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Superman II : The Donner Cut (update)

HD, Superman

Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut (HD-DVD) I’m much neglecting this site, and also neglecting the very film I campaigned to see!

Anyway (as I’ve posted over in the HTF): having finally gotten around to watching the Donner cut (after I was begging for it so long!), though have to say I did hold out to get it in HD…

A huge massive big thank you to all involved in making this happen!

Wow.

Not sure how to feel about it really. I love it, but it’s certainly quite a different film. It’s going to take a little getting used to.

What stuns me is just how much footage there was, and how much had been reshot by “the other guy”. It’s quite weird in places as it’s a case of watching the film you know but something is just different, and of course it’s because the same scene but shot by someone else.

The test footage and bits of CGI don’t bother me at all. They work pretty well. Much of the new footage is fantastic. Some a little rough around the edges, where perhaps at the time would have been polished off had it made it into the theatrical release. Some perfect though. Everything with Brando is excellent.

A sense that things are missing of course because of knowing the other version so well, but nothing really major sticks out. The ending I’m not so sure, but then I never really bought it in Superman either. It looks great though regardless.

Anyway, once again, many thanks.

Sony & Blu-ray: Deception and Anti-Consumer Behavior

HD, HD Format War

HD-DVD vs Blu-Ray Blu-Ray is apparently “winning” the format war. Much of that is down to aggressive marketing and self promoting “news” articles that Sony peddles all over the net, and the rest down to the public who believe in Sony and in part think the name sounds cool (remember these are the geeks who know about HD. Joe Public hasn’t got a clue what “Blu-Ray” means).

The following article spells out what’s really wrong with Blu-Ray. The differences between the formats are hardly technical but mostly down to the politics and behaviour of the backers. Sony could win this war having lost just about all the other unnecessary format wars in the past (all of their making), and they would win through sheer desperation and forcefulness. The loser in this war wouldn’t be HD DVD however, it’s the consumer. If Sony et al had played ball early on and negotiated a deal we wouldn’t have had the war and we would have had the best of both worlds (and hopefully none of the worst anti-consumer points from Blu-Ray).

Just say “No” to Blu-Ray

Edit: Sadly the above site appears to have gone. Wouldn’t be Sony’s lawyers at work by any chance? !

In other news. A “win” for HD DVD as far as I’m concerned is the announcement that Battlestar Galactica (2004) Season 1 is coming to HD DVD on December 4th just in time for Christmas. Exclusive because it’s a Universal title who currently only back HD DVD. One in the eye for those who believe the war is over and Universal are about to fall to Blu-Ray come Christmas when they come out with this cracking Christmas HD DVD promoting set (considering the very poor selection of releases on both sides at the moment).

Sony strikes again

General

Not content with killing off retailers because they are a threat to Sony’s market protection business model (Google: Lik-Sang and Sony), or putting rootkit viruses on CDs to infect consumer computers just to stop people copying their CDs, Sony are at it again with DVDs by producing a disc that won’t play in some players… including their own brand players!!!

More here: http://sonystrikesagain.wordpress.com/2007/03/19/hello-world/

Trawling the Kubrick video web

Kubrick

Update: Lost the links to most of these and they were flash video as well which is now slowly dying (thankfully). If I can work out what they were and find them again, I’ll update them.

Trawling around for all things Kubrick on the now trendy video web (of YouTube and similar fame) here are a few things of interest I’ve dug up.

The first is another Lego classic. There are many Lego spoofs about and I was looking for one I saw a while a go but found this instead (sorry for any adverts that may occur)

Then I found the one I was looking for anyway…

and along the way I came across this clip of Kubrick accepting a DWG award during the making of Eyes Wide Shut before his death…

And finally this news article about an 80s audition video for Full Metal Jacket that’s been doing the rounds on the web and the subsequent tracking down of the guy who made it.

Casino Royale mini review

Bond

Casino Royale I have to say it is an excellent film. I can’t say Daniel Craig strikes me much as the image of Bond we’ve had so far, and I’m not talking about the Blond hair, that doesn’t bother me, it’s just the ‘swagger’ isn’t very Bond like. However that doesn’t seem to make much difference as he pulls of a good performance anyway.

The film does feel like a Bond film. Lacks obviously the standard elements (the gadgets etc), but that’s a good thing. I know Licence to Kill did this as well, but LTK was frankly boring and had no proper Bond plot, it was just a rather dull revenge story with an even more dull villain and dull drugs plot. Gritty yes, but gritty doesn’t automatically mean good. With Casino Royale we have gritty but it’s not taking itself too seriously all the time and still retains the glamour of Bond.

The only problem really is the Judi Dench ‘M’, but then continuity has never been much of an issue with Bond before, and besides I quite like her as Bond. Black Felix?… well that’s what Never Say Never Again did (even if that was unofficial).

A little long perhaps but then ending is pretty good.

Best Bond film ever? No. OHMSS easily retains the top spot there and I’d say even Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice are better too despite their age and obvious flaws for 60s films.

The reboot, M, Craig as Bond, I can all live with I think. Only problem though is the more serious and realistic angle they are taking is jarred by the early scene on the building site. It’s a bit hard to believe. I mean it’s almost like something out of a super hero or Hong Kong film.

Oh and of course as this is a Sony film since they bought up MGM, Sony product placement is everywhere. For example, Sony mobile phones (seems everyone has one), Vaio laptops, Blue-Ray discs and players.

Better or equal to Goldeneye I’d say, which is fitting given it’s the same director and both are new starts to the series. That probably makes it in my book in the top 5.