UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - Rope -- in 4k UHD (1 Viewer)

[aPhil]

Is the blu-ray from the old transfer ?

 

[Worth]

Is the blu-ray from the old transfer ?

Yes. I don’t think Universal ever includes a blu-ray with the new master.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Is the blu-ray from the old transfer ?

Yes, it's the same 2012 Blu-ray.

 

[Lord Dalek]

Yes. I don’t think Universal ever includes a blu-ray with the new master.

With the exception of Psycho.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

With the exception of Psycho.

Because they had the different cut of the movie which allowed them to promote a separate BD release as a new item rather than a catalog remaster.

 

[Wes Candela]

Hitchcock's 1948 Rope was a continuing experimentation that was used sparingly with Under Capricorn. Rope is in full 10 minutes reels, usually ending with someone walking in front of the camera to momentarily black out the image.

It's a film that has looked adequate on home video, as masters were produced from Eastman Color dupes.

Universal has restored the film for this release, returning to the original 3-strip nitrate negatives for the first time in aeons, and the results are superb.

Color, densities, black levels are all finely tuned, and grain appears natural.

For more on long takes, consider Russian Ark.

The slip is a similar image to what is inside, but is elegantly glossy with silver highlights.

Image – 5 (HDR10)

Audio – 5 (DTS-HD MA 2.0)

Pass / Fail – Pass

Plays nicely with projectors - Yes

Makes use of and works well in 4k - 6

Upgrade from Blu-ray - Absolutely!

Worth your attention - 10

Slipcover rating - 3

Highly Recommended

RAH


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This was one of the first films I saw after vertigo when I was 13. My introduction to Hitchcock.
I’m looking forward to seeing it restored now.

James Stewart is phenomenal

 

[jim_falconer]

James Stewart is phenomenal

For me, yes in Rope. Not so much in Vertigo

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I think he’s magnificent in both, but in very different ways.

 

[Wes Candela]

For me, yes in Rope. Not so much in Vertigo

Agreed to disagree
I think he’s phenomenal in both
I just watched Rope in 4K both last night and tonight
I didn’t know it could look good
And he is amazing in it

It looks magnificent

But for me, vertigo, final scene

Up the staircase solving the crime

Just for the nun
” I heard Voices”

Then that scream….

The perfect ending.


” you were a very apt pupil, weren’t you? You were a very apt pupil!”

 

[Christian D66]

Agreed to disagree
I think he’s phenomenal in both
I just watched Rope in 4K both last night and tonight
I didn’t know it could look good
And he is amazing in it

It looks magnificent

But for me, vertigo, final scene

Up the staircase solving the crime

Just for the nun
” I heard Voices”

Then that scream….

The perfect ending.


” you were a very apt pupil, weren’t you? You were a very apt pupil!”

Those two lines from VERTIGO are Stewart's finest acting moment onscreen. He thinks he was miscast in ROPE but he's perfectly believable as a Faulker-esque smart-ass. His little asides are gems. I feel that the beauty of the new 4k is vindiction for my lifelong love of the film.

 

[Robert Harris]

Those two lines from VERTIGO are Stewart's finest acting moment onscreen. He thinks he was miscast in ROPE but he's perfectly believable as a Faulker-esque smart-ass. His little asides are gems. I feel that the beauty of the new 4k is vindiction for my lifelong love of the film.

Mr. Stewart’s acting in those final moments of Vertigo, as he and Kim ascend the staircase, ended in an editorial / directorial decision to use an out of focus shot, based upon his extraordinary performance.

Careful viewers will note that the camera in that take is focused on the wall in the background and not on the actors.

 

[Wes Candela]

Those two lines from VERTIGO are Stewart's finest acting moment onscreen. He thinks he was miscast in ROPE but he's perfectly believable as a Faulker-esque smart-ass. His little asides are gems. I feel that the beauty of the new 4k is vindiction for my lifelong love of the film.

Oh so well said!
Rooe
It’s his statements and disregard for humanity. But his eyes as he’s putting the whole puzzle together.

Then he grabs David’s hat.

Comes back upstairs

he is terrified. But he knows they’ve killed David.
by the time he gets the gun
He owns the movie.
it’s sad to hear. He thinks he was miscast, he was perfection.

agree with you, there is a life that has been brought back to Rope that I never realized existed.

It’s so clear and filled with life now

amazing feat. Amazing Work.

 

[Wes Candela]

Mr. Stewart’s acting in those final moments of Vertigo, as he and Kim ascend the staircase, ended in an editorial / directorial decision to use an out of focus shot, based upon his extraordinary performance.

Careful viewers will note that the camera in that take is focused on the wall in the background and not on the actors.

Yes, Mr. Harris. Yes, I know the moment exactly!

I think there are two moments.
there is one when they are going up the stairs.

” That was your mistake Judy… the necklace.”

and I believe there is one more shot, as they struggle towards the top of the staircase.

it's quite dark.
Thank God they left that take in the film, Jimmy is on fire and Novak is locked in character.

"That was your mistake, Judy, You shouldn't keep souvenirs of a killing.
You shouldn't...
you shouldn't have been so sentimental."

The beauty of Vertigo.


I heard Alfred Hitchcock was upset with the box office for Vertigo, and ultimately blamed it on Jimmy Stewart's age.
That always disturbed me.
They never worked together again, but because I didn't see it in an interview and didn't hear Alfred Hitchcock voice that opinion...I can't be positive he said it.

But I hope he knows, in the heavens, that his masterpiece did get the appreciation it deserved in time.

 

[Wes Candela]

Mr. Stewart’s acting in those final moments of Vertigo, as he and Kim ascend the staircase, ended in an editorial / directorial decision to use an out of focus shot, based upon his extraordinary performance.

Careful viewers will note that the camera in that take is focused on the wall in the background and not on the actors.

“But why did you pick on me? WHY ME!!!”

I believe this is the second "out of focus" moment from this extraordinary scene.

I have raised the exposure to highlight the loss of focus from the incredible scene:

 

[Josh Steinberg]

He thinks he was miscast in ROPE but he's perfectly believable as a Faulker-esque smart-ass. His little asides are gems.

100%. He’s a bemused intellectual at a dinner party indulging a hypothetical scenario… until he isn’t.

It’s his statements and disregard for humanity. But his eyes as he’s putting the whole puzzle together.

Then he grabs David’s hat.

Comes back upstairs

he is terrified. But he knows they’ve killed David.
by the time he gets the gun
He owns the movie.
it’s sad to hear. He thinks he was miscast, he was perfection.

Absolutely. That’s the genius of the performance.

His supposed disdain for people is something of a put-on, and it’s amusing for the dinner party because I think we can all sense that the character wouldn’t actually condone what his former students did, but when it’s just fun and games, he’s onboard with it - if there’s no murder and everyone is just playing around, it is a fun poise to take.

But as soon as he realizes that it’s not a joke, he’s forced to confront the reality of the situation and he doesn’t hesitate to take a side, and he doesn’t hesitate to show what’s really in his heart. And Stewart is perfect for that.

He plays the both the before the revelation and the after the revelation scenes so well that I can’t imagine anyone else doing it.

 

[Christian D66]

The shot of Stewart holding the trunk open in shock is one of my favorite Hitchcock images.

 

[Wes Candela]

100%. He’s a bemused intellectual at a dinner party indulging a hypothetical scenario… until he isn’t.



Absolutely. That’s the genius of the performance.

His supposed disdain for people is something of a put-on, and it’s amusing for the dinner party because I think we can all sense that the character wouldn’t actually condone what his former students did, but when it’s just fun and games, he’s onboard with it - if there’s no murder and everyone is just playing around, it is a fun poise to take.

But as soon as he realizes that it’s not a joke, he’s forced to confront the reality of the situation and he doesn’t hesitate to take a side, and he doesn’t hesitate to show what’s really in his heart. And Stewart is perfect for that.

He plays the both the before the revelation and the after the revelation scenes so well that I can’t imagine anyone else doing it.

So well said so well.
And so very much agree with you

I watched it Sunday night
And I re-watched it Monday night

Not intentionally last night, just wanted to get another look, but I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. Next thing I knew… He opened the window and fired three shots and I realized I just watched the movie again.

Stewart, we will never have another.

He is legend.
And he was bloody perfect for the character.

 

[benbess]

Watching this new release now. The clarity is impressive, giving it an appropriately spooky "you are there" quality. All the acting, set, and prop details that have to go right in each of the the long takes add tension to the story. It's a grim scenario, and perhaps even the most ghastly that Hitchcock had directed up to that time.

 

[Douglas R]

I enjoyed watching ROPE again in this very impressive 4K version.

I've recently been reading Patrick Hamilton's play and it's fascinating to note the vast difference between play and film, especially in terms of dialogue. Quite unlike Hitchcock's DIAL M FOR MURDER for which Frederick Knott adapted his own play using his dialogue almost for word for much of the film. Patrick Hamilton was initially contracted to write a treatment but his work was taken over by Hume Cronyn who basically rewrote the plot and Arthur Laurents who added dialogue. After the film was released Hamilton wrote to his brother saying he was heartbroken by the film. "I had thought that working with Hitchcock was going to be heaven and put everything I knew into it. However he utterly rejected my script, got someone else to write it and finally produced a film which I think was sordid". Hamilton had been similarly upset with MGM's 1944 version of his play GASLIGHT and HANGOVER SQUARE which was loosely adapted from his novel.

Hitchcock had wanted Cary Grant to play Rupert Cadell and as much as I like James Stewart I can't help thinking that Grant's screen persona might have been more suited for the part of, essentially, an inquisitor.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

It's official - the first movie I watched at home in 4K UHD disc was "Rope" - I wonder how many 4K UHD owners can say that!

The new remaster is a tremendous improvement over every single home video version I've ever seen. And the movie itself remains transfixing.

I really love the Hitchcock productions where he keeps the action in an enclosed space - this and "Dial M For Murder" are two of my very favorites of his, and it can't be a coincidence that they both have similar settings. Hitchcock loved shooting on soundstages much more than out in the field, and he uses his love of studio settings to his great advantage on both titles.