Conan the Barbarian (1982) 4K Arrow Release Discussion (3 Viewers)

[Capt D McMars]

As a longtime reader and fan of Roberrt E Howard, one can immediatly see and hear a discrepancy between dialog and storyline. The main reason is that the source material was NOT from the short stories but from the Conan comic books, and it shows.
This fundamental flaw is why these films, for me. fall short. Dispite the amazing cast and budget...these could have really been so much better. It was almost like somone that once read a comic book version of your favorite Harlan Ellison or Harry Harrison Book, and based it on the comic book without going to the main source materials...results in product such as this.
Don't get me wrong, if I had never read the original stories of Robert E Howard, it might have inspried to seek his writings out and that's a plus.
And it's not a bad production. My point is that both these films could have been elevated by the inclusion of the main source materials, that was lacking by it's absence.

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

The main reason is that the source material was NOT from the short stories but from the Conan comic books, and it shows.

Obama Disappointed Cabinet Failed To Understand His Reference To 'Savage Sword Of Conan' #24

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama expressed frustration Wednesday after members of his cabinet failed to recognize his allusion to the 24th issue of the comic series Savage Sword Of Conan during their first major meeting together.

www.theonion.com

 

[Lord Dalek]

As I already said earlier in this thread (emphasis added):

Its quite brighter than the old MCA LP master having been newly remixed from the 2" multitracks. Not perfect though as Intrada screwed up some parts that were reedits of pieces from earlier in the film. There was also some criticism that a tamtam was missing from the end of The Orgy but apparently its not on the master tape (for this reason its also missing from the blu ray mix).

Late overdub made durring the 24-to-3 track mixdowns and its presumed lost. Nothing can be done.

 

[Konstantinos]

Late overdub made durring the 24-to-3 track mixdowns and its presumed lost. Nothing can be done.

I have the sheet music book, but I haven't checked it yet (it is still sealed).
When I check it I'll report here about that tamtam, if it's in the sheet music or not .
If it's not I assume you're right that it was a late addition, probably on the podium?

 

[Lord Dalek]

Here's what light I can shed on this, and it's not a whole lot. I hope it helps, though. Regarding "The Orgy", the tam tam and gong roll at the end actually appears to have been an effect added during post production to assist in a smoother audio edit into the subsequent kitchen battle music, which was all done editorially. It was not recorded onto the 2" 24-track tapes. Being those are the actual tapes running on the Italian tape machines at the sessions, they probably should be considered authoritative in what Basil intended, or at least actually recorded. Everything else mixed down, combined, edited, tweaked or otherwise monkeyed with would have to have come from them.

The later 1/4" two-track mixes (discussed briefly in our liner notes) were used for the album and cassettes in their day and it appears the tam tam roll edited into the picture made it into those mixes, hence their inclusion on our third disc. You do get it both ways on our release: what was composed and recorded initially AND what was editorially added to the film and the subsequent two-track record mix downs. Whether this roll was added into the two-track mixes by accident or design, I sure can't say. In fact, there were also four-track mix downs made on half inch tape (actually three tracks plus a synch pulse for track number four) so keep in mind that was yet another generation introduced into this massive project.

I speak with some authority about all of these master elements since I worked with them all... thusly I'm not just shooting from the hip. That said, since neither composer nor orchestrator are with us any longer, determining exactly what happened where and when may be sadly buried with those irreplaceable artists.

I don't know anything about "missing" percussion in "Atlantean Sword", however. Mixed lower, maybe. Missing, I just don't think so. However, working on this set for months on end left me with many a ringing in my ears at bedtime. Anything could be possible.
--Doug

Also not present at all on the City of Prague rerecording (which used the original orchestrations Poledouris and McRitchie had before it became clear very quickly that the Orchestra de Santa Cecilia wasn't up to snuff).

 

[Michael Osadciw]

Thank you @Lord Dalek for posting Fake's comments on their project.

For all those reading these posts and who aren't as familiar with this film, it's our recommendation here to listen to this film score independently either by the isolated tracks or by picking up the Intrada or discontinued Varese Sarabande CDs.

 

[mark27b]

As with the recent releases of Escape From New York, Highlander and other movies there is also a new official behind the scenes / making of book being released too

• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 180336176X
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1803361765

 

[Capt D McMars]

Obama Disappointed Cabinet Failed To Understand His Reference To 'Savage Sword Of Conan' #24

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama expressed frustration Wednesday after members of his cabinet failed to recognize his allusion to the 24th issue of the comic series Savage Sword Of Conan during their first major meeting together.

www.theonion.com

 

[dpippel]

Obama Disappointed Cabinet Failed To Understand His Reference To 'Savage Sword Of Conan' #24

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama expressed frustration Wednesday after members of his cabinet failed to recognize his allusion to the 24th issue of the comic series Savage Sword Of Conan during their first major meeting together.

www.theonion.com

 

[RobertR]

Ok, so I've finally been able to compare the audio for myself between the Atmos and mono tracks. I zeroed in on the sword practice recovery scene, and yes, there is quite a noticeable difference in the level of the chorus. It will be the mono track for me. I'll likely use all channel mono mode. Picture is beautiful, quite an upgrade from the old BD.

 

[RobertR]

As a longtime reader and fan of Roberrt E Howard, one can immediatly see and hear a discrepancy between dialog and storyline. The main reason is that the source material was NOT from the short stories but from the Conan comic books, and it shows.

I know that the plot of the movie is not that of any one Robert E. Howard Conan story, but I also know that it contains elements from those stories. The Tower of the Serpent contains elements from the original story Tower of the Elephant, and the crucifixion scene is taken from A Witch Shall be Born. The big change from the original stories is Conan's origin. He was a barbarian, not a slave raised by another culture.

 

[Capt D McMars]

I know that the plot of the movie is not that of any one Robert E. Howard Conan story, but I also know that it contains elements from those stories. The Tower of the Serpent contains elements from the original story Tower of the Elephant, and the crucifixion scene is taken from A Witch Shall be Born. The big change from the original stories is Conan's origin. He was a barbarian, not a slave raised by another culture.

What struck me was that for the most part, in RE Howards tales, Conan is running solo. There are tales from his past hinting to running a pirate crew, but for the most part he is a solo act. In these he's trailing a contingent of characters ( hence the movie adaptation ). Perhaps stealing from the Indiana Jones series? LOL!!!

 

[RobertR]

What struck me was that for the most part, in RE Howards tales, Conan is running solo. There are tales from his past hinting to running a pirate crew, but for the most part he is a solo act. In these he's trailing a contingent of characters ( hence the movie adaptation ). Perhaps stealing from the Indiana Jones series? LOL!!!

It's more than a hint. He WAS a sea captain. He was also captain of the King's Guard, a general, and, of course, eventually he became King of Aquilonia by his own hand. But you're right that he was mostly a loner, although he did indeed have companions. He fiercely loved Belit, the Queen of the Black Coast. Valeria in the movie has similarities to Belit.

 

[johnmcmasters]

I would imagine that the ethos of friendship under fire, especially male bonding, came from the input of John Milius. His career is filled with examples of heroic friendships, i.e. "Big Wednesday", in which he tried to elevate such bonding into the realm of myth. As I recall, he was also friends with surfer Gerry Lopez who plays the "bro" character. I remember reading at the time that Milius used real swords and needed true athletes who could be trained quickly in the use of the weapons. I believe that Ms. Bergman's way with a sword was a major factor in her casting (again my memory may be way off here) as she was only known as a dancer until then.

Whether or not Milius succeeded is a tale for another chronicle...

I've always seen "The Seven Samurai" as a major influence on the first Conan film, especially in the fight scenes.

 

[Dave Moritz]

Had to order from two sources so the first to arrive was Conan: The Destroyer and Conan: The Barbarian should arrive soon.

 

[Michael Osadciw]

As with the recent releases of Escape From New York, Highlander and other movies there is also a new official behind the scenes / making of book being released too

Thank you for that. Ordered!

 

[JPCinema]

The atmos track on Conan the Barbarian is excellent!!!

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

 

[Konstantinos]

The atmos track on Conan the Barbarian is excellent!!!

Well, it would be excellent if the choir and percussion were intact!

 

[Konstantinos]

I have the sheet music book, but I haven't checked it yet (it is still sealed).
When I check it I'll report here about that tamtam, if it's in the sheet music or not .
If it's not I assume you're right that it was a late addition, probably on the podium?

I checked the sheet music book and indeed the tamtam isn't there in the orgy scene.
So, as you said, it was added later.
Pity, I liked that addition, so I'll be watching the film only with the mono audio.