Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: African Queen blu-ray

This is topic African Queen blu-ray - color issue? in forum The Afterlife at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Joe Tommassello (Member # 4632) on 03-09-2010, 10:34 AM:

I have seen the first glimpse of the blu-ray African Queen. From the screen caps used to compare it to earlier DVD versions (from Europe) I think they have warmed the color too much. I have tried to convince myself that Gone With The Wind was "supposed" to look that brown, but now I am thinking the "artists" behind the restorations are intentionally warming up old IB Tech films. Perhaps they think more subdued color is more sophisticated but they are making lots of great films look brown and/or orange (Godfather films come to mind). I had a 35mm GWTW (LPP, 1989) that had better color than the blu-ray. If you look at the screen caps of AQ I think you'll agree the color looks more accurate (consider the skin tones) on the Carlton PAL DVD than on the blu-ray. I will not be buying this. Here's the link...I will be interested in your opinions...

The Sepia Queen!

Posted by Richard P. May (Member # 3598) on 03-09-2010, 12:22 PM:

For my taste, the images from the BluRay look very good. The cool color treatment of the others doesn't look right to me.

DM

Posted by Joe Tommassello (Member # 4632) on 03-09-2010, 02:07 PM:

Dick - Look at the pics of the boat heading for the rocks. The "white water" is brown. It looks like every shot was taken at sunset!

Do you feel the same about the GWTW disc? Or the Godfather blu-rays? I thought the Godfather was the most egregious.

I will get AQ from netflix and give it a spin. It is a title I'd like to have in my collection but not if it's going to annoy me every time I watch it.

Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-09-2010, 04:06 PM:

Joe,

I can see where you are coming from but from what I can see from the examples you had posted, the images does not look too bad of THE AFRICAN QUEEN. Yes, the restoration of THE GODFATHER was overdone and it looked terrible. I can understand warming up the picture of part one and two was justified because the story is suppose to take place a long time ago but when they did it to part three of THE GODFATHER trilogy, they went to far. In two weeks, TAQ will be mine on Blu-Ray, finally!

-Claude

Posted by Scott Jentsch (Member # 1681) on 03-09-2010, 04:10 PM:

The DVD captures look very blue-white, as opposed to the Blu-ray captures, which look more "normal."

The whitewater does look a little on the brown side, but I don't remember enough of the movie to remember what time of day it was, or if the water looked that way when originally presented in theaters (I didn't exist at the time). The clouds don't look brown, so if there was color-shifting going on, someone intentionally applied the color to just a portion of the screen.

The screen capture with Katherine Hepburn dumping out the liquor makes her white dress look like it's probably the correct shade of white.

I don't see anything in those captures that puts the Blu-ray in a negative light, especially when compared to the DVD captures.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 03-10-2010, 06:48 AM:

quote: Scott Jentsch
(I didn't exist at the time).

Scott, it was before my incept date as well. [Big Grin]

Posted by Richard P. May (Member # 3598) on 03-10-2010, 10:05 AM:

Joe,
I agree with you regarding the "white water" sequence being a bit brown. Maybe it was muddy [Smile]

.
As to GWTW, no comment. I worked with this picture thru too many restorations, and although I have the DVD I haven't watched it. I have no interest in getting the BR (anyway, don't have a player). I would have a hard time sitting thru it again.

DM

Posted by Jack Theakston (Member # 4484) on 03-12-2010, 12:55 PM:

FWIW, the Blu-Ray of AFRICAN QUEEN does a good job of matching the look of the color on the original IB prints (I have one), while toning down some of the contrast and softness issues that were inherent on those prints.

Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 03-12-2010, 02:16 PM:

So the IB prints had that brownish water Jack?

Posted by Jack Theakston (Member # 4484) on 03-12-2010, 02:53 PM:

Haven't watched it in a while, but I'll gladly break out my print and scan a few comparison frames later. There is, by the way, a great difference between the timings of the 1951 prints and the '60s Trans-Lux re-issue, so the film definitely had two different "looks," which I found out the hard way.

Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-12-2010, 07:39 PM:

The screen-caps from-the Blu-Ray look warm but in my-humble opinion looks very nice. I do not remember THE AFRICAN QUEEN having brilliant color because as I had mentioned earlier, I recall the color was rather drab looking when I first saw the movie in a theatre and years later on laserdiscs. I know I will have no problem with the color hues on the Bd and look forward to picking up a copy in a little over a week.

-Claude

Posted by Jack Theakston (Member # 4484) on 03-12-2010, 09:48 PM:

Here are two peripheral comparisons between the color balance on the BD and the 35mm print. As you can see, it's pretty close, although the 1951 IBs have a softer, redder look. The '68 re-issue prints are greener, hotter, and generally mistimed.

http://www.thephotoplayer.com/african1.jpg
http://www.thephotoplayer.com/african2.jpg

The BD seems to be timed to that grays are neutral, which is the safe way to play it. Frankly, I'm quite happy with the new disc. I'll try to find that water shot later this weekend...

Posted by Joe Tommassello (Member # 4632) on 03-15-2010, 04:33 PM:

Based on those frames I'd have to agree the BR looks pretty good.

Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-18-2010, 12:14 PM:

Bill Hunt at the Digital Bits site has a very interesting eight minute video now on the restoration of THE AFRICAN QUEEN.

-Claude

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 03-24-2010, 04:58 PM:

quote: Joe Tommassello
I have tried to convince myself that Gone With The Wind was "supposed" to look that brown

All Gone With The Wind I.B.s I've seen have a muted and somewhat rustic type of look to them. I read somewhere that this was intended. My I.B. print certainly reflected this look.

Mark

Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-24-2010, 05:48 PM:

I picked up the standard edition of THE AFRICAN QUEEN yesterday and watched a couple of scenes last night and was very impressed with what I saw. Hopefully, I will have the time to watch the movie in it's entirety tonight. The few scenes I saw last night was very nice and made me realize the color cinematography was not drab after all. It had definitely had the look of three strip Technicolor and is very sharp. The mono sound was also nice and clear. There was only a 'Making of The THE AFRICAN QUEEN' documentary on the disc and I had no problem with that because it made the movie itself look fantastic.

-Claude

Posted by Jack Theakston (Member # 4484) on 03-24-2010, 08:39 PM:

GWTW had so many different "looks" over the years, though, that it would be difficult for the public to accept what the film originally looked like. Ditto many of the nitrate-era Disney features.

Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-26-2010, 04:16 AM:

I just watched THE AFRICAN QUEEN and the one hour documentary about the making of the film tonight and I was very pleased with what I saw. I watched the documentary first and was pleasantly surprised it was brand new and produced in high definition with HD clips from the film. The only clips in SD were vintage clips of the film makers during the time of production. The film restorers at Paramount did a very marvelous job with the film. The only thing I had noticed about the restoration was the slight red/yellow cast of the skin tones at various time during the movie. The image was extremely sharp and had the precise look of three strip technicolor film process. I do not know why after all these years I thought the color photography of THE AFRICAN QUEEN was drab. On the contrary, it was very vivid. The color is so wonderful it is hard to realize THE AFRICAN QUEEN is just about sixty years old.

-Claude