Shiv Shankly

I sawa listing at Amazon.fr for a "Edition Prestige" release of Kurosawa's Ran, to be released on September 16. Details are:

- French and Japanese Dolby 5.1

2nd disc with:

• Le documentaire exclusif "AK" (1h10) : le Making Of exclusif de Chris Marker (court-métrage "La jetée")
• La présentation de l'art Samouraï par un spécialiste de l'Art Guerrier au Japon (40 min)
• L'interview exclusive de Akira Kurosawa par Catherine Cadou (15 min)
• Les souvenirs de jeunesse : extrait du documentaire "Kurosawa" (22 min)
• La filmographie et la biographie écrite de Akira Kurosawa (22 min)

If this at least has French subtitles, I'd order it in a second, but I haven't found any listing which specify they're there. But with the Japanese track, I'd assume they must be?

pro-bassoonist

there will be subs (French)

http://www.fnac.com/Shelf/article.as...2Dbceee2ebe33f

it also comes with this little goodie-

"Le livre exclusif de 80 pages dévoilant la splendeur de " Ran " et des photos extraordinaires retraçant l'histoire du film "

(80 pages!!!!!)

pro-bassoonist

here's a closer look.....at the cover work (and full specs). This appears to be a massive release (box)!

http://www.dvdrama.com/news.php?7048...e7074b83ad2495

feel free to post the pic if you could!!

RichardW

No fair. I hope the UK gets a release like this one since the R1 edition leaves alot to be desired.

Romerojpg

UK will never get a good release. pity. I just got the R1 masterworks version too. it will do.

pro-bassoonist

here's the insight of the boxset (with the 80 page-booklet):

http://www.dvdfr.com/news/news.php?id=2526

FilmFanSea

Makes me wish I'd studied a lot harder in high school French class. Looks like a brilliant set (especially with the Chris Marker docu included!!).

pro-bassoonist

can you post the pics? both the one in the opening post and the insight shots......anyone please?

Shiv Shankly

Received my copy of this a week or so ago (along with the new French release of Tati's Playtime, which is excellent), and it has better picture quality than the recent Wellspring release. Beautiful menu screens as well. I've posted screen caps of the main menu, and two shots that you can compare to a couple of the caps at the DVD Beaver site. Of course, this has no Englishs subs, just French, so it may not be worth it for most people, unless you really love the film or read French. The book is okay, lots of nice behind the scenes pictures, but not tons of text, really. Box is very nice; I can add some pics of it at some point if people really want to see it.

del bosque

That menu screen sure looks fine, Shiv, worth having solely for the imaginative design...almost. Is the picture quality really better than the Wellspring release ? I'm very fond of their Ran DVD and even though the transfer does have a "digitised" look, it is still grand and far superior to the earlier DVD release. (Admittedly, that wouldn't be too difficult !) I want it to be better but I'm skeptical about a French company managing to improve on the US release - having seen what the French production of Mullholland Drive was like in comparison to the US version. Thanks for posting those pics, anyway !

RichDB10

I wouldn't be sceptical at all in relation to a French company producing a superior edition to a U.S one...the French have treated directors such as Kieslowski,Truffaut and Chaplin impeccably with the MK2 releases etc...so it doesn't suprise me at all that Kurosawa has been given the necessary respect from a French company etc.

pro-bassoonist

...and Kinji Fukasaku,
http://www.dvdrama.com/fiche.php?3190

...and Seijun Suzuki,
http://www.dvdrama.com/news.php?7275

and so and so on.....The French have a history in treating with a lot of respect (the way Criterion does at home) a number of Art House/International directors/films. Sadly, many of them do not include English subs. In fact, if there is anyone that will most likely get a good transfer/extras regarding a international director/production then I would bet that this would be the French.

zerotl

Wow those menus and cover art are amazing for all of these releases, Ran looked nice....

And for anyone that understands french, what is QT doing in that kinji page?

del bosque

I don't dispute that the French "have a history in treating with a lot of respect (the way Criterion does at home) a number of Art House/International directors/films": pro-bassoonist, above or that "the French have treated directors such as Kieslowski,Truffaut and Chaplin impeccably with the MK2 releases etc. ": RichDB10 also above. But I don't see Shiv Shankly rushing to demonstrate that the French release of Ran has a better picture quality than the Wellspring release. I hasten to add that this takes nothing away from his GREAT post and especially the menu screen.

Shiv Shankly

I can post some more images and details later tonight; I don't own the Wellspring to do a head to head comparison, though I did watch it a few months ago, and I think the French edition looks better. As I mentioned, check the captures at DVD Beaver as well.

del bosque

Waiting on you, Shiv. And I will check out DVD Beaver, which seemed to be off-line for a while - what a remarkable site that is ! In the meantime I've been spinning the Reg 2 Ikiru on my dvd drive. A thrilling viewing and to have Ran in the Wellspring release is, I think, enough, so any improvement would be supererogatory (as they used to say in Church).

Shiv Shankly

EDIT: Images removed.

Shiv Shankly

EDIT: Images removed

Shiv Shankly

EDIT: Images removed

del bosque

Thanks for doing this, Shiv. This thread could well be the best illustrated on the whole w.w.w. and you've convinced me that this version is worth getting hold of. Presumably the Chris Marker doc is in French only ? I think that was the one which, though advertised as appearing on the VHS release of Ran, wasn't actually on it !

Shiv Shankly

No problem, hopefully people find it useful. And the AK documentary is in French with hard subs for the Japanese sequences.

unclehulot

I still have an off the air VHS of AK, and like several Chris Marker films (Sans Soleil, La Jetee), he did produce an English narrated version. Too bad that's not included, as it's a marvellous film!

I think the new Wellspring version is an absolute disaster. Sure it's better than the old one, but it has non-stop shimmer on any bright object in the frame (not aliasing), that seems to be some encoding error -- I emailed them and they said they would "look into it", but to my knowledge nothing has been done to correct it.

pro-bassoonist

here's the review of the disc posted by dvdrama (in French):

http://www.dvdrama.com/fiche.php?3353