Day After Trinity - how's the transfer? (1 Viewer)

[Dennis Nicholls]

The Day After Trinity came out under my radar about 8 weeks ago. I only found out about it by seeing the review in dOc today....

The dOc review said the transfer was pretty bad. Are there any more opinions about this one? As a documentary it's really very well done, and I'd like to retire my from-PBS VHS tape.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Haven't seen this DVD--it's the one about Dr. Oppenheimer, correct? I saw it on PBS. Excellent.

As a perverse sidenote: Last night I screened Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie. Not the most insightful documentary, but the footage of those nuclear blasts is awe-inspiring--and frightening.

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Yes, it's all about Oppie. http://www.digitallyobsessed.com/sho...w.php3?ID=3533
IIRC this was a production of our local PBS affiliate (KTEH) here in San Jose.
Too bad I was born a few years too late. I really would have liked to see an above-ground test at least once in my lifetime. I understand that "impressive" is a gross understatement.

 

[Jack Briggs]

I understand that "impressive" is a gross understatement.

Apocalyptic might be closer!

I, too, would love to have viewed an above-ground thermonuclear test. Of course, many thousands of people are now paying the price for our hubris back in the '40s, '50s, and early '60s. But we'll go into that later!

As for transfer quality, let me say this: I have a number of DVDs containing PBS documentaries, and they look magnificent--much better than the way they looked on PBS. Just a few days ago, I was watching the DVD of the excellent NOVA episode, "To the Moon"--it even included all the "sponsored-by" ads and such; the experience is indistinguishable from watch a regular broadcast episode (it even included the trailer for the "coming week's" episode of NOVA!).

So, if you liked what you saw on your PBS station, you'll like it even more on the DVD. In fact, you've inspired me to order the thing myself.

Thanks!

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Yes, actually the recent Ken Burn's bio Mark Twain is one of my very best 4:3 DVDs....but The Day After Trinity isn't marketed as a PBS video, merely an unreferenced Image disk.
There are supposed to be several things that once seen change a person forever: seeing the Earth from space, standing on the Moon, and seeing a nuclear detonation in person.

 

[Edwin-S]

Too bad I was born a few years too late. I really would have liked to see an above-ground test at least once in my lifetime. I understand that "impressive" is a gross understatement.
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Try finding and watching the doco "Radio Bikini". If that doesn't change your mind about wanting to see a nuclear test blast nothing will. To be suitably impressed, you would have to be close in relative terms. After watching that doco I wouldn't want to be within viewing distance of any nuclear blast, especially an above ground one.