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July 13, 2012:

IN A WORD

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, I’m happy to say that Kritzerland had its best preorder day in its history, with over 900 orders for Follies. The closest we’ve come in one day was, ironically, another Sondheim album, Evening Primrose. But this beat that by more than 200 copies. The reaction to the audio samples was wonderful, too. I spent most of the day printing out orders, save for a trip to storage and an omelet and a bagel. There wasn’t really time to do anything else, so I got no writing done. It was, in a word, an incredible day. Well, that’s three words. I hate when that happens. The orders did slow down at around five, which enabled me to finally sit on my couch like so much fish.

I began my viewing with the third Irene Huss movie, and it was the best of them so far – excellent actors (including one young gal who was in one of the Rolf Lassgard Wallander movies, and one of the Krister Henriksson Wallander films), a good script, and no shaky-cam. And then I settled in for a real treat. I watched the about-to-be released Twilight Time Blu and Rays of High Time and Bye Bye Birdie. I have to say up front, that I really pushed for the High Time release. I first saw High Time at a sneak preview at the Village Theater in Westwood about five months before the film’s release. I loved going to sneak previews back then (I’m quite sure I wrote about High Time in one of the Kritzer books), and the preview of High Time was stellar – a sold out house, belly laughs throughout, and I thought it was one of the funniest things I’d ever seen. The whipped cream was having several cast members in attendance as well as the director, Blake Edwards. I saw the film a few more times when it was released, and each audience I saw it with loved it. I bought the RCA soundtrack album of Henry Mancini’s score, and I used to dance around my house with it blasting away on the stereo.

It was a long time till I saw it again – it wasn’t show all that frequently, but someone finally got me a homegrown VHS of it. It was pan-and-scan, brown, and terrible, and I thought “What did I ever find funny in this film?” Then, some years later, probably more than a decade, the film was shown of Fox Movie Classics, this time letterboxed, though still brown and ugly. But at least in its proper ratio I could enjoy Mr. Edwards’ visual style (there are really clever “scene changes” throughout the film and I loved those) and the film seemed funnier to me.
And so, last night I watched the new Blu and Ray and guess what? I laughed out loud, I was entranced, I was charmed, and I adored it. Part of that is the transfer, which is really excellent, with perfect color (thank heaven), and looking just as a Cinemascope film of that era should look. The film has lots of opticals, and those look as they should. And the stereo sound is really fun, and Mancini’s score sounds fantastic. Bing Crosby is wonderful, and Tuesday Weld is just about the cutest thing that ever walked the earth. But the whole supporting cast is great, and it’s really fun to see Blake Edwards starting to figure out his visual style for sight gags. I’m sure the usual suspects will look at ill-chosen and ill-done screen captures and make with the pronouncements, but you heard it here, dear readers – if you want some old-fashioned fun and charm in a lovely-looking and very well done transfer, take a chance.

And then there was Bye Bye Birdie. I saw this transfer a year ago at the Academy, where I was very underwhelmed by it. It seemed flat and lifeless with dull color. Perhaps that’s the nature of digital projection and/or blowing up a digital image to the size of the huge Academy screen. So, I was very nervous about the Blu and Ray of Bye Bye Birdie. Happily that nervous went away as soon as the Columbia logo came on in absolutely perfect color. And what followed that logo is simply one of the best transfers to Blu-ray of a film of that era that I’ve ever seen. It is, in a word, absolute perfection. Well, that’s two words. I hate when that happens. If only Warner Bros. had done this kind of transfer for The Music Man, instead of that ugly mess of yellow they did. The color here will take your breath away – it’s a poster child for what color should look like on films of this vintage. The sharpness will blow you away – it looks sharper than some 65mm transfers I’ve seen. This film has simply never looked so good, and Grover Crisp, who supervised this, did a magnificent job and he should be hoisted on shoulders and given huge kudos. I don’t know exactly what they did to the many opticals, but they look incredible – there’s no DNR or sharpening going on, they just look really good and really sharp – Universal could take some lessons from this transfer. The authoring of the disc is obviously first-rate, as is the authoring of High Time. The sound is robust and I could not have been more pleased. For any fan of the film this is an absolute five-star must-have disc. It will, in a word, knock your socks off. Well, that’s four words. I hate when that happens.

After that, Mr. Nick Redman, who’d left the test discs here earlier, came back and we watched some of both transfers together and he was very happy with my reaction to them. And I thanked him profusely for High Time, which he really did for me. I decided not to print out the orders that had come in, opting instead to print them in the morning after more have come in.

Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I’m really tired and must get a good night’s beauty sleep.

Today, I shall be up early, then I shall mosey on over to see Teddy, who will coif me but good. After that, I’ll come back to the San Fernando Valley, where I shall hopefully pick up some packages and an important envelope, hopefully print out lots more orders, and then Miss Juliana Hansen will arrive at about 3:45 and we’ll do the long drive to Costa Mesa. When we arrive, we’ll park and then dine. At seven-fifteen, I’m to go to the stage door, where I’ll be taken to say hello to my close personal friend, Mr. Stephen Sondheim. Then it will be the chat with him and songs of his concocting sung by Brian Stokes Mitchell and Christine Ebersol. I will, of course, have a complete report.

Tomorrow, she of the Evil Eye will be here, but after that, I have to prep our two-release soundtrack announcement, finish the current set of liner notes, and probably listen to a new master. Then it’s errands and whatnot, and I’m hoping to coerce some nice person into having a celebration dinner for all this week’s hard but very gratifying work.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, get coifed by Teddy, I must hopefully pick up packages and an important envelope, I must do a long drive, I must sup, and I must see a Sondheim event. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player, and your DVD/video player? I’ll start: CD, all manner of upcoming Kritzerland projects. DVD, the final three Maria Wern films, Cracker, and another Swedish series called Varg Veum, and also the Blu and Rays of Cover Girl and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I, in a word, hit the road to dreamland. Well, that’s five words. I hate when that happens.

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