Powell and Pressburger (UK releases)

Discuss internationally-released DVDs and Blu-rays or other international DVD and Blu-ray-related topics.
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Lino
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Powell and Pressburger (UK releases)

#1 Post by Lino » Tue Jun 21, 2005 12:04 pm

More info here. Apparently, it's a HMV exclusive.

The store however lists it as a 9 disker... without Black Narcissus on it which the P&P site lists as:
Black Narcissus
(2005 digitally remastered version which premiered at Cannes)
Any idea why?

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kieslowski_67
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#2 Post by kieslowski_67 » Tue Jun 21, 2005 1:10 pm

Gosh, they are dirty cheap though. :shock:

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Richard
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#3 Post by Richard » Wed Jun 29, 2005 4:46 pm

Interesting. However: looking at the extra's of Red Shoes and Blimp I'd say that these are the same Carlton-editions that are available allready. Still a great set though.

Napoleon
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#4 Post by Napoleon » Fri Aug 26, 2005 10:27 am


kieslowski
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#5 Post by kieslowski » Fri Aug 26, 2005 11:23 am

Black Narcissus is a new restoration, but flixyflox was wondering about Blimp and I agree with him - I think it's the old transfer.

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ellipsis7
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#6 Post by ellipsis7 » Fri Aug 26, 2005 11:27 am

What they seem to have done is use the freshly restored film elements to then transfer to HD, there to use digital restoration tools to remove remaining scratches and faults, to produce an HD master, from which can be struck show prints and DVDs, as well as projecting directly digitally etc...

They will have to go a long way to better the CC NARCISSUS disc on DVD, which was from BFI restored film elements, and a transfer supervised by Jack Cardiff....

Tied up with the new print of BLACK NARCISSUS is the fact that Carlton took over the Rank Library, then merged with/was taken over by Granada.... I think Technicolour was owned by Carlton, so would be in on the deal...

I suppose also the business of restoration/preservation is also very much an ongoing process...

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ellipsis7
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#7 Post by ellipsis7 » Sat Aug 27, 2005 7:20 pm

A pretty comprehensive Powell retro is coming to an end at the Edinburgh Film Fest... I was there today, was offered a ticket to AGE OF CONSENT, but had seen it recently on VHS, and was not enthusiastic enough to review on the big screen... BFI and Granada credited in the programme for much of the films...

I get no significant strobing on my copy of BLACK NARCISSUS!

Napoleon
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#8 Post by Napoleon » Tue Aug 30, 2005 5:26 am

I was struggling to keep up before, but I'm completely lost now.

Eric
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#9 Post by Eric » Tue Aug 30, 2005 6:01 am

Yeah, someone just tell me how I go about getting this for 18 pounds.

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ellipsis7
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#10 Post by ellipsis7 » Tue Aug 30, 2005 8:30 am

The 9 film box setis an HMV exclusive at £39.99 (as Annie Mall indicated in the first post of this thread)...

Does not include the new Black Narcissus DVD which releases on 26 Sept...

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devlinnn
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#11 Post by devlinnn » Wed Oct 05, 2005 12:15 am

Gin has been passed Flixy, but champagne may be in order as Magna Pacific look to have done OK with Black Narcissus. While not the new restoration (if so, I need new glasses), it is comparable to the Criterion. As is their Great Expectations - sharp print, good contrast. At AU$14rrp, they out-pimped o/s dist.

Speaking of pimps - has anyone read, seen or heard news about P&P's The Elusive Pimpernel? HVE had a VHS release many moons ago - but I've never seen a DVD release anywhere.

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devlinnn
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#12 Post by devlinnn » Wed Oct 05, 2005 1:30 am

Yes Flixy, we need a Criterion 'We Don't Know Where We're Going!' - The Second-Tier Powell and Pressburger Collection' boxset asap to round out loose ends.

Tim
Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2004 8:27 am

#13 Post by Tim » Sat Oct 22, 2005 10:10 am

I bought this recently and watched A Matter of Life and Death yesterday. No complaints about the transfer but two comments on the packaging. First, the discs are carried two to a page in a fold-out package, so that one disc overlaps another on each page. For whatever reason the push-button releases on the upper discs have very little flex (they are sort of half buttons, to accommodate the lower disc), so that it's incredibly difficult to get the upper disc off the hub safely. The lower disc can be removed fairly easily. Second, the package has no insert and thus very little information on each film. What you get is what you see on the outside of the box: the name of the film, the major credits, and the year of release. Nothing else.

Given the price of the package one has to expect compromises. I'm not complaining about the presentation as value for money. I just want to let prospective purchasers know what they are and aren't getting.

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ellipsis7
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#14 Post by ellipsis7 » Sat Oct 22, 2005 12:11 pm

HMV have dropped their price for the P&P boxset to Stg£29.99...

Napoleon
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#15 Post by Napoleon » Thu Nov 17, 2005 10:03 am

Yes, the Network BLACK NARCISSUS is amongst the best transfers I've ever seen. It is of a similar quality to criterions The River. Perhaps it is even a little sharper.

Although it doesn't look like it on the DVDBeaver shots, the colours are vibrant and retain that Jack Cardiff feel.

It still strobes a bit (barely, but if you concentrate on a white wall it is there), but still, I'd give a kidney to see similar efforts made to The Red Shoes.

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Gordon
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#16 Post by Gordon » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:53 pm

The Network Black Narcissus is only £12.87 HERE.

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Lino
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#17 Post by Lino » Mon Jan 02, 2006 10:30 am

From DVDClassik:
Première salve Powell/Pressburger en provenance de l'Institut Lumière

Comme Bertrand Tavernier l'annonçait dans l'entretien qu'il nous a accordé, les films du tandem génial vont enfin trouver un écrin à leur mesure en Zone 2 française. Chaque films sera édité en double DVD avec VOST mono et sera distribué par Warner :

Les chaussons rouges : Présentation par Bertrand TavernierTavernier - Bandes annonces - Souvenirs de Michael par Thelma Schoonmaker partie 1 - Les audaces d'un aventurier partie 1 par Bertrand Tavernier - Profil des chaussons rouges - Un pas de danse par Yourgos Loukos

Le narcisse noir : Préface de Martin Scorsese - Présentation par Bertrand Tavernier - Bandes annonces - Souvenirs de Michael par Thelma Schoonmaker partie 3 - Les audaces d'un aventurier partie 2 par Bertrand Tavernier - Profil du Narcisse noir - Painting with light : autour de Jack Cardiff par Craig McCall - This is color : démonstration pour le Technicolor réalisé par Jack Cardiff avant son travail avec Powell

49è parralèle
: Présentation par Bertrand Tavernier - Préface de Martin Scorsese - Souvenirs de Michael par Thelma Schoonmaker partie 4 - Les audaces d'un aventurier partie 4 par Bertrand Tavernier - Bandes annonces

Colonel Blimp : Présentation par Bertrand Tavernier - Bandes annonces - Souvenirs de Michael par Thelma Schoonmaker partie 2 - Les audaces d'un aventurier partie 3 par Bertrand Tavernier - Profil du Colonel Blimp - The making of an englishman (documentaire de Kevin McDonald sur Emeric Pressburger)

Date de sortie : 5 Avril 2006
These will be great primarily for two reasons: as you can see above, each edition will be a 2XDVD with great extras, that manage to sample most that are present on Criterion editions and then some; and being Warner, this of course means great quality and unbeatable prices.

For my part, I'm waiting for Gary to review and compare them because I still haven't made myself buy any Powell/Pressburger apart from Peeping Tom - therefore, this is also a heaven sent to boot!

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tavernier
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#18 Post by tavernier » Mon Jan 02, 2006 11:07 am

Plus, my namesake is one of the most literate, enthusiastic film buffs around, so he will make sure these are top-notch.

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porquenegar
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#19 Post by porquenegar » Tue Jan 17, 2006 7:48 pm

Are there any reviews of the HMV 9-disc set yet? I can't find any if there are. Can anyone comment on the quality?

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Kinsayder
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#20 Post by Kinsayder » Wed Feb 01, 2006 7:53 pm

The 9-disc set is currently down to £17.99 at HMV.

As far as the quality is concerned, most of the discs in the set are identical to the well-reviewed Carlton editions available individually (they still have the Carlton logo printed on them, even though the packaging doesn't).

Check DVD-Basen for reviews of the individual titles.

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tavernier
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#21 Post by tavernier » Thu Feb 02, 2006 3:41 pm

Damn, I paid more when it first came out.....at that price, it's definitely worth jumping at.

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porquenegar
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#22 Post by porquenegar » Fri Feb 10, 2006 12:59 pm

Does anyone know how long the sale lasts?

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porquenegar
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#23 Post by porquenegar » Wed Feb 22, 2006 8:40 pm

I received mine in the mail this Saturday and it is a very nice looking, if barebones set. I took a gander at Red Shoes and it looked very good and watched Blimp, which had a small bit of audio hiss in parts but was very good overall. 9 Films for $38.42 is a steal.

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nyasa
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#24 Post by nyasa » Tue Apr 04, 2006 2:22 pm

I bought the HMV set last week - used a £2-off voucher, so picked up 9 films for £15.99.

Biggest surprise: I actually enjoyed They're a Weird Mob. I didn't have high hopes for it, but it's quite an effective portrayal of the immigrant experience in 1960s Australia, with some nice directorial touches. Not first rate P&P by any means, but a perfectly decent - if a little dated - movie. Shame it didn't come with the Making Of documentary that I believe is on the Aussie release.

As for the rest of the set, as far as I can make out you're basically getting all of the Carlton R2 releases - some with extras (documentaries with The Red Shoes, Colonel Blimp, and A Matter of Life and Death), some without. The Red Shoes in the set is the Carlton disc that DVD Beaver reckoned to be superior to the Criterion.

Biggest WTF: Laurence Olivier in 49th Parallel. My God, what was he on? That accent! John Cleese obviously ripped it off for the French taunter in Holy Grail.

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porquenegar
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#25 Post by porquenegar » Wed Apr 05, 2006 7:28 pm

I've been making my way through this set and am a bit more than halfway done and I already feel as if I got my moneys worth. I recently screened A Cantebury Tale which I thought had a perfect ending that just spiritually felt right to me. This morning (on vacation, baby!) I watched A Matter of Life and Death that I thought was very inventive and very sweet. 49th Parallel was great fun even with Olivier's bad accent. Its a really great little propoganda film. The only one I haven't liked was I Know Where I'm Going which seemed more ordinary than the other films. I've yet to watch Ill Met by Moonlight, Battle of River Plate or They're a Weird Mob so I can't comment on those.

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