MovieChat Forums > The Band Wagon (1953) Discussion > Disapponted in Blu Ray

Disapponted in Blu Ray

posted 9 years ago by gbennett5
4 replies | jump to latest

TBW is one of my fave films of all time. Naturally, I was excited when
this classic came to Blu Ray, although it took me forever to get a Blu
Ray player and go HD.

Well, I watched TBW last night and was somewhat disappointed. While the
film is totally clean, with a far greater picture quality, there is an
absence of grain, and the leads look completely WAXEN. I suspect major
edge enhancement.

Yes, I prefer this image to the DVD, but only slightly. At least with
the DVD, I knew I was watching 35 MM FILM.

Thoughts?

[–] puirt-a-beul 9 years ago

I just saw the film this evening for the very first time. The source was the recent four-film Blu-ray box from WB in the US.

I concur entirely with your comments, gbennett. I'm glad they had a print in such good condition to base the transfer on (so disappointing when they perpetuate damage for all eternity!), but the quality of the image left a fair bit to be desired.

I think that the problem is that it's a Technicolor film, and the issue of independent shrinkage of the various colour elements is well-known. The transfer here showed classic symptoms: the loss of fine detail (everything is slightly blurred, which I think is hat made faces and such look waxy, though typically it wasn't to a constant degree throughout the film); there's slight hints of colour fringing around the edges of objects throughout the image; and the whole image has (again, to a varying degree) a slight look of false perspective and being just slightly out of focus, like you're looking t it through someone else's eye-glasses.

It's a real shame WB hadn't (yet?) put the film through the digital pixel-by-pixel re-registration process it developed, and used so brilliantly on films like Singin' in the Rain and The Wizard of Oz.

You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

[–] gbennett5 9 years ago

Oddly enough, I just read an online review of SITR in which the reviewer complains
of edge enhancement HERE and that Kelly, Reynolds, and co. look "waxy." I don't
agree. I think "Rain' looks better on Blu Ray than TBW.

Odder still, the original camera negatives to both SITR and (the black-and-white
sequences) of "Oz" no longer exist, yet they have stronger images on Blu Ray.

It all comes down to $$$$$$ As classic as TBW is, it is NOT in the popularity of
"Rain" or "Oz", so a basic transfer (with tons of edge enhancement) was all
"Band" got.

I recently watched "The Harvey Girls", which has been on standard DVD since
about 2004. The image is crisp and STRIKING! There's a warmth and vibrancy
to the picture image, and this was clearly struck from the negative. Still,
there is definite three-strip "separation" issues in the first ten minutes or
so, with no digital "correcting." I prefer it THIS way.

I would love to see THG on Blu Ray, but I suspect major computerized tinkering
would be part of the overall "improvement." But maybe it would be worth it.

Again, I prefer TBW Blu Ray to the DVD - overall - but, Damn! Fred's head often
looks like a waxed PEACH!

[–] Blueghost 8 years ago

In all honesty it looks like a dupe of the master they used for the DVD. I wish I had my DVD here to compare it with the bluray to see if there's more detail or not.

As for grain, well, there was lots of it on my computer monitor as I watched the bluray.

[–] liscarkat (19418) 22 days ago

I just finished watching my Blu Ray of "The Band Wagon" about twenty minutes ago. It looks spectacular. No problems. No "WAXEN", whatever that means. It looks exactly like 35 mm film in a theater. Maybe you need a new Blu Ray player, a new tv, or just some adjustments.