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International BLU-RAY DISCS FROM FRANCE (1 Viewer)

Robin9

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You're right.....Sony owns the Columbia library so TT would be the only option in the US (as I can't see Sony releasing it themselves), Kino's not an option.

Both Criterion and Mill Creek have issued Blu-ray discs of Columbia titles.
 

bigshot

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I just got the French dual disk version of Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man (1943) in the mail. Region free, subs and dubs selectable in the menu screen. The cover is ugly as sin, but it comes with a slip cover, and reversing the inside cover makes a nice image for the cover... no text, but I don't read French anyway. It comes with a little booklet with some nice pictures and text all in French. The transfer is perfect. A little bit of negative speckle around the reel changes, but great grain and you can see the leaves blowing through the air at the end of the Talbot crypt sequence. They got DVNRed out in the US DVD. Here's a shot off the screen with my iPhone...

frankenwolf.jpg
 
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Thomas T

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I see where Elephant films in France is releasing blu rays of Douglas Sirk's Written On The Wind and Sign Of The Pagan. I suspect we'll see a domestic blu release of WOTW sooner than later from either Criterion or Universal itself. So I'm most excited about Sign Of The Pagan (shot in CinemaScope) which has never had a domestic R1 release to my knowledge and only non-anamorphic releases from Spain and Germany. Hopefully it will have optional French subtitles rather than forced.
 

bigshot

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A quick update... I screened Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man tonight, and I realized something that I didn't in my quick spot check. This is a straight HD transfer off the original camera negative... No grain smoothing at all. No despeckling. This is what the absolute best 35mm print would look like. If you like digital purity with nice smooth gradations with no grain and not a single white spot, then wait for Universal to release these. But if you prefer something that looks just like the best film you've ever seen, don't think about it. Just order the French disks.
 

OliverK

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Screencaps have been posted along with a review of Comanche Station:

http://www.dvdclassik.com/test/blu-ray-comanche-station-sidonis-calysta
http://www.dvdclassik.com/test/blu-ray-comanche-station-sidonis-calysta/galerie

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/164354
http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/164353

Sidonis really released a turd there, there is no other way of saying it.
This is some massive DNR and very rare these days when the source is intact (which it certainly is coming from Sony).

I have contacted Explosive media and asked when they will release it in Germany, There is a very good chance they will release it in proper shape.

As Sidonis will also release Mackenna's Gold I would strongly suggest to wait for a review before ordering.

By the way: Broken Arrow also got the "special treatment":
http://caps-a-holic.com/c.php?a=1&x=451&y=180&d1=7778&d2=7779&s1=74102&s2=74110&l=0&i=4&go=1
 

aPhil

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A quick update... I screened Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man tonight, and I realized something that I didn't in my quick spot check. This is a straight HD transfer off the original camera negative... No grain smoothing at all. No despeckling. This is what the absolute best 35mm print would look like. If you like digital purity with nice smooth gradations with no grain and not a single white spot, then wait for Universal to release these. But if you prefer something that looks just like the best film you've ever seen, don't think about it. Just order the French disks.

I often read on the boxes and press releases that a DVD or Blu-ray is made from the "original camera negative," but when you go through the extra features and see what was actually used you realize that it is often from an internegative or protection negative or low contrast print or an interpositive -- None of these things is the original camera negative.

The "original camera negative" is that unique length of film raw stock that actually ran through the camera and was exposed during the original photography of the motion picture.

What tells you that the French Blu-ray of "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man" is
". . . a straight HD transfer off the original camera negative . . ."
and what source can be verified that this information is correct?

I have the French Blu-ray of "Son of Frankenstein," and I still have the Legacy series with "Son of Frankenstein" on DVD:
In comparing the two, (while I cannot confirm) I would think that it is the same old HD transfer that is used in both cases
(I can spot no difference nor tweaking nor improvement other than the increased resolution of Blu-ray over the lower resolution of DVD),
and
while I am happy to have "Son of Frankenstein" in HD for a larger screen, I am dreaming of the day that Universal will release their recent 4K restoration of their 5 Frankenstein series films that are not (as to date) on Blu-ray in the USA.

Nevertheless, I do not know the source material used for the transfer on the DVD nor the Blu-ray of "Son of Frankenstein," but I doubt that it is from the original camera negative.
 

bigshot

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I'm just guessing because these transfers were clearly licensed from Universal. I think this is the 4K scan before processing. It looks EXACTLY like the transfers in the Uni Monster box, except it still has all of the grain and white neg speckles. Buy one to try it out. You won't be disappointed, unless an occasional negative speckle is a deal breaker for you.
 

OliverK

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I'm just guessing because these transfers were clearly licensed from Universal. I think this is the 4K scan before processing. It looks EXACTLY like the transfers in the Uni Monster box, except it still has all of the grain and white neg speckles. Buy one to try it out. You won't be disappointed, unless an occasional negative speckle is a deal breaker for you.
I know what you mean, I would rather not let the studios decide how litle grain is acceptable and err on the conservative side with the cleanup and grain management. This sounds like they did the right thing.
 

aPhil

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I'm just guessing because these transfers were clearly licensed from Universal. I think this is the 4K scan before processing. It looks EXACTLY like the transfers in the Uni Monster box, except it still has all of the grain and white neg speckles. Buy one to try it out. You won't be disappointed, unless an occasional negative speckle is a deal breaker for you.

Well, "it looks exactly like the transfers in the Uni Monster box" because it is the old HD transfers from years ago before 4K.

Universal Pictures did a great job with the restoration of both Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein (and Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein looks very good as well), so I'm anxiously looking forward to seeing the results of the new 4K restorations on the other Frankenstein films. May that day come soon.
 

Alan Tully

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bigshot

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If Universal does 4K scans, it won't be for blu-ray. It'll be for archival purposes to preserve a master copy suitable for theatrical projection. More numbers in the original scan won't make any difference to my personal home system, because I'm running 1920w, not 3840w. And with a 10 foot screen at a normal viewing distance, I doubt if I would be able to see a difference. I'm VERY happy with the Universal Monsters box set from 2012, and Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man looked as good as that, if not a little better for being less digitally polished to pristine perfection.

I sure wouldn't wait to get Son of Frankenstein or Werewolf of London in the hopes that it might look fractionally better once Universal gets around to doing a 4K scan, restoring it, and releasing it on a disk. We've never gotten the 2K scans on the second string Universal Monsters here in the US and it's been almost 4 years now. If you want to wait for 4K, that day may never come.
 

bigshot

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A few more Universal horrors arrive in June, three Mummy films: The Mummy's Hand, The Mummy's Curse & Abbott & Costello Meet The Mummy.

Thanks! Ordered!

Not keen on the Abbott and Costello ones, but this is what I've been waiting for. (I can't believe that Billy Batson would complain that a Tom Tyler movie costs too much at $19!)
 

Alan Tully

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Thanks! Ordered!

Not keen on the Abbott and Costello ones, but this is what I've been waiting for. (I can't believe that Billy Batson would complain that a Tom Tyler movie costs too much at $19!)

Ha, The Mummy's Hand is my favourite Mummy film. I was thinking of the three cheapo sequels after that, only an hour long each - & with the first one, a lot of that running time is made up with stock shots taken from the first two films.
 

JPCinema

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Just picked up in Paris the Blu Rays of Korda's JUNGLE BOOK and also ARABIAN NIGHTS. JUNGLE BOOK looks spectacular, although the few minutes after the titles I was concerned the PQ would not be good but once the "story" begins it looks great! ARABIAN NIGHTS has never looked so good. Both have forced French subtitles, but that has never bothered me and they are Region B locked.
 

Robin9

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Lost Command is now available on Blu-ray disc in France. I've never understood why this film is so little-known. It has a good story, a great cast including Anthony Quinn, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale, and a very competent director, Mark Robson. The cinematographer was Robert Surtees.

If there is no sign of a Twilight Time disc in the next month or so, I might buy this disc, sub-titles and all.
 

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