A Few Words About A few words about...™ Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979) -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

In a career that encompassed seven decades, Alec Guinness was always at the top of his craft.

Whether enjoying his work in the incomparable Ealing comedies of the '50s, or any of his performances thereafter, when you watch Sir Alec, you're in for a treat.

His two turns as master-spy George Smiley are no different, except that rather than visiting him in your local cinema, he came to us courtesy of the BBC.

Both are masterworks, but from technical perspectives are quite different, as the first http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006Z4LP72/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=afewwordsabout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006Z4LP72http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=afewwordsabout-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B006Z4LP72

 

[Johnny Angell]

I know there are good reasons for the poor quality of this release, but it's still disappointing. It's are even harder to swallow when I see Amazon wants $50 for this release. I'd like to have this, but I'll have to wait.

 

[Charles Smith]

I didn't know this was coming, and just a month or so ago I bought the two series on DVD when I saw them at Costco.

 

[David_B_K]

I have the R2 DVD version of this and Smiley's People. Doesn't sound like I need to upgrade.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I have the R2 DVD version of this and Smiley's People. Doesn't sound like I need to upgrade.

I just glanced at what you wrote and at first I thought you wrote "I have the R2D2 version..."

 

[PaulDA]

I tend to watch my TV DVDs on my smaller monitor rather than on my PJ, so I don't think this will be a problem for me. I nearly went with the DVD instead of the BD but the new extras (though not copious) tipped the balance.
I suspect I will keep a smallish setup for quite sometime for a good portion of my material as I have a lot that simply would not be all that good on my PJ screen. Additionally, I'm fairly forgiving of material that I don't expect to be visually impressive for various reasons (the cost reasons invoked by Mr. Harris in this review are not limited to this release, for one; original material not able to be made any better, like the I, Claudius series which I bought on DVD last week---didn't bother to wait for a BD as I doubt there would be any benefit whatsoever and it seems rather complete in terms of extras).
As I find my visual acuity diminishing at a slightly faster pace than my aural acuity, I find myself less bothered by imperfections than I was even 2 or 3 years ago. I make an effort to get the best quality version of a release that I can find but if there are reasonable explanations for why quality might not be up to snuff in particular cases (like this one or I, Claudius), I find it easier to live with the shortcomings than I used to. At some point, content becomes important enough to offset some quality disappointments if such disappointments are owing to understandable circumstances. Where cost is not an issue and the source material is capable of providing us with top-notch quality, then I will hold out for better (as seen in remasters for Gangs of New York and others).

 

[Deepak Shenoy]

Acorn has done a great job bringing the Poirot series (at least the first 4 sets released so far) to Blu. They were also shot on 16 mm but I guess they will sell enough of these to justify the additional expense. Too bad they didn't think even the new TTSS movie would revive interest in the BBC show enough to make the additional effort worthwhile.

 

[John Hodson]

Seeing this got me thinking about Sir Alec's Little Dorritt (1988), a wonderful film, shot on 35mm, as to the best of my knowledge only released by WB on laserdisc.  This would make a great Blu-ray, but again, at 357 minutes, the concept of cost vs. profit comes to the fore.

There is a UK DVD available.

 

[Spake]

I was curious about the reference to Smiley's People supposedly being shot on 35mm. It was relatively rare for the BBC to shoot anything entirely on 16mm film, so it's hard to believe that they would have sprung for 35mm, especially for something that wasn't getting shown theatrically. Were you told this by someone at the BBC?

 

[WinstonCely]

Well, I've been waiting to get this release for some time, so I'm definitely springing for it.
It's nice though that they are releasing this on Blu-ray even if there is no quality gain, because I appreciate having more episodes on fewer discs. That is actually a big factor in me getting this release. Granted, in this case, I think it's only saving one disc (I believe the DVD is 3 discs, and the Blu-ray is 2) but still. I'd like to see more shows that are standard def either as the only format available or because it's the format that the series was produced in, get a release in Blu-ray to save on the number of discs. Monty Python, Golden Girls, Kids in the Hall, are all series that I have that take up a huge amount of shelf space, and having them on fewer discs would not only be good for shelf space, but easier to watch when you don't have a multi-disc player.
Anyway, back on topic.... I can't wait to re-watch this terrific series!

 

[JParker]

Mr. Harris, you wrote:

Acorn Media's new Blu-ray of Tinker Tailor is a mixed blessing.
Without Acorn, we would most likely not have had access to innumerable UK productions on home video, but what they do isn't easy. The most problematic situations involve productions originating on UK video, i.e. PAL format, which must be converted to run on US (NTSC) equipment. There have always been problems.
Working from film is far easier, and should be a no-brainer, except that scanning programming, doing clean-up and color toward use in digital media, can get very expensive.
And I presume that this would be the overriding factor in what has been released on Blu-ray in the new Tinker Tailor.
I've made mention of problems with the PBS releases of Downton Abbey, where there apparently a conversion performed from UK broadcast files, that needn't have been done. More on that in the near future.
Tinker Tailor was shot on 16mm, and presumably, someone, could have gone back to the OCN and performed a new image harvest, but 324 minutes, the expense could have negated any prospect of profits. And keep in mind that cleaning up 16mm is a beast. Also, with the knowledge that this transfer is not of recent vintage, discussion of black levels, shadow detail, and color becomes almost irrelevant.
This is why I can't be too harsh on this product.

FWIW, Acorn replied briefly to me via e-mail. I suspect you're looking at (I've not seen the release) a 1080i up-conversion from a videotape source. Ms. Logan, after I sent a link to this post wrote:

James,
We released this program as best we could with what the producers gave us in masters materials. It’s not always possible financially to go back to film and sometimes that film just doesn’t exist in a usable fashion. This is as good as it can be with what we were given.
Thanks,
Alexis

The e-mail address, not shopping service, of Acorn is: [email protected]. I did not get an answer when I followed-up to ask whether the source was in fact video. In the event, 'it is what it is'.

 

[Richard--W]

The BBC's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is The Godfather of espionage films. The follow up, Smiley's People, is The Godfather Part 2 of espionage films.
The British DVD released by Network is steadier, cleaner and sharper than the American DVD issued by Acorn (it also has a longer interview with LeCarre which is priceless). I can't help but wonder if Acorn even bothered to ask for the better transfer for the Blu-ray.

 

[Robert Harris]

Originally Posted by Richard--W /t/320184/a-few-words-about-tinker-tailor-soldier-spy-1979-in-blu-ray#post_3927129
The BBC's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is The Godfather of espionage films. The follow up, Smiley's People, is The Godfather Part 2 of espionage films.
The British DVD released by Network is steadier, cleaner and sharper than the American DVD issued by Acorn (it also has a longer interview with LeCarre which is priceless). I can't help but wonder if Acorn even bothered to ask for the better transfer for the Blu-ray.

A question worth asking, however.

RAH

 

[JParker]

A question worth asking, however.
RAH

I truly don't know except my impression is that the onus should not be put upon Acorn, because, Mr. Harris and Richard, they did (or ITV on their behalf) a remarkable job of restoring the Poirot series, which received glowing reviews on this site. Here's a link:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/t/319977/agatha-christies-poirot-series-4-blu-ray-review
And from a business standpoint, how smart is it for Acorn to release a Blu-ray with such poor video quality? It is possible that the film elements were destroyed or ruined or that BBC would not turn them over to Acorn. Note that Ms. Logan said,

This is as good as it can be with what we were given.[Emphasis added].

Therefore, it is highly probably that they were only given video of the original film. But BBC has a restoration division, separate from production:
http://www.bbcstudiosandpostproduction.com/dm_services/restoration.html
Of course, the left hand may not know what the right hand is doing. She never replied to my follow-up, even though I asked it be elevated with management.
I am disappointed at how things have turned out and have no intention of buying such a product.
However I can recommend the Acorn Blu-ray Poirot series to anyone who enjoys Agathe Christie and the marvelous David Suchet, God bless him, still playing the part.

 

[Peter Neski]

wasn't this shot in 16mm,so I don't think it ever looked good,am I wrong ? watched only the first ep and haven't seen it before,at least its all film

 

[Robert Harris]

wasn't this shot in 16mm,so I don't think it ever looked good,am I wrong ? watched only the first ep and haven't seen it before,at least its all film

What you're viewing is video. And the problems do not stem from 16mm

 

[davidarob]

While on Amazon UK I just stumbled upon a September release date for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, only this is being touted as a true HD Blu-Ray in honor of it's 40th anniversary. I'm hoping this means they've gone back to the original film elements and is not re-packaging hype.

It's listed as Region B, and can't find anything about a U.S. release yet, but it's a good omen...

 

[Ray H]

I love this book and miniseries (and the 2011 film as well), so I'll definitely give this new BBC release a pre-order.