Anamorphic transfers of Vertigo and Psycho! See post #54 about new boxset. (1 Viewer)

[Joe Caps]

Little side bar, but it seems redundant to say newly remastered all the time. Shouldn't it just be remastered or newly mastered. Whats the alternative - oldly remastered?

 

[Mark Zimmer]

I'm in the same old discs camp. The current discs were 'digitally remastered.' I find it highly implausible that Universal would go to the effort of doing new transfers on all these films.

OTOH, they did improve at least some of the transfers on the Classic Monster Collection when they were released in much cheaper editions, so there is some precedent for them doing just that.

 

[PaulP]

I think "newly remastered" implies just that - they're new transfers. I lucked out, as I just bough six or seven of these this year. But if these indeed turn out to be all-new transfers and anamorphic where appropriate, I'll have to pick it up.

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

Well if these are truly remastered than it's a no brainer and this will definitely be copped on street day!

I too sincerely hope that individual keepcases are used and this special velvet packaging or whatever it's supposed to be is not a digipack because that's one thing I absolutely hate about Universal's box sets (Marx Bros, etc.)

And David, all other regions outside of North America got updated cover art which used the original theatrical posters in a really classy and artistic way and looked great so I don't see why R1 should be any different. They could just use the same cover art that Korea and Europe got and I'd be more than happy.

Here's a sample of Vertigo...



It's actually not the original poster art, but looks almost as great. (Notice a shillouette of the original poster montage can be seen in the upper right of thebox though) Better for some of the films...

Here's Psycho and Rear Window...

 

[PaulP]

Yes something along these lines would be quite welcome, if not original posters. Anything but the current god-awful covers.

Universal, you have about four months; get to work!

 

[Evan Case]

Boy, good thing I just bought the 11 Universal Hitch's I still needed this past March. :frowning:

D'oh!

Evan

 

[ScottR]

Bitter Buyer!

 

[RickyB]

Does this mean I should sell the copy of Rear Window I just recieved today? Luckily it's the only Hitchcock film I own and I haven't opened it yet.

I think I'll hold on to it until I find out for sure that all of these films are being remastered. In other words, I'll make sure they are worth a double dip.

 

[Chris Bardon]

Reading about the special "velvet packaging" makes me think that this'll be a multi-disc digipack. Not the end of the world, and it probably won't stop me buying the set, but I'd rather have seen individual cases, since it would mean being able to get rid of any movies I didn't want to keep (assuming I could bring myself to break up a box set, which my collector's mentality had yet to let me do...)

 

[Bill Huelbig]

I agree with you, Jeffrey. When Norman goes up to the house after talking to the sheriff there's a single white cloud in the sky, a memorable shot. In the matted version it's cut in half and hardly makes any impression at all - it just looks wrong. Also when Marion is doing the figuring with her bankbook right before the shower. The name of the bank is cut off in the matted version.

All the times I'd seen PSYCHO in theaters, the film looked to be squarish, either 1.33:1 or 1.66:1, and those details I mentioned were clearly visible. If I had a wish list concerning new versions of the Hitchcock classics, it'd be for an unmatted PSYCHO and the mono soundtrack of VERTIGO with the original sound effects. Universal just gave us the original soundtrack for JAWS - maybe someday they will do the same for VERTIGO.

 

[David Von Pein]

I like this cover design, with the little "symbol" equating to each film in the upper right-hand corner.

However, this Rear Window example has all kinds of errors on it -- No spacing between "The Hitchcock Collection" or "James Stewart", and Grace Kelly comes out "Grac EKelly".

Being sensitive to such packaging errors, I'm afraid I'd have a seizure of some ilk if I had to place this on my shelf. In fact, I'd fear that a fatal "Anal" attack just might result.

Heck, I still haven't fully recovered from MPI Home Video's drastic error with its Sherlock Holmes title from last year, when they misspelled "Spider" on the spine of "The Spider Woman" (spelling it "SPIPER"). I had to make a separate "D" in the proper font and paste it over the error. I was in bed recovering for two weeks after that packaging calamity.

 

[David Von Pein]

A 15-Disc Digipak Fold-out??? Dear God in DVD Heaven!! (I'd have a HUGE 'packaging seizure' if this were the case.)

Anybody got a 2-mile-long table I can buy, for "Digi unfolding" purposes??

Why would the words "Velvet Packaging" make you think "Digipak"? Seems to me it's probably just referring to the outer slipcase box with the "velvet" remark.

 

[David Von Pein]

ANAMORPHIC BULLETIN!! .................

Just noticed on the following Universal link re. the "Masterpiece" set ---

It appears that Univ. is going to add the "Video" details to this set one disc at a time, because I just noticed that the previously non-enhanced "Topaz" is listed as "Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1" for the 15-Disc set. (Topaz is "Disc #12".)

Cool beans (and very surprising IMO). This news is really making that approx. $6.00 per disc pricing (after normal discount) an even more incredible deal. ........

http://homevideo.universalstudios.co...?childId=35678

(But I sure hope they offer these "New" discs separately too.)

 

[David Von Pein]

Plus........

There's today's addition of the words "Anamorphic Widescreen" to this Universal page that you get before clicking on a link for "More Details". ..........

http://homevideo.universalstudios.co...p?titleId=2765

 

[Haggai]

David, are you sure that Topaz wasn't already 16X9 enhanced? I've never seen the disc, but I just checked a few reviews, and they all said it was enhanced. Anyway, hopefully we'll know soon about everything, it's pretty lame that Universal isn't just telling us what they obviously know we want to find out about this set.

Another thing about the Vertigo disc--in the extras, the Vertigo notebook, or whatever it's called, has all those storyboards and production notes, which are great, but they're not organized AT ALL, which just blows. It takes about half an hour to go through all of it, if I remember right. They didn't put even the slightest bit of effort into organizing it into proper subsections, with publicity shots, lobby cards, storyboards, production notes all having their own sections.

 

[David Von Pein]

Well, I thought that might be the case too.

But, DVD Empire and Amazon show it as "non"-anamorphic.

And so does the Universal site, right here......

http://homevideo.universalstudios.co...?childId=32789


Also -- The packaging doesn't say "Anamorphic" either. (PS -- I can't check this myself, because I don't have this particular Hitchcock title.) .........

 

[Haggai]

Here are a couple of Topaz disc reviews that say it's anamorphic:

DVDFile

DVD Authority

 

[David Von Pein]

Well, if it WAS anamorphic, I wonder why that info isn't on the back of the box?

I guess we'll need a person who actually has the "Topaz" DVD to weigh in here and confirm its anamorphic-ness (or lack of it).

 

[Robert Crawford]

The Topaz dvd has an anamorphic presentation.






Crawdaddy

 

[Haggai]

I don't see any reason not to believe the reviews, like the DVD Authority one that says: "Topaz is presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, although the case doesn't state it as such." Discs released back then--2000 or 2001 for this one, right?--didn't always say that they were anamorphic even when they were. I think the original release of Patton didn't say it was 16X9 on the packaging, even though it was.

EDIT: Also no reason not to believe Robert Crawford.