Riget [The Kingdom]

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

Forgot to add: I don't have enough knowledge about filmstock to answer this myself but are/was 16mm available in wide formats. To me it looks like this could have been 1.66:1, which they then cropped and squeezed slightly for TV presentation. But it that is the case, then they could have hit a homerun with this remaster by just adding bars in each side of the 16:9 instead of making it a missed opportunity by cropping it. I guess there's a slight chance, at least, that the uncropped remaster could have been preserved, then.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

Various sources say it was shot in Super 16mm, which has a 1.66:1 AR. Super 16 was common in TV production until HD came along and the usual process was to shoot full frame and then do a 4:3 crop. By 1994 it was well understood that 16:9 television was on the way, plus they probably always intended to do a theatrical version for festivals and foreign distribution, so I'm sure they protected for widescreen during the shoot. The sort of thing we see in the comparisons above—significantly more info on the sides, cropping on the top and/or bottom—is what we've come to expect from TV shows of the '90s and aughts getting remastered in HD.

[DeprongMori]

Well, I just managed to score a copy of the 2011 Second Sight DVD set of The Kingdom I&II from my local shop, which AFAIK is currently (previously?) the definitive release. Curious to finally see this at last.

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

Various sources say it was shot in Super 16mm, which has a 1.66:1 AR. Super 16 was common in TV production until HD came along and the usual process was to shoot full frame and then do a 4:3 crop. By 1994 it was well understood that 16:9 television was on the way, plus they probably always intended to do a theatrical version for festivals and foreign distribution, so I'm sure they protected for widescreen during the shoot. The sort of thing we see in the comparisons above—significantly more info on the sides, cropping on the top and/or bottom—is what we've come to expect from TV shows of the '90s and aughts getting remastered in HD.

Thanks for the clarification. I don't know why I just took it for granted that Riget was shot in Academy ratio. Maybe because Twin Peaks from the same era was, and because it was indeed remastered and released in its original ratio... Of course cropping 1.66:1 to 1.78:1 is not as criminal as cropping and even squeezing 1.66:1 to 1.33:1, and I guess we can still hope for a pillar-boxed 1.66:1 physical release version at some point. The worst thing about this then is that they've probably DNR'ed the hell out of the glorious 16mm to make it look not so terrible on their way to compressed streaming platforms. I'll wait rewatching until there's hopefully a blu-ray release. Maybe Criterion would be realistic in this respect?

In other news, the show now has the release date of October 9 on Viaplay, and a teaser trailer was just released today.

Here's an article in Danish with character posters: https://soundvenue.com/film/2022/08/rig ... her-489254

Many actors reprising their roles, and Mikael Persbrandt plays Dr. Helmer's son, Helmer Jr. Udo Kier is also back again, and the article cryptically mentions that he's now Big Brother, not Little Brother as in the original series.

[Never Cursed]

The trailer for The Kingdom: Exodus shared at TIFF was just the opening credits, which is fine

[therewillbeblus]

The trailer for The Kingdom: Exodus shared at TIFF was just the opening credits, which is fine

Love the tease for Udo Kier by only showing his eyes - I wonder what kind of body horror Lars has in store for him this time!

[Never Cursed]

The Kingdom: Exodus will be streaming on Mubi in the US and UK (though not in most of the EU save Ireland) November 27; Mubi has also restored the original 8 episodes, with Series 1 releasing November 13 and Series 2 November 20

[Ribs]

Mild correction because I've seen it reported misleadingly from people both in the press and socials who didn't read the materials correctly: it will be airing weekly on Mubi beginning on November 27, not all at once.

[Never Cursed]

Interesting-looking documentary on the making of the second series included on the Danish DVD - is there an English subtitle set floating around for this? Spoiler abound, of course.

Also, does anyone know what the intended aspect ratio of this series is? Some clips of the restorations were posted to YouTube recently which are definitely not in the right ratio, but I'm wondering how far off the mark they actually are

[swo17]

Also, does anyone know what the intended aspect ratio of this series is? Some clips of the restorations were posted to YouTube recently which are definitely not in the right ratio, but I'm wondering how far off the mark they actually are

Have you read the discussion starting here?

[Never Cursed]

Thank you! My apologies

[therewillbeblus]

After The House That Jack Built felt like a confessional exit from either cinema, life, or both, I suppose the logical next step for Lars von Trier was to return to the playful sandbox of Riget, both to chill out and have fun within the familiar sepia-soaked comic social antics, and to push the dark underbelly of uncontrollable forces like evil and death to their extremes as the artist has endured so many physical, mental health, and addiction traumas between then and now. In some ways, Exodus is more of the same, and since von Trier has only gained skill and wit as he's 'matured', these five episodes are arguably funnier than either of the first two series. But, silly as it all is, it's also deeper, as he molds the series' brand of playful obscurity into the more tangible occult, reflective of a vision from a man nearing death without a sense of control outside of his artistic medium.

A lot of the content is self-referential, with von Trier's transparent desire to project his accumulation of physical pain and mental and emotional suffering onto others on display, but also in small bits, like his riff on 12-step meetings from his time in recovery (in what may be the film's strongest running gag), cheeky pokes at religious iconography (creatively replacing a saint with.. something else), and relentless jokes at the expense of political correctness (including his own misconduct allegations in the wake of #metoo, with an inevitable reveal of an accuser’s identity destined to puncture progressives’ Achilles heels). von Trier is seeing his reflection in multiple characters here, namely the new old-lady protagonist and Udo Kier's evolved state, plagued with fading health and torn between finding humility in his limitations and holding onto dear life with his role as the Dreamer and the Gatekeeper to the Kingdom, who must ultimately come into contact with indomitable forces in real life so he sublimates himself into that force while he still can. It's not avoidance- he knows he can't do that- but it's knowing escapism; self-deprecating comedy about his most existential nightmares. There's as much drastic self-mythologizing going on as there are carefree shenanigans at his retirement party, if that's what this is (and a sad recently-revealed diagnosis does make one wonder if it will be).

The drives to actively participate with agency and passionately search for an answer to mystery mirror a desire to remain creative against the complacency of, say, an opium den-existence in retirement, but then... well, von Trier knows he can't solve life's mysteries. He admits to having faith in a higher power, but not trusting it. If God is evil, and darkness reigns, must we serenely accept it with love, or submit to the darkness with fear? And just when you think he's taking mystery seriously, one of the biggest promises to further a sincere part of the narrative is revealed as a non sequitur long-game punchline of irreverence about a character's background, that takes aim at targets from the beginning of series one almost thirty years ago.

The show has been compared to Twin Peaks a fair amount, and if the original Riget was more on Lynch's original series' campy wavelength, this does feel more like The Return (though the change in tone really isn't that different, for the most part). There are also general homages to later Lynch (the most unnerving inclusion in this new version directly replicates the creepiness of the old couple in Mulholland Dr.), but as von Trier admits as a final director's note, “Everything is stolen.” The most obvious comparison, though, is in the denouement, where

Vague spoiler for both Exodus and Twin Peaks: The ReturnShow

Exodus matches Twin Peaks: The Return's final moments with similar self-reflexivity and thematically apocalyptic activity

I really hope von Trier keeps making art, if only because with his last two efforts, it's clear that he's entering into a more self-actualized engagement with the end of his life that allows for news depths of lightheartedness and vulnerability, reminding me of Woody Allen's own transformation in the last decade

[martin]

Interesting-looking documentary on the making of the second series included on the Danish DVD - is there an English subtitle set floating around for this? Spoiler abound, of course.

The documentary you're linking to is actually not on the the Danish DVD. You're linking to this one produced by DR (Danmarks Radio). The two Documentaries on the Danish DVD(s) from Zentropa are these: Season 1, produced by DR, and Season 2, produced by TV2. The documentaries on the DVD have English subs (available on youtube merged into one file - although without subs). I don't think the video you're linking to has been released as bonus on any physical media, and I don't think there are subs available.

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

So, the MUBI/Amazon streams are a little better than the Viaplay ones with slightly higher bitrate, but the glorious Super 16 still looks very digitized. It's hard for me not to be distracted by the all the pixelation, blocking and other compression artifacts. What are the odds of somebody picking these series up for a blu-ray release? There's no chance they'll be released in Denmark as the physical media market is dead and gone here.

[therewillbeblus]

Is there reason to believe Mubi won’t release a set of all three series? They took the time to restore them, and have been emerging as a physical media release label over the last couple years, going so far as to jump to the UHD format this year. It would be strange if they decided to leave these widely-desired works as streaming-only when they’re clearly dedicated to producing blu-rays

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

Did Mubi do the restoration? I thought that was done by Zentropa themselves, who – I believe – has been working on all previous restorations of Trier's films.

[therewillbeblus]

I'm not sure, it says they did upthread but that's entirely possible. Regardless of who did the restoration, it'd still be strange for MUBI to release what they have on physical media but then sidestep what would certainly be a higher demand product as they continue to prioritize their development as a physical media company...

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

Oh, I didn't know that Mubi is planning to do physical releases. I just interpreted it as they had bought the streaming rights to the series. But it might be possible, then. Although it would be a no-brainer for Criterion, wouldn't it? Especially considering the fact that they're now releasing the Europe Trilogy, and the fact that both Antichrist and Breaking the Waves has sold well?

[therewillbeblus]

I don't believe Mubi has announced plans for a physical release yet, I'm just assuming they would based on the logic that they've been actively pursuing this aspect of their business model, and especially when they hold the HD restorations to a coveted series by a famous arthouse director

[Finch]

I still have the Second Sight DVD set of the first two seasons and would buy either a BD set of all three bundled together or a standalone release of the third without having seen a second of it. Fingers crossed that someone somewhere releases it with English subs as my Danish is non existent.

[zedz]

my Danish is non existent.

Sorry about that.

[Finch]

I needed a laugh yesterday so thank you!

[Never Cursed]

Newzealandskjävlar!

[therewillbeblus]

For Boston locals, the Brattle theatre is showing the new restorations of the first two series next Wed and Thurs, and then premiering Exodus next Friday in full. All showings are at 6pm, and tix are still available on their website

[jegharfangetmigenmyg]

If anybody goes, please report back about the look of the restos. Especially interested in the AR. Is it the OAR of 1.66:1 with bars added to each side of the digital presentation, or are they standard 16:9 / 1.78:1 like the online version? Also, do they look DNR'ed? They shouldn't, because the online streaming versions don't, so I imagine that DCP's would look glorious. I missed the theater showing here in Denmark, and the sampling I've done of both the Viaplay and the slightly better MUBI streams shows an excessive amount of pixelation and macro blocking. 16mm (especially low lit and post processed film like this) just looks awful when overly compressed for streaming.