UHD Review The Wizard of Oz 80th Anniversary UHD Review (1 Viewer)

[MatthewA]

I would have preferred the wires remain but don't consider it a big deal.

How obvious would they have been in 35mm Technicolor prints? I never noticed them until the DVD era.

Filthy disgusting habit and a really dumb thing to do.

When Time Warner bought out Ted Turner, they not only got Oz and GWTW while regaining Casablanca and their pre-1948 library, they got most of this guy's filmography as well. He was on one of the DVD features.

 

[Malcolm R]

I know that that anytime I see someone light up a cigarette in any movie, I wonder to myself, "why is this necessary, and how is smoking relevant to the story?"

It always just seems like a pointless thing to do other than to give the actor something to do with their hands.

 

[RobertR]

I know that that anytime I see someone light up a cigarette in any movie, I wonder to myself, "why is this necessary, and how is smoking relevant to the story?"

It always just seems like a pointless thing to do other than to give the actor something to do with their hands.

It always annoyed me that smoking was once considered fashionable and cool, just like it's annoying that some young males think it's cool to wear their pants very low. But I digress...my comment probably belongs in the What Annoys You thread.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I know that that anytime I see someone light up a cigarette in any movie, I wonder to myself, "why is this necessary, and how is smoking relevant to the story?"

It always just seems like a pointless thing to do other than to give the actor something to do with their hands.

Shouldn't movies that take place in eras/settings where smoking was common include smoking?

 

[Malcolm R]

Shouldn't movies that take place in eras/settings where smoking was common include smoking?

Not unless it's relevant to the plot. It doesn't add anything relevant most of the time, and I doubt many people are going to sit there watching and think, "this sucks, these people should be smoking!"

I find it distracting when characters light one up. I don't even think about it if they dont.

 

[David Norman]

Not unless it's relevant to the plot. It doesn't add anything relevant most of the time, and I doubt many people are going to sit there watching and think, "this sucks, these people should be smoking!"

I find it distracting when characters light one up. I don't even think about it if they dont.

You would have in 1940 -- at least in anything that wasn't a kids movie or some sort of fantasy deal.

it actually was a weird thought I had watching 2001 -- no smoking or smoking equivalents, no smoking advertisments of the wall or video monitors (even on the bit of earth Videos), no ashtrays on the tables.
They even had a Toilet scene, but no smoking anywhere. It was especially notable since several of the actors and Kubrick were know to be massive chain smokers. Did for some reason they think in the space of 30 years it would be abolished? The Surgeon Generals reports were still wet

I did hear more than one complaint about "Hidden Figures " that there was no smoking anywhere in the movie and about how distracting it was b.c it was so unrealistic for the time and place

I am a militant non-smoker (literally never smoked anything), but raised and bathed in cigarettes from birth until I could afford to live on my own.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Not unless it's relevant to the plot. It doesn't add anything relevant most of the time, and I doubt many people are going to sit there watching and think, "this sucks, these people should be smoking!"

I find it distracting when characters light one up. I don't even think about it if they dont.

Not sure what it means for smoking to be "relevant to the plot".

It adds verisimilitude. If a movie set in 1950 has a scene in a bar, for example, and no one's smoking, then it's gonna look phony...

 

[Jason_V]

Not sure what it means for smoking to be "relevant to the plot".

It adds verisimilitude. If a movie set in 1950 has a scene in a bar, for example, and no one's smoking, then it's gonna look phony...

As much as I despise smoking, I agree. If it makes sense for the location, time period or story, then it's fine. I won't argue it. But if it's just smoking for smoking (or cursing just to curse or nudity just for nudity), then it's a no go.

 

[AnthonyClarke]

I agree with the first two .....

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I agree with the first two .....

Yeah, me too - gratuitous nudity ROCKS!

Depending on who gets nekkid, that is!

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Yeah, me too - gratuitous nudity ROCKS!

Depending on who gets nekkid, that is!

Ever seen Gothika?

YOU WANT NEKKID CHICKS? WE'LL GIVE YOU NEKKID CHICKS OF ALL SHAPES AND SIZES IN A MENTAL INSTITUTION!!!!

 

[Wayne_j]

Anyone else have audio sync issues with this disc on the oppo 203?

Last night I changed the HDMI audio output from Bitstream to PCM and the situation improved. Synch is still off a frame or two but it is better than before. I probably wouldn't notice if I wasn't specifically looking for the issue.

 

[Chuck Pennington]

2013 Blu-ray

2019 Ultra HD Blu-ray (raw without HDR)

2019 Ultra HD Blu-ray (with HDR applied converted to SDR for screen grab)

 

[Chuck Pennington]

LINK: The Wizard of Oz (1939) Video Release Comparison 1983 LaserDisc to 2019 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

I recommend viewing the comparison video linked above in 4K resolution (available via the sprocket icon) on a 4K Ultra HDTV rather than on a mobile device.

The Wizard of Oz (1939) video releases compared - all upscaled to 4K to match the resolution of the most recent release.

* 1983 MGM LaserDisc
* 1988 Criterion LaserDisc
* 1989 MGM LaserDisc
* 1997 MGM THX DVD (same transfer as 1993 “Ultimate Oz” LD)
* 2005 Warner DVD
* 2013 Warner Blu-ray
* 2019 Warner 4K Ultra Blu-ray [HDR converted to SDR for comparison]

The 2019 4K HDR master was converted to SDR for this comparison using default settings in Hybrid (https://www.selur.de/downloads).

 

[Vern Dias]

LINK: The Wizard of Oz (1939) Video Release Comparison 1983 LaserDisc to 2019 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

View attachment 139788

I recommend viewing the comparison video linked above in 4K resolution (available via the sprocket icon) on a 4K Ultra HDTV rather than on a mobile device.

The Wizard of Oz (1939) video releases compared - all upscaled to 4K to match the resolution of the most recent release.

* 1983 MGM LaserDisc
* 1988 Criterion LaserDisc
* 1989 MGM LaserDisc
* 1997 MGM THX DVD (same transfer as 1993 “Ultimate Oz” LD)
* 2005 Warner DVD
* 2013 Warner Blu-ray
* 2019 Warner 4K Ultra Blu-ray [HDR converted to SDR for comparison]

The 2019 4K HDR master was converted to SDR for this comparison using default settings in Hybrid (https://www.selur.de/downloads).

The 2013 75th anniversary edition also had an excellent 3D conversion. As a matter of fact, I watched a little bit of it today and have it scheduled for a screening this weekend. The one downside is the window boxed main titles.

 

[Matt Hough]

Yes, the 3D makes that release very special, and it's SO effective giving the film a completely different feel as you watch it. Quite amazing actually.

 

[Charles Smith]

Yes indeed. I was stunned at what I was seeing "as though for the first time" in the theater, and it's a treasured disc at home.

 

[AnthonyClarke]

I treasure mine too. Before viewing it in the cinema, I thought it would be a fairly unconvincing effort at 3-D, a bit like film colourisation. But, as you all know, it's totally fabulous and is wonderful on Blu ray as well.

 

[Ross Gowland]

I'd be curious to know when smoking at movies became essentially verboten.

I'm 52 and don't remember a time it was acceptable at all - not even allowed in specific sections.

(a bit late with this reply, but…)

Here in the UK, I remember smoking in cinemas in the late Seventies and most of the 80s. My local cinema, the ironically named Embassy (also a brand of cigarettes) in Esher used to play an ad advising smokers to sit on the right hand side of the auditorium. The dividing line was a bit ambiguous and smoke can obviously drift, but that was the arrangement at the time.

I think most cinemas went non-smoking by the end of the 80s. That said, a certain cinema in London still has (unused) ashtrays on the back of the seats, which shows how long they’ve been there and hence why they’re so uncomfortable.

 

[TJPC]

We had an old movie theatre called the "Tivoli" in Windsor where I grew up. It was a beautiful privately owned venue that only showed movies occasionall. It was totally not restored however. I remember actually going there to see the theatre, and not caring about the movie whatever it was. I don't know when smoking stopped in the theatres, but I do know that all the seats in the last 5 rows of the Tivoli had arm rests with ash trays in them!