The Mummy (1932) 75th - Want a DVD? (1 Viewer)

[Patrick McCart]

Universal really has no ties to their silents anymore, with the exception of The Man Who Laughs. They're almost all public domain and most are lost. That's why Universal has never released a silent and why only one was licensed to Kino.

 

[JohnMor]

I'm in for a triple dip on this. Hope the PQ is improved as much as Dracula and Frankenstein were.

 

[mdnitoil]

I guess I'll wait for the comparisons as I do recall a number of folks taking issue with the PQ on the last round of Legacy Drac/Frank releases. So much so in fact, that I ended up passing and sticking with my originals. I am curious about this Universal Horror Documentary. That's nice and vague.

 

[dana martin]

Disc 2: Extra Features

* He Who Made Monsters: Life and Legacy of Jack Pierce
* Unraveling the Legacy of The Mummy
* Universal Horror Documentary

sounds like the borwnlow doc, the one that intest me is the Jack Pierce doc, and that Rick Baker is doing one of the Commentaries

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

If Universal would at least include the franchise sequels with these sets and carry over the previous issued supplements in addition to what was announced, the decision would be a no brainer! I'll obviously be buying this anyway, but I hate having multiple copies of DVDs on my shelves. These should all be three-disc sets with the added films as double-features.

 

[dana martin]

anyone pick this up yet, wonder how the picture and sound compare to the previous releases

 

[Page]

BUMP

I'm curious, too. I haven't found any reviews for this title.

 

[dana martin]

got it last night as a gift, so i should be able to see this sometime today, and do a comparison my self was king of hoping the beaver would have something up on this one

 

[Ruz-El]

Look forward to this! I buy all these Uni-horrors, I'll even buy the unreleased films if they decide to release them...

 

[Matt Stieg]

I picked this up yesterday and took a look at it last night and I thought it looked excellent and superior to the '99/Legacy DVD releases. (Of course, to my eyes Dracula also looked incredible compared to what we've had for years, so one can take my opinion with a grain of salt).

The audio sounds much better, as well. The earlier DVD releases sounded kind of muffled, this version sounds much more open and full.

I'm wondering if this current version is a newly discovered print, because early in the film when Edward Van Sloan and Brandon Fletcher are first examining the Mummy, there's a spot of decomposition that appears which isn't present on the earlier DVD releases. (Don't misunderstand me, despite that brief decomposition appearing on this release but NOT on the earlier DVD's, this version is still much better looking, I'm just guessing that this is a different print than what was used before).

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Instead of a third DVD copy of THE MUMMY, I'd much prefer Universal to put out ISLAND OF LOST SOULS, with a pre-credits explanation if need be, since the original negative is gone.

 

[dana martin]

Joe point taken, but with the basicaly no originly negative to work with i belive that WB did a pretty bang up job on kong. these are minir improvements along the way. The thing that ticks me off, i know the age of the film, but then why in the docs that are attached to it is the footage so beautiful, clean , no dust doesnt looks as old as the feature.

this title has the problem of the very badly beat up stock footage at the begining, and maybe its just my ears, but still has a certian amount of hiss in the soundtrack.

 

[JohnMor]

Yes, as with the Legacy Series 75th Anniversary editions of Dracula and Frankenstein, this Legacy Series version of The Mummy is a VAST improvement over the earlier editions (both the Classic Monsters and Legacy Collections editions) in terms of the transfer.

And as Matt pointed out, the sound is noticeably improved as well. Not nearly as muffled as earlier editions.

So far I have found that every Legacy Series release (not just the monster films) has been a vast improvement over all earlier editions. I am truly looking forward to the 3 new Hitchcock Legacies coming soon, most particularly Psycho.

 

[Page]

Thanks for the update on this title. (Although a reviewer on another site stated that he didn't think the movie had been restored or improved. I think you guys here have the right information, however.) Amazon has a good price on this so I ordered it right away.

 

[JohnMor]

Well, I can't speak to restored or not, but it is definitely improved.

Now if they'll just put out a 75th Anniversary Legacy Series edition of Bride of Frankenstein.

 

[Craig Beam]

I don't wanna wait till 2010... I want it NOW. :-D By far my favorite Universal Monster film.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

I caved in and bought the new disc, but I spotted a problem.
I can't believe nobody else has mentioned this yet, but I've just watched the first 20 minutes or so, and it turns out that both sides are too tightly cropped. I'm no expert on OAR and framing, but from the very beginning of the film I just had a feeling that things looked a little off. Then I really could tell when we first see the sign which reads "FIELD EXPEDITION 1921" (or whatever it is)... the words are very tight, the letters ever so slightly sliced off on both left and right. I don't think this is "TV overscan", because I have a 46" LCD TV and am watching the image at the 4x3 mode, centered in the middle and with vertical black bars on the sides.

Then later we get to the closeup newspaper article which talks about this sensational new mummy find, and the words are again ever so slightly cut off!

Just to be sure, I grabbed my LEGACY version of THE MUMMY and popped in the same scenes, and these words are easily read, with the proper amount of room on left and right sides. (I no longer have the original 1999 DVD; I sold it off years ago).

There is a slight visual jump during the word "Egypt" on both versions, in the scene with David Manners and the other archaeologist, when the man tells Manners something like: "but when a man who loved Egypt said he'd never come back, that meant something!". So due to this, I'm of the opinion that these are both the same prints. However, in my opinion so far, the NEW version seems a bit clearer, the more preferred image. And the SOUND on this new version is much better than the sound on the old LEGACY edition.

So what does this mean, if I'm right? It means that Universal did it to us again -- a mixed bag. The old LEGACY version is preferable in its framing, while the new DVD has much better sound and slightly better picture!! SO WHICH ONE IS THE BEST?????

This is disappointing from Universal, and another shame. I am not able to post screen grabs to compare both DVDs, but maybe others can. Is this new disc "zoomed" up a tad too closely? The framing looks off to me.

 

[Craig Beam]

Better picture quality and significantly improved sound? I'd say the Legacy edition would be the best option. From your description, the framing isn't THAT dramatically different.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Are you sure, Craig? From your response it seems you may be misunderstanding me. The new disc has better picture/sound... and if you feel the framing doesn't seem to be that dramatically different from my description, then wouldn't the NEW disc be the best option?

 

[JohnMor]

I think Craig meant the new Legacy Series edition, not the prior Legacy Collection edition. (I HATE that Uni has used the word "Legacy" in two different editions of these monster films! It ceratinly has created confusion in these threads. Grrrr.)