Review: New RoboCop DVD region 1
09-30-01, 02:03 PM
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New RoboCop DVD reg 1 Pros & Cons of the new transfer.
The Pros
I just watched the new MGM RoboCop DVD last night and the clarity of the new anamorphic transfer is very good. I was blown away by scene after scene, the bathroom confrontation scene btw Dick Jones & Bob Morton is crystal clear, explosions like at the gas station are beautiful, the scene where you can see Bob Morton and the two hookers snort coke off his shiny coffee table is like looking at them in a mirror. All this is nicely contrasted by the grainy Media breaks, like your actually watching them on TV, and the POV shots of Murphy, yes notice I said Murphy, looking at the world through his grid-vision.
The 5.1 audio also makes good use of all the speakers. Basil Poledouris' score is nicely balanced, bullets ricochet around speakers, and the scene were Boddicker's hubcap comes flying off his 6000 SUX can be heard clanging around the front & rear speakers.
The Cons
Although the transfer is gorgeous, IMHO the 1.78:1 ratio crops off too much information from the top and the bottom of the frame and makes the compositions too tight and makes some scenes too claustrophobic.
Examples: The first scene is a media-break and the top head of male news caster, Mario Machado is severely cropped as is the top of Leeza Gibbons poofy hair-do, in the bottom of the frame you see part of Machado's hands. On the other hand, on Criterion's more generous 1.66:1 matted version you see all of Machado's head, all of Leeza's hair-do and Machado's hands.
In MGM's bathroom confrontation scene btw Jones & Morton, Jones head is cropped much more severely than Criterion's version, and you can see the complete round mirror on the Criterion version, while the bottom part is missing in MGM's transfer.
In the Dallas skyline scene where Murphy is driving his 6000 SUX to the corporate quarters to confront Dick Jones, on the MGM transfer the tallest skyscraper is cropped, whereas the Criterion version shows plenty of sky over the top of the tallest skyscraper.
And there are plenty of other scenes in the MGM transfer that crop off heads that are completely visible in the Criterion version.
It's still a beautiful transfer, but I wish MGM would have down a 1.66:1 anamorphic transfer instead of a 1.77 anamorphic transfer. MGM's policy of not doing 1.66:1 anamorphic transfers, unlike Criterion or Anchor Bay, is ludicrous.
A very good presentation, with a gorgeous looking transfer, could have been perfect with a more generous ratio aspect.
cheers, Tony Block
I just watched the new MGM RoboCop DVD last night and the clarity of the new anamorphic transfer is very good. I was blown away by scene after scene, the bathroom confrontation scene btw Dick Jones & Bob Morton is crystal clear, explosions like at the gas station are beautiful, the scene where you can see Bob Morton and the two hookers snort coke off his shiny coffee table is like looking at them in a mirror. All this is nicely contrasted by the grainy Media breaks, like your actually watching them on TV, and the POV shots of Murphy, yes notice I said Murphy, looking at the world through his grid-vision.
The 5.1 audio also makes good use of all the speakers. Basil Poledouris' score is nicely balanced, bullets ricochet around speakers, and the scene were Boddicker's hubcap comes flying off his 6000 SUX can be heard clanging around the front & rear speakers.
The Cons
Although the transfer is gorgeous, IMHO the 1.78:1 ratio crops off too much information from the top and the bottom of the frame and makes the compositions too tight and makes some scenes too claustrophobic.
Examples: The first scene is a media-break and the top head of male news caster, Mario Machado is severely cropped as is the top of Leeza Gibbons poofy hair-do, in the bottom of the frame you see part of Machado's hands. On the other hand, on Criterion's more generous 1.66:1 matted version you see all of Machado's head, all of Leeza's hair-do and Machado's hands.
In MGM's bathroom confrontation scene btw Jones & Morton, Jones head is cropped much more severely than Criterion's version, and you can see the complete round mirror on the Criterion version, while the bottom part is missing in MGM's transfer.
In the Dallas skyline scene where Murphy is driving his 6000 SUX to the corporate quarters to confront Dick Jones, on the MGM transfer the tallest skyscraper is cropped, whereas the Criterion version shows plenty of sky over the top of the tallest skyscraper.
And there are plenty of other scenes in the MGM transfer that crop off heads that are completely visible in the Criterion version.
It's still a beautiful transfer, but I wish MGM would have down a 1.66:1 anamorphic transfer instead of a 1.77 anamorphic transfer. MGM's policy of not doing 1.66:1 anamorphic transfers, unlike Criterion or Anchor Bay, is ludicrous.
A very good presentation, with a gorgeous looking transfer, could have been perfect with a more generous ratio aspect.
cheers, Tony Block
09-30-01, 02:16 PM
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...note that - in all likelihood, and almost certainly in the USA! - this movie would originally have been displayed theatrically even more severely cropped - to c. 1.85:1... yes? no?...
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09-30-01, 02:53 PM
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Yes! Yes!
Originally posted by Hendrik
...note that - in all likelihood, and almost certainly in the USA! - this movie would originally have been displayed theatrically even more severely cropped - to c. 1.85:1... yes? no?...
. . . . . .
...note that - in all likelihood, and almost certainly in the USA! - this movie would originally have been displayed theatrically even more severely cropped - to c. 1.85:1... yes? no?...
. . .
. . .
cheers, MCB
09-30-01, 05:41 PM
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...the IMDb says Flesh+Blood was a Spain/USA production... and, BTW, where is this excellent (as I dimly recall) movie on DVD (anamorphic 2.35:1 [Technovision], unexpurgated, please!)?...
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