R1 Vertigo anamorphic? (1 Viewer)

[Seth_S]

I disagree. It looks like the folks who made the R2 version turned the contrast levels significantly up. While colors are more vivid, skin tones are completely off - too much red. Stewart's and Novak's skin is practically red in captures #2 and #5. Also notice how the grey stone path in the capture #2 of the R2 version has a reddish tint to it, as well as the wall in #1.

If Universal were to someday revisit these two titles, "Pyscho" might also benefit from being a two disc set since Universal squeezed over 3.5 hrs of video onto the current DVD.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Psycho could definitely use a 16x9 revist IMO. the current version seems to lack resolution and looks more "laserdisc like" IMO.

-dave

 

[GerardoHP]

Absolutely. Would be nice if they could make it look like 3:10 TO YUMA or 8 1/2, both shining examples of how spectacular B&W can look with 16x9 enhancement.

 

[Andy_Munich]

First time post, but I just wanted to share. I tried Vertigo (R1) on my Panasonic 47" widecreen and Malata DVD player and it "appeared" to be anamorphic as well. I've played non-ana material before (such as the Man With No Name Trilogy) and have been forced to adjust with the Malata's x,y scaling. This was not needed for Vertigo. Perhaps it is just a matter of proper flags? If so, one more reason to love my Malata.

 

[ScottR]

What's up with the opening credits on Psycho? They look horrible. The Paramount logo looks like it was recorded off of television. It has all kinds of wavy lines in it.

 

[GerardoHP]

The modifications on the Paramount logo were intentional and in keeping with the lines in the rest of the opening credits. It was a very classy stylistic choice at the time of the film's release.

 

[Dave Mack]

I agree it's probably the Player auto-scaling. Heck My JVC scales the George C. Scott "Xmas Carol" to fill my WS set!!! And that's a 4x3 disc. Very Bizarre sometimes. The only way to watch "Carol" in it's OAR is to de-zoom the image to 1/2.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

If a DVD title is properly flagged as "4x3 letterbox" DVD players capable of scaling will auto-scale to 16x9 in 480P output.

In the case of Fox's Christmas Carol, they must have inadvertantly marked it as 4x3 lbxed even though it's really 4x3 full-frame. I've seen other discs like that too. Luckily my Panny player allows me to deactivate the auto-scale feature and manually select display mode.

BTW, I've noticed many Disney 4x3 lbxed fils are properlly flagged so they "look" anamorphic to users who are running 480P machines that scale.

-dave

 

[Robert Harris]

deleted see below

 

[Robert Harris]

Re: Logos...

Sir Alfred had a rather dry and perverse sense of humor.

Since contractually his films had to begin with the studio logos, he began them with the studio logos.

Apparently there was nothing contractual about making modifications to the logos, and the studios went with it.

My favorite has always been the brilliant green lion, much like the green credit sequence in the original psycho, which was copied in the 1998 version.

RAH

 

[Seth_S]

At the same time he's setting his films apart from the studio's other films. The use of the altered logo states: "This may be a film from Paramount, but it's not your typical Paramount film."

 

[Andreas Wagner]

Dear Mr Harris,
*
thanks a lot for your wonderful film restorations as well as your great column on "The Digital Bits".
*
I would like to get your opinion on the release of the Universal Hitchcocks. I own the PAL RC 2 DVDs of both "Vertigo" and "Psycho". Both feature an anamorphic transfer. (As it is the case with Universal's release of "Spartacus" here in Europe.) My question is: since you've mentioned that Universal altered the Vertigo transfer in order to get it done anamorphic, are you aware if they did something similar with the transfers of* "Psycho" and "Spartacus"??? Is there any chance that Universal might have used the Criterion transfer of Spartacus here in Europe???

By the way, Universal released a Pan and Scan DVD of "The Birds" in all PAL countries. They claimed that they did not have a useable master. But since the Hitchcock DVDs were released quite some time after their RC 1 counterparts, it should have been no problem to downconvert the high definition master (which was obviously made in the case of "The Birds"), and downconvert it to PAL.* Is Universal misleading the public here in any way?
*
Once again, thank you very much for your answers.
*
Greetings from Germany.
*
Bye
Andreas.

 

[GerardoHP]

Was the original credit sequence in PSYCHO (1960) ever green?

 

[Robert Harris]

Yes

The color of money

 

[GerardoHP]

And the color of decomposition.

So this is one of those Hitchcock touches that was forgotten through years of incorrect prints and videos, like the red flash at the end of SPELLBOUND.

Another good reason to reissue PSYCHO -- 16x9 enhanced and with the green title sequence restored.

 

[Patrick McCart]

My favorite has always been the brilliant green lion.

Saul Bass rules!

 

[ScottR]

So Psycho's credits were originally shown in Green in 1960? I wonder when they were changed to black and white?

 

[David Von Pein]

So Psycho's credits were originally shown in Green in 1960? I wonder when they were changed to black and white?

Green???
News to me.
Therefore, I guess we should all be hollerin' about our Psycho DVDs "not being what was seen in theaters!".

 

[Robert Harris]

From what I've been able to ascertain the green credit sequence seems to have been limited to a handful of original prints, one mentioned in the original review from London.

This seems to have been more of an experiment and not for he general release of the film.

When Ron Haver was putting together the LACMA tribute to Hitch in the early '70s, one of these prints was sent over from Hitchcock's office.

 

[Richard Michael Clark]

Is this tidbit of info mentioned anywhere in the extensive extras on the R1 Psycho dvd?

Also, Mr Harris. Have you actually viewed the R2/R4 dvd of "Vertigo" yet?