Chuck Pennington
Screenwriter
- Joined
- May 11, 2001
- Messages
- 1,052
Hey all!
In my never-ending quest to waste time, I finished a little analysis I thought might interest some other people.
I have been wanting to view HAWAII (1966) again for a while, as I had only seen the longer Laserdisc version before obtaining the DVD of the general release cut. Even from some quick scanning, I could see the more recent anamorphic transfer on the DVD far surpassed the old Laserdisc in most respects (but not always on color, but more on that at another time). I had read the basics on what was different between the two versions, but I wanted a definitive list - so I put the DVD on my iPad (there is a titleset with the overture and exit music put back in and one without - I used the one with the overture and exit music added back in on the DVD) and I played it along with the Laserdisc and isolated the 18 additional or altered scenes (not including the entr'acte). I also found one scene timed for day on the DVD that is timed for night on the Laserdisc (which is in line with when the scene takes place in the story).
What a wonderful movie and score! It is touch-and-go for a little while at the beginning, but what a strong narrative and statement on religion and different cultures. I was most surprised by how much of Julie Andrews that was cut from the general release version, and I think her character suffered the most from the cuts. Such an odd situation considering that she was very popular at the time and got top billing, but oh well...
I uploaded all of the additional or altered footage (save for the scene incorrectly timed for day instead of night on the DVD) in two segments on YouTube. I usually put a few seconds before and after the footage to help show where it fit within the general release version of the film. The times below should help as well.
I hope this film is restored properly someday. Only a few of the additional scenes on the Laserdisc have turned red and appear to be from workprint, as the rest all appear to be from the same print - 70mm? I dunno. At least the source they used for the majority of the Laserdisc had some blue in it (though boosted beyond reason on the Laserdisc transfer) that is missing almost entirely on the DVD. The DVD sure looks like it was mastered from a fading print and color correction was used to hide it as best as possible in the transfer.
Don't get me started on the sound.
Here are the links to the footage:
Part 1:
Part 2:
I will post the detailed text of the comparison when I'm done in a few minutes.
In my never-ending quest to waste time, I finished a little analysis I thought might interest some other people.
I have been wanting to view HAWAII (1966) again for a while, as I had only seen the longer Laserdisc version before obtaining the DVD of the general release cut. Even from some quick scanning, I could see the more recent anamorphic transfer on the DVD far surpassed the old Laserdisc in most respects (but not always on color, but more on that at another time). I had read the basics on what was different between the two versions, but I wanted a definitive list - so I put the DVD on my iPad (there is a titleset with the overture and exit music put back in and one without - I used the one with the overture and exit music added back in on the DVD) and I played it along with the Laserdisc and isolated the 18 additional or altered scenes (not including the entr'acte). I also found one scene timed for day on the DVD that is timed for night on the Laserdisc (which is in line with when the scene takes place in the story).
What a wonderful movie and score! It is touch-and-go for a little while at the beginning, but what a strong narrative and statement on religion and different cultures. I was most surprised by how much of Julie Andrews that was cut from the general release version, and I think her character suffered the most from the cuts. Such an odd situation considering that she was very popular at the time and got top billing, but oh well...
I uploaded all of the additional or altered footage (save for the scene incorrectly timed for day instead of night on the DVD) in two segments on YouTube. I usually put a few seconds before and after the footage to help show where it fit within the general release version of the film. The times below should help as well.
I hope this film is restored properly someday. Only a few of the additional scenes on the Laserdisc have turned red and appear to be from workprint, as the rest all appear to be from the same print - 70mm? I dunno. At least the source they used for the majority of the Laserdisc had some blue in it (though boosted beyond reason on the Laserdisc transfer) that is missing almost entirely on the DVD. The DVD sure looks like it was mastered from a fading print and color correction was used to hide it as best as possible in the transfer.
Don't get me started on the sound.
Here are the links to the footage:
Part 1:
Part 2:
I will post the detailed text of the comparison when I'm done in a few minutes.