Well, dear readers, it is late and I must write these here notes in a hurry, not because she of the Evil Eye will be here, because she won’t, but because I am just too too tired. What a long night it was. I attended the Home Theatre Forum event with Twilight Time’s and our very own Mr. Nick Redman and his ever-lovin’ Julie Kirgo, along with Twilight Time partner, Brian Jamieson. I met dear reader ChasSmith in the lobby and we went into the bar and met up with Nick, Julie, and Brian. There I met Ron Epstein, the owner of the HTF – he was very nice. And ChasSmith told me at some point that former dear reader MattH had been there when I arrived, but had left immediately, presumably to catch a plane. Did he know I’d be there? I’m fairly certain he did. Should he have at least attempted a hello? Well, I guess that’s his business, not mine, but let me just say it did not surprise me. Then Nick and Julie talked about Twilight Time for quite some time, then they took questions from the small audience. I met lots of nice folks there and it was all very nice. Then they showed everyone a little sneak peek at Bonjour Tristesse and The Rains of Ranchipur – they both looked wonderful, but I have to say Bonjour Tristesse looks amazing. And happily, Nick gave me the check discs to watch this weekend and watch I will.
After that, ChasSmith and I went next door where Monsterpalooza, a horror convention, is happening. Because it was so late already, they let us in for half price. We basically just wanted to say hi to dear reader Druxy and his ever-lovin’ Sandy. Before we could even find them we ran into Marshall Harvey, our Outside The Box editor. He was there with film composer Claudio Simonetti. Then we found Druxy and Sandy and said hello to them. Then we wandered around the dealer room – very strange indeed. And then we went to go say goodbye to Druxy when I saw the wonderful Bert I. Gordon. He’s not doing the show, but he was there next to Joe Turkel’s table. I hadn’t seen him in a couple of years (last time I saw him was at this same show), so we had a nice little chat and we will meet soon for a dinner at Genghis Cohen, a place I introduced him to, and that is his favorite.
Then I stopped at Gelson’s and got a couple of smallish snacks and came home and ate them. Prior to all that, I’d arisen at nine, had two visitors, did work on the computer, then went and had something I haven’t had before – a turkey, bacon, avocado and jack cheese grilled sandwich. It was pretty good. Then I went to the mail place and picked up no packages and an important envelope. Then the director of The Ghastly Love of Johnny X came by and picked up some CDs, then I did some banking, then came home and did yet more work on the computer.
I then finished watching the new Blu and Ray of The Curse of Frankenstein. It’s a fine little film that scared the living daylights out of me when I saw it at the Picfair Theater in 1957. There is a huge controversy surrounding this release and I’m afraid it’s about all the wrong things, and thanks to the people who now run Hammer, they have put out so much erroneous information and done such a disservice and apparently they are too proud or egomaniacal to admit they were wrong or at least acknowledge the overwhelming amount of articles they’ve been shown that prove them wrong. It basically has to do with the film’s aspect ratio. The people who now run Hammer, without any evidence whatsoever, decreed that a look at the transfer they were provided by Warners in the US told them that the film had been composed for 1.37, the Academy ratio of 99% of the films made pre-1953. There’s only one problem with that supposition – they are wrong. They are wrong because in the UK they began composing for widescreen in late 1953. And by 1957 there were few cinemas in any major part of the UK that could even run films in Academy ratio. In the US there were even fewer. And Hammer, at that time, was trying to make an impact in the US and they would not have shot a film in a ratio that couldn’t be shown. But people took the folks at Hammer at their word, while others were very vocal about how wrong they were. The problem is that the people who now run Hammer had nothing to do with Hammer back in the day. But, after enough screaming, they included the Academy ratio version and a 1.66 version, which is a ratio they showed at in Europe. Here it was absolutely shown in 1.85. So, a couple of people were determined to have the Academy ratio argument won and they listen to no one but the sound of their own voices. Rather volumes of articles have been posted by an aspect ratio expert and every one of those articles state that UK films of that year would have been widescreen. These wags then began posting screen caps of the Academy version and matted it in various ways to show they were right. But the problem became that when watching the actual 1.66 version in motion, none of the way they were cropping images was like what one saw in motion. In other words, it’s very easy to take a screen capture where an actor’s top of head might have been cut off a bit – you could do that for any film ever made in history, but in motion the actor may be moving and that frame may be the ONLY frame where that happens. These people simply do not know how movies are made or how they are framed. After watching both versions I am here to tell you that the 1.66 framing, with the exception of about four shots, is fine. Ample head room and nothing untoward, whereas the Academy version has too much ample headroom. And if those four or so shots had just been framed a hair lower, they, too, would have been fine – and then one must remember that my TV, like most, has overscan, so without overscan, those shots would have most likely been fine. My final answer to these “experts” was that if Hammer had ONLY released this in 1.66 and said nothing about Academy ratio, and if these people had gone to a cinema and seen this exact transfer in 1.66 no one would have said boo about anything. Why? Simple: They’d have actually been watching the MOTION picture rather than looking at the top of the frame with a microscope – they’d have been involved in the film, just as they are when they see a new film. Because if they were studying the top of the frame in a new film they’d see the exact same thing. Some of them hadn’t even seen the damn thing, they were just looking at posted still images. Ridiculous.
So, that’s all they’ve been yakking about instead of talking about the one thing they SHOULD have been talking about – how awful this transfer is in every way. It’s too soft, it has terrible color. The IP for the transfer was provided by Warners, but Mr. Robert A. Harris, who would know, said that there is no reason a faded IP should have been used at all and that this film could look as vibrant and garish as it did back in 1957. And if I had to hazard a guess, I’d guess that the IP is slightly zoomed in, which would explain a lot of things. That’s JUST a guess, but I think it’s a good guess.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I must get some beauty sleep right about now.
Today, I don’t think I have any plans at all, so I’ll hopefully sleep in, then write some liner notes, then write the blurb and prepare the Christmas album release for Monday morning. I’ll eat something light but amusing, jog if I feel like it, hopefully pick up some packages, then relax and there’s a chance I may have a visitor in the late afternoon.
Tomorrow, I’m going to The Federal to do a video test to make sure I like the way that all works. Beyond that, I hope to relax. Monday we’ll announce the Christmas album, and then at noon I go meet the editor and he’ll show me the fine cut of episode one and we’ll either do further finessing or I’ll sign off on it, and we’ll lock it and make a DVD copy for the screening at The Federal. Tuesday is our first Kritzerland rehearsal, and then there are meetings and meals, our second Kritzerland rehearsal, our stumble-through and then our show – oh, and Halloween is in there somewhere and I must go buy six hundred pieces of candy, which is what I gave away last year. Also, Jason Graae always does a little Halloween show at the retirement home where his mom lives, so I’m taking part – Jason and I are doing I Remember It Well.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do a jog, write some liner notes and a blurb, prepare a release, eat, hopefully pick up some packages and then relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your most wanted films that haven’t been released to DVD or Blu and Ray? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland where I shall dream in the correct aspect ratio.