- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,272
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
For those who may discuss identifying the quintessential John Ford / John Wayne film, many will point toward their 1949 Argosy production for RKO, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. I'd take it over The Quiet Man, as I'm a huge fan of their calvary films.
Photographed in blazing three-strip Technicolor, by one of the masters of the era, Winton Hoch, it immediately brings to mind not only Mr. Hoch's later VistaVision work on another Ford western, but also his work on 3 Godfathers, Joan of Arc and The Quiet Man.
Look at camera placement, and the way that Mr. Hoch used foregrounds as he did again in 1956.
It also brings to mind the extraordinary production design work of William Cameron Menzies on Gone With the Wind.
I mention this, as Warner Archive's new Blu-ray, is a wonderful representation of the original.
Not perfect, as it was taken from an IP derived from the original three-strip negatives, but so good, and with such accurate color (matched to an original nitrate), and perfect registration, that if I had to decide which way to go for the difference in cost, I'd do precisely what Warner Archive has done.
There is a beautiful sheen of grain over the body of the film -- a bit less on the main title sequence for some reason -- and audio cleaned from a 35 mag derived from an original nitrate track print. The original track negative no longer surveys, but the print would be the proper source.
Shadow detail is superb, with nice black levels, and wonderful stabilization...
but it's that Technicolor palette that will knock you out of your seat.
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is one of the Great ones, and an absolute must own for any serious cinephile!
For those who may have considered picking up the Japanese pressing, a comparison will have that one appearing as a bad dupe, with inconsistent color and extremely limited shadow detail.
There is no comparison.
Image - 4.5 (main title 4.25)
Audio - 5
4k Up-rez - 4.5
Pass / Fail - Pass
Very Highly Recommended
RAH
Photographed in blazing three-strip Technicolor, by one of the masters of the era, Winton Hoch, it immediately brings to mind not only Mr. Hoch's later VistaVision work on another Ford western, but also his work on 3 Godfathers, Joan of Arc and The Quiet Man.
Look at camera placement, and the way that Mr. Hoch used foregrounds as he did again in 1956.
It also brings to mind the extraordinary production design work of William Cameron Menzies on Gone With the Wind.
I mention this, as Warner Archive's new Blu-ray, is a wonderful representation of the original.
Not perfect, as it was taken from an IP derived from the original three-strip negatives, but so good, and with such accurate color (matched to an original nitrate), and perfect registration, that if I had to decide which way to go for the difference in cost, I'd do precisely what Warner Archive has done.
There is a beautiful sheen of grain over the body of the film -- a bit less on the main title sequence for some reason -- and audio cleaned from a 35 mag derived from an original nitrate track print. The original track negative no longer surveys, but the print would be the proper source.
Shadow detail is superb, with nice black levels, and wonderful stabilization...
but it's that Technicolor palette that will knock you out of your seat.
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is one of the Great ones, and an absolute must own for any serious cinephile!
For those who may have considered picking up the Japanese pressing, a comparison will have that one appearing as a bad dupe, with inconsistent color and extremely limited shadow detail.
There is no comparison.
Image - 4.5 (main title 4.25)
Audio - 5
4k Up-rez - 4.5
Pass / Fail - Pass
Very Highly Recommended
RAH