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- Feb 8, 1999
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- Robert Harris
William Wellman's wonderful, 1937 Selznick production, Nothing Sacred, has been problematic for decades - ever since it hit the public domain in 1965.
Original nitrate prints had a very specific monochromatic look, favored by Mr. Selznick at the time, and noting yet seen on home video reproduces that look - not that modern audiences would probably find it appealing, or care.
The earlier Blu-ray, also from Kino, was derived from a transfer of the Selznick studio print, held at GEH in Rochester.
While it was far better than anything else available on the PD market, it had its share of shortcomings - light scratches, occasional splices, etc.
But it was taken from a final print, produced properly at Technicolor, in their new three-strip dye transfer process.
The new Blu-ray is apparently derived from three-strip masters, presumably safety based, and not with the finest of processing quality. View the new version, and you'll note constantly shifting colors, as the deficiancies of the black & white elements make themselves known.
There is a definite give and take here.
The new release has slightly more pleasing overall color, and stability, and far less wear and defects, but as has become the standard of these films as they come from Disney, the original dupes are not attended to, and generally show registration problems.
All in all, I'd probably vote for the new disc, although if you have the previous, the "upgrade" is a balance of good and problematic.
Short of a full restoration, if you desire to own a copy of Nothing Sacred, this is probably as good as it's going to get, and as a film - it's a wonderful way to spend it's short running time of 76 minutes.
The aspect ratio, as noted on the packaging is 1.33. Proper AR should be 1.37, but who's measuring, or checking information?
Image - 3.25
Audio - 5
Pass / Fail - Pass
Upgrade from earlier Blu-ray - Not essential
Highly Recommended
RAH
Original nitrate prints had a very specific monochromatic look, favored by Mr. Selznick at the time, and noting yet seen on home video reproduces that look - not that modern audiences would probably find it appealing, or care.
The earlier Blu-ray, also from Kino, was derived from a transfer of the Selznick studio print, held at GEH in Rochester.
While it was far better than anything else available on the PD market, it had its share of shortcomings - light scratches, occasional splices, etc.
But it was taken from a final print, produced properly at Technicolor, in their new three-strip dye transfer process.
The new Blu-ray is apparently derived from three-strip masters, presumably safety based, and not with the finest of processing quality. View the new version, and you'll note constantly shifting colors, as the deficiancies of the black & white elements make themselves known.
There is a definite give and take here.
The new release has slightly more pleasing overall color, and stability, and far less wear and defects, but as has become the standard of these films as they come from Disney, the original dupes are not attended to, and generally show registration problems.
All in all, I'd probably vote for the new disc, although if you have the previous, the "upgrade" is a balance of good and problematic.
Short of a full restoration, if you desire to own a copy of Nothing Sacred, this is probably as good as it's going to get, and as a film - it's a wonderful way to spend it's short running time of 76 minutes.
The aspect ratio, as noted on the packaging is 1.33. Proper AR should be 1.37, but who's measuring, or checking information?
Image - 3.25
Audio - 5
Pass / Fail - Pass
Upgrade from earlier Blu-ray - Not essential
Highly Recommended
RAH
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