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Pre-Order Paramount Presents! Blue Hawaii (1961) (4k UHD) Available for Preorder (1 Viewer)

Mark-P

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Recompositing titles with original background photography is something that is happening more often these days. Disney has done it with a lot of their titles and the results are of course fantastic because the dupe footage has always looked bad. In the case of Disney however they still had the original titles and were able to digitally recomposit them so that they perfectly match the original production. Other studios are recreating titles which are close but not perfectly matched, which I can understand really bothers some people.
 

Robert Harris

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here's the new font they used for the opening credits.
It may seem trivial to others, but I have an OCD about these things.

There is no reason to use a “new font.”

If the overlays and hold-backs aren’t in inventory, the original font can be digitally reproduced, softened and used. One might also check to see if the original glass survives. Many were lost in the 1994 quake.

I was asked about this yesterday evening, and told that a comment had been made by a studio rep that the MT sequence was faded CRI, as opposed to being reportedly grainy.

While it could be both, it tells us that the currently conformed MT sequence is not original. If CRI, it would have been replaced - who knows why - at some point after 1968.

That would leave the 5235 sep masters, or the route that was taken - using the “foreign” background plate along with a new digital overlay.

But zero reason to change the font, unless someone didn’t like the original, and picked a new one - like getting new drapes.

Can’t wait to see yet another re-visualization. Body of the film should look superb. And the reality is that most viewers won’t notice - or care.

But I do, as someone in the art dept selected a very specific style to be painted or otherwise created. Temporary studio help should not be messing with it.
 
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Robert Harris

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Recompositing titles with original background photography is something that is happening more often these days. Disney has done it with a lot of their titles and the results are of course fantastic because the dupe footage has always looked bad. In the case of Disney however they still had the original titles and were able to digitally recomposit them so that they perfectly match the original production. Other studios are recreating titles which are close but not perfectly matched, which I can understand really bothers some people.
If it’s done well, it’s fine and gets around problematic dupes. There are many ways to skin this cat.

In 1994, when we discovered that the original MT for MFL had been excessed, we began with a search for the original glass, and came up with about 50%.

The other plates had been damaged in the quake, which had occurred only a few weeks earlier. They had, up until then, survived for 30 years.
 

Charles Smith

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There is no reason to use a “new font.” ...

Thank you. I've been wondering (for some years, actually) why, when it's deemed necessary or desirable to reconstruct a sequence like this, the original font cannot be PRECISELY reproduced with the tech available today.
 

Moore Maxx

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Couldn't decide if I should get this or not along with the SACD soundtrack. Then last night I caught a rerun of the Cheers episode where Sam has a dream about Elvis and talks to him through the TV from the set of Blue Hawaii.

Elvis: "The best thing that ever happened to me was having Lisa Marie".

Sam: "You're right Elvis, and she turned out to be a real babe".

Elvis: "Sam, don't make me come through this TV".

Hilarious.

I ordered both discs.

Maxx
 

Indy Guy

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I'm excited by what the comparison shows. The opening titles on the existing DVD and digital HD start the film off with less than stellar production values, including obvious stock footage with noticable wear. This is not true for the feature content. I will enjoy seeing the credit sequence with quality similar to the body of the film, since this is where the famous title song also resides.
I noticed there also appears to be some additional picture information on the lower edge of the new frames!
 

Robert Harris

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I'm excited by what the comparison shows. The opening titles on the existing DVD and digital HD start the film off with less than stellar production values, including obvious stock footage with noticable wear. This is not true for the feature content. I will enjoy seeing the credit sequence with quality similar to the body of the film, since this is where the famous title song also resides.
I noticed there also appears to be some additional picture information on the lower edge of the new frames!
There will always be different frame boundaries, especially when comparing different capture mechanisms. A new digital image harvest should capture the edge of the perfs.

As to the “comparison,” it means very little. I noted one of the new shots had major digital problems that I would bet are not in the new Paramount 4k.
 
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