Topkapi (1964) - Kino Studio Classics - October 7, 2014

[Akijama]

Topkapi Blu-ray PRE-ORDER

Topkapi Official Trailer #1 - Robert Morley Movie (1964) HD - YouTube

[John_Drake]

I never thought I'd see this released on BD.

[javi92]

I really hope the transfer for this title is a good one. Love this film.

[Scottie]

How is this in terms of Jules Dassin's other films?

I really enjoyed Rififi and I consider it one of the best, if not the best, film about heists. I have also seen The Naked City, which I enjoyed, and Night and the City, which I hated.

[javi92]

Originally Posted by iScottie

How is this in terms of Jules Dassin's other films?

I really enjoyed Rififi and I consider it one of the best, if not the best, film about heists. I have also seen The Naked City, which I enjoyed, and Night and the City, which I hated.

I think if you enjoyed Rififi, you will enjoy this. It has more comic elements than Rififi, and is less dark overall, but the heist scene is similarly tense.

[trip66]

I'm a huge fan of Dassin and thought this was a complete swing and a miss.

[Arkadin]

so excited about this one coming to bd.
such an intelligent, witty throwback to the days when real artists made real films.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by javi92

I think if you enjoyed Rififi, you will enjoy this. It has more comic elements than Rififi, and is less dark overall, but the heist scene is similarly tense.

Originally Posted by obscurelabel

I have to say I am not a big fan of this. IMHO Mercouri and Schell have ZERO chemistry together and their relationship is a key element. The tone should be light and breezy and these two are dull and clunky (although of course they have been fine in other films). Also, the whole plotting of the heist had been logical and precise, and then at the end we get this ludicrous twist:

[Show spoiler]Simpson suddenly is found to have exceptional strength? Apologies to Peter Ustinov, but it looks as if the heaviest thing he lifts is a cafeteria tray.

The heist itself is interesting but not worth the trouble.

Thanks for the opinions, guys.

It sounds like a movie worth seeing, but not necessarily worth the trouble of blind buying. I'll try to find a copy before I commit to a purchase.

[MifuneFan]

It looks like an oddball kind of movie, but I do enjoy heist movies, especially in exotic locales, so I'd like to see this one day. It's available to rent on Vudu, so I might just go that route

http://www.vudu.com/movies/#!content/140949/Topkapi

[Bucky]

I read this book a few years ago and enjoyed it, might have to check this out.

[obscurelabel]

Originally Posted by iScottie

How is this in terms of Jules Dassin's other films?

I really enjoyed Rififi and I consider it one of the best, if not the best, film about heists. I have also seen The Naked City, which I enjoyed, and Night and the City, which I hated.

I have to say I am not a big fan of this. IMHO Mercouri and Schell have ZERO chemistry together and their relationship is a key element. The tone should be light and breezy and these two are dull and clunky (although of course they have been fine in other films). Also, the whole plotting of the heist had been logical and precise, and then at the end we get this ludicrous twist:

[Show spoiler]Simpson suddenly is found to have exceptional strength? Apologies to Peter Ustinov, but it looks as if the heaviest thing he lifts is a cafeteria tray.

The heist itself is interesting but not worth the trouble.

[Dailyan]

Kino Lorber will be releasing a remastered version in the future:
Coming Soon on Blu-ray!
Newly Restored!

TOPKAPI (1964) Starring Melina Mercouri, Peter Ustinov, Maximilian Schell, Robert Morley, Jess Hahn & Akim Tamiroff – Shot by Henri Alekan (Wings of Desire) – Music by Manos Hatzidakis (Never on Sunday) – Directed by Jules Dassin (Rififi).

https://twitter.com/KLStudioClassic/...7Ctwgr%5Etweet

[thisis2]

...the end credits in the 2014 Kino blu-ray are windowboxed...i wonder if that will be addressed in this new blu-ray..

[Henry R. Kujawa]

Originally Posted by thisis2

...the end credits in the 2014 Kino blu-ray are windowboxed...i wonder if that will be addressed in this new blu-ray..

I've run across 3 films so far that, oddly, have been "windowboxed" (a phrase I only just ran across TODAY). 2 of these were foreign DVDs, which played that way in my region-free DVD player, IF I wanted to read the English subtitles. Crazy enough, my newer "LG" region-free Blu-Ray player AUTOMATICALLY re-sizes films to fill the screen properly, whether they're fullscreen OR widescreen. In the case of those 2 foreign DVDs, the English subtitles suddenly appeared IN FRONT of the picture, rather than below it. I thought, man, that's some player!

The 3rd film was a bootleg of MADIGAN, and the guy who ran it off apologized for his error, and said if/when he gets a better print, he'll replace mine for free. (In that case, chances are, I'll just spring for the official Blu-Ray at some point.)


The only problem I've had with the new BR player has been with DEFECTIVE discs my best friend ran off with a recorder he has that was changing the size of the image in the wrong direction. They would only play correct on my older DVD player (which I packed away!). On the new BR player, the image is squished horizontally, so it's bigger vertical than it is horizontal. OY.

Of course, nothing annoys me with discs more than an American outfit (VEI) putting out a Region 1 DVD that's copied from a PAL disc... Their McCLOUD box, the pilot and seasons 1-2 were great, but season 3-- never available before-- the picture and sound are crystal-clear, but, they run too fast. WTF!!! (I'm not gonna stop giving them hell until they fix that problem... or reissue it as a Blu-Ray.)


TODAY was the first time I've gotten an e-mail notification about a "pre-order", and it's TOPKAPI. Really put a smile on my face! This was supposed to come out a year ago, I guess there was a delay. But I'm so low on spare cash right now, I'll probably wait until November to get mine.

Meanwhile, I'm closing in on the end of the 1st season of MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, wich I never saw before! I got hooked back in 1967 on the 2nd season, and for decades, never knew Peter Graves was a REPLACEMENT. The characters all seem more "human" in Season 1 than I remember them from later stories. Almost as human as they were in the late-80s revival (which was my #1 favorite show for 2 years).

The big surprise last summer was suddenly seeing 21 BEACON STREET put out on DVD, as that show was another (of several) apparent inspirations for M:I. There was even a lawsuit over it! I've watched the entire short run TWICE and enjoyed it immensely. ClassicFlix is an outfit that seems to specialize in things that have NEVER been put out on disc before. I also got their Blu-ay of the 1953 I, THE JURY, which was my FAVORITE Mike Hammer until I finally got around to seeing the Darren McGavin tv series.

[koberulz]

I have the German Blu-ray and they're not windowboxed there.

[ilenewoodsfan99]

Not crazy enough about the movie that I'll get the upgrade for certain, but happy for those who missed out the first time!

[whiteberry]

October 29th
Circus of Horrors (1960) 4KUHD - 2018 UHD SDR Master by StudioCanal
Baby Blood (1990) (Kino Cult #19) 4KUHD - 2019 UHD SDR Master by StudioCanal
Topkapi (1964) Brand New 4K Restoration by MGM
Arabesque (1966) 4KUHD - Brand New UHD SDR Restoration by Universal

https://www.hometheaterforum.com/com.../#post-4548319

[Shanghai Express]

This deserved a 4K UHD but I'm happy to take any upgrade over the old Blu

[Henry R. Kujawa]

Originally Posted by Shanghai Express

This deserved a 4K UHD but I'm happy to take any upgrade over the old Blu

I was hoping to buy this last summer, but, when I found out they were doing a brand-new restoration, I decided to wait for the new one. Skipped over to start watching MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE. Let's face it, TOPKAPI is to M:I what FORBIDDEN PLANET is to STAR TREK.

[Joe Bond]

Finally had time this weekend to watch the new disc. Great clarity and color. Virtually no print damage which I believe the first Blu-ray had some present. Now I can retire my old disc. Commentary was quite enjoyable in the parts I listened to.