A Few Words About A few words about...™ 23 Paces to Baker Street -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

Henry Hathaway's 23 Paces to Baker Street is an interesting drama, that probably played better half a century ago than it does today, but it's still of interest.

Mr. Hathaway began his career in props, and worked his way up to AD, hitting his directorial mark in the early 1930s.

His early work was at Paramount, after which he became a staple at Fox.

Kino Lorber's new Blu-ray is a quality affair, with a nice color palette, (the packaging says that it's been restored at 4k), with a generally nice grain structure and shadow detail.

With certain notes picked up a decade later by Wait Until Dark, 23 has nothing to do with Mr. Holmes, other than a brief mention of the location in dialogue.

Audio, which was originally 4-track, is presented in a two track fold-down.

Especially for fans of Van Johnson and Vera Miles, worth 100 minutes of your time.

Image - 4.5

Audio - 3.5

4k Up-rez - 4.5

Pass / Fail - Pass

Recommended

RAH

 

[Alan Tully]

A two track fold-down, is that stereo? It's just that it plays on TV (SD) in good stereo (well it seems like good stereo), I've recorded some audo sections from it, as I like Leigh Harline's score. Thanks.

 

[John Morgan]

A two track fold-down, is that stereo? It's just that it plays on TV (SD) in good stereo (well it seems like good stereo), I've recorded some audo sections from it, as I like Leigh Harline's score. Thanks.

I wish they would indicate on the box what stereo option should be used. Mostly on films I know were 4 track, but released only on 2 track on video, I usually get satisfactory results using Pro logic or some matrix decoding option. But, some stereo films sound horrible when engaging the matrix decoder with voices and sound effects sounding all over the place. Surround wasn't then used in the way it is today, but I remember seeing an old 35mm print of BAKER'S STREET with 4 track and the final sequence was quite effective

Spoiler

(in the film's story there are speakers placed all around the interior of an apartment) and the stereo sound bouncing all over was quite effective.

 

[John Morgan]

double post

 

[Keith Cobby]

I rarely pre-order a blu-ray but I have for this film, a favourite of mine, and not a film I would have expected to receive this restoration. The Beaver screen caps show a huge improvement from the DVD.

 

[Robin9]

I rarely pre-order a blu-ray but I have for this film, a favourite of mine, and not a film I would have expected to receive this restoration. The Beaver screen caps show a huge improvement from the DVD.

I don't trust the Beaver, least of all his screen caps, but if this disc is a big upgrade, I'll buy it.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I don't trust the Beaver, least of all his screen caps, but if this disc is a big upgrade, I'll buy it.

Do you trust RAH because he gave the video a 4.5 grade?

 

[haineshisway]

I'm guessing that despite the Beaver's caps making it seem like it's a big upgrade, that the transfer will look scads better than his caps.

 

[Robert Harris]

It looks far better than I've ever seen it. Mid-run Eastman 5248. A couple of years entering the wondeful era of dye fade. Some sequences have an interesting slightly golden appearance.

 

[cinemiracle]

Henry Hathaway's 23 Paces to Baker Street is an interesting drama, that probably played better half a century ago than it does today, but it's still of interest.

Mr. Hathaway began his career in props, and worked his way up to AD, hitting his directorial mark in the early 1930s.

His early work was at Paramount, after which he became a staple at Fox.

Kino Lorber's new Blu-ray is a quality affair, with a nice color palette, (the packaging says that it's been restored at 4k), with a generally nice grain structure and shadow detail.

With certain notes picked up a decade later by Wait Until Dark, 23 has nothing to do with Mr. Holmes, other than a brief mention of the location in dialogue.

Audio, which was originally 4-track, is presented in a two track fold-down.

Especially for fans of Van Johnson and Vera Miles, worth 100 minutes of your time.

I agree with you that the film played better 50 years ago than it does to-day. The film was very popular where I worked, when it was first released. I watched an old dvd recently and it is still a good film but not one that I would care to see again. Van Johnson and Vera Miles were superb in the film. I was fortunate enough to have been in a TV mini-series when it was filmed in Australia. Vera Miles was one of the stars of the show.

 

[Robin9]

Do you trust RAH because he gave the video a 4.5 grade?

Yes! As RAH's 4.5 = my 5, this must be a big upgrade.

 

[Alan Tully]

Fox does seem to me to be a huge fragmented place, with different departments doing their own thing. One department puts out the godawful p&s DVD (& only a couple of years ago), & another takes the time & trouble to produce a transfer like this.

One not very important thing about the film. The hero lives in Portman Square, & that's just off Baker Street (there's lots places called Portman around that area), but it's nowhere near the River Thames, he would never have had the panoramic view of the Thames from his balcony, but I'm glad it's there, it's one of the things I like about the film, those cinemascope shots of fifties London.

 

[Robert Harris]

Fox does seem to me to be a huge fragmented place, with different departments doing their own thing. One department puts out the godawful p&s DVD (& only a couple of years ago), & another takes the time & trouble to produce a transfer like this.

One not very important thing about the film. The hero lives in Portman Square, & that's just off Baker Street (there's lots places called Portman around that area), but it's nowhere near the River Thames, he would never have had the panoramic view of the Thames from his balcony, but I'm glad it's there, it's one of the things I like about the film, those cinemascope shots of fifties London.

Fox is not "fragmented."

They do beautiful work on assets, as budgets permit, while making unrestored masters available to licensees, to bring in funds which can be used toward preservation and restoration

 

[Robert Crawford]

Fox is not "fragmented."

They do beautiful work on assets, as budgets permit, while making unrestored masters available to licensees, to bring in funds which can be used toward preservation and restoration

With that said, their MOD program is far behind Warner Archive as far as quality and original aspect ratios. The Fox issues isn't from Mr. Belston's group!

 

[Alan Tully]

Maybe fragmented is the wrong word, but what were they doing releasing a pan & scan of a cinemascope film only three years ago, what other major studios were doing stuff like that (& some of the other releases in that series weren't so hot). I'm thinking it's one department doing the 4x3 stuff & another doing these great HD transfers. And my old complaint, Patton! Fox do the right thing & redo the HD transfer, & then after that, release the old version in Europe, & when asked about it, Fox Europe said they didn't have access to the new transfer, it doesn't sound like a joined-up company to me.

Anyway, back to 23 Paces To Baker Street, I hope a European company picks this us for release.

 

[Robert Harris]

Hopefully, the next time we see Patton, it will be 4k, without HDR.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Hopefully, the next time we see Patton, it will be 4k, without HDR.

Not to derail this thread about this 23 Paces to Baker Street.

RAH,

Which classic titles should have HDR applied? What I mean is what are your requirements in which HDR should be applied?

 

[Robert Harris]

Not to derail this thread about this 23 Paces to Baker Street.

RAH,

Which classic titles should have HDR applied? What I mean is what are your requirements in which HDR should be applied?

Catalog titles should be matched to original prints, as closely as possible.

If a filmmaker wishes to add something, or make minor changes, it's their prerogative.

But when it comes to restored titles, attempting to add a coating of dynamic range, can open a Pandora's box that may never be closed.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Catalog titles should be matched to original prints, as closely as possible.

If a filmmaker wishes to add something, or make minor changes, it's their prerogative.

But when it comes to restored titles, attempting to add a coating of dynamic range, can open a Pandora's box that may never be closed.

Thank you for that explanation. So you're fine with catalog titles being released from 4K scans, but not with HDR applied.

 

[Robert Harris]

Thank you for that explanation. So you're fine with catalog titles being released from 4K scans, but not with HDR applied.

4k is our friend, and reproduces film resolution for classics