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Posted: Wed Nov 03, 2004 11:57 pm
by Tribe
davidhare wrote:Anyone else got these yet? I am quite disappointed with the transfer of l'Age d'or. There is substantial cropping of the titles (although this may be their print) but worse the rest of the movie seems heavily cropped at the top, cutting off things like Bishops' heads and scepters, etc. I can live with the print quality but I am getting a bit weary of increasingly common framing issues with BFI releases (Melville's "Les Enfants Terribles" is another example, but not as severely cropped.)
Here's hoping the Kino is an improvement, although I find it hard to imagine they have found pristine elements!
I'd be utterly surprised if the Kino version were an improvement. Haven't seen the BFI, but you know Kino...
Posted: Wed Nov 03, 2004 11:58 pm
by bunuelian
Yes, and I agree, the cropping is awful. My (lowly student budget) setup exacerbates it to the point where watching L'Age d'Or is downright frustrating. On my computer the cropping is still very evident. I've not seen it in any other format, so I don't know whether this is the way it's supposed to be.
The commentary for L'Age d'Or just doesn't do much for me, either. It's recorded over an abridged version of the film, and it spends a lot of time addressing things which would more appropriately be addressed in the booklet.
What a great film, though! I'm betting that ending would still cause riots in some parts of America . . .
Posted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 4:09 pm
by Tommy Sleeb
I got this in an email from Darla records, an independent label and distributor based out of Sacramento. This is the first I've heard about this. Who or what is Transflux films?
A Film By Luis Bunuel And Salvador Dali
UN CHIEN ANDALOU dvd 17.99 Transflux Films
"anyone halfway interested in th ecinema sees it sooner or later, usually several times." --Roger Ebert.
Made in 1929 Un Chien Andalou (the Andalusian Dog) is regarded as the first film produced purely from within the Surrealist Movement, and a landmark in the history of cinema.
Based on an exchange of dreams between Salvador Dali and acclaimed director Luis Bunuel, this tale of of unfulfilled desire opens innocently with the words "Once upon a time." What follows is one of the most shoking and celebrated sequnces in film history - a razor slashing a woman's in extreme close up...
Intended to provoke rather than to please (Bunuel saw it as 'nothing more than a desperate, a passoinate appeal to murder'), Un chien Andalou is a triumph of art and a hysterical dark joy ride whose power to affront the viewer is undiminished after more than 75 years.
Special features in include: An exclusive interview/documentary featuring Brunuel's son, Juan-Luis. An epilogue interview with Dali and Bunuel. More!!
Posted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 8:59 pm
by ben d banana
well, it's not a boot, but apparently it's cheaper to buy from darla than from the company on ebay. for what it's worth,
the feedback looks like it's been well received...
Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2004 12:17 am
by unclehulot
Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2004 5:16 am
by bunuelian
I just re-watched the BFI Un Chien Andalou on my computer to check for cropping issues. Not as bad as L'Age d'Or, but the final intertitle is grossly cropped on the left.
As another point of comparison, I have the (kinda lame) little reprint poster you always see on eBay from '68 for Un Chien Andalou. Comparing the images in the BFI dvd with this poster makes me think that in general their dvd is pretty badly cropped. It's just not as irritating.
Big disappointment. I really can't afford to double-dip on the Kino disc, which I doubt will be better, anyway.
Verdict:
Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 2:53 pm
by Napoleon
Has the Beaver reviewed a different
package?
Posted: Wed Nov 24, 2004 10:38 pm
by denti alligator
Yeah, I was excited about this release, but decided to avoid it based on the comments in this thread. But now Gary at the Beaver seems not to notice any of the problems mentioned here (cropping, etc). What's up here? Is it the worst the DVD of the year or the best?
Posted: Tue Sep 04, 2007 12:03 am
by Person
Salvador Dali on "What's My Line?" in 1957. Unique and very amusing.
Posted: Tue Sep 04, 2007 10:57 pm
by godardslave
Crazy! And i thought woody allen interviewing billy graham was surreal.
Re:
Posted: Fri Dec 05, 2008 7:58 pm
by Ovader
david hare wrote:...For a start we are never likely to see a pristine print of Chien Andalou, and anyhow the cropping issues don't seem so apparent here. I know that Bunuel donated his own print of this title to MOMA and those who have seen it say it's fantastic but we will never see that on DVD.
I decided to follow up your comment (four years later) by contacting MOMA about the Un Chien Andalou print and here is the response:
While the provenance of MoMA's material is unique due to some of the early materials coming from Bunuel, the Filmoteca Espanola in Madrid completed preservation on what is thought to be the definitive version a few years ago. There is nothing particularly remarkable about MoMA's material given the new work in Spain. Thus, MoMA would not be the best source for a definitive DVD release. You might want to contact the Filmoteca Espanola
I didn't ask about L'Age d'or but it is possible the Filmoteca Espanola also did a preservation of the film.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Tue Jan 06, 2009 2:42 pm
by sjostrom
I saw a preview of the spanish restoration on 2001. It was amazing. They'd manage to find all the original negatives, and the image quality was very different from that blurred version we've become used to. The other change was speed: slowed down, in order to play it with the music Buñuel choose, it looses some of the irony and becomes more lyrical and intense.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2009 1:47 pm
by sjostrom
At least
the Spanish restoration of Un chien andalou is out on DVD form, accompanying a two books set on the 80 years of the film. It includes many articles in Spanish and a reproduction of one of the first scripts.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Wed Dec 08, 2010 7:48 pm
by antnield
This has already been mentioned by perkizitore in the general BFI thread, but it's probably worth resurrecting this dedicated thread also. Looks as though a re-release of sorts is imminent on 21st March 2011.
Pre-orders at:
Amazon
HMV
Play.com
No information other than release date listed at any of those sites though.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 12:00 pm
by manicsounds
This has been on my wishlist forever. But what will this re-issue have?
I could only hope for a BD version, but I know that is unlikely.... right?
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 1:24 pm
by Tommaso
I have high hopes for this re-release; I guess they will correct the aspect ratio/cropping issues at the very least.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 11:33 am
by MichaelB
Tommaso wrote:I have high hopes for this re-release; I guess they will correct the aspect ratio/cropping issues at the very least.
Sorry to disappoint you, but it's a straightforward repressing of the OOP box set, only in conventional DVD packaging this time.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:21 pm
by swo17
This is still the highest quality DVD set of these films available in the world though, right?
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 5:11 pm
by vertovfan
Actually there's a French DVD from Editions Montparnasse which has a cleaner image and significantly less cropping:
http://www.devildead.com/indexfilm.php3?FilmID=1196
http://www.editionsmontparnasse.fr/prod ... uct_id=711
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 5:55 pm
by swo17
Is it English friendly? And is there a similar edition of L'age d'or?
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 6:14 pm
by Zazou dans le Metro
swo17 wrote:Is it English friendly? And is there a similar edition of L'age d'or?
There is a special edition of L'age d'or from the Pompidou which has three subtitle choices and a facsimile edition programme available at retail outlets cheaper I think
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Tue Jan 25, 2011 6:58 pm
by perkizitore
From BFI's Facebook page:
That's right, we're releasing L'Age d'Or on Dual Format (in HD), but due to licensing issues, Un Chien andalou will be included as an extra (in SD).
They also said that Un Chien Andalou won't be remastered.
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Tue Jan 25, 2011 9:22 pm
by vertovfan
swo17 wrote:Is it English friendly? And is there a similar edition of L'age d'or?
In (very late) response to your question, the Editions Montparnasse version of
Un chien andalou is not English-friendly - but with only a few intertitles, basic high-school French should get you by (on the film itself at least).
L'age d'or in HD - spectacular news!
Re: Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'or
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:12 pm
by manicsounds
manicsounds wrote:I could only hope for a BD version, but I know that is unlikely.... right?
Such awesome news for a title I didn't expect to come in HD.
But what is a 'rights issue' for releasing Anadlou in SD only? Who's made the decision that they'd only license out the SD version?