Info: THE ARRIVAL - Special Edition (seeking a team up) (lots of useful info) — Page 2

As far as I know this movie did not have a cinema DTS release.  Would've been nice though .....  :)

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

What do you think about 1.66:1 instead of 1.85:1?

Not sure .... I like having as much picture as I can if it's there to see ya know. 

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

What do you think about 1.66:1 instead of 1.85:1?

Since this was shot open matte, I'd say have both the cinematic 1.85:1 available and custom 1.66:1 version for a more "British" feel.

As I've mentioned, I'd go for a HDTV broadcast of this, especially one which has the film grain retained, as the Blu-ray isn't even worthy of a purchase or to make a copy of for this project.

Do you have the Special Edition Laserdisc, OP?

My suggestion would be 1.85:1 for the main feature and open matte for a bonus version - like Jetrell I'd like to see as much image as possible even/especially if it includes stuff not meant to be visible. Maybe a 1.66:1 version, which is a good compromise, as a separate release for those who want it? 'British feel' as 1.66:1 is/was a European AR that hasn't been used for years and is kind of an anachronistic description for a US film made in the mid '90s, but each to their own :-)

Good job on picking this project up Panther. Still got my off-air VHS but would welcome an SE with all the ld extras! Twohy makes some interesting films.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

As I still have no news about an eventual HDTV, I'm starting to think there isn't one available; so I checked the BD against the DVD in the caps-a-holic site: it is not a total mess... yes, it's DNRed - more than a bit, and grain is gone, but many fine details are still there... not as much as they should, but enough to say it's better than the DVD.

At this point, I don't think a laserdisc preservation of the whole movie - even using the X9 as player - can be better than this... of course, it will useful for the alternate ending.

So, just for joke, I applied a grain plate over one of the screenshots, to improve perceived resolution, and here you are the result:

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/60531

not a huge improvement, but a bit better IMHO... opinions?

Plus, the BD seems to need contrast & brightness tweaks, and maybe a saturation too, so these will be taken in account in an eventual preservation project.

Thanks for keeping the project alive!

It actually does look better with some added grain. Brightness & contrast tweaks would be most welcome. Your processed screenshot looks so much better (colors, contrast, brightness) than the original. I own a copy of "The Arrival" on Blu-ray. It would be fantastic to watch it with your tweaks and I would love to watch it with the audio commentary. I'd also be very interested in the documentaries and alternative endings.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

Can you provide a small clip (let's say 1 min) from the BD, not re-encoded? Choose the part you like less - for grain lack in particular; I'd like to test the grain plate in motion.

Sorry, I'm not able to provide a clip since I'm using a Mac (no BD drive).

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

Found that a German DVD has some extras... here you are the info:

KinoWelt DVD (anamorphic 1.85:1)

Making of "The Arrival" (7 minutes) - featurette
Behind the Scenes (5 minutes) - featurette
Interviews with:
Charlie Sheen, Ron Silver, Lindsay Crouse, Teri Polo, David Twohy, Thomas G. Smith, Cyrus Yavneh, Chuch Finance (7 minutes)
Theatrical Trailer (German / English)


Pioneer Laserdisc Boxset

Extras:

Running audio commentary by director writer David Twohy
Original documentary (exclusive to laserdisc) featuring interviews with:
Charlie Sheen, Teri Polo, Writer/Director David Twohy, Producer Tom Smith, Production Designer Michael Novotny, Director of Photography Hiro Narita, A.S.C.
Also includes: behind-the-scenes footage, storyboards and an alternate ending.
Theatrical trailer

For sure, laserdisc has the audio commentary not found elsewhere; for the other contents, I have not found further info to know if the DVD first three extras are actually the same material found on the laserdisc commentary...

These would be great. But I'd still want to go for a HDTV 1080i master, not from the Blu-ray. As I've mentioned all the non-audio extras should be grabbed as mid or low bitrate AVC. I'm still interested in this too. Use the X9, of course, with the LD. X9 should be used with all your LD grabs anyway.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

I found all over the web, but still not found an HDTV version... does it *really* exist?!? If someone has it, or know where to find it, please let me know!

Of course, from BATB on, I'll use the X9 for any laserdisc capture involved in a preservation project!

 Nice! I haven't found any 1080i HDTV broadcasts with the film grain retained. Shall I make a new thread about the Laserdiscs I'd like to see preserved?

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

I found all over the web, but still not found an HDTV version... does it *really* exist?!? If someone has it, or know where to find it, please let me know!

I have never seen an HDTV version on the internet.

I'd really go with the Blu-ray version.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

thegroovologist said:

I'd really go with the Blu-ray version.

 It seems is the only way to go... unless someone is aware of a "hidden jem" HDTV broadcast buried somewhere... and then, it should be analyzed to see if it will be really better than BD...

Also, what about eventual HD streaming?

At the end, BD is not a tragedy; it isn't perfect, it's true, but not completely rubbish... infact, even if grain is almost gone, many details are still retained; as now, it's the best HD version we have, I'm afraid...

I think at this point it doesn't make sense to wait any longer for the magic hidden HDTV version. This project will never be finished otherwise. If an HDTV existed somebody would have mentioned it in this thread by now.

By the way; would anyone be able to upload the audio commentary (MP3 File) ? I would really love to listen to it.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

I will NEVER do an MP3 version of it!!! (^^,)

So, you should wait for the project release... I want to add ALL the extras - still don't know if release movie + extras as 2x BD-25 or single BD-50 - but I need the german Kinowelt DVD; plus the french and spanish soundtracks!

Fair enough. I only asked since I just don't know if there actually will be a release. This thread was started in 2006. I've been wanting to listen to the commentary track for a long time.

_,,,^..^,,,_ said:

Strangely, they were all right... but fear not, we have a solution! (^^,)

Latest tests: left BD, right BD with contrast correction and grain plate applied (click for larger version):

Very nice tests!...looking good!

Andrea, i really like what you've done with those shots. I'm glad your not afraid to use grain plates either, it does improve things even if it is just light grain.