but two scenes I really love. First, when the Chaplin character rebukes the Claire Bloom character for giving up and the second - of course - is that magic sequence with Buster Keaton.


I'm very pleased this is a good transfer.

 

[Dick]

Just can't into this film, except for the final fifteen minutes featuring Keaton, which are superb. The rest of the movie I find overindulgent and frequently boring.

 

[cinemiracle]

I have had the UK bluray release for a couple of years. One of Chaplin's masterpieces.How could anyone ever forget the haunting LIMELIGHT theme which has been in my memory since I first saw the film when it was first released.

 

[haineshisway]

I will have to see some comparisons to the UK Blu-ray to know if I need this. For anyone who hasn't seen Limelight, it is, for me, an intensely moving film about age and youth. Is it maudlin and sentimental. Sure. So what? So is Love Story and a hundred other films of its ilk. Is it old-fashioned (a frequent criticism of the film back in the day and even now)? Sure. So what? Especially in terms of today's attention deficit movies, it's refreshing to see a director just put the damn camera down and tell the story - radical, I know. Chaplin was never a showoff - just a storyteller, and that's why his films don't date poorly.


Limelight is highly recommended by the likes of me.

 

[EddieLarkin]

I can't seem to find any reviews or screens of the UK Blu-ray, so it's hard to say if the source between the releases are any different. The Criterion is described as a "New 4K digital restoration", whilst the UK disc goes back 4 years now. Criterion have on two occasions rejected the materials provided to them by the licensor, MK2, and gone and done their own new transfers. This was the case with City Lights, which Criterion correctly presents at 1.19:1, rather than MK2's 1.33:1 (cropped on top and inclusive of soundtrack area!), and with The Gold Rush, where MK2 didn't even bother doing a transfer of the 1925 version. So it's certainly possible this could be very different from the UK release.

 

[haineshisway]

I can't seem to find any reviews or screens of the UK Blu-ray, so it's hard to say if the source between the releases are any different. The Criterion is described as a "New 4K digital restoration", whilst the UK disc goes back 4 years now. Criterion have on two occasions rejected the materials provided to them by the licensor, MK2, and gone and done their own new transfers. This was the case with City Lights, which Criterion correctly presents at 1.19:1, rather than MK2's 1.33:1 (cropped on top and inclusive of soundtrack area!), and with The Gold Rush, where MK2 didn't even bother doing a transfer of the 1925 version. So it's certainly possible this could be very different from the UK release.

If it's new and better, I'm definitely in. Hell, I'll probably be in anyway because the Criterion Chaplins all seem a bit better to my eye.

 

[Robert Harris]

Includes interviews with Mr. Lloyd and Ms Bloom

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

I will have to see some comparisons to the UK Blu-ray to know if I need this. For anyone who hasn't seen Limelight, it is, for me, an intensely moving film about age and youth. Is it maudlin and sentimental. Sure. So what? So is Love Story and a hundred other films of its ilk. Is it old-fashioned (a frequent criticism of the film back in the day and even now)? Sure. So what? Especially in terms of today's attention deficit movies, it's refreshing to see a director just put the damn camera down and tell the story - radical, I know. Chaplin was never a showoff - just a storyteller, and that's why his films don't date poorly.

Limelight is highly recommended by the likes of me.

OK, I'm in based on this. Saw this one a long time ago and it didn't click, but I find as I move through my early 50s that these types of films gain better meaning for me.

 

[david hare]

A propos of this release, it's worth mentioning Universal Italia has released a Blu Ray of Chaplin's last film from 1967, A Countess from Hong Kong in which a charming Sophia Loren in reality plays the Chaplin role by default in this movie without Chaplin as a star (apart from a tiny walk on) and a still young and quite prim Marlon Brando of all people plays the foil. It has the slower pace of classic Chaplin feature comedy but I have always liked it very much. It opened in 67 around the same time as Ford's last great masterpiece, the incomparable Seven Women and both movies seem to have suffered the slings and arrows of total abandonment by all but a dedicated few who appreciate these final work of two masters at such a refined and elevated level. I would kill to see a BD upgrade of the Ford. (Very much a minority view I know.)


This transfer appears to be a direct scan from a quite good Technicolor IB release print, complete with some emulsion damage over the opening credits and bits here and there but nothing untoward.


I simply can't imagine it coming out anywhere else in HD so here's your chance, for completists and fans!

 

[Oblivion138]

Have been waiting not-so-patiently for this, and the rest of the Chaplin films Criterion has up their sleeve. Always excited to pick up any Chaplin I can, and Criterion's releases have thusfar been superb. Will be glad to finally scrap the appalling DVD edition of Limelight in favor of this new BD edition.

 

[Robin9]

Ford's last great masterpiece, the incomparable Seven Women . . . . . I would kill to see a BD upgrade of the Ford. (Very much a minority view I know.)

It may be a minority view but a large minority, not a small one.

 

[bigshot]

A propos of this release, it's worth mentioning Universal Italia has released a Blu Ray of Chaplin's last film from 1967, A Countess from Hong Kong

As far as I know, all of the Chaplin features with the exception of Chaplin Revue have been released on blu-ray. The transfers all derive from the same source, but the releases in different countries have different music scores and extras. I got impatient with Criterion's slow release pace and got the South Korean box set, which includes all of the features on blu-ray, and all of the shorts (with the exception of the Essanay shorts) on DVD. It was a bargain at $150.

 

[bigshot]

This was the case with City Lights, which Criterion correctly presents at 1.19:1, rather than MK2's 1.33:1

That might have just been resized from the same 2K or 4K master.

 

[Brent Reid]

Those awaiting the rest of the Criterions might like to know that all Chaplin's 1918-1957 films are being released yet again in the UK, with several making their Blu-ray début:


http://www.brentonfilm.com/news/new-uk-charlie-chaplin-discs-from-artificial-eye


Thanks for the tip-off about the Italian A Countess from Hong Kong BD, David! Have updated the HD section of my Chaplin Collectors' Guide and will pick up a copy when I'm over there next month.


http://www.brentonfilm.com/articles/charlie-chaplin-collectors-guide-part-3/4

 

[bigshot]

Does Chaplin Revue include the other First National films?

 

[EddieLarkin]

The transfers all derive from the same source, but the releases in different countries have different music scores and extras. I got impatient with Criterion's slow release pace and got the South Korean box set, which includes all of the features on blu-ray, and all of the shorts (with the exception of the Essanay shorts) on DVD. It was a bargain at $150.

That might have just been resized from the same 2K or 4K master.

No, that's not true. The wording of the booklets confirm that these were newly undertaken or initiated by Criterion themselves. Indeed, the just posted Blu-ray.com review of Limelight and further comments on the forum confirm that the transfer on that disc is a brand new 4K and is completely different (and superior) from the UK Limelight (and thus every other international release).


The reason Criterion are taking so long with these releases is because they're taking the time to get them right. I've been more than happy to wait!

 

[david hare]

But Criterion did not quite get the headroom fully corrected with their re-mask of City Lights to the correct pre-1932 Sound film ratio of 1.19. The reference points for these shots seems to be the long OOP Inage Laserdisc. curated by David Shephard.


To their eternal credit they over-rode the ludicrous Chaplin Estate's insistence on the "priority" of the appallingly bad 1942 reissue sound version of Gold Rush as "preferred" version over the far superior '25 Silent original. All other Region B discs including UK Park Circus only render the '25 in SD. Only Criterion delivers it in 1080p.

 

[Dick]

But Criterion did not quite get the headroom fully corrected with their re-mask of City Lights to the correct pre-1932 Sound film ratio of 1.19. The reference points for these shots seems to be the long OOP Inage Laserdisc. curated by David Shephard.


To their eternal credit they over-rode the ludicrous Chaplin Estate's insistence on the "priority" of the appallingly bad 1942 reissue sound version of Gold Rush as "preferred" version over the far superior '25 Silent original. All other Region B discs including UK Park Circus only render the '25 in SD. Only Criterion delivers it in 1080p.

You mean, you didn't like Chaplin's self-indulgent and verbose narration in which he called his character "The Little Fellow" about 200 times?


For me, there is no comparison. It's the 1925 version, or none at all.

 

[david hare]

That, to say nothing of the huge number of cut scenes, sight gags, bits of business. It's as though he had totally lost confidence in it as a silent film. Thank god the 25 was rescued in a high quality format by Criterion.


Zero thanks to the Chaplin estate about whom the less said the better.