John Barrymore Films (1 Viewer)

[bujaki]

It's a Selznick title so I don't know whether it's available in any way today (I have the LD and I know it plays on TCM), but one of his best and most subtle performances is in TOPAZE with the great pre-Code Myrna Loy. I second all the other recommendations. John B was a great actor; I feel Lionel B was a great ham.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I appreciate all the recommendations. Keep 'em coming.

It's really too bad that his films aren't better represented on physical media.

And thanks, Rodney, for explaining the simple logistics of the streaming process.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Think of that $3.99 charge as being equivalent to renting a disc or VHS tape back in the day - you get 24 or 48 hours to sample the movie but you don't get to keep it.

I've gotten a lot of mileage out of these kinds of streaming rentals. It's amazing what's available - lots of titles in HD that haven't made it to Blu-ray. And being able to order something at the touch of a button, instead of going to the video store, is pretty cool to me.

And thanks for the thread too - I'm taking notes!

 

[bujaki]

Moby Dick (1930) is available on a Warner Archive DVD. Barrymore may be good but the fanciful re-imagining of the novel is another story. The whale is not even white! I understand the first version, The Sea Beast (1925), is available in sub-par PD DVDs, so it's probably best to avoid it. I saw both in 35mm prints at MoMA and I much preferred the 1925 version.

 

[Dick]

I was looking for Twentieth Century on disc (via Amazon) and couldn't find it.

Does it exist?

It looks like there was an '05 release that is OOP.

There is a nice-looking HD master of this, but so far no news from Sony or any smaller labels about an official Blu-ray release. But John Barrymore + Carole Lombard + Howard Hawks generally = optimum sales potential.

 

[David Weicker]

There is a nice-looking HD master of this, but so far no news from Sony or any smaller labels about an official Blu-ray release. But John Barrymore + Carole Lombard + Howard Hawks generally = optimum sales potential.

On a slightly unrelated note, I often see posts referencing HD masters. I'm curious how people are aware of their existence. Are these available for viewing in somewhere? Or is there some master list?

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

Many of the Warner titles that are commented on have appeared on the Archive's streaming channel in HD.

 

[Dick]

On a slightly unrelated note, I often see posts referencing HD masters. I'm curious how people are aware of their existence. Are these available for viewing in somewhere? Or is there some master list?

Well, I have had access to a lot of these and, unfortunately, I cannot share my source. Suffice it to say that most of them look stellar, and could be tweaked a little and made into really decent Blu-ray masters. These include dozens of Disney live-action and Paramount titles. But there are also HD masters that need considerable work to be Blu-ray-ready.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

On a slightly unrelated note, I often see posts referencing HD masters. I'm curious how people are aware of their existence. Are these available for viewing in somewhere? Or is there some master list?

A huge number of classic titles that don't have Blu-rays, some of which don't even have DVDs, can be easily rented online at streaming services like Vudu and iTunes.

 

[Mike Frezon]

The only other John Barrymore film I've ever seen is Dinner at Eight.

And I went to watch my Dinner at Eight DVD tonight...and it wouldn't play.

 

[Robert Crawford]

And I went to watch my Dinner at Eight DVD tonight...and it wouldn't play.

Mike,

I pulled out my DVD which was part of the 2005 Classic Comedies Collection and played the first 30 minutes without any trouble.

 

[Rob_Ray]

You had me panicked there as I have recently discovered through another thread that most of my Joan Crawford Volume 2 releases lock up at the disc layer change. But DINNER AT EIGHT appears to play through fine, including all bonuses. I can skip to every chapter with no problem anyway. I replaced the Crawford titles with the WB Archive repressings, and the comedies on this THIS set are essentials, every one high on my list of all-time favorites.

 

[Robert Crawford]

You had me panicked there as I have recently discovered through another thread that most of my Joan Crawford Volume 2 releases lock up at the disc layer change. But DINNER AT EIGHT appears to play through fine, including all bonuses. I can skip to every chapter with no problem anyway. I replaced the Crawford titles with the WB Archive repressings, and the comedies on this THIS set are essentials, every one high on my list of all-time favorites.

I'm going to check out those Joan Crawford Volume 2 releases too.

 

[Robert Crawford]

You had me panicked there as I have recently discovered through another thread that most of my Joan Crawford Volume 2 releases lock up at the disc layer change. But DINNER AT EIGHT appears to play through fine, including all bonuses. I can skip to every chapter with no problem anyway. I replaced the Crawford titles with the WB Archive repressings, and the comedies on this THIS set are essentials, every one high on my list of all-time favorites.

Well, I didn't have any trouble with that Joan Crawford boxset.

 

[atfree]

There is a nice-looking HD master of this, but so far no news from Sony or any smaller labels about an official Blu-ray release. But John Barrymore + Carole Lombard + Howard Hawks generally = optimum sales potential.

Agree. This would be an immediate purchase if released on Blu-ray