122 / BD 13 Black Peter

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#26 Post by Bikey » Wed Jul 18, 2018 6:26 am

"Like the Ken Loach films that Foreman's early work inspired, the drama of BLACK PETER is buoyed by its sly sense of humour...
[Michael Brooke's] excellent commentary is filled to the brim with fascinating and revealing information on the film and its making and perceptive observations about individual scenes... Brooke absolutely nails what makes the film so special, despite its lack of formal plot or resolution. Terrific.

Second Run have done a great service in making the film available on Blu-ray with such a fine transfer and such generally excellent special features"
CineOutsider on BLACK PETER

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Bikey
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#27 Post by Bikey » Mon Jul 23, 2018 8:01 am

"There are proper nicely saturated blacks and especially good ranges of grays and whites that look terrific when the film is projected. There are no traces of problematic degraining or sharpening adjustments, so from start to finish the film boasts a very solid organic appearance. Image stability is terrific. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location.)

[BLACK PETER] is funny and charming, but on the other hand it is a real eye-opener that is as valuable as a period documentary feature. Second Run's new release is sourced from a very good 4K restoration of the film that was recently completed under the supervision of the Czech National Film Archive.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED."

Dr. Svet Atanasov reviews at Blu-ray.com

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MichaelB
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#28 Post by MichaelB » Mon Jul 23, 2018 8:20 am

My one and only criticism pertains to the presence of large damage marks that repeatedly pop up in the upper right corner of the screen. I did not find them distracting at all, but there are five or six, possibly even a few more of these marks, and I am not exactly sure why they were not eliminated. There are digital tools that could have easily and permanently removed them.
They're not "damage marks", they're reel-change marks, and far from not being removed I believe they were put there deliberately, as they shouldn't have been present on the original negative.

The Czech National Film Archive appears to have a policy of restoring their films to exactly how they appeared at the premiere, and of course reel-change marks will have been visible onscreen. This seems a tad eccentric, but I rather like having them there: as someone who grew up in London rep cinemas and who helped run one for six years, reel change markers were very much a part of my life, not least as a reminder that film came in multiple reels.

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Bikey
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#29 Post by Bikey » Tue Aug 07, 2018 8:07 am

"In this beautiful restoration of BLACK PETER... with Jan Nemecek’s gorgeously fluid long-take cinematography – a 20-minute set piece at a dancehall captures all the haphazard drama of teen romance – Forman was creating a cinema of resistance by simply depicting chaotic, free-flowing human nature"
Andrew Male reviews in the latest Sight & Sound magazine

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Bikey
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#30 Post by Bikey » Mon Aug 13, 2018 5:22 am

"Black Peter is a delightful slice of life look at adolescent life during the ascension of rock and roll as well as a sly commentary on the cultural divide during the Prague Spring..
The 2018 releases from Second Run as separate Blu-ray and DVD editions feature a sterling new 4K restoration of the film from the Czech National Film Archive, easily besting past versions and continuing the label's impressive track record with high-definition releases."
MONDO DIGITAL review BLACK PETER

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Bikey
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#31 Post by Bikey » Fri Aug 24, 2018 11:09 am

"A triumph of humour and improvisation that combined a subtly subversive analysis of society with such 'compassionate humanism' in relation to his characters... Film historian Michael Brooke’s audio commentary is rapid and irrepressible, its enthusiasm as infectious as its discoveries are fascinating. Sheer delight."
Tom Birchenough at The Arts Desk on Forman's BLACK PETER

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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#32 Post by Werewolf by Night » Sat Sep 01, 2018 10:54 pm

I’ve been blind-buying all of Second Run’s Central European Blu-ray releases, and I think this might be my favorite so far (or perhaps tied with the marvelous Baron Prášil). These sort of gently observed comedies about everyday young people are right up my alley, and this one reminded me quite a bit of Il Posto, one of my favorites in that genre.

The restoration is gorgeous (though those reel change marks mentioned above really are a truly odd addition). This is actually the first of Forman’s Czech films I’ve seen (a real blind spot, I know), and I hope I don’t have to wait too long for the next from Second Run.

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jsteffe
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#33 Post by jsteffe » Sun Sep 02, 2018 7:36 pm

There isn't much else that is likely to get a Blu-ray release besides LOVES OF A BLONDE/A BLONDE IN LOVE and the documentary AUDITION/TALENT COMPETITION (Konkurs). Second Run did release both on DVD previously. Arrow has already released a restoration of THE FIREMEN'S BALL, and that one is a must.

Since you liked this film, I also *strongly* recommend TAKING OFF, which pretty much directly translates his Czech aesthetic to the US with wonderful results. That one was released on Blu-ray in France.

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domino harvey
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Re: 122 / BD 13 Black Peter

#34 Post by domino harvey » Sun Sep 02, 2018 7:40 pm

Park Circus also put it out on Blu-ray in the UK, but I think it's OOP now

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