Re: BFI (British Film Institute)
Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 4:28 am
He should cut a Criterion-type deal with Madman: "I'll let you have my commentary if you release this film I like"
From a BFI email:Cash Flagg wrote:Has Body Song been postponed? It's listed as temporarily out of stock on Amazon, but DVD Source gives the disc a 5/18 release date.
The new provisional release date is November this year. Hopefully it will be on both DVD and BluRay.
It is possible this will re-appear, but unfortunately there is no scheduled date for release.
Rare films featuring early performances from comedians like Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan are being restored by the British Film Institute (BFI)...
Two of the films, Let's Go Crazy and Penny Points to Paradise, will be shown at the BFI, in London, next month. The low-budget films, virtually unseen since their original release, feature cast members from The Goon Show and will also be released on DVD in August.
Penny Points to Paradise stars Harry Secombe as gormless Pools winner Harry Flakers who, accompanied by his best friend (Spike Milligan in his film debut), goes on a holiday to celebrate his new-found riches.
Adelphi Films was a small, family-run company, which specialised in the production and distribution of films between 1940 and 1956.
Their crime dramas, musicals, melodramas and slapstick comedies featured stars like Sid James, Ted Ray, Petula Clark, Rolf Harris and Prunella Scales early in their careers.
The BFI hopes to restore and release the rest of the films over the next 15 years if it can find funding.
Other films include The Great Game, a comedy about football starring Thora Hird and Diana Dors, and Fun At St Fanny's, a male equivalent of the St Trinian's farces starring Ronnie Corbett.
Great news if and when it happens...“The BFI has welcomed many of the recommendations in Lord Carter’s Digital Britain Final Report published today, particularly around the Government’s position on orphan rights issues and film education - as well as its recognition of the BFI’s role in preserving the UK’s film and television collections and making them more publicly available.
“Currently the law prevents archive organisations such as the BFI from making copies of any films that it does not own the rights to, even for preservation purposes. Under the new proposals the BFI will be able to restore and make high quality preservation copies of the orphan works it holds in the BFI National Archive (as much as 10 per cent of the collection) available to the public.
“In the event of any commercial gain from public access, screenings, DVDs and so on, the BFI will hold back money should a rights owner subsequently become evident."
Oh, great! I didn't expect to see this from the BFI. Fascinating film, and the restoration is stunning.What A Disgrace wrote:The Exiles
No idea what to expect with these - are we looking at GPO quality?National Coal Board Collection
Some info courtesy of BFI Screenonline...foggy eyes wrote:No idea what to expect with these - are we looking at GPO quality?National Coal Board Collection
Moviemail now says 9th November.Cash Flagg wrote:An email I received regarding the canceled La Vallee:It is possible this will re-appear, but unfortunately there is no scheduled date for release.
The Leopard is one film I'd really like to see on Blu. I wonder if I should wait to see if Criterion's Blu edition incorporates new material; perhaps even licenses BFI's supplements, before taking this plunge (and the same goes for the BFI, of course). I imagine the BFI will at least have a real insert.tojoed wrote:Great news, the BFI are releasing The Innocents and The Leopard on BluRay on November 9th.
And the top of my blu-wish-list takes wing from the ether.tojoed wrote:Great news, the BFI are releasing The Innocents and The Leopard on BluRay on November 9th.
Institute Benjamenta is also coming on November 9th.tojoed wrote:Great news, the BFI are releasing The Innocents and The Leopard on BluRay on November 9th.
On DVD *and* Blu Ray, according to MovieMail.eerik wrote:Institute Benjamenta is also coming on November 9th.tojoed wrote:Great news, the BFI are releasing The Innocents and The Leopard on BluRay on November 9th.
Seeing The Innocents for the first time and on Blu-Ray. You lucky man.Cinetwist wrote:
I'm just glad that I haven't got round to seeing The Innocents yet. Can't wait.
Oh, wow, that's really great. Have you had any involvement with this, MichaelB?eerik wrote:Institute Benjamenta is also coming on November 9th.