bujaki
Senior HTF Member
1964 Tokyo Olympiad (Criterion BD) Finished the disc. Beautifully shot in 2.35 AR, but I can see why the Olympic Committee was displeased with the film. Ichikawa sometimes mentions the sport with a title but neglects to show a single frame of the competition; sometimes he just glosses over the champions without mentioning their names; and sometimes he just concentrates too much on the Japanese athletes. But there are many technical innovations and it's still a great documentary.
Uncle Tom's Cabin (Kino BD) 1927. Universal's lavish production has many virtues. Kino's version is shorter than the original release prints (is this all that remains?). Some sequences are very excitingly shot and edited: Eliza's escape crossing the river; Eliza running after her child, abducted by a slave trader; Eliza and another woman hiding from Legree in an attic. But for some reason, the Civil War is injected into the story, making no sense of the plot, since the novel was published prior to the War. Many plot elements from the novel are changed but the melodrama is still well handled. The film also exhibits many of the virtues of late silent films. It is more than just an interesting curio.
The Fearless Vampire Killers (Warner Archive BD) 1967. Revisited this which I first saw in Puerto Rico under its original title: Dance of the Vampires, uncut and with the original soundtrack and opening titles. When MoMA played it and touted that it was the first time that the uncut version was playing in the States, I went expecting a new cut, only to find that it was the same film I had seen in Puerto Rico. Later on I did find out that Ransohoff had played rough with Polanski's cut. Gorgeous transfer of a most enjoyable and pessimistic film.
Uncle Tom's Cabin (Kino BD) 1927. Universal's lavish production has many virtues. Kino's version is shorter than the original release prints (is this all that remains?). Some sequences are very excitingly shot and edited: Eliza's escape crossing the river; Eliza running after her child, abducted by a slave trader; Eliza and another woman hiding from Legree in an attic. But for some reason, the Civil War is injected into the story, making no sense of the plot, since the novel was published prior to the War. Many plot elements from the novel are changed but the melodrama is still well handled. The film also exhibits many of the virtues of late silent films. It is more than just an interesting curio.
The Fearless Vampire Killers (Warner Archive BD) 1967. Revisited this which I first saw in Puerto Rico under its original title: Dance of the Vampires, uncut and with the original soundtrack and opening titles. When MoMA played it and touted that it was the first time that the uncut version was playing in the States, I went expecting a new cut, only to find that it was the same film I had seen in Puerto Rico. Later on I did find out that Ransohoff had played rough with Polanski's cut. Gorgeous transfer of a most enjoyable and pessimistic film.
