The Long Goodbye (1973)

[Oscar Rothman]

The Long Goodbye Blu-ray



From Arrow. Outstanding news!

[Dickieduvet]

Hope it's a better source than the French release, Saying that I've not seen it!

Just going by all the negative comments I've read!

Probably my favourite Altman flick, Hoping for a Gould interview

[shogun123]

I hope it is a good transfer.

[duggie walker]

I'm fairly sure the transfer can be better than the French release but this is a problematic title due to the process used in post. This isn't one of those BDs that's ever going to "pop".

" The look of the movie is unique. On the DVD there are a couple of nice featurettes of Altman and Director of Photography Vilmos Zsigmond explaining how the film was made. Altman did not like the sharp and contrasty look of film shot in Southern California. Zsigmond did some experiments and found he could effectively reduce contrast by exposing the film to light after it had been exposed in the camera. This technique of “flashing” had been used in films before, but very rarely, and usually only with black and white film, not technicolor. The technique is inexpensive, but very risky because if it is not done properly, it could ruin the images on the film. It also requires precise control of exposures both in the camera and out of the camera. It requires different amounts of post-exposure flashing, depending on the light levels existing at the time of the original exposure. This is a very tricky process indeed. It will probably never be done again for a major motion picture. In addition to flashing, Zsigmond reveals there were some custom technicolor developing tricks used for this film as well.

The flashing technique results in colors that look more normal than one usually sees on film, more like pastel colors than primary colors. Contrast is reduced and there is more detail in shadows. It seems to make nighttime photography more effective, by increasing the effective speed of the film. The softer colors and lower contrast make the film look as though it were shot in soft, golden light. It gives the film a more dated look. The story seems like film noir, without the look of film noir. Telephoto lenses are used extensively and to good effect, even in the kinds of scenes where they are seldom used. Because of this, the actors were often able to work without marks and without cameras in their faces, Zsigmond said. The camera is also constantly moving in every shot, too."

[pro-bassoonist]

Duggie, the transfer the French release uses is indeed very problematic It comes from a dated master with all sorts of different issues.

Mr. Zsigmond's technique is not a good excuse here

Pro-B

[blueman_Richie]

It's SO good to see UK labels really making an impact with quality titles and exemplary editions! Bravo, Arrow (and other labels like Eureka! MoC as well)!

I'm REALLY looking forward to The Long Goodbye on blu as it's one of my all-time favs. I avoided the French release because of the forced subs (they were forced, right?) and the issues with the transfer. Here's hoping Arrow's edition really shines! Also, if that's the blu artwork in that magazine, it's hella cool!

[dvdmike]

Ha, ha. He's got a girl, I got a cat.


I love this movie, I hope we see some extras

Originally Posted by shogun123

I hope it is a good transfer.

The HDTV transfer is already pretty good

[lolwut]

I really want to see this.

[blueman_Richie]

Is there any hint of a release date for this yet, other than maybe Q4?

[Oscar Rothman]

Street date, December 2nd.

When private eye Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is visited by an old friend, this sets in train a series of events in which he’s hired to search for a missing novelist (Sterling Hayden) and finds himself on the wrong side of vicious gangsters.

So far so faithful to Raymond Chandler, but Robert Altman’s inspired adaptation of the writer’s most personal novel takes his legendary detective and relocates him to the selfish, hedonistic culture of 1970s Hollywood, where he finds that his old-fashioned notions of honour and loyalty carry little weight, and even his smoking (universal in film noir) is now frowned upon.

Widely misunderstood at the time, The Long Goodbye is now regarded as one of Altman’s best films and one of the outstanding American films of its era, with Gould’s shambling, cat-obsessed Marlowe ranking alongside more outwardly faithful interpretations by Humphrey Bogart and Robert Mitchum.

- High Definition presentation of the film from a digital transfer by MGM Studios
- Original uncompressed mono 2.0 PCM audio
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired
- Rip Van Marlowe – An interview with director Robert Altman and star Elliott Gould
- Vilmos Zsigmond Flashes The Long Goodbye – An interview with the legendary cinematographer
- Giggle and Give In – Paul Joyce’s acclaimed documentary profile of Robert Altman, with contributions from Altman, Elliott Gould, Shelley Duvall, assistant director Alan Rudolph and screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury
- David Thompson on Robert Altman - David Thompson, editor of 'Altman on Altman' and producer of the BBC’s 'Robert Altman in England', talks about The Long Goodbye ‘s place in Altman's filmography
- On Raymond Chandler - Raymond Chandler’s biographer, Tom Williams, outlines the author's life and work and discusses Altman’s adaptation of The Long Goodbye
- On Hard Boiled Fiction - Crime writer and critic Maxim Jakubowski discusses the emergence of hard boiled detective characters from the pages of the pulp magazines from the 1920s through to the 1950s.
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Radio Spots
- Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Brad Stevens, a new interview with assistant director Alan Rudolph and an extract from American Cinematographer discussing Zsigmond’s unique treatment of the film, illustrated with original archive stills and posters

Released 2nd December
Region B

[rapta]

Originally Posted by Oscar Rothman

Street date, December 2nd.

Nice! This and Cinema Paradiso for me. Might wait for the HMV price though (apparently only £9.99 for basic amarays upon initial release...thinking Paradiso will be 1 or 2 quid more though).

[HotRats]

Great extras, everything from the R1 DVD and much more.

[nitin]

sold and sold.

[Dickieduvet]

Nice stacked release, Another off the wishlist

[NoirFan]

Very nice array of extras!

[Sir Henry Rawkinson]

When MGM originally transferred this film for the 2002 DVD, they tried to 'correct' the contrast, brightness, etc. Zsigmond got wind if this and after seeing the master, he insisted that they redo the transfer under his supervision. Hopefully, this was a new 2k transfer that retains the essential look of the DVD, but better, obviously!

This is one of my favourites, one of the archetypal idiosyncratic 70s movies. It was SO hard to see until about 1997 when the BBC showed it late on a friday night in 2.35:1 which dutifully I taped (happy days!). Then in 1999 Warner put out a 2.35:1 VHS on the Maverick Director's series. The 2002 DVD was a revelation, though, great extras too. The French Blu is apparently whack, though which bummed me out, then Arrow announced their Blu and I was on the roof! If only it came with a mini harmonica!

[ravenus]

Would this be recommended as a blind buy for someone that likes Chandler books and noir films in general?

[HotRats]

Originally Posted by ravenus

Would this be recommended as a blind buy for someone that likes Chandler books and noir films in general?

Without hesitation. It's one of the greatest films of the 70s. Chandler said that if Marlowe really existed he wouldn't be a private eye but Altman deconstructs the private eye as a figure in American cinema, his Marlowe is an anachronism, driving an old car, dressing square, out of step with social mores and one step behind, who only asserts himself when he finally... well, you'll see. The soundtrack is also brilliant.

[nitin]

hmm I wouldnt be as recommending of a blind buy simply because this is not a normal noir film. In a way, I find it comparable to how Altman's McCabe and Mrs Miller is a western, but really unlike most westerns ever made.

Having said all of that, it is an excellent movie, I just dont know about a bilnd buy.

[BlueRagtop]

Originally Posted by ravenus

Would this be recommended as a blind buy for someone that likes Chandler books and noir films in general?

That is one tough question.

I love Chandler and film noir in general -- and I also love The Long Goodbye. BUT I say that realizing that not everyone will.

I remember when The Long Goodbye was originally released in L.A., Charles Champlin completely eviscerated it in the L.A. Times. ("This Marlowe is an untidy, unshaven, semi-literate dimwit slob who could not locate a missing skyscraper and who would be refused service at a hot dog stand.") But then, Chandler was viewed as sacred text in L.A., and The Long Goodbye was about as far from being "sacred" as it can get.

It wasn't until months later, when the movie finally opened in New York, that some critical redemption occurred (led by Pauline Kael, of course). The NY Times ended up listing it among the 10 Best Films of the Year. Vilmos Zsigmond also won the Best Cinematography award from the National Society of Film Critics.

Day One purchase for me, but YMMV.