RAINTREE COUNTY on Blu? (1 Viewer)

[Andrew Budgell]

What news about "Brothers Grimm"? Last time I checked, WB was having troubles getting that film restored.

An update was posted here about the restoration of the Brothers Grimm that is currently underway: https://www.hometheaterforum.com/co...s-worth-on-brothers-grimm.358328/post-4906730

I hope it bodes well for other expensive projects, like Raintree.

 

[OliverK]

Not long after Raintree was added to FilmStruck, and shortly before its next airing on TCM in September 2018, I emailed a friend of a friend in programming at the channel and asked whether it would be in HD like FilmStruck. He said it wasn't going to be but had the file updated, so it would seem that there's flexibility between different branches of the company.

Hopefully the good news about the Brothers Grimm bodes well for Raintree.

Yes, it would be nice to have some added flexibility with Raintree, both with regard to availability of the existing HD master and also when it comes to work towards a Blu-ray release. Raintree County was the first movie I could think of when I saw that work was being done on Grimm

Hopefully other titles will follow after a Blu-ray release for Grimm with Warner allowing for a wider range in the quality of releases both with regard to completeness and restorative efforts and/or savings achieved due to working with external entities.

 

[AlanP]

Has there been a legit European release of RT ?

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Has there been a legit European release of RT ?

No, unfortunately there hasn't been an officially release of Raintree County on DVD or Blu-ray anywhere.

 

[AlanP]

No, unfortunately there hasn't been an officially release of Raintree County on DVD or Blu-ray anywhere.

Thanks Andrew ...

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Socialite and philanthropist Marguerite Littman, a dialect coach who worked with Elizabeth on her Southern accent on Raintree County (1957) and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), performances that earned Elizabeth Best Actress Oscar nominations, has died. Elizabeth and Marguerite are pictured together in London in 1991.

Also, Saturday marked the centenary of the birth of Monty Clift.

 

[Matt Hough]

I asked about RAINTREE COUNTY again on the Archive Facebook page, and this was their response: So I guess nothing has really changed, but I live in hope! I'd also like to see NATIONAL VELVET released on Blu-ray, as well. Elizabeth Taylor is woefully underrepresented on Blu-ray. Only the documentary, "That's Entertainment!", which she participated in, has been released in North America, but of course "Cleopatra" has been released elsewhere, and will apparently be released here this year for its 50th Anniversary. Andy

If Warners can get its act together with Brothers Grimm, I think anything is possible. I suspect we may see Raintree County some day.

There have been more Elizabeth Blu-rays, of course. Father of the Bride, Suddenly Last Summer, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Reflections in a Golden Eye come immediately to mind.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

If Warners can get its act together with Brothers Grimm, I think anything is possible. I suspect we may see Raintree County some day.

There have been more Elizabeth Blu-rays, of course. Father of the Bride, Suddenly Last Summer, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Reflections in a Golden Eye come immediately to mind.

I can't believe that post, which kick started this thread, was nearly a decade ago! We've definitely been treated to a lot more Elizabeth Taylor on Blu-ray in the interim, but there are still a few conspicuous omissions, such as National Velvet, BUtterfield 8, The Taming of the Shrew, which I hope we'll see in the future. And I think the announcement of Grimm, as well as the appearance of other difficult restorations, gives me some hope that we'll see Raintree one day.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Profiles in History will auction Elizabeth's swimming costume from RAINTREE COUNTY this week. It has an estimate of $4,000-$6,000.

 

[bujaki]

Profiles in History will auction Elizabeth's swimming costume from RAINTREE COUNTY this week. It has an estimate of $4,000-$6,000.

View attachment 81705

Damn! I need to get me a new corset in order to fit in it.

 

[RolandL]

Filming on the set

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Great photo, Roland!

 

[ptb2017fr]

There are no movie stars like Elizabeth Taylor any more. She needs celebrating more and not being able to see this epic movie of hers saddens me each time I see the title.

 

[JimMiller]

I can't believe that post, which kick started this thread, was nearly a decade ago! We've definitely been treated to a lot more Elizabeth Taylor on Blu-ray in the interim, but there are still a few conspicuous omissions, such as National Velvet, BUtterfield 8, The Taming of the Shrew, which I hope we'll see in the future. And I think the announcement of Grimm, as well as the appearance of other difficult restorations, gives me some hope that we'll see Raintree one day.

The Taming Of The Shrew. Beautifully filmed and she's very engaging here.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

The Taming Of The Shrew. Beautifully filmed and she's very engaging here.

I agree, I'm surprised we still haven't seen The Taming of the Shrew yet. I own an HD digital copy of the film on iTunes, and it's a big leap in quality over the ancient DVD.

 

[ptb2017fr]

I agree, I'm surprised we still haven't seen The Taming of the Shrew yet. I own an HD digital copy of the film on iTunes. It's a big leap in quality over the DVD, but I'm not sure it's quite up to Blu-ray standards.

I’ve an HD copy from a broadcast on BBCTV in UK a couple of years back. Great quality of a beautiful looking film in which both Taylor and Burton were very good!

 

[JimMiller]

I agree, I'm surprised we still haven't seen The Taming of the Shrew yet. I own an HD digital copy of the film on iTunes, and it's a big leap in quality over the ancient DVD.

The laserdisc was pretty good and had a stereo re-mix which, I felt, enhanced the score.

 

[ShaneRollins]

I can vouch for the original negatives, complete and in 65mm format, existing as of 1986. A Washington Post story regarding the controversial 1986 Beta and VHS release of Raintree County makes mention of the negatives, and that they were housed in a vault in Kansas City.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1986/06/29/gone-with-the-video/9ddd8cc9-0a6d-449a-8154-958e34e73992/

On top of that, if the negatives “turned purple”, than they exist. They can’t turn purple if they don’t exist. Considering how many projects they’re doing, they should do something like using ten films’ restoration budget on eleven movies, with Raintree County being that additional movie, or something to that effect.

Also, some people buy movies with impressive picture and/or sound just to enjoy their equipment. There are probably a few people who don’t give half a damn about The Matrix that only bought it just to work out their theater systems. Those people outnumber Raintree County fans, and they may easily buy more copies of the movie than we will. I think an email campaign to WB/WHV/WAC would easily convince them that the film was wanted.

We should also try hitting up boutique labels, such as Criterion, Shout! Factory, Kino Lorber, etc. to see if they would be interested. I’ve sent around 20 emails to different companies, so if everyone sends emails, someone is bound to take the bait.

 

[RolandL]

Interview with George Feltenstein in 2004:

RAINTREE COUNTY requires a very complicated and expensive restoration to give it a proper presentation. Warner Home Video is aware of the interest and it is under active consideration. The film was shot in 65mm, and the negative and safety separations were both cut to a shorter length for general release. 35mm prints (now faded) exist with the cut footage, but putting them together for a proper Blu-ray level presentation is an expensive proposition. Hopefully this will come to pass in the future.

 

[DVBRD]

I can vouch for the original negatives, complete and in 65mm format, existing as of 1986. A Washington Post story regarding the controversial 1986 Beta and VHS release of Raintree County makes mention of the negatives, and that they were housed in a vault in Kansas City.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1986/06/29/gone-with-the-video/9ddd8cc9-0a6d-449a-8154-958e34e73992/

On top of that, if the negatives “turned purple”, than they exist. They can’t turn purple if they don’t exist. Considering how many projects they’re doing, they should do something like using ten films’ restoration budget on eleven movies, with Raintree County being that additional movie, or something to that effect.

Also, some people buy movies with impressive picture and/or sound just to enjoy their equipment. There are probably a few people who don’t give half a damn about The Matrix that only bought it just to work out their theater systems. Those people outnumber Raintree County fans, and they may easily buy more copies of the movie than we will. I think an email campaign to WB/WHV/WAC would easily convince them that the film was wanted.

We should also try hitting up boutique labels, such as Criterion, Shout! Factory, Kino Lorber, etc. to see if they would be interested. I’ve sent around 20 emails to different companies, so if everyone sends emails, someone is bound to take the bait.

I hope you find someone willing to take the plunge. I don't think Criterion will take it though, nor does it seem like a Shout! Factory title, either.

And that WaPo article is the same one I linked to this thread a year ago. Long story short, someone at MGM/UA Home Video wanted to make a master of the roadshow version from the original 70mm negatives but the higher-ups said it was too expensive and said no. I don't know if George Feltenstein was at MGM/UA at the time, but if he was, he would have had none of it.