Blu-ray Review Song of Norway Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[OliverK]

You realize here that more people have now commented on "Song of Norway"'here then saw it in its theatrical run!

This is not surprising as this thread is also a lot more fun than having to sit through Song of Norway...

 

[RolandL]

You realize here that more people have now commented on "Song of Norway"'here then saw it in its theatrical run!

At the London Casino:

THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD. Ultra Panavision
Thurs April 8 to Wed July 21 1965. 15 weeks.
THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL. Ultra Panavision
Thurs July 22 to Wed Dec 15 1965. 21 weeks.
BATTLE OF THE BULGE. Ultra Panavision
Thurs Dec 16 1965 to Wed June 8 1966. 25 weeks.
KHARTOUM. Ultra Panavision
Thurs June 9 1966 to Wed March 8 1967. 39 weeks.
GRAND PRIX. Super Panavision.
Fri March 10 1967 to Tue Nov 7 1967. 34 weeks.
CUSTER OF THE WEST. (World Premiere) Super Technirama.
Thurs Nov 9 1967 to Tue April 30 1968. 25 weeks.
2001, A SPACE ODYSSEY. Super Panavision
Wed May 1 1968 to Tue Mar 26 1969 47 weeks.
ICE STATION ZEBRA. Super Panavision.
Wed March 27 to Wed Oct 8 1969. 27 weeks.
WINNING Panavision 70
Thurs Oct 9 1969 to Sat Nov 29 1969 7 weeks
BEN-HUR. MGM Camera 65.
Dec 26 1969 to May 6 1970. 19 weeks.
PATTON. (Photographed and Presented in D-150).
May 8 to Oct 14 1970. 22 weeks.
TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARAH. Panavision 70.
Fri Oct 15 to Wed Dec 9 1970. 8 weeks.
SONG OF NORWAY. Super Panavision.
Fri Dec 11 1970 to Wed Feb 2 1972. 60 weeks.

 

[John Maher_289910]

As the old saying goes, there's no accounting for taste.

 

[Mark B]

At the London Casino:

THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD. Ultra Panavision
Thurs April 8 to Wed July 21 1965. 15 weeks.
THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL. Ultra Panavision
Thurs July 22 to Wed Dec 15 1965. 21 weeks.
BATTLE OF THE BULGE. Ultra Panavision
Thurs Dec 16 1965 to Wed June 8 1966. 25 weeks.
KHARTOUM. Ultra Panavision
Thurs June 9 1966 to Wed March 8 1967. 39 weeks.
GRAND PRIX. Super Panavision.
Fri March 10 1967 to Tue Nov 7 1967. 34 weeks.
CUSTER OF THE WEST. (World Premiere) Super Technirama.
Thurs Nov 9 1967 to Tue April 30 1968. 25 weeks.
2001, A SPACE ODYSSEY. Super Panavision
Wed May 1 1968 to Tue Mar 26 1969 47 weeks.
ICE STATION ZEBRA. Super Panavision.
Wed March 27 to Wed Oct 8 1969. 27 weeks.
WINNING Panavision 70
Thurs Oct 9 1969 to Sat Nov 29 1969 7 weeks
BEN-HUR. MGM Camera 65.
Dec 26 1969 to May 6 1970. 19 weeks.
PATTON. (Photographed and Presented in D-150).
May 8 to Oct 14 1970. 22 weeks.
TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARAH. Panavision 70.
Fri Oct 15 to Wed Dec 9 1970. 8 weeks.
SONG OF NORWAY. Super Panavision.
Fri Dec 11 1970 to Wed Feb 2 1972. 60 weeks.

Well, of course NORWAY got a 60 week run. 70mm was a dead horse by then and there was nothing to replace it with. Lol

 

[RolandL]

From 70mm print

Blu-ray on my TV by old iPhone 6. Cropped on top and bottom only. Came from a 35mm print so cropping necessary.

 

[roxy1927]

I might have written this before(I just can't go through 10 pages on SON) but in the fall of 70 I was standing in front of Loews State looking at the photos of some movie and a little old lady comes up to me and asks me where Song of Norway was. It was easy enough to point to the Cinerama and show her where it was. It really was a movie made for me but I could not bring myself to sit through a Florence Henderson movie even if it was being presented in Cinerama on an 80 ft screen. For some reason I got the bluray and maybe I'll watch it someday. If they couldn't get Julie why not Sally Anne Howes? It's not that it was going to bring in the Brady Bunch crowd.

And excuse the tangent but I couldn't find this film on a search and it concerns the Warner Cinerama and 70MM. I just watched my bluray of Camelot(one of its extras is the world premiere at this theater.) I saw it decades ago in the suburbs and thought it was terrible. Well if any film has aged well it's this one. One of the greatest production designs I have ever seen, Vanessa is beyond beautiful and gives a great performance(why didn't she get an Oscar for this?) and the Alfred Newman conducting and musical direction of this glorious score is beyond compare.
And then they film it in Panavision!! Were they out of their minds? If ever a film deserved 70MM it was this one. Its one big flaw is too many tight close ups. It was lucky they had Redgrave and Nero. Harris's eye make up is a bit of a distraction. John Truscott was a genius and both his spectacular musical films were in Panavision. Really dumb. After the success of MFL and South Pacific both Warner and Logan should have known better. They were still making 70MM films like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Hello, Dolly!.

And how did SON get 70MM if it was dying out? Did it have a big budget? For an operetta that had been on Broadway decades before and mostly forgotten? I don't think it had a very long run at the Warner Cinerama at all.

 

[RolandL]

And how did SON get 70MM if it was dying out? Did it have a big budget? For an operetta that had been on Broadway decades before and mostly forgotten? I don't think it had a very long run at the Warner Cinerama at all.

Played for about 20 weeks at NY Cinerama (formerly Warner) theatre. Longer than any of the following 70mm Cinerama titles:

BATTLE OF THE BULGE -17 weeks
RUSSIAN ADVENTURE - 13 weeks
KHARTOUM - 13 weeks
ICE STATION ZEBRA - 17 weeks

11/4/70

12/20/70

1/28/71

3/28/71

 

[roxy1927]

Oh my goodness those roadshow films had pathetic runs. And to think SON ran longer than any of them. And I would have gone to all of them. This picture looking south to Times Square must have been taken in Jan of '71. Look all the way down in the center and you'll see the Criterion marquee. It is all pink. That's because it is playing My Fair Lady. A 70MM rerelease which I was very happy to see there again. Only problem was no intermission which was ridiculous. Even when the film played the suburbs continuous run it had an intermission. Also when the Cinerama played it continuous run in '78.

By the way did anyone see SON at the Cinerama? Any recollections? Or am I the oldest person on this site who remembers Times Square in the very early 70s? In fact even earlier in the 60s if you count my parents taking me to Radio City.

 

[mark brown]

Horrible movie. I found out the hard way!

 

[titch]

As a Norwegian, I'm overcome with embarrassment, every time this thread gets re-animated. Same feeling of shame I get, every time Norway is on the news for slaughtering whales.

 

[DigniT@DigniT!]

I saw it as a kid at the Aladdin theatre in Denver... loved the music and the scenery but even a discerning ten year old knew better!

 

[roxy1927]

It must be a great film. The bluray is sold out on Amazon and It is only available used starting at $65 and going up to $129. A very rare jewel.
Mine is still wrapped and I paid $19.99. I should have bought 10 copies. Maybe I can get a high price for it on ebay. Or should I actually watch it and get a full dose of Wessonality?

 

[RolandL]

This picture looking south to Times Square must have been taken in Jan of '71

The date above the picture is 1/28/71.

 

[RolandL]

Mine is still wrapped and I paid $19.99. I should have bought 10 copies. Maybe I can get a high price for it on ebay. Or should I actually watch it and get a full dose of Wessonality?

Sold for around $30 on eBay

 

[Douglas R]

Oh my goodness those roadshow films had pathetic runs. And to think SON ran longer than any of them. And I would have gone to all of them. This picture looking south to Times Square must have been taken in Jan of '71. Look all the way down in the center and you'll see the Criterion marquee. It is all pink. That's because it is playing My Fair Lady. A 70MM rerelease which I was very happy to see there again. Only problem was no intermission which was ridiculous. Even when the film played the suburbs continuous run it had an intermission. Also when the Cinerama played it continuous run in '78.

By the way did anyone see SON at the Cinerama? Any recollections? Or am I the oldest person on this site who remembers Times Square in the very early 70s? In fact even earlier in the 60s if you count my parents taking me to Radio City.

My Fair Lady played with an intermission in 70mm in the U.K. I’m surprised if it didn’t have one in the U.S. Even the soundtrack CD has the Intermission music!

 

[roxy1927]

The date above the picture is 1/28/71.

Honestly I didn't notice it.

That run was in 70MM but it is the only time I've seen MFL without an intermission.
It had its world premiere at the Criterion and during its first run there surely had an intermission.
Next door at the Loew's State Love Story was packing them in.

 

[RolandL]

It had its world premiere at the Criterion and during its first run there surely had an intermission.

It was a continuous performance so no intermission.

 

[roxy1927]

I love that you can find this stuff because it seems to only exist in my memory. But I think I remember the loge was 50 cents more. Back then first run films were $3.00. Back then 50 cents meant something so I sat in the balc for $3. I don't remember the price of the orchestra.
It's hard to believe in '64 the tickets for the loge for this movie on at least Sat nights was $5.50 which would be about $54 today. And they sold. And people complain about movie ticket prices today.
Look at the Warner Bros credit a Kinney Company in the lower right corner. Kinney was known for its chain of parking garages.

 

[Douglas R]

It was a continuous performance so no intermission.

View attachment 209761

View attachment 209762

Continuous performances means no advance booking but doesn't necessarily mean no intermission.

 

[roxy1927]

Yes I saw a number of continuous performances of MFL and they all had intermissions including as I said at the Cinerama in '78 and the Harris restoration in the 90s.
The Cinerama presentation was a bit annoying though a splendid 70MM print the end of the first half was slightly cut off and they stuck in the Camelot Intermission title. Camelot was the film that had played the previous week. So they had to have cut it off of that print!

Sound of Music always had an intermission in continuous run.