....And it's currently 50% off at Amazon. Dollars to donuts Kino's upcoming disc will be another in a long series of lousy PAL to NTSC conversions.

I don't see why it would be given that it's an HD master. Their Eagle Shooting Heroes was clearly native NTSC (so for that matter was their previous edition of Happy Together).

Something that was basically dug up from a closet somewhere, like the Houdini set, is not necessarily going to get a lot of benefit from Blu-ray. Some of the more major titles, though, have been well-preserved and exist in restored versions; Die Nibelungen seems like a bad example since it's currently getting an all-out restoration from FWMS. The question is how much of this stuff currently exists in HD masters (I doubt Blackhawk have done any HD work, which rules out a big chunk).

The Kino SE pre-orders are currently $19.47 at DVD Planet, FYI. Bit of a gamble maybe, but at least the stakes are a bit lower there.

The only reason I'm waiting is because Kino's disc follows so closely on the heels of AE's, and it has one possibly significant extra feature (or, equally possibly, an insignificant one).

But even though it's only next Tuesday, I doubt this wait will pay off. Kino's disc is likely no better - possibly worse - and as many here have noted costs double what AE's release does.

A few interesting announcements should go live soon!

Pro-B

According to www.releaselists.com, Fallen Angels is finally coming on 3/16.

Up for pre-order on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0031R9TLK/...89&camp=211189



Very excited for this.

Definitely in for Fallen Angels, can't wait.

Very nice...

Wow, didn't even know until just now thtat Fallen Angels was coming out. One of my favorites. Not a bad price either.

Geez, Kino sent out the review copies for Fallen Angels astonishingly early. I have a review written, but I'm not sure if there's any embargo before it can go live.

If you want a taste:

are we safe in pre-ordering?

Absolutely. It'd be worth shopping around, though. Amazon's price is pretty lousy at the moment, and other retailers like DVD Empire don't list it at all. DVD Planet currently has the best price at $21.26 (plus another $1.50 for shipping).

The extras are insubstantial (though there's one interview that's just...words can't do it justice), and the lossless soundtrack sometimes forgets the surrounds are there, though the music is rendered exceptionally well. Anyone who'd want to pre-order a Wong Kar-Wai film probably doesn't need a disclaimer about stylized photography that's this soft and grainy. Like Chungking Express, I wouldn't expect it to be a night-and-day difference. It generally looks better to my eyes than anything I'd expect from a DVD, though I don't have last year's DVD handy to do a direct comparison myself.

That goes without saying. It's a Kino release.

Really? I have Kino's DVD of The Blue Angel and it's packed with extras, including both the english and german versions of the film. It's an outstanding package.

http://www.kino.com/metropolis/

April 2010

Hot damn.

There are, of course, exceptions - Cottage on Dartmoor includes the Silent Britain doc, Scarlet Street has a commentary - but in general their releases tend to be of the bare-bones variety. As for Metropolis, I can't wait to see the restored film theatrically.

Dam I get the DvD for $10 and this news comes out it's all good.

!!!!!!!!! I can't wait !!!!!!!!!

Is this going to be based the 2002 restoration or the rediscovered print found in Argentina?

I haven't heard, but I hope hope hope it's the new version.

If this is the fully-restored version, then that's fucking phenomenal...

If it's the fully restored version I'll be all over it. I was astonished that they found that missing footage.