criterionforum.org

Look, this is getting silly. This same link has already appeared twice in this relatively young thread, firstly when I linked to it when it was a standalone review of the Criterion and then here when the comparison was added. There doesn't appear to have been an update since then, so why post it for a third time?

I appreciate you're trying to be helpful, but it would be a lot more helpful if you read the thread(s) first!

MichaelB wrote:Look, this is getting silly. This same link has already appeared twice in this relatively young thread, firstly when I linked to it when it was a standalone review of the Criterion and then here when the comparison was added. There doesn't appear to have been an update since then, so why post it for a third time?

I appreciate you're trying to be helpful, but it would be a lot more helpful if you read the thread(s) first!

Well, just relax! Some additional comparisons are being added regularly, some were mentioned, or included earlier, others not.
Anyway, these DVD comparisons should serve to you as an "wake up call". I hope that SR will offer high quality products, not just an average quality.

admira wrote:Some additional comparisons are being added regularly, some were mentioned, or included earlier, others not.

I can appreciate why you're adding links to updated pages, though it would have been nice if you'd explained your motivations at the time. However, there is no reason at all to add repeated links to pages that haven't been changed since they were originally linked to in the same thread only a few weeks earlier.

It's particularly irritating for people who get email alerts for these threads, as they don't tell you who the author is - so I click on the link to A Blonde in Love hoping for some actual insight into a release that I contributed to myself, only to find an unannotated link to the same old Beaver comparison that we've already read. How on earth is that helping anyone?

Anyway, these DVD comparisons should serve to you as an "wake up call".

I can assure you that Second Run is fully aware of any technical shortcomings inherent in the masters they have to use - but the bottom line is that out of commercial necessity they have to operate on an absolute shoestring, while still setting RRPs far lower than many of their rivals (equally necessary, given the obscurity of most of the titles they release - the more expensive they are, the less likely people will be to take a chance on something new).

In fact, since you're so keen on comparisons, try this for size: Amazon currently sells the Criterion edition for $26.99 (or £16.47), while the much newer Second Run edition is going for £7.91 (or $12.96). Even if you make the playing field as level as possible and just compare the basic RRPs, the Second Run edition is nearly ten dollars cheaper.

Criterion and the BFI can afford to create brand new HD telecines from original 35mm materials because they have a substantially bigger market (Criterion) or additional archival justification for going to that expense (BFI), as well as substantially deeper pockets to begin with - but lower-budget labels have to take what's already available as an inescapable commercial reality. You don't seem aware of any of this (you certainly don't acknowledge it), so it's a tad ironic that you seem to think that Second Run is the one who needs a wake-up call!

to MichaelB

Let me tell you something: I understand various difficulties you may face while publishing DVD's, BUT don't forget that I am an customer who is looking for the best picture quality, correct frame ratio etc. Even if I have rather limited options for certain titles, I'll always prefer the best choice available on the market.

You are doing great job, but don't think about outside comments to you as a too much of a criticism.

For the record, I don't work for Second Run - I just know them well and occasionally contribute to their releases in the form of booklet essays or behind-the-scenes technical advice. But I don't get royalties (even if I did I doubt they'd amount to much), so have no vested interest in them continuing to operate - other than my fervent belief in what they're doing.

BUT don't forget that I am an customer who is looking for the best picture quality, correct frame ratio etc.

Of course - which is why Second Run makes every effort to deliver what you want, based on what's realistically available. These days, bearing in mind the row over Passenger, they are particularly keen to get the aspect ratio right: in fact, earlier today I had a chat with them about an upcoming release which is already out in a different territory. The aspect ratio of their master was different from the rival DVD (1.85:1 versus 4:3), so they contacted the director and the cinematographer, who assured them that 1.85:1 was correct. Unfortunately, the 4:3 version has been considered the definitive one for so long (on account of the film being otherwise unavailable for decades) that it's a racing certainty that some people will jump to the wrong conclusion and accuse Second Run of getting it wrong - when they are the ones who took the trouble to contact the most reliable authorities to make sure that they were getting it right!

Come to think of it, a similar situation happened with Larks on a String - as you already know.

I can understand what admira is trying to say, but I know very well it's not always that easy, sometimes you just have to use whats available to you at the moment you want to release it, if that means using not the best master but bringing a film into circulation
that is or was for a long time not available to people, it is justified.
Second Run takes risk after risk releasing these titles, you can't predict if some titles will even sell at all.
So at these prices if you really love film and you want to see more just buy their releases, even if it's sometimes for the informative booklets or added features or even the good job they do on their subtitles, doing this you ensure more titles you never dreamed of getting a release will make it to DVD.

What I liked about Second Run from the moment the label first launched was the way that they were completely open about their philosophy - that it's more important to release an imperfect copy of an otherwise unavailable film than to wait an eternity for a notionally "perfect" version that may never materialise. Which is one of the reasons they keep their prices so low and really go to town over issues over which they do have control, such as the subtitles and booklet.

If you deliberately set yourself up as a specialist in unfairly marginalised titles, almost by definition you're going to end up dealing with less than wonderful source materials more often than not. Remember how people complained, not unreasonably, about Shinjuku Boys, and it turned out that the Second Run transfer was taken directly from the director's own personal broadcast master? The problem was that it was on Beta SP, a largely defunct analogue format that was fine for mid-1990s television (for which it was created), but obviously not up to contemporary standards - but going back to original materials and remastering from scratch would have turned an already risky release into one guaranteed to make a thumping loss. And with decades-old films from central and eastern Europe, the situation gets messier still, which I suspect is one reason why most UK labels didn't touch them until Second Run came along.

My problem with Admira's posts wasn't the content as such, it was the underlying attitude - best encapsulated in the deeply patronising phrase "a wake-up call". In fact, I had a look at his posting track record, and remembered where I'd encountered him before - it was when he complained about the minuscule and unavoidable cut to Marketa Lazarova with the impressively fervent but hopelessly idealistic rallying-cry "No censorship for ART!" (in bold and red, what's more). Which is all very well as an ideological principle, but if you're a British DVD label which has to abide by UK legislation (the 1984 Video Recordings Act requires the 1937 Animals Act to be taken into consideration - which means that genuine animal cruelty staged specifically for the film has to be removed before it can be granted a classification certificate), the only viable alternative is not to release the film at all.

And since no-one else had released the film on DVD anywhere over the previous decade, and considering how much that single DVD has boosted František Vláčil's previously nonexistent reputation in Britain, I'm not entirely convinced that that would have been a better option.

There is too much accent to persuade the audience that SR brings for the first time ever to the western world films never released before there. It is the true for the titles like Marketa Lazarova and, or Romeo, Julie and Darkness, when you can argue that source material was in bad shape etc.

But there were DVD's already released (in Europe and USA) before SR re-released the same titles, that comes with english subs, easily to be order on-line and in most cases, picture quality is about the same, or even better what SR offers (Cremator, Loves of a Blonde, Diamonds of the Night), so I am missing meaningfulness of these steps, especially in the context of "publisher as a savior".

It's 2011 today, many years since SR began its publishing. Without high-definition products today, it's going to be very difficult to compete on the market.
As an example, here is a list of first 200 czech films that will be released on Blu-ray discs in just few years. The same process is taking an action in many countries around the world:

1. Filmy Jana Kříženeckého (1898-1908), režie Jan Kříženecký němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
2. Cikáni (1921), režie Karel Anton němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
3. Příchozí z temnot (1921), režie Jan S. Kolár němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
4. Šachta pohřbených ideí (1921), režie Rudolf Myzet, A. L. Havel, němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
5. Dobrý voják Švejk (1926), režie Karel Lamač němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
6. Kreutzerova sonáta (1926), režie Gustav Machatý němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
7. Pohádka máje (1926), režie Karel Anton němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
8. Batalion (1927), režie Přemysl Pražský němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
9. Erotikon (1929), režie Gustav Machatý němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
10. Takový je život (1929), režie Carl Junghans němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
11. Varhaník u sv. Víta (1929), režie Martin Frič němá verze, formát 1:1,33, čb.
12. C. a k. polní maršálek (1930), režie Karel Lamač česká verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
13. Tonka Šibenice (1930), režie Karel Anton francouzská verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
14. Muži v offsidu (1931), režie Svatopluk Innemann česká verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
15. Ze soboty na neděli (1931), režie Gustav Machatý česká verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
16. Extase (1932), režie Gustav Machatý česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
17. Před maturitou (1932), režie Vladislav Vančura, Svatopluk Innemann česká verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
18. Řeka (1933), režie Josef Rovenský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
19. Hej-Rup! (1934), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,19, čb.
20. Marijka nevěrnice (1934), režie Vladislav Vančura česká, formát 1:1,19, čb.
21. Jánošík (1935), režie Martin Frič slovenská verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
22. Bílá nemoc (1937), režie Hugo Haas česká verze, ormát 1:1,37, čb.
23. Hlídač číslo 47 (1937), režie Josef Rovenský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
24. Panenství (1937), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
25. Svět patří nám (1937), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
26. Cech panen kutnohorských (1938), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
27. Cesta do hlubin študákovy duše (1939), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
28. Eva tropí hlouposti (1939), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
29. Kristian (1939), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
30. U pokladny stál (1939), režie Karel Lamač česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
31. Babička (1940), režie František Čáp česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
32. Turbina (1941), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
33. Městečko na dlani (1942), režie Václav Binovec, česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
34. Šťastnou cestu (1943), režie Otakar Vávra, česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
35. Řeka čaruje (1945), režie Václav Krška česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
36. Čapkovy povídky (1947), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
37. Jan Roháč z Dubé (1947), režie Vladimír Borský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
38. Podobizna (1947), režie Jiří Slavíček česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
39. Siréna (1947), režie Karel Steklý česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
40. Špalíček (1947), režie Jiří Trnka česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
41. Hostinec „U kamenného stolu“ (1948), režie Josef Gruss česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
42. Krakatit (1948), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
43. Svědomí (1948), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
44. Císařův slavík (1949), režie Jiří Trnka zvuková verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
45. Daleká cesta (1949), režie Alfréd Radok česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
46. Divá Bára (1949), režie Vladimír Čech česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
47. Němá barikáda (1949), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
48. Pytlákova schovanka aneb Šlechetný milionář (1949), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
49. Bajaja (1950), režie Jiří Trnka česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
50. Císařův pekař – Pekařův císař (1951), režie Martin Frič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
51. Divotvorný klobouk (1952), režie Alfréd Radok česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
52. Pyšná princezna (1952), režie Bořivoj Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
53. Staré pověsti české (1952), režie Jiří Trnka česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
54. Měsíc nad řekou (1953), režie Václav Krška česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
55. Osudy dobrého vojáka Švejka I.-III. (1954-1955), režie Jiří Trnka česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
56. Jan Hus (1954), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
57. Stříbrný vítr (1954), režie Václav Krška česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
58. Cesta do pravěku (1955), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
59. Dědeček automobil (1956), režie Alfréd Radok česká, francouzská verze, ormát 1:1,37, čb.
60. Dobrý voják Švejk (1956), režie Karel Steklý česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
61. Ztracenci (1956), režie Miloš Makovec česká verze, formát 1:1,37,čb.
62. Poslušně hlásím (1957), režie Karel Steklý česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
63. Škola otců (1957), režie Ladislav Helge česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
64. Tam na konečné (1957), režie Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
65. Vlčí jáma (1957), režie Jiří Weiss česká verze, zv.záznam plošný, formát 1:1,37, čb.
66. Zářijové noci (1957), režie Vojtěch Jasný česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
67. Touha (1958), režie Vojtěch Jasný česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
68. Tři přání (1958), režie Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
69. Vynález zkázy (1958), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
70. Zde jsou lvi (1958), režie Václav Krška česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
71. Král Šumavy (1959), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
72. Probuzení (1959), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
73. Romeo, Julie a tma (1959), režie Jiří Weiss česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
74. Sen noci svatojánské (1959), režie Jiří Trnka česká verze, formát 1:1,37 a 1:2,35, barevný
75. Holubice (1960), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
76. Vyšší princip (1960), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
77. Baron Prášil (1961), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
78. Ďáblova past (1961), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
79. Trápení (1961), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
80. Konkurs (1962), režie Miloš Forman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
81. Pytel blech (1962), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
82. Transport z ráje (1962), režie Zbyněk Brynych česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
83. Až přijde kocour (1963), režie Vojtěch Jasný česká verze, formát 1:2,35, barevný
84. Černý Petr (1963), režie Miloš Forman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
85. Ikarie XB 1 (1963), režie Jindřich Polák česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
86. Křik (1963), režie Jaromil Jireš česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
87. O něčem jiném (1963), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
88. Smrt si říká Engelchen (1963), režie Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
89. …A pátý jezdec je Strach (1964), režie Zbyněk Brynych česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
90. Atentát (1964), režie Jiří Sequens česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
91. Čintamani a podvodník (1964), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,66, čb.
92. Démanty noci (1964), režie Jan Němec, česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
93. Hvězda zvaná Pelyněk (1964), režie Martin Frič, česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
94. Každý den odvahu (1964), režie Evald Schorm česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
95. Kdyby tisíc klarinetů (1964), režie Ján Roháč, Vladimír Svitáček česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
96. Limonádový Joe (1964), režie Oldřich Lipský česká verze, formát 1:2,35, barevný
97. Obžalovaný (1964), režie Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
98. Starci na chmelu (1964), režie Ladislav Rychman česká verze, formát 1:2,35 a 1:2,55, barevný
99. Ať žije republika (1965), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,2,35, čb.
100. Bílá paní (1965), režie Zdeněk Podskalský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
101. Bloudění (1965), režie Antonín Máša, Jan Čuřík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
102. Intimní osvětlení (1965), režie Ivan Passer česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
103. Lásky jedné plavovlásky (1965), režie Miloš Forman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
104. Obchod na korze (1965), režie Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos slovenská verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
105. Perličky na dně (1965), režie J.Menzel, V.Chytilová, E.Schorm, J.Němec, J.Jireš česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
106. Dáma na kolejích (1966), režie Ladislav Rychman česká verze, formát 1:2,35, barevný
107. Hotel pro cizince (1966), režie Antonín Máša česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
108. Kdo chce zabít Jessii? (1966), režie Václav Vorlíček česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
109. Kočár do Vídně (1966), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
110. Konec srpna v hotelu Ozon (1966), režie Jan Schmidt česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
111. Mučedníci lásky (1966), režie Jan Němec česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
112. Návrat ztraceného syna (1966), režie Evald Schorm česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
113. O slavnosti a hostech (1966), režie Jan Němec česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
114. Ostře sledované vlaky (1966), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
115. Romance pro křídlovku (1966), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
116. Sedmikrásky (1966), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
117. Ukradená vzducholoď (1966), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,85, barevný
118. Dita Saxová (1967), režie Antonín Moskalyk česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
119. Hoří, má panenko (1967), režie Miloš Forman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
120. Marketa Lazarová (1967), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
121. Noc nevěsty (1967), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
122. Rozmarné léto (1967), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
123. Stud (1967), režie Ladislav Helge česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
124. Svatba jako řemen (1967), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
125. Údolí včel (1967), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
126. Čest a sláva (1968), režie Hynek Bočan česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
127. Farářův konec (1968), režie Evald Schorm česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
128. Nebeští jezdci (1968), režie Jindřich Polák česká, anglická verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
129. Ohlédnutí (1968), režie Antonín Máša česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
130. Spalovač mrtvol (1968), režie Juraj Herz česká verze, formát 1:1,66, čb.
131. Všichni dobří rodáci (1968), režie Vojtěch Jasný česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
132. Žert (1968), režie Jaromil Jireš česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
133. Adelheid (1969), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
134. Den sedmý – osmá noc (1969), režie Evald Schorm česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
135. Ecce homo Homolka (1969), režie Jaroslav Papoušek česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
136. Já, truchlivý Bůh (1969), režie Antonín Kachlík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
137. Kladivo na čarodějnice (1969), režie Otakar Vávra česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
138. Ovoce stromů rajských jíme (1969), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
139. Po stopách krve (1969), režie Petr Schulhoff česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
140. Případ pro začínajícího kata (1969), režie Pavel Juráček česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
141. Skřivánci na niti (1969), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,66, barevný
142. Směšný pán (1969), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
143. Smuteční slavnost (1969), režie Zdenek Sirový česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
144. Světáci (1969), režie Zdeněk Podskalský česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
145. Zabitá neděle (1969), režie Drahomíra Vihanová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
146. Pasťák (1969/1990), režie Hynek Bočan česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
147. Hlídač (1970), režie Ivan Renč česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
148. Lišáci – Myšáci a Šibeničák (1970), režie Věra Plívová-Šimková česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
149. Na kometě (1970), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,66 a 1:1,85, barevný
150. Ucho (1970), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
151. Už zase skáču přes kaluže (1970), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
152. Valerie a týden divů (1970), režie Jaromil Jireš česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
153. Vražda ing. Čerta (1970), režie Ester Krumbachová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
154. Archa bláznů (1970/1990), režie Ivan Balaďa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, čb.
155. Dívka na koštěti (1971), režie Václav Vorlíček česká verze, formát 1:1,66, barevný
156. Petrolejové lampy (1971), režie Juraj Herz česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
157. Tři oříšky pro Popelku (1973), režie Václav Vorlíček česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
158. Páni kluci (1975), režie Věra Plívová-Šimková česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
159. Dým bramborové natě (1976), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
160. Hra o jablko (1976), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
161. Marečku, podejte mi pero (1976), režie Oldřich Lipský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
162. Adéla ještě nevečeřela (1977), režie Oldřich Lipský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
163. Ať žijí duchové! (1977), režie Oldřich Lipský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
164. Čarodějův učeň (1977), režie Karel Zeman česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
165. Stíny horkého léta (1977), režie František Vláčil česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
166. Balada pro banditu (1978), režie Vladimír Sís česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
167. Kulový blesk (1978), režie Ladislav Smoljak, Zdeněk Podskalský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
168. Panna a netvor (1978), režie Juraj Herz česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
169. Božská Ema (1979), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
170. Housata (1979), režie Karel Smyczek česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
171. Lásky mezi kapkami deště (1979), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
172. Panelstory aneb Jak se rodí sídliště (1979), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
173. Krakonoš a lyžníci (1980), režie Věra Plívová-Šimková česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
174. Postřižiny (1980), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
175. Signum laudis (1980), režie Martin Holý česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
176. Vrchní, prchni! (1980), režie Ladislav Smoljak česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
177. Kalamita (1981), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
178. Pozor, vizita! (1981), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
179. S tebou mě baví svět (1982), režie Marie Poledňáková česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
180. Faunovo velmi pozdní odpoledne (1983), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
181. Sestřičky (1983), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
182. Slavnosti sněženek (1983), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
183. Tři veteráni (1983), režie Oldřich Lipský česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
184. Zánik samoty Berhof (1983), režie Jiří Svoboda česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
185. Straka v hrsti (1983/1988), režie Juraj Herz česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
186. Co je vám, doktore? (1984), režie Vít Olmer česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
187. Džusový román (1984), režie Fero Fenič česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
188. Prodavač humoru (1984), režie Jiří Krejčík česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
189. Krysař (1985), režie Jiří Bárta česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
190. Vesničko má středisková (1985), režie Jiří Menzel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
191. Pavučina (1986), režie Zdenek Zaoral česká verze, formát 1:1,19, barevný
192. Smrt krásných srnců (1986), režie Karel Kachyňa česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
193. Bony a klid (1987), režie Vít Olmer česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
194. Nejistá sezóna (1987), režie Ladislav Smoljak česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
195. Šašek a královna (1987), režie Věra Chytilová česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
196. Pražská pětka (1988), režie Tomáš Vorel česká verze, formát 1:1,37, barevný
197. Čas sluhů (1989), režie Irena Pavlásková česká verze, formát 1:1,66, barevný
198. Vojtěch, řečený sirotek (1989), režie Zdeněk Tyc česká verze, formát 1:2,35, čb.
199. Kouř (1990), režie Tomáš Vorel česká verze, formát 1:1,66, barevný
200. Obecná škola (1991), režie Jan Svěrák česká verze, formát 1:1,66, barevný

That last post might have been one of the most nonsensical I've ever read.

rs98762001 wrote:That last post might have been one of the most nonsensical I've ever read.

ever? Leave the cave...

Apparently more information about this project involving 200 Czech films is here. Can anyone aside from admira elaborate on this?

Apparently...

I can't wait too. Well this info is not the latest news.

As for Marketa Lazarova, I don't want to say too much, but there is going BIG surprise soon.

additional info about first round of selected 200 films is HERE (in czech)

admira wrote:As for Marketa Lazarova, I don't want to say too much, but there is going BIG surprise soon.

Anything to do with this?

admira wrote:There is too much accent to persuade the audience that SR brings for the first time ever to the western world films never released before there. It is the true for the titles like Marketa Lazarova and, or Romeo, Julie and Darkness, when you can argue that source material was in bad shape etc.

But there were DVD's already released (in Europe and USA) before SR re-released the same titles, that comes with english subs, easily to be order on-line and in most cases, picture quality is about the same, or even better what SR offers (Cremator, Loves of a Blonde, Diamonds of the Night), so I am missing meaningfulness of these steps, especially in the context of "publisher as a savior".

First of all, none of those titles was available in Britain, which is Second Run's main market. Secondly, two of those titles weren't available in any other English-speaking country. We're all pretty comfortable with importing discs round these parts, but we are not representative of the general public - and in any case I suspect even those of us who are happy to import from various international branches of Amazon would baulk at handing over their credit card details to a Czech-language website. I've certainly done it, but how many others have?

In any case, while it's true that The Cremator and Diamonds of the Night are available in their native country, the subtitles are inferior (they even go badly out of sync for a bit on The Cremator) and the extras aren't English-friendly at all.

It's 2011 today, many years since SR began its publishing. Without high-definition products today, it's going to be very difficult to compete on the market.

The word "today" is highly misleading, as you're presumably aware that this list is largely of titles that they want to digitise and restore over the next few years, not HD masters that are available right now. And with massive projects like these, I normally prefer to wait to see some definite outcomes before praising it to the skies - for starters, the 2015 completion date looks very ambitious indeed given the quantities involved.

Sorry if I sound cynical, but in Poland a slate of 20 Blu-rays of classic back-catalogue titles was announced about a year ago. Three of them were actually released, with the rest apparently due out well before the end of 2010, but no more ever emerged - and it now seems that these titles are coming out on DVD instead, with no news about whether Blu-rays will follow suit. I don't know why there was a change of plan, but I'd hazard a guess that one reason is that the Polish Blu-ray market simply isn't big enough to support something like this - and given that there are even fewer Czech films out on Blu-ray in the Czech Republic than the equivalent situation in Poland, I'm assuming that there's a similar problem over there.

In other words, I'll believe it when I see it - though I'll obviously go out of my way to promote the first releases if they're any good, just as I did with the three Polish Blu-rays when I reviewed them for Sight & Sound.

I agree that announcements and plans are not enough to believe.
Anyway, any words from SR about BD release any time soon?

If those czech blu's have nice picture quality and good subs the that would be a very nice thing, but as Michael said, it's highly unlikely that they will get it it done.

More in general I think the Blu-ray format is not the success the industry hoped it would be, the general public is not changing as quickly as hoped.
This has a lot to do with the technical aspects, in the beginning you had hd-ready, then full-hd, plasma, lcd, let's have led a few later and now again 3D, most people
give up after the HD part, and are happy with their dvd. Also, some people just don't see the difference between dvd and blu, I know it's absurd, but I hear it all the time.
And given the fact that the the whole blu-ray industry operates as some mafia like organisation it is difficult for smaller labels to even think about releasing their material on blu.

My point is, given the kind of material SR releases I don't think it will be profitable for them, with DVD they can keep their prices low + reach a larger audience, even MOC stepped down form their blu
only policy for their titles, and i guess that is also due to the fact that still more people use DVD.

I guess the only way to make blu the victor is to abolish dvd from the market, and that is not going to happen soon.

Dick Laurent wrote:If those czech blu's have nice picture quality and good subs the that would be a very nice thing, but as Michael said, it's highly unlikely that they will get it it done.

I can't stress enough that I wish them every success, but the economics laid out in that PDF document are dauntingly ambitious. The vast majority of these films have no realistic market outside the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and I can't believe the HD market in those countries is especially large.

More in general I think the Blu-ray format is not the success the industry hoped it would be, the general public is not changing as quickly as hoped. This has a lot to do with the technical aspects, in the beginning you had hd-ready, then full-hd, plasma, lcd, let's have led a few later and now again 3D, most people give up after the HD part, and are happy with their dvd. Also, some people just don't see the difference between dvd and blu, I know it's absurd, but I hear it all the time.

I hear it at home - my wife claimed not to be able to tell the difference at first, and still claims that it doesn't matter! And you're absolutely right in principle - the general public is traditionally reluctant to shift formats in large numbers. DVD took off primarily because of the convenience, and because it coincided with the rise of the Internet - which meant that many people who bought online-friendly PCs in the late 1990s/early 2000s found that they'd inadvertently made themselves DVD-compatible as a happy by-product. But in order to get into Blu-ray, you need a hefty upfront investment in a big flatscreen television (no point going much below 40 inches) as an absolute minimum - so it's hardly surprising that people are baulking at the prospect anyway, even without competing issues of HD broadcasts, 3D and so on.

It's also well worth noting that I've had separate conversations with three friends of mine recently, and none of them had any idea what Blu-ray was. And they hadn't just emerged from a cave or been released from a lengthy prison sentence.

And given the fact that the the whole blu-ray industry operates as some mafia like organisation it is difficult for smaller labels to even think about releasing their material on blu.

That's exactly the issue. Obviously, the question of Blu-ray has come up, and I lend the Second Run guys examples of releases in their area so they can see what's happening, but the inescapable fact is that it's still an expensive format to get into, and the size of the market is conspicuously smaller, thus effectively increasing costs further. And I know from experience of contributing to their releases that they watch every penny - they have to, because margins are so insanely tight. Even a shift in the exchange rate can have a significant impact, as deals are invariably conducted in euros or dollars.

My point is, given the kind of material SR releases I don't think it will be profitable for them, with DVD they can keep their prices low + reach a larger audience, even MOC stepped down form their blu only policy for their titles, and i guess that is also due to the fact that still more people use DVD.

Indeed - to be fair to MoC, it was a bravely polemical move, but I'm glad they had second thoughts. Not least for the purely selfish reason that I'm a big fan of dual format releases for their sheer convenience - but of course they're more expensive to put together. Not as expensive as separate Blu-ray and DVD releases, but far more than the production cost of a current Second Run release, with absolutely no guarantee of increased sales. Especially not if they have to release the RRP to a level above which people are less reluctant to take a chance.

And MoC has a parent company that can (in theory) absorb losses if gambles like these don't work out. Second Run doesn't.

I guess the only way to make blu the victor is to abolish dvd from the market, and that is not going to happen soon.

Absolutely not - because a vast amount of material isn't worth remastering in HD, either because there'd be no improvement at all (anything mastered on SD video in the first place) or because it would be too expensive to restore the film materials to meet expectations. Releasing stuff on Blu-ray just because it's Blu-ray is a very bad idea!

Gordon Thomas reviews A Blonde in Love in the latest Bright Lights Film Journal

Trailer for the new restoration from Czech National Film Archive. Hoping Second Run Blu-ray will follow later in the year.

The new newsletter just confirmed a July release of the restoration on Blu-ray

According to Amazon, the disc will include an audio commentary (no author specified), the second part of Life As It Is: Milo Forman on his Czech films, and a booklet with an essay by Michael Brooke. Its released on July 22, but they won't let you give them your money just yet.

I don't know who's doing the commentary, but I'm glad someone is. Doing Black Peter last year was surprisingly good fun (it's the fastest commentary I've ever knocked out between commission and delivery), and this is a substantially richer film.

And you've just reminded me that I need to dig out the essay and correct the bit where I unforgivably got Andula and Milda mixed up.

Our A BLONDE IN LOVE Blu-ray (region-free) Special Edition available to pre-order now for just £14.98 now at Amazon UK.

Full details of this release now at our website