Mike O

moviefreakedmind said:

CatBus said:

moviefreakedmind said:

I'd love to hear what Landis himself said verbatim, but it seems that Empire magazine interpreted his statement as being the original versions specifically.

Sure, but Landis is already not the first speaker in that game of telephone.  He heard it from Lucas.  Lucas may have said "the original trilogy--yes, John, THE original classic films that started the whole thing, back in 1977, with no changes at all to what I intended all those years ago".  A normal person could walk out of there thinking Star Wars was finally going to get a decent home video release and say that to the press without reservations, but in Lucas-speak, that just means a new 2016 Specialer Edition where Yoda is now CGI.

 I don't think for one second that Disney would allow more changes to the trilogy due to the backlash it gets every time it happens. I could see Disney sweeping it under the rug, continuing to release the 2011 SEs, and then never mentioning the OOT ever again, but adding even more changes I just can't see them doing.

 The backlash from 14 people on the Internet. 99.9999% of the population don't care at all, hence why it was the bestselling Blu-ray of all time when it came out and why it would break box office records in a heartbeat if a new version was released theatrically. People who care about the OOT are a tenth of a tenth of a tenth of a tenth of the population.

CatBus said:

moviefreakedmind said:

I'd love to hear what Landis himself said verbatim, but it seems that Empire magazine interpreted his statement as being the original versions specifically.

Sure, but Landis is already not the first speaker in that game of telephone.  He heard it from Lucas.  Lucas may have said "the original trilogy--yes, John, THE original classic films that started the whole thing, back in 1977, with no changes at all to what I intended all those years ago".  A normal person could walk out of there thinking Star Wars was finally going to get a decent home video release and say that to the press without reservations, but in Lucas-speak, that just means a new 2016 Specialer Edition where Yoda is now CGI.

 Precisely, but the bigger question is frankly, why is Lucas telling him anything? If he's no longer the owner of the property, why does he know or care what's coming out when. 

ray_afraid said:

I wonder if Mike Verta's restoration has anything to do with this. I hope so!

Those comments are aggravating.
"I don't know how the old versions will hold up..."
I really don't understand people who think this way about things. As if everything has to be new, or contain something new to be relevant or even good.
And the comments about the 2004 bonus discs... How can anyone watch those and think they look ok? Are people really so stupid that they believe that's as good as a film from the 70's/80's can look? I really don't understand that.

TV's Frink said:

American Werewolf in London?  Really?

What's wrong with An American Werewolf in London?

 Yes, I hear all kinds of people disappointed with how old FX look in HD and don't get why anyone would want to see the moldly OOT FX that way. It would be nice if we could get AAWIL with the mono. 

SilverWook said:

I see the usual suspects showed up throw cold water on that tweet. Their heads are going to off like in Scanners if it turns out to be true. ;)

 Last time we got this announcement, it turned out to be the GOUT. And this is confirmed. l'm pretty skeptical and lukewarm. 

How would John Landis know?

TV's Frink said:

Space Hunter M said:

And by theatrical, they mean revisionist grading and no mono mixes.

 It must be hard going through life this grumpy.

 I don't like reality either, but we don't get to live anywhere else. 

Mono mixes? I thought those were only on the 16mm prints, and that the film otherwise used various Dolby mixes (stereo, six-track, and the digital mixes later on)?

Yeah, well, Paramount have no discernable interest in ever doing any proper restoration work on the Star Trek films. So what wound up being the story with the 4K Texas Chain Saw Massacre remaster? Did it have the original mono or not?

Fang Zei said:

jimbotron235 said:

Top of my list is Star Trek VI:

http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/tuchd/tuchd0188.jpg

http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/tuchd/tuchd0999.jpg

Ditto.

For some reason, this is always the first thing that springs to mind whenever I think of the worst blu-ray transfers. Maybe it's because I'm just barely old enough to remember when my Mom took me to see it in the theater. She actually surprised me with a theater-used ST6 poster this past Christmas.

It's the blu-ray equivalent of the GOUT for me.

The source master is apparently a 1080i they IVTC'd to 24p, as evidenced by the stair-stepping. My guess is that while they probably had a decent-looking 1080p of the director's version (the fresh transfer done in 2004 for the collector's dvd to replace the old non-anamorphic transfer), this 1080i from whenever/wherever was the best looking transfer of the theatrical cut they had lying around. So rather than spend the money on a fresh transfer they simply gave us this.

Voyage Home arguably looks the worst, like someone applied the watercolor filter and turned it up to eleven.

I keep hoping that for the 50th anniversary, Paramount will finally do some proper transfers for the Star Trek films. But my hopes are not high.

Fang Zei said:

GoldenEye is another truly atrocious set of screenshots. It's baffling how it looks that bad when we've seen it look much better in hd broadcasts and RMW's show reel. The home video department at MGM/Fox/Sony must've somehow thought nuking it with the watercolor filter was a good idea.

BTTF, Jurassic Park and theatrical LOTR fall into the category of middling but acceptable for me. Could've looked better, could've looked way worse.

 I wish there was a way to stop this DNR fetish. Goldeneye and Predator were the worst. I just got the first Predator Blu-ray, kept my old two-disc set and called it a day.

Is the new BTTF set going to have new transfers? I thought that as opposed to the DVD versions, the LOTR BDs came right off of the DIs? Haven't looked at my JP BD yet. The Vudu version I've seen a bit of actually looks OK. I'm waiting on the the Mega Middlle Earth collection with all six movies before I get LOTR, hopefully with the BOTFA EE due out next moth, the boxed set can't be far behind.

dclarkg said:

"I think, therefore I am"

 I am, but I don't necessarily like being.

So basically, the SD upscales of the Felisher cartoons on the Blu-ray Superman Anthology boxed set are still my best bet? I guess that since they're in the public domain, the cost of doing a proper restoration just isn't very beneficial?

I've really gotten spoiled at this point and just de facto expect Blu-rays to have lossless audio. I was shocked to find 128 KBPS audio on The Searchers or 650 on The Dirty Dozen.

I wish I'd read this thread before I bought some of these discs...

bkev said:

generalfrevious said:

At least that Manos cover is better than any DVD/Blu cover that any Star Wars film will ever have. This steelbook release is the most pointless release of SW on physical media in a decade. They should of put the originals in to justify this release, but I guess Disney is going to drag us over the coals again just like Lucasfilm before.

 go away

 He is right. D23? Nothing. It's a safe bet there's no announcement forthcoming. 

There was a 4K restoration of Fistful shown at Cannes a year ago, Tarantino was whining about how it wasn't film. I suppose that with it and GBU having been done in 4K, one for FAFDM might be forthcoming. Though with the current state of the physical media market, it's not likely forthcoming. I'm assuming that the German and Italian discs are Region B?

Sound: None of the BD's offer the original English mono at all, not even in lossy AC3. the only way to get the original English mono is from the LD synched by TheHutt.

I hear that once they did the individual release of GBU, they fixed the mono and had the original for the original scenes and the downmix for the new scenes. I must admit, it's a nice gesture for them to fix it, even if it shouldn't have happened at all.

Sound: While I commend Paramount for including the original mono soundtrack (Albeit in Lossy AC3), the music during the end credits is still wrong.

Does the old VHS or DVD release have the proper music? What should it be? It sounds like the Paramount disc will do for now.

Both use the same master, but the Spanish BD uses the inferior MPEG2 codec and is at 24 FPS rather than 23.976

Forgive my ignorance, but what does this mean?

So as far as the old DVDs go, did the old "Sergio Leone Anthology" release retain the mono except for GBU? Does the old BGU DVD retain the proper mono? Did the DYS DVD have the mono, or a downmix? Which European releases retain the extras, most of the ones on the MGM releases, especially the Frayling commentaries.

PS This is totally the wrong place to ask, but I don't want to open another thread, whatever happened with the 4K Texas Chain Saw Massacre Blu-ray? Was there any truth to the mono being a downmix?

No OOT announcement. Shocking.

Did he ever do one for GBU, or is the BD still the Shickel one? Shame he didn't do one for OUATIA.

Say, on the subject of downmixes, did it ever come out if the mono track on the 4K Texas Chain Saw Massacre remake Blu-ray was a downmix? I remember hearing rumors, but did anything get confirmed?

What are some other movies with notorious missing mono tracks?

Do the German releases retain any of the extras? Those Frayling commentaries are solid gold.

TV's Frink said:

Dear Thread,

Sincerely,
TV's Frink

 Because we're all so desperate to believe this, however false, as it is our last hope and the one dream all of us would give anything for?

The new 4K restoration which we still aren't sure is happening?

So the German version for the first two, the new BD for GBU, the big question is DYS. I'll look at that thread. Thanks. 

I understand that there's been a mess of downmixes used on many of the releases, does that include the US BDs? Which have the proper mono and which have the downmixes? I understand that the downmix issue has been solved for the new individual release of GBU, but what about FOD, FADM, and especially DYS? Duck You Sucker seems to be the most difficult one, DVD Savant initially said that it was the original mix, but it sounds like it might be a downmix, does the Italian release have the original English mono?

towne32 said:

darklordoftech said:

timdiggerm said:

darklordoftech said:

moviefreakedmind said:

darklordoftech said:

If this article is anything to go by:

http://www.cinemablend.com/m/new/How-George-Lucas-Star-Wars-7-Ideas-Were-Used-By-Disney-69271.html

 What?

If they don't care about Lucas's treatments, no way they're going to care about his special editions.

 There's a huge difference between an unused script and a thing the public saw.

The OOT is also a thing that the public saw.

 Yep. This news about the script treatment confirms what that Disney is more interested in making proper decisions than appeasing George's personal wishes. Unless there really are technical hurdles making it unrealistic, I don't see why they wouldn't go the route of Blade Runner and Close Encounters and release an 'ultimate' set with all versions. 

 Because it would be too good to be true?

Fang Zei said:

towne32 said:

darklordoftech said:

timdiggerm said:

darklordoftech said:

moviefreakedmind said:

darklordoftech said:

If this article is anything to go by:

http://www.cinemablend.com/m/new/How-George-Lucas-Star-Wars-7-Ideas-Were-Used-By-Disney-69271.html

 What?

If they don't care about Lucas's treatments, no way they're going to care about his special editions.

 There's a huge difference between an unused script and a thing the public saw.

The OOT is also a thing that the public saw.

 Yep. This news about the script treatment confirms what that Disney is more interested in making proper decisions than appeasing George's personal wishes. Unless there really are technical hurdles making it unrealistic, I don't see why they wouldn't go the route of Blade Runner and Close Encounters and release an 'ultimate' set with all versions. 

There are two huge reasons to release the OOT on Blu-ray by the end of the year:

1. Marketing synergy with Episode 7, and

2. The fact that UHD Blu-ray is right around the corner.

To make a comparison, the GOUT hit just a few months after hd dvd and Blu-Ray debuted. That probably didn't affect sales since the format war was yet to be decided and most people were still watching dvd's on their 4:3 crt's anyway.

If the OT has in fact been remastered in 4k, that would be a pretty big reason to hold off on getting the regular 1080p transfer of it. There will be a lot more UHD "4k" tv's in people's homes by this time next year, and that many more people waiting for prices to drop so they can buy one. It would be smart for Disney/Fox to just get the OOT out there this year while 99.9% of the customers are still unaware there's a 4k blu-Ray format on the way.

 UHD Blu-ray is going to have a market penetration of like 2% though, it's not going to appeal to more than hardcore collectors. All of this is still rumor mill though. I'm not getting any younger.

TV's Frink said:

Handman said:

Danfun128 said:

Here's your local Doppler radar:

 I don't see anything.

 Just like no one sees a 4k restoration on Star Wars.

 Or sees an news about it.

captainsolo said:

If it's not the set calibration, (always calibrate! DVE or use this free set from AVS: http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-display-calibration/948496-avs-hd-709-blu-ray-mp4-calibration.html) then perhaps it is the player. Check the settings and make sure there is not some option checked that causes unnecessary processing.

My old PS3 always does a great job at upscaling, but I hardly ever use this function as I'm still a CRT nut.

 My friend's PS3 used to do fantastic upscaling, no doubt because of the graphics chip. I thought about getting one, but I'm not a gamer, and the region-free issue had me tripped up. I wish there was a way to improve the graphics chip in my player, but of course there isn't short of taking it apart and putting on in, and it's just by the grace of God I'm coordinated enough to wipe myself ;). Why are you a "CRT nut?"

As far as calibration, I tried using the Disney WOW disc, but had difficulty eyeballing the colors and sharpness. I found settings online for the "movie" mode on my new plasma. Skin tones definitely look warmer and the color looks slightly more film-like, so they seem to be good. I'll have a look at that link though. Now I need to find similar settings for my other TVs. I still have a (very cheap) old CRT I try to keep around. Not sure why. Can't find settings for the other sets online with a quick search. Would probably do better if I clicked on more than three links ;).

skyjedi2005 said:

Upscaling a bad quality DVD will look bad.  Upscaling a good quality DVD will only look less bad.

Good quality DVD's are only so so, as long as you don't get closer to your set.

If you do you'll want to throw them in the trash realizing there is no real detail.

Unfortunately for many TV series and movies there are only DVD, and for others the studios screw up the Blu Ray release.

 Most TV releases are abandoning Blu altogether. The millennials' final legacy will be that we killed not only celluloid, but physical media in all of its forms. Because we haven't quite damaged the culture enough yet :(. Blu TV seasons probably don't sell at all, they're probably hedging their bets with DVD releases in the hope of moving a few more units. It might be a crappy but tolerable compromise to have a UV HD code bundled with them, but I get the sense that they aren't thinking about that. There's just so much stuff which isn't ever coming out in high-def, so I'd like to make it look presentable.

DrCrowTStarwars said:

skyjedi2005 said:

Upscaling a a bad quality DVD will look bad.  Upscaling a good quality DVD will only look less bad.

Good quality DVD's are only so so, as long as you don't get closer to your set.

If you do you'll want to throw them in the trash realizing there is no real detail.

Unfortunately for many TV series and movies there are only DVD, and for others the studios screw up the Blu Ray release.

 Oh with Tv shows, it is fine with me when it was an older show that was shot on video tape so DvD is as good as it is going to get but don't get me started on modern network shows where for some reason despite the fact that they are broadcast in HD the show only get released om DvD, CBS and ABC can be really bad about this, then they want you to pay $45 for a DvD boxset where the picture looks washed out and the sound sounds fuzzy compared to what was broadcast.  I refuse to do that, I just record the stuff off of the air, I save money and it looks better.

Some DvDs look fine but if it is a movie that is in the public domain or something, good luck finding a disc that will look good on a larger screen.

 Like I said, I think it's economics. Physical media isn't going to be around much longer, and the cheap releases are ones we're lucky to get at all.

A few n00b technical questions. When I watch HDTV, isn't it still 60 fields through pulldown like it was in the CRT days, except at 1080i? I assume most TV shows are still shot at 24 FPS (the 25 FPS conversion fiascos which frequently plague Blus aside in Europe) and the converted into what bascially like 30 FPS? If I run 720p, is it running the fields combined and just showing each one twice? Why would 24p Blu-rays be of better quality then? Is the 30 fields vs. 24 FPS a difference my eye could perceive, ala the infamous "soap opera effect?" I know I'm not seeing smooth motion interpolations, as I'm sure I'd be able to tell, but is the difference perceptible to the human eye?

Mine is a region-free modded Sony BDP S3100. Region-free is a must for me. I had my eye on the Oppo, but it's crazy expensive! And that's BEFORE the region mod. 

Even on my old 39 inch LED they looked pretty decent.