I just got the new R1 DVD and I popped it in to give it a quick scan. I must say it looks awesome! Totally remastered pic and sound. There are 2 scenes at the end that where cut from the US version and these scenes are in Italian w/ English subs. This blows away the German DVD from last year. BUY this now! Got it from DVD Empire here, http://www.dvdempire.com/Exec/v4_item.asp?item_id=1446728
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I totally agree with you about the new Region 1 DVD of FOUR FLIES ON GREY VELVET that Mya Communications did a real great job of releasing this Argento classic on DVD. It's just too bad that this DVD release only has as extras on it, the International and US trailers of the film as well as the American Opening and End Credits and a photo gallery. You can be sure that if Anchor Bay or Blue Underground would have released this film on US Region 1 DVD, we Argento fans would have gotten some great featurettes about the making of the film with interviews of Argento and stars Michael Brandon and Mimsy Farmer and possibly an audio commentary with Argento biographer Alan Jones and Four Flies co-screenwriter Luigi Cozzi about the film, like these DVD companies did with their other previous Argento DVD releases!
The little extras could be that the cost to license the film was so high that maybe they did not have enough for more.
The only extras I really like are trailers and poster art type stuff anyway, so I'm happy with this release and just glad to have the movie.
I agree with you as well about the new Four Flies US DVD release and as both an Argento and Giallo fan, I am equally glad to have it. But since I'm a friend of William Lustig. head of Blue Underground, I know as a fact that he really wanted to release that specific Argento film on his DVD label and I know that he would have given that film in particular, a Special Edition DVD release like he did with Argento's BIRD WITH A CRYSTAL PLUMAGE & THE STENDHAL SYNDROME, especially with his personal connections and friendship with Mr. Argento. If it wasn't for Mr. Lustig's efforts to release Argento's films here on DVD in the US, uncut and in anamorphic widescreen, then we Argento fans would not have the opportunity to see Argento's film here on DVD without censure and in their complete form as Argento intended. Mr. Argento himself has stated in interviews that he appreciated Mr. Lustig's efforts to release his films uncut here on video in the US. But Bill Lustig himself told me that he was frustrated by the lack of cooperation on the part of Paramount Pictures that has 50% of the world rights to Four Flies On Grey Velvet to release it here on DVD in the US, although he had the cooperation and consent of Dario Argento(who has the other 50% of rights on the film) to do so. But I give my kudos to MYA Communications to be the first DVD company to finally release Four Flies here on DVD in the US and to succeed where all the other companies like Image Entertainment, Media Blasters, Dark Sky, Anchor Bay and especially Blue Underground failed to do so!
shareI hear you. I love Blue Underground. Also got there BIRD WITH A CRYSTAL PLUMAGE blu-ray and it's awesome. But one thing that upset me about the blu-ray is no original mono soundtrack which was on the DVD. That is one thing I like about Fox and MGM is they also put the original soundtracks on there blu-rays. BU should have just put the dts-hd master, mono and Italian tracks on the BIRD blu-ray. I emailed BU about this and just got a generic answer. If you get a chance, please ask Bill why the original soundtracks are not on there Blu-Rays?
shareI will tell Bill when I see him and I'll let you know his response about your question regarding the original mono soundtracks of Argento's DVDs on Blu-ray.
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http://www.darkdreams.org/darkdreams.html
mya four flies dvd - missing footage!
One of the dd forum members - cracksky - has done a comparison between this new official release and the retro films bootleg of last year. It seems that we still don't have a definitive version.
Beware, the post obviously contains spoilers.
http://www.darkdreams.org/dd_forum/showpost.php?p=296004&postcount=150
NOTE: You have to be a member of the forum if you wish to see the second link.
I couldn't tell what this means since I'm not a member of the forum. Does it mean footage is missing from the R1 DVD or does it mean missing footage IS in the R1 DVD?
SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well what's really missing from the Region 1 DVD release of Four Flies On Grey Velvet that's on last year's unofficial German DVD release, is just a snippet of Dialogue between Bud Spenser and Michael Brandon at the climax of Four Flies, when Bud saves Michael from being killed by Mimsy Farmer and then she tries to escape in Michael's car when she crashes into the freight truck. When Bud says to Michael, "I tried to come as fast as I could", Michael Brandon responds in Italian, "She's completely insane." and that piece of dialogue is when Mimsy gets into Michael's car to get away. That scene is in the deleted scene in the German DVD but it's not in the MYA Comunication DVD release.
That scene is in the region 1 DVD. I just checked. At the end Bud says to Michael, "I tried to come as fast as I could", Michael says, "She's crazy". So I don't know why that site says it's missing or I'm just hearing things. :)
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Sorry about that, but I forgot to tell you that in the German DVD of FOUR FLIES, they show the final sequence of the Film in Italian as a deleted scene, in which Bud saves Michael from Mimsy and after Micheal says " She's Crazy" to Bud, Michael then tells Bud that it's just like that public execution dream that he has been having and that it's all coming true and then Micheal shouts Nina's(Mimsy Farmer) name. When Micheal tells Bud all this, we see on the screen the complete reenactment of the public execution dream with the decapitation and Nina driving in Roberto's(Micheal Brandon) car and just when she crashes into the truck, we hear Roberto screaming Nina's name on the soundtrack! That is what's really missing from the Region 1 DVD of Four Flies.
Oh, ok now I get it. so it's about 1/4 of a second of missing footage then? If so I can live with it. Maybe it was damaged just like the 5 frames of missing footage from Tenebrae. Not really a big deal. I really hate when people compare footage from other DVDs and if there is one frame missing then they have a fit. I'm just glad to have this at all.
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Nope, it's not really missing footage at all, just some missing final dialogue in Italian that wasn't looped in English in the American or International release version but is only in the Italian version. The way it is in the Region 1 DVD version, you see the final public decapitation dream sequence when Nina gets in Robert's car just before she crashes into the truck, but you don't hear Roberto's final line of dialogue with his scream for Nina on it when that scene happens.
cool thanks.
shareBill shouldn't have been too surprised at Paramount's cold shoulder. That studio has always been extremely touchy about their horror/terror/exploitation titles, and have obviously remained embarrassed that one of their enduring legacies is the F13 franchise. One small Argento film didn't stand a chance, especially considering the disdain Paramount must have had for the independent outfits trying to get the rights.
I'm still shocked that MYA managed to get Four Flies released. I'd like to interview the folks behind that label just to find out how they managed to negotiate such a deal.
It's possible that since the people behind MYA Comunications previously worked with the American division of NO SHAME, they might have had the necessary connections to obtain the Region 1 DVD rights of FOUR FLIES ON GREY VELVET, because NO SHAME once stated in 2006 that they were trying to get this Argento film on DVD.
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