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Posted by Mutley on 11/19/05 02:02
"One-Shot Scot" <SonOf@Bitch.com> wrote:
>
>If you really like _Oklahoma!_, you might want to reconsider your decision
>not to buy this new DVD set, particularly when it is currently on sale for
>less than $20.
>
>The new Todd-AO _Oklahoma!_ DVD is a mixed blessing. While the new
>anamorphic version is certainly a step up from the non-anamorphic DVD from a
>few years ago, it has always had a blurry quality to it, even on LaserDisc.
>My guess is that the Todd-AO version is in need of restoration, but I am
>beginning to think that it is in such bad shape that the focus may be
>impossible to restore. On the other hand, the CinemaScope DVD is vastly
>superior to the pan and scan LaserDisc for which I once paid $35.00.
>
>I am in total agreement with this review:
>
>Video:
>Talk about expense: Fox actually filmed "Oklahoma!" twice, in 70 mm Todd-AO
>for its roadshow release in 1955 and also in 35 mm CinemaScope for its
>regular theatrical run in 1956. In a theater the Todd-AO would have shown up
>at a 2.20:1 ratio and the CinemaScope at 2.55:1, but it was the Todd-AO that
>would have had the sharper, clearer image, thanks to its larger, 70 mm film
>stock. Very generously, the Fox studios provide both versions in this set,
>one movie on each of two discs, for comparison purposes.
>
>Viewers will make up their own minds about which version of the film they
>prefer. The differences include not only the inevitable variations in
>picture quality but some variations in the opening titles, the opening
>scene, the performances, and a good number of peripheral details. The thing
>that interested me, though, was that I preferred the CinemaScope transfer
>best. The colors seemed more vivid and vibrant. In Todd-AO the colors are
>slightly more subdued and the overall definition a little softer, at times
>seeming more blurred. I suppose you could say the Todd-AO rendition is more
>natural in its way, less glorified and more realistic; but with a big
>splashy musical like "Oklahoma!" I favored the showier, more outgoing hues
>of the CinemaScope presentation.
>
>Fox engineers have transferred both versions of the movie to disc at a high
>bit rate in anamorphic widescreen, the CinemaScope measuring across my
>television at about 2.30:1 and the Todd-AO at a little over 2:1. The
>CinemaScope presentation has a total running time of 140 minutes; the
>Todd-AO presentation has a running time of 147 minutes. The music for an
>overture, an intermission, and an exit would appear to account for the
>additional Todd-AO minutes.
>
>http://www.dvdtown.com/review/oklahoma!50thanniversarytwo-di/16710/3253/
>
>
From reading some of the US news groups there is a push to get Fox to
remaster the Todd-AO version and recall the old disks as they did with
Cleopatra when it was first released..
See comparisons
http://hometheaterforum.com/htforum/showthread.php?postid=2848920#post2848920
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