Ealing on Blu-ray

[JamesM]

July 11th Whisky Galore

July 18th Went the Day Well

Aug. 1st The Lavender Hill Mob

Aug. 29th Dead of Night

[RogerThornhill]

July 11th Whisky Galore

July 18th Went the Day Well

Aug. 1st The Lavender Hill Mob

Aug. 29th Dead of Night

Thanks for the information. I will definitely be getting Went the Day Well and The Lavender Hill Mob.

[MrT]

Dead of Night should be interesting. Both sound and vision on the standard optimum dvd are only average, so it will be interesting to see how, if at all, the blue ray version is better.

[Film Man]

Me to 'MrT'...Optimum have/had the best in transfer machinery and spent a great deal of money of the equipment, giving us the best in DVD's. However many of the Ealing originals have gone leaving just 2nd generation copies or even worse. So I can't see the Blu-Ray copies being much better....much like a 78 rpm record copied to CD. Hope I'm wrong.
Film Man.

[railroaded]

DVD Beaver discusses and compares the Blu-Ray edition of The Ladykillers (Lions Gate/Optimum Home Entertainment) with the 'old' Anchor Bay R1 edition. The Blu-Ray was released in February 2010.

The Ladykillers Blu-ray - Alec Guinness

DVDBeaver.com - DVD Blu-ray all regions, reviews, comparisons, film

[JamesM]

Dead of Night should be interesting. Both sound and vision on the standard optimum DVD are only average, so it will be interesting to see how, if at all, the blue ray version is better.

I have not been that impressed by Optimum's efforts but, yes, the negatives for Whisky Galore and The Lavender Hill Mob are no more leaving only inter-positives, I imagine. The Man in the White Suit's negative survives and I suspect so does the negatives for Went the Day Well and Dead of Night. I have read a dubious claim elsewhere that Optimum have stated that there has been no restoration for Dead of Night.

From the Independent in 1993:-

"THE ORIGINAL negatives of some of the best known and greatest Ealing comedies have been destroyed in a fire. The fire took place in a film laboratory where the originals had been sent so that 'mint condition' prints could be made for a festival of Ealing comedies at the Barbican Centre, central London, next month.

The lost originals include The Lavender Hill Mob, Whisky Galore and Passport to Pimlico. The original soundtrack to The Man in a White Suit has also been lost, though the negative was saved.

The negative of Kind Hearts and Coronets was saved just before an explosion of nitrate sent a fireball through Henderson's Film Laboratories in south London. About 25 other original negatives of British films from the Forties and Fifties are also understood to have been destroyed, though none as famous as the Ealing comedies.

The owner of the Ealing comedies, Lumiere Pictures, was at pains to point out last night that the public will not suffer as there are back-up negatives from which future prints can be made.

The company said, however, that the loss was still tragic because they had such sentimental value and were part of movie heritage. Martin Bingham, head of technical operations at Lumiere, said: 'There is back-up material but it is one generation away and some of it may have to be cleaned or double checked before future prints are made.

'Technically speaking, these originals were the best quality material.

'Because prints of the Ealing comedies are so often used they get scratched and the idea for the Barbican Festival was to make perfect, mint condition prints from the originals.

'What has happened is a terrible tragedy for sentimental reasons. But we have sufficient back-up material and the public won't notice a difference in the long term.'"

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk...e-1486095.html

[Mr Pastry Time]

Put me down for Dead of Night..Just love that movie!

[JamesM]

Turns out it isn't our Dead of Night but a film Optimum are releasing called Dylan Dog: Dead Of Night.

[Moor Larkin]

There was an odd piece on Channel Four News tonight talking about the re-release of two of these in cinemas.... but then later it referred to them being on the shelves.............

Anyhow, it showed an on-screen illustration of the before and after images.

The BBC seems to know......
BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Film | Ealing comedies back in cinemas

The centenary of the UK's famous Ealing Studios is being celebrated with the cinema re-release of six classic Ealing comedies on Friday. Passport To Pimlico, Kind Hearts And Coronets, Whisky Galore, The Man In The White Suit, The Lavender Hill Mob and The Ladykillers are the six which are being re-issued in digitally remastered prints. They will be showing in London's West End from Friday and will then tour the UK.


Except that BBC article is from 2002................
Anyone know what Channel 4 are on about?.......

[JamesM]

Here is Channel 4 news item

Ealing Studios celebrates 80 years of laughs - Channel 4 News

The centenary in 2002 referred to the use of the actual studios whereas the 80th anniversary refers to the studios being called Ealing Studios.