I would be interested in reading some reviews on this, but it looks just fine in SD on my 46" set, and, frankly, while the movie is a classic and I love it all over the place, it is to my mind not a masterpiece of black and white cinematography , just servicable. In this case, the screenplay and Gort are the magical elements. Therefore, for me, Blu-ray would not be a necessity the way it would for, say, THE THIRD MAN or SUNSET BLVD, where the astonishing camerawork is so vital to the atmosphere.
I was hoping to buy this here in the UK this week but for some reason the European release has been cancelled - it's disappeared completely from the Fox UK website. The Region A Fox Blu-ray will certainly be region locked so I've been forced to order the Region 1 SD version because I'm keen on having all those extras. Annoying to say the least.
I watched it last night. It looked fine to my eyes & the audio was wonderful.
On my Blu-Ray disc the "Special Feature" about the Theremin was missing! When I selected it from the Menu an 18 second lead-in begins, but after this part is done the screen goes black & there is only dashes (---) in the time indicator on my Sony S550. Has this happened to anyone else??? :frowning:
Two different features. The 80 Minute feature from the Studio Classic release was not ported over. So hold on to the SD release if you like the 80 Documentary.
To anyone wondering whether an old b&w movie will benefit from HD, this one certainly does. It's beautiful, the best I've seen since it was in the theaters. It's crisp with excellent detail.
As to the Theremin feature, I too have an S550 and my results were the same. I'd like to know if other players are having the problem.
I wasn't planning on watching the whole thing tonight, but, in for 5 minutes, in for the movie. Except for one item, the basic special effects work very well. That one exception is Gort. His basic appearance can't be beat, but it's that wrinkly rubber suit, it takes me out of the movie every time.
BTW, when Gort is carrying Patricia Neal to the saucer, do I see wires holding her in Gort's arms? I've never noticed those before.
I also have to disagree with this. As a filmmaker who has studied a great deal of B&W cinematography, I think The Day The Earth Stood Still stands out as one of the finest examples of "noir" photography there is. The scene where Mr. Carpenter first arrives at the boarding house in silhouette is nothing less than stunning.
I just watched the making of doc and they mention there were wires holding Patricia Neal. The actor playing Gort was very tall but not robust. Apparently he couldn't carry her while in costume. I was looking for the wires while Gort carried Klatuu but didn't see them then.
Thanks for the link Paul. I was concerned that this title would be a target for grain removal, and I'm glad to see that it apparently escaped that fate on BD.