Way back in February of last year, on a blog I’m still trying to secure archive rights to, I got a little gushy over Ms. Alice Faye, and, of course, Busby Berkeley’s 1943 heartland-surreal classic The Gang’s All Here, waxing ecstatic over the DVD of the film in the Fox “Alice Faye Collection.” I had just recently presented the film at the Avon Theater in Stanford , CT., with a rather substandard print, and I was delighted that the DVD presentation was much better. Dave Kehr, whose eyes are second to none in the biz, slammed the DVD in the New York Times; in the update to my post and the comments, we have a mild, cordial disagreement.
Weak. On my part, I mean. My boyish enthusiasm over the fact that the movie was out on DVD AT ALL literally blinded me to the disc’s flawed picture quality. And let’s now note that the picture quality was so glaringly flawed that Fox themselves deigned to give the movie another shot. They didn’t recall the Faye-box issue of Gang…but they have done a new master of Gang for a Carmen Miranda box set, and the new version will replace the flawed one as a stand-alone title in its Marquee Musical series. The above dazzling frame is from the new version; below, some screen caps from old and new that show just how wrong I was.
Here’s the insane final shot of the “The Girl In The Tutti-Frutti Hat” number. Top, the 2007 Faye Collection master of Gang. Below, the new one.
I know, I know…And here’s the final image from one of my favorite moving-camera shots in all of cinema, the glide from the fountain to up and down super crooner Benny Goodman’s bandstand, ending on a high angle as Benny belts out “Paducah,” a song that I believe is featured in every Fox production between its debut here and 1950.
Again, the top one is the earlier, flawed version. As if I have to tell you.
“The Carmen Miranda Collection”, which features delights aside from Gang, streets on June 17.
Wow. Yeah, that’s a big difference, and I don’t usually have the best eye for that sort of thing. The last time you post this kind of comparison, I really had to squint, and even then I’m not sure I picked up on the difference.
I only see one image of Miranda…
It takes a big man, Mr. Kenny …
Now I’m waiting for your corrected opinion of “No Country for Old Men.”
(I kid! I kid!)
@ Dave
Thanks for posting that review of Mandingo. Not because I give a crap about “Mandingo” except as further proof that Richard Fleisher was a variable director, but you reminded me to check Legend Films’ site to see if their “Phase IV” was, in fact, the killer ant movie older horror geeks have been telling me about for, like, a decade. It is. I’m quite happy to hear it!
Clearly, this is a big improvement. But Fox could have accessed for mastering the pristine 35mm IB print you saw in 1992 and chose not to. That baffles me.
Dear Glenn,
I really hope you see this. Alexandre Philippe has been desperately trying to reach you regarding our documentary interviews, not knowing your current status with Première. I’m very sorry to hear about it and of course it now makes sense why you’ve been so hard to reach. Please email either me or Alexandre when you have a moment to update us on your email address. We are still in India and will be traveling extensively for the next week, but will be stateside from June 14th through July 5th.
All the best and I look forward to hearing from you!
Robert Muratore
robert@peoplevsgeorge.com
Huh. For a minute there I thought “peoplevsgeorge” was about a different George. Then I checked the website, and now I’m VERY interested. Glenn, contact this guy, so he can finish his movie! I want to see it!
Wishing you every success with “Some Came Running” (SCR). Enjoyed your postings from Cannes and look forward to reading SCR in the future (+ good luck with securing the archive of the previous masterwork)
ps. If you feel like a break sometime, come and join us on FILMCOMMUNITY.COM – The Social Network for the Film Industry Worldwide. Lots of film writers & critics there, not to mention thousands of filmmakers from 120 countries.
Bill, I have indeed gotten in touch. As I explained, as Hachette bid myself and others farewell, they also discontinued our in-house e‑mail, leaving us to cobble together lost contacts on our own. Funsy!
Thanks, Garth. I will absolutely check out the site.
Ed Hulse -
While it would be good idea to use the IB print for color reference, it would not be something they’d want to use for mastering a video. The contrast blocks up too much and the deep grays turn pitch black. The old DVD of Gorgo shows why you shouldn’t use an IB print for video.