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Topic: Kudos to Woody

Tim Reed
Better Projection Pays

Posts: 5246
From: Northampton, PA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 12-23-1999 10:20 AM

Woody Allen (his politics notwithstanding) gained my respect at his absolute refusal to allow panned and scanned TV prints to be made of his anamorphic pictures. He is very technically-saavy.

I know a fellow who was Woody Allen's projectionist on several movies, and he says that Allen was not above asking for an opinion regarding the projection of b/w pictures, and on certain other technical matters.

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Ian Price
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1714
From: Denver, CO
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-23-1999 01:31 PM

I saw Sweet and Lowdown at the Telluride Film Festival in September. It is a good film with great acting by Sean Penn.

The film does have one glaring problem.

The film is a fictional documentary of the "second greatest" jazz guitar player. While the story is shown the film is enjoyable. But Woody Allen keeps popping up to narate the film onscreen. This was enough to make me leave the theatre. When interactive DVDs come out, I can watch the film and not view the Woody Allen bits.

I a way, Woody Allen destroyed a good film by being in it when it wasn't about him.

I do applaud him for caring about the presentation. It comes from him living in the real world and standing in line and paying for watching a film like we do.

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Bruce McGee
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1776
From: Asheville, NC USA... Nowhere in Particular.
Registered: Aug 1999

posted 12-23-1999 02:24 PM

As for the pan-and-scan remarks earlier, has anyone seen the old American-International/Filmways/Warners film "Whats Up Tiger Lily?" with music by the Lovin' Spoonful?

I used to run this in 16mm for TV. As usual, AI prints were run to death before I saw them, and since I had heard good things about this film, I had a look-see.

It had (possibly) the worst pan-and-scan!

It ranks right up there with the TV prints of the Roger Corman Edgar Allen Poe films of the early 60's.

Was this one not a Woody Allen production?

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Nic Margherio
Film Handler

Posts: 91
From: St. Louis MO, USA
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 12-23-1999 09:42 PM

Why doesn't good old Woody just release his movies with Dolby Digital!? (and DTS and SDDS for that matter) This would ensure that there was no unwanted content in the surrounds or the L/R and, if he really is concerned with dynamic range and frequency response, you can't beat digital. Seems to me to be the easiest way to put a genuinely "mono" soundtrack on a film, doesn't it?

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Christopher Seo
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 530
From: Los Angeles, CA
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-23-1999 10:09 PM

I wonder if he has an analog fetish, as well? Have all his movies been analog-only even if digital was available?

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Michael Brown
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1522
From: Bradford, England
Registered: May 2001

posted 07-06-2001 02:39 PM

Does anybody know as yet was is happening with The Curse of Jade Scorpian. The trailer has the SRD/DTS/SDDS logos and IMDB has it at mono. http://uk.imdb.com/Title?0256524

Also to note that IMDB has Small Times Crooks With mono versions of SRD and DTS. http://uk.imdb.com/Title?0196216

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John Pytlak
Film God

Posts: 9987
From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 07-06-2001 03:08 PM

The July 2001 issue of Boxoffice magazine lists the digital formats too. My guess is that it is a mono mix, but takes advantage of digital sound to improve dynamic range and signal-to-noise.

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

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Aaron Sisemore
Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day!

Posts: 3061
From: Rockwall TX USA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 07-06-2001 05:56 PM

>>...has Small Times (sic) Crooks With mono versions of SRD and DTS.<<

As are practically all other Woody Allen films. MONO. Digital soundtracks, all center channel, mono.

Aaron

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Jesse Skeen
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1517
From: Sacramento, CA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 07-06-2001 08:20 PM

Was "Small Time Crooks" the first movie to have a digital mono soundtrack? (All channels were there of course, just only the center channel actually had sound on it- I noticed this was SRD and DTS, but no SDDS, and it didn't have the "PHONE-THX" number at the end like all other Dreamworks movies do, presumably because they knew people'd complain about the film being 'accidentally' run in mono!)
What's funny is the "Small Time Crooks" trailer was stereo- the digital mix having no music at all in the center channel like most trailers do, yet the movie was still mono. The "Jade Scorpion" trailer is stereo too.
Another noteworthy oddity, though not Woody Allen related was "Slums of Beverly Hills", which had the trailer in all 3 digital formats with the music left out of the center channel, but the movie itself was only released in analog stereo.

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John Walsh
Film God

Posts: 2490
From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 07-06-2001 11:52 PM

I would not bet the entire farm on what the IMDB saya about a film. It's a great resource, but I've seen several errors. One of my favorite is that the 1962 "The Jetsons" TV show was in Sensurround:
http://us.imdb.com/Title?0055683

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Aaron Sisemore
Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day!

Posts: 3061
From: Rockwall TX USA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 07-07-2001 03:15 AM

There have been several Woody Allen movies prior to 'Crooks' with mono digital soundtracks.

-Aaron

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Charles Everett
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1470
From: New Jersey
Registered: May 2001

posted 03-19-2002 06:38 PM

Jesse: Small Time Crooks was a negative pickup for DreamWorks, thus no SDDS or "Phone THX". Road Trip was released the same day and had SDDS because that picture was developed at DreamWorks.

Michael B: The Curse of the Jade Scorpion is in SRD/SDDS/DTS with all audio collapsed to the center channel. Strangely, the beginning of the US release has the VCL theme over the DreamWorks logo followed by the DreamWorks theme over the VCL logo.

FWIW the next Woody Allen movie comes out 5/3 in the US with a very fitting title . . . Hollywood Ending.

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