Playing off THE BIRDS digital print tale.

Perhaps, the WORST crime going on in America's cinemas right now is the documentary SAMSARA. It's not a bad film by any means. Actually, it's a pretty entertaining travelogue in the vein of KOYAANISQATSI or BARAKA.

The crime is that the movie was shot on 65MM film (which are what 70MM films are shot on). But, the filmmakers were apparently sooooooooo spooked by the whole move to digital, that they did not strike even a SINGLE 70MM print - not one!

I saw the film in it's "best" 4K Digital presentation. It was scanned at 8K from the negative. It looked ok. But, it also looked DIGITAL g$#damn it! It flattens and smooths out the film grain.

A damn shame.

In another thread I mentioned that TCM/Fathom Events ran a double feature of Universal's "Frankenstein" and "Bride of Frankenstein" on a big screen simocast. I don't know if the simocast technology would have negated the value of a real 35mm print, thus encouraging them to run a DVD version, but they promoted it as being six times the pixle density of a Blu-Ray TV version. Given that the smallest screen at my local megaplex is well over six times the size of the largest home TV, I was concerned.

It wasn't all that bad, even if it wasn't up to the standards of versions of both films run at the Marathon. There were a couple of parts during both films where the quality jumped to a grainy scene and back again, as if lost footage had been replaced by a 16mm version. We can expect this in the newer, longer version of Metropolis as well.

The best part may have been the audio. Does anyone know if they rescored "Bride" or was there always a strange, soft, feminine, jazzy musical phrase during her animation?




The Turner production could have been worse...



it could have been colorized!

The Director of the CLASH OF THE TITANS rehash "admits" it was all a big ripoff:

'Clash of the Titans' Director Admits 3D Was Horrible
http://www.thewrap.com/movies/article/clash-titans-director-admits-3d-was-horrib...

Further, Director Louis Leterrier admits that both CLASH and his HULK films went into shooting without finished scripts:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/28/louis-leterrier-now-you-see-me_n_333331...

L.A. Connection wrote on Oct 26^th, 2012 at 6:08pm:

Quite frankly, I can only say horse puckey.

L.A. Connection wrote on May 30^th, 2013 at 9:49pm:

It looked great on the big screen and the audience loved it but you will never know.

So, I go to a small arthouse film. Afternoon. During the week. Theater is a bit better attended than I expect. Usually, a good thing. I walk in and there's a group of seniors talking away loudly in some vaguely Middle Eastern language. They act like they own the place - like it's THEIR living room. Ads and commercials are running, so no big deal. The trailers begin. Half the group splits up and moves further back. Two of the blue hairs remain in the row behind me. They keep yapping - loudly, like they are trying to talk OVER the trailers.
As the trailers end, they clam up. Until the first plot point hits. Yap-yap-yap-what just happened? Why? The first SH'S! Are shot that way. Doesn't matter a wit. Every plot point - more Yap! Yap! Yap!
Just then, a couple shows up. The movie has started, and it's dark. Another elderly couple. The man has a cane. He sees some empty seats in the row behind me. Do they walk around front and enter from the other side? Of course not. They stumble over everybody in my row and THEN walk into the next row. Of course, right behind ME. And, of course, the first thing the man does is put down his cane - SMACK into the back of my chair! Then, they think the seats are too close. They move back another row.
As that is going on, you guessed it...some old guy's Cell Phone goes off! Loudly. He runs out of his seat and heads...for the exit? No! He runs towards the movie screen figuring most people are seated towards the back - talking all the way. Finally, he realizes that this won't be a short call and stumbles out the exit.
Meanwhile, me and others keep shushing the Middle Eastern blue hairs. They do lower their voices, but, they learn a new "tactic" - only talk when something fairly loud is going on in the movie!
The Cell Phone guy returns. He sits down....and, yup, seconds later the phone rings again!
Fast-Forward to the last 40 minutes of the movie. A literal Bag Lady rolls in with her cart. She remains fairly quiet for awile, save for, you know, her BAGS! The bags are plastic and, contain food, of course. So, she has to scrunch and handle and play with her bags as she takes every bite. Then, during the last 15 minutes of the movie, the Bag Lady decides that NOW is a good time to start SORTING RECYCLABLES! Yup, let me put my dirty cans in one bag, my bottles in another. Oh, and I have cardboard?! Let me RIP THEM INTO SMALLER PIECES so they fit in my cart!
Mercifully, the movie finally ends. I have a splitting headache from all the distractions. Several of us are giving stink eyes to the Blue Haired Middle-Eastern couple. The guy with the Cane walks over towards them glaring. I swear -- for one split second -- that he was going to bonk them over the head with it!

So, while we all usually complain about "kids" and "teens" with their talking and texting, I find that it's really Senior Citizens that can be the most annoying. Plus, you kind of expect a louder noise level at action, comic book and roudy comedies that younger filmgoers attend. But, some of these older folks act like it's a private screening!

And, don't forget that WIZARD is in the old 4:3 aspect ratio (like old TV sets). So, in Imax it would be a very boxy look.

How much you wanna bet they stretch it into a faux widescreen look in order for it to "fill the screen"?