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kal
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 12:13 am Post subject: North by Northwest on Blu-ray: Nov 3, 2009 |
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Help support our forum! Purchase from Amazon.com using our links and a small percentage of your payment automatically goes towards supporting this site at no cost to you!
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One of the best of Hitchcock: North by Northwest (50th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Book) out on Blu-ray on Nov 3, 2009!
"A strong candidate for the most sheerly entertaining and enjoyable movie ever made by a Hollywood studio (with Citizen Kane, Only Angels Have Wings and Trouble in Paradise running neck and neck). Positioned between the much heavier and more profoundly disturbing Vertigo (1958) and the stark horror of Psycho (1960), North by Northwest (1959) is Alfred Hitchcock at his most effervescent in a romantic comedy-thriller that also features one of the definitive Cary Grant performances. Which is not to say that this is just "Hitchcock Lite"; seminal Hitchcock critic Robin Wood (in his book Hitchcock's Films Revisited) makes an airtight case for this glossy MGM production as one of The Master's "unbroken series of masterpieces from Vertigo to Marnie." It's a classic Hitchcock Wrong Man scenario: Grant is Roger O. Thornhill (initials ROT), an advertising executive who is mistaken by enemy spies for a U.S. undercover agent named George Kaplan. Convinced these sinister fellows (James Mason as the boss, and Martin Landau as his henchman) are trying to kill him, Roger flees and meets a sexy Stranger on a Train (Eva Marie Saint), with whom he engages in one of the longest, most convolutedly choreographed kisses in screen history. And, of course, there are the famous set pieces: the stabbing at the United Nations, the crop-duster plane attack in the cornfield (where a pedestrian has no place to hide), and the cliffhanger finale atop the stone faces of Mount Rushmore. Plus a sparkling Ernest Lehman script and that pulse-quickening Bernard Herrmann score. What more could a moviegoer possibly desire?" --Jim Emerson
Link: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0017HMF6W/curtpalmecrtp-20
Pre-order at Amazon using the link above to get the best price. If the price goes down (even just for a day) between now and the release date you get the lowest price.
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Help support our forum! Purchase from Amazon.com using our links and a small percentage of your payment automatically goes towards supporting this site at no cost to you!
Kal
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My basement/HT/bar/brewery build 2.0
Last edited by kal on Fri Oct 30, 2009 7:17 pm; edited 1 time in total
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AnalogRocks
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 12:16 am Post subject: |
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It will be interesting to see how this transfer turns out. I hope the preserve the original print as much as possible. No EE would be nice too.
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kal
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zaphod
Joined: 16 Jun 2006
Posts: 2002
Location: Cloverdale
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 3:28 am Post subject: |
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cool. my DVD version is letterbox - it will be good to get this anamorphic
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WanMan
Joined: 19 Mar 2006
Posts: 10270
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 12:11 pm Post subject: |
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Sweet! Looking forward to this one. Curious as to what everyone's feedback might be on To Catch A Thief shown (in HD) on HDnet Movies.
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Person99
Joined: 09 Mar 2006
Posts: 4899
Location: Flower Mound, TX
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 2:23 pm Post subject: Re: North by Northwest on Blu-ray: Nov 3, 2009 |
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| kal wrote: |
"A strong candidate for the most sheerly entertaining and enjoyable movie ever made by a Hollywood studio (with Citizen Kane, Only Angels Have Wings and Trouble in Paradise running neck and neck). |
Damn, I better not let my wife read this if I want her to watch it with me. I got her to watch Citizen Kane and she thought it was a strong contenter for the most boring movie she had ever seen in her life. She still holds against me that I had her spend 2 hours of her life watching that!
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A train station is where the train stops. A bus station is where the bus stops. On my desk, I have a work station....
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kal
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Location: Ottawa, Canada
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 3:01 pm Post subject: Re: North by Northwest on Blu-ray: Nov 3, 2009 |
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| Person99 wrote: | | kal wrote: |
"A strong candidate for the most sheerly entertaining and enjoyable movie ever made by a Hollywood studio (with Citizen Kane, Only Angels Have Wings and Trouble in Paradise running neck and neck). |
Damn, I better not let my wife read this if I want her to watch it with me. I got her to watch Citizen Kane and she thought it was a strong contenter for the most boring movie she had ever seen in her life. She still holds against me that I had her spend 2 hours of her life watching that! |
 My wife has a list of movies like that too that I've 'forced' her to watch.
Kal
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WanMan
Joined: 19 Mar 2006
Posts: 10270
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| Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 3:02 pm Post subject: Re: North by Northwest on Blu-ray: Nov 3, 2009 |
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| Person99 wrote: | | kal wrote: |
"A strong candidate for the most sheerly entertaining and enjoyable movie ever made by a Hollywood studio (with Citizen Kane, Only Angels Have Wings and Trouble in Paradise running neck and neck). |
Damn, I better not let my wife read this if I want her to watch it with me. I got her to watch Citizen Kane and she thought it was a strong contenter for the most boring movie she had ever seen in her life. She still holds against me that I had her spend 2 hours of her life watching that! |
Hmm, I haven't seen those movies.
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kal
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Joined: 06 Mar 2006
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Location: Ottawa, Canada
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| Posted: Fri Oct 30, 2009 7:16 pm Post subject: |
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| AnalogRocks wrote: | | It will be interesting to see how this transfer turns out. I hope the preserve the original print as much as possible. No EE would be nice too. |
Looks like it turned out 100% perfect!
Another fantastic looking and sounding movie, and this time one of the best movies of all time:
North by Northwest Video: 5/5 Audio: 4.5/5
One of the best (if not "the" best Alfred Hitchcock) movie out there. If you call yourself a movie buff and have never seen this one, shame on you! Turn in your membership card!
Comes out on November 3, 2009 and is currently 40% off so only $20.99! Use the link above to order.
| Quote: | | A strong candidate for the most sheerly entertaining and enjoyable movie ever made by a Hollywood studio (with Citizen Kane, Only Angels Have Wings and Trouble in Paradise running neck and neck). Positioned between the much heavier and more profoundly disturbing Vertigo (1958) and the stark horror of Psycho (1960), North by Northwest (1959) is Alfred Hitchcock at his most effervescent in a romantic comedy-thriller that also features one of the definitive Cary Grant performances. Which is not to say that this is just "Hitchcock Lite"; seminal Hitchcock critic Robin Wood (in his book Hitchcock's Films Revisited) makes an airtight case for this glossy MGM production as one of The Master's "unbroken series of masterpieces from Vertigo to Marnie." It's a classic Hitchcock Wrong Man scenario: Grant is Roger O. Thornhill (initials ROT), an advertising executive who is mistaken by enemy spies for a U.S. undercover agent named George Kaplan. Convinced these sinister fellows (James Mason as the boss, and Martin Landau as his henchman) are trying to kill him, Roger flees and meets a sexy Stranger on a Train (Eva Marie Saint), with whom he engages in one of the longest, most convolutedly choreographed kisses in screen history. And, of course, there are the famous set pieces: the stabbing at the United Nations, the crop-duster plane attack in the cornfield (where a pedestrian has no place to hide), and the cliffhanger finale atop the stone faces of Mount Rushmore. Plus a sparkling Ernest Lehman script and that pulse-quickening Bernard Herrmann score. What more could a moviegoer possibly desire?--Jim Emerson |
| Quote: | The Video: Sizing Up the Picture
When Warner Home Video released 'North by Northwest' on DVD in 2000, it instantly became one of the preeminent classic movie transfers of the digital age, so expectations were understandably sky-high when the company announced a Blu-ray edition of Hitchcock's iconic chase film earlier this year. The restoration price tag reportedly topped $1 million, but it was money (very) well spent, as 'North by Northwest' comes closer to achieving perfection than any other 1080p classic movie transfer I've seen. The 50-year-old film looks so good, in fact, it puts many recent Blu-ray releases to shame.
Shot in VistaVision (a short-lived, higher resolution widescreen process developed by Paramount in the mid-1950s), 'North by Northwest' is a natural for a Blu-ray makeover, and its exquisitely balanced color and contrast, along with its fine grain structure (a VistaVision staple), produce a crisp, dimensional, utterly pleasing viewing experience. Grain-haters will no doubt rhapsodize over the picture's sleek appearance, but the 1080p/VC-1 encode never looks processed or digitally smoothed. A palpable filmic feel still prevails, and though a few brief scenes sport a hint more grain than most, the levels never seem out of whack.
The transfer's quality is evident from the film's opening frames. The fluorescent green background over which the credits roll is solid and vibrant, and as it gradually dissolves into the glass façade of a skyscraper reflecting Manhattan's teeming cityscape, the level of detail is striking. (It's a very tricky shot, and flawlessly rendered.) Background accents are always razor sharp, so whether Grant is navigating the Big Apple's jammed sidewalks, a dense Indiana cornfield, or the face of Mount Rushmore, the image is always packed with information, and its depth and dimension easily immerse us in the on-screen action. Hitchcock also employs a hefty amount of rear projection work (one of his few shortcomings, in my opinion), and though it's always apparent, it's well integrated into the whole.
Color-wise, primaries pop, but never look synthetic or overly saturated, and though the film's palette often emits a sterile coolness, enough warmth permeates the picture to keep its temperature in check. Grant's heavily tanned skin rivals that of George Hamilton, yet it still appears natural, as do all fleshtones. Blacks are deliciously inky, but no incidents of crush drown out shadow detail. Close-ups are strong – despite the stylistic use of filters to shave a few years off Grant's age and soften Saint's facial features – and textures, such as the weave of various suits, wall coverings, leather upholstery, even the coarse hair on Grant's knuckles, are clearly discernible.
Though the upconverted DVD still looks mighty fine on a high-def display, it pales when compared to this superb Blu-ray presentation. Fine details are substantially clearer, fleshtones lose their reddish tint, colors look more realistic, and any stray speckles or dirt marks have been erased. Edges are also cleaner, though no digital enhancements, artificial sharpening, posturization, or mosquito noise muck up the pristine image. Can 'North by Northwest' look any better? I can't even imagine it.
Simply put, this is a gorgeous, A+ effort that perfectly represents this Hitchcock masterwork. Once again, Warner proves just how brilliant classic movies can look on Blu-ray, and this impeccable transfer more than whets our appetite for the riches yet to come.
The Audio: Rating the Sound
The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track is a fine upgrade from the DVD's previous Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, but doesn't quite achieve the same wow factor as the video. First of all, don't be afraid to pump up the volume; I found the track to be surprisingly quiet at first, yet after two or three sizeable increases above my normal settings, I finally reached a comfortable listening level. (Warner's TrueHD classic movie tracks always seem to be mixed a little on the soft side, but handle augmented volume extremely well.)
Surround elements are understandably faint throughout most of the film, but boy do those rears come alive during the crop-dusting sequence, as the plane makes its dipping and diving passes over Grant, the cornfield, and my living room sofa. (It's hard to imagine a 50-year-old film competing sonically with today's action epics, but 'North by Northwest' tries its best during this one classic scene.) When the surrounds are silent, the front channels pick up the slack with some distinct stereo separation that lends the audio welcome scope. Dialogue is well prioritized and always easy to understand, even when spoken in hushed tones, and Bernard Herrmann's highly recognizable score sounds terrific. Though it doesn't wrap around us as much as we'd like, its fullness of tone and enhanced fidelity make almost every instrument distinguishable. The screeching strings always resist distortion, and the low-end horns and percussion lend great weight to select scenes. (For those who truly want to experience and revel in Bernard Herrmann's marvelous score, a music-only track can be accessed through the disc's special features.)
Details are always crisply rendered, from the subtle use of hedge-clippers early in the film to the gravel beneath Grant's shoes as he shuffles his feet while awaiting the crop-duster's surprise attack. And the one big bass moment doesn't disappoint, as the subwoofer pumps out a hefty rumble during a memorable crash and subsequent explosion. Best of all, the track is as clean as a whistle, with no errant pops, static, or hiss betraying the movie's advanced age.
Sound is an essential element of most Hitchcock films, and the superior audio on this disc does the film proud. |
Kal
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WanMan
Joined: 19 Mar 2006
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| Posted: Sat Nov 28, 2009 1:07 pm Post subject: |
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I watched this one with the wife last night. We really enjoyed it. I kept teasing the wife that I'd be all over Eva Marie Saint, too. Hubba, hubba. Its definitely worth the buy, and I am astounded that no other Hitchcock, or Cary Grant, isn't being advertised as being available on the Blu ray website.
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