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

[Colin Jacobson]

I watched Shout's EARTHQUAKE last night and noticed a definite uptick in quality and clarity. The Shout version doesn't seem to struggle with the same "noise" issues that the Universal version did. If the Universal version rated about three stars I would say this version is about 4 and 1/4 stars.
Of course this film has some sentimental value for me. It was the first movie that I lobbied to see in the theater. My parents, who did go and see it, claimed it would be too traumatic for a sensitive child in Kindergarten. I had to wait two years to see it on television. As a consolation for not being able to see EARTHQUAKE they took me to see "JOURNEY BACK TO OZ".

Trauma or no, I'd think a 5-year-old would be bored senseless at "Earthquake"!

Not that it's especially entertaining for those of other ages either!

 

[Wayne Klein]

I always loved Albert Whitlock's matte paintings--he was among the best. Not a huge fan of the film (as others note it takes way too long for something to happen in the film with the first hour really just soap opera garbage) but the work by Whitlock makes it worthwhile for the second section. I realize this was a 2K scan but I wonder what level of improvement we would see with 4K and also if it would just highlight the limitations of the effects work of the time.

 

[ahollis]

I received my Earthquake replacement disc today. That was fast.

 

[Detour (1945)]

I received my Earthquake replacement disc today. That was fast.

Forgive if I missed it, is there an issue with the Earthquake Blu-Ray? I haven't watched my copy yet.

 

[TonyD]

Yes perhaps more then, I received my replacement, Since up until then there was no apparent mention on needed s replacement.

 

[ahollis]

 

[ABritch]

Yes perhaps more then, I received my replacement, Since up until then there was no apparent mention on needed s replacement.

I assumed that the theatrical version was taken from the 70mm print at 2.20:1 instead of 2.35:1, is the theatrical version on disc 1 supposed to be the 2.35:1 image?

 

[ahollis]

I assumed that the theatrical version was taken from the 70mm print at 2.20:1 instead of 2.35:1, is the theatrical version on disc 1 supposed to be the 2.35:1 image?

Read post #46 above. Is pretty well explains what the problem was. It was not taken from a 70mm print but an error in outputting that was not caught by Quality Control.

Shout deserves kudos for stepping up so quick to fix the problem.

 

[Detour (1945)]

Thanks, @ahollis!

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Yup, The Poseidon Adventure & The Towering Inferno were (& are) great, but there was a lot of dross in their wake, Earthquake, Beyond The Poseidon Adventure, The Swarm, When Time Ran Out, & many more, some I enjoy & some I don't. Today, if a disaster film isn't up to much, at least there's some mind boggling visuals, thanks to CGI.

I wouldn’t include Earthquake in that list of terrible films.

The Swarm is probably the most enjoyably bad of these. Whatever scenery wasn't destroyed by the bees was joyfully chewed by the cast.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

The Swarm is probably the most enjoyably bad of these. Whatever scenery wasn't destroyed by the bees was joyfully chewed by the cast.

Ugh. Even as a disaster movie-loving 11-year-old in 1978, I knew "The Swarm" was bad! Just bad - no enjoyably about it!

 

[Detour (1945)]

Replacement disc is on the way! Thanks again, @ahollis!

 

[Detour (1945)]

And disc has arrived! Thanks again, @ahollis, I really appreciate the help.

 

[ahollis]

And disc has arrived! Thanks again, @ahollis, I really appreciate the help.

Your more than welcomed.

 

[ABritch]

Your more than welcomed.

my replacement arrived this past Thursday.
thank you for making me aware of this disc issue so i could get a corrected disc.
I appreciate it.

- Anthony

 

[andySu]

Earthquake new release pressing is as about more the same as the eariler UK release.
The more things Quake. The more they Quake the same.

Colour only tiny margin that my LG OLED can't do with tweaking the colour settings but its still a good laugh this movie.

Come on over, baby, whole lotta shakin' goin' on
Yes I said come on over, baby, baby, you can't go wrong


Having a bit of Sensurround nostalgia flashback shaking syndrome.

 

[Dick]

This movie probably turned me off to Ava Gardner. I hated her character and hated the romantic subplot with Heston.I have since grown to appreciate her more, as it was after EARTHQUAKE that I saw her in ON THE BEACH and SEVEN DAYS IN MAY. But I have always despised Marjoe Gortner. I'd seen Genevieve Bujold in KING OF HEARTS prior to this and liked her then, but she was simply gorgeous here and in the subsequent SWASHBUCKLER (an underrated film, imo). The special effects seemed pretty good to this 24-year-old, especially as I'd experienced the film with Sensurround. But following the film's aftershock, it grew painfully anticlimactic, and I could have cared less whether or not Heston swam after Gardner to try saving her. So, very ambivalent about EARTHQUAKE then, and now.

 

[andySu]

I like the story with dam. "It won't budge" that must have been one powerful fictitious Earthquake! The new transfer is slight improvement in picture colour and the odd effect the first pressing had with the grain.

 

[andySu]

This movie probably turned me off to Ava Gardner. I hated her character and hated the romantic subplot with Heston.I have since grown to appreciate her more, as it was after EARTHQUAKE that I saw her in ON THE BEACH and SEVEN DAYS IN MAY. But I have always despised Marjoe Gortner. I'd seen Genevieve Bujold in KING OF HEARTS prior to this and liked her then, but she was simply gorgeous here and in the subsequent SWASHBUCKLER (an underrated film, imo). The special effects seemed pretty good to this 24-year-old, especially as I'd experienced the film with Sensurround. But following the film's aftershock, it grew painfully anticlimactic, and I could have cared less whether or not Heston swam after Gardner to try saving her. So, very ambivalent about EARTHQUAKE then, and now.

Scenes like this.

 

[Robin9]

This movie probably turned me off to Ava Gardner. I hated her character and hated the romantic subplot with Heston.I have since grown to appreciate her more, as it was after EARTHQUAKE that I saw her in ON THE BEACH and SEVEN DAYS IN MAY. But I have always despised Marjoe Gortner. I'd seen Genevieve Bujold in KING OF HEARTS prior to this and liked her then, but she was simply gorgeous here and in the subsequent SWASHBUCKLER (an underrated film, imo). The special effects seemed pretty good to this 24-year-old, especially as I'd experienced the film with Sensurround. But following the film's aftershock, it grew painfully anticlimactic, and I could have cared less whether or not Heston swam after Gardner to try saving her. So, very ambivalent about EARTHQUAKE then, and now.

I hope since then you have watched some of Ava's earlier films. I'm thinking of movies like My Forbidden Past, Mogambo and The Snows Of Kilimanjaro.