The Ladykillers 4K UHD (1955)

[Dailyan]

Coming Soon on 4KUHD!

THE LADYKILLERS (1955) Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Cecil Parker & Danny Green – Shot by Otto Heller (The Ipcress File) – Written by William Rose (It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World) – Directed by Alexander Mackendrick (The Man in the White Suit).

https://twitter.com/KLStudioClassic/...08790180393349

[Darth Marcus]

I'm good with my David M encode on the StudioCanal release.

[PNguyen]

yeah i dont see them doing a better job than the StudioCanal version

[bergman864]

I wonder if Kino will present the two aspect ratios like the Studio Canal did.

[Winslow Leach]

Excellent news! This is one of my all-time favorite comedies, and I'm looking forward to it.

[Brian81]

If they release a BD of the new restoration I might bite.

[Beckstreaker]

Release Date: August 27th, 2024

Per Kino Insider thread

[Beckstreaker]

Pre-order is up on Kino's site.

https://kinolorber.com/product/the-ladykillers-4kuhd

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Kino Lorber Insider

Coming August 27th on 4KUHD and Blu-ray!
https://kinolorber.com/product/the-ladykillers-4kuhd

THE LADYKILLERS (1955)

DISC 1 (4KUHD):
• 2020 HDR Dolby Vision Restoration by StudioCanal
• NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian David Del Valle
• Audio Commentary by Film Historian Philip Kemp
• Triple-Layered UHD100 Disc
• Optional English Subtitles

DISC 1 (BLU-RAY):
• 2020 HD Restorations of the Original 1.37:1 and Matted 1.66:1 Versions of the Film
• NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian David Del Valle
• Audio Commentary by Film Historian Philip Kemp
• An Introduction by Terry Gilliam (2:58)
• Forever Ealing: Documentary (49:37)
• Interview with Allan Scott (10:30)
• Cleaning Up The Ladykillers: Featurette (6:07)
• Interview with Ronald Harwood (7:15)
• Interview with Terence Davies (13:49)
• Theatrical Trailer (2:34)
• Dual-Layered BD50 Disc
• Optional English Subtitles

Color 91 Minutes 1.37:1 Not Rated
In this gangster comedy to end all gangster comedies, the inimitable Alec Guinness (Kind Hearts and Coronets, The Lavender Hill Mob) is Professor Marcus, ostensibly a musician and academic, who rents a London flat from a sweet old lady (BAFTA-winning Katie Johnson). He tells her that, from time to time, several other musicians will visit in order to rehearse. In truth, the professor can’t play a note, nor can his visitors: he’s a criminal mastermind, holding court over his gang of thieves, including the likes of punkish Harry (the first major film role for Peter Sellers, The Pink Panther), the homicidal Louis (Herbert Lom, A Shot in the Dark), veteran criminal Claude (Cecil Parker, The Man in the White Suit) and punch-drunk One-Round (Danny Green, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad). The gang use Professor Marcus’s flat as headquarters as they conceive a daring 60,000-pound robbery in this killingly funny Ealing Studios classic directed by Alexander Mackendrick (Sweet Smell of Success) from a BAFTA-winning, Oscar-nominated script by William Rose (The Russians Are Coming the Russians Are Coming). Co-Starring Jack Warner (It Always Rains on Sunday, The Quatermass Xperiment).

Also Available on Standalone Blu-ray:
https://kinolorber.com/product/the-l...pecial-edition

[bergman864]

Here's a list of the extras on the Studio Canal 4K of The Ladykillers for comparison.

4K BLU-RAY DISC

Investigating The Ladykillers (41 min).
Color in The Ladykillers (16 min).
Lobby Cards Gallery
Behind the Scenes Gallery
Audio Commentary by Philip Kemp

BLU-RAY DISC ONE

Same

BLU-RAY DISC TWO

Trailer (3 min).
Forever Ealing (50 min).
Spoof Trailer (7 min).
Locations Featurette (10 min).
Audio Interview with Tom Pevsner (92 min).
Audio Interview with David Peers (93 min).
BBC Omnibus: Made in Ealing Clip (7 min).

The blu-ray discs are region locked. A good number of unique extras between the two.

[MifuneFan]

This has been delayed to September 24th.

[Dubliner1]

review...

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film10/blu-...ers_4K_UHD.htm

[Monterey Jack]

I want the Coen one.

[bergman864]

Originally Posted by Dubliner1

review...

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film10/blu-...ers_4K_UHD.htm

They include two different disc specs for the UHD.

1.37:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD
Disc Size: 73,185,365,756 bytes
Feature: 71,812,288,320 bytes
Video Bitrate: 79.11 Mbps
Codec: HEVC Video

And

1.66:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD
Disc Size: 62,991,116,608 bytes
Feature: 44,806,766,592 bytes
Video Bitrate: 50.89 Mbps
Codec: HEVC Video

The UHD only includes the 1.37:1 aspect ratio. I'm not sure where the second disc information comes from.

[Egbert Souse]

The 4K disc only has the 1.37:1 presentation, while the Blu-ray has both 1.66:1 and 1.37:1. Not sure why Kino only included 1.37:1 considering the film is only 90 minutes long and a BD-100 is more than enough space, especially with only mono audio.

Looks fantastic. I didn't pick up the UK edition, but I had only seen the old Lionsgate Blu-ray and the 4K presentation honestly makes the film like it's brand new.

[nicwood]

Originally Posted by bergman864

They include two different disc specs for the UHD.

1.37:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD
Disc Size: 73,185,365,756 bytes
Feature: 71,812,288,320 bytes
Video Bitrate: 79.11 Mbps
Codec: HEVC Video

And

1.66:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD
Disc Size: 62,991,116,608 bytes
Feature: 44,806,766,592 bytes
Video Bitrate: 50.89 Mbps
Codec: HEVC Video

The UHD only includes the 1.37:1 aspect ratio. I'm not sure where the second disc information comes from.

The same strange "second disc" mystery is also present in his Invasion of the Body Snatchers review where he added stats of a supposed 1.66:1 AR version as well. Maybe he just copies listings of titles with multiple ARs and forgets to take one out.

[moviemaker]

So that I understand clearly, the film was initially shot as 1.37 open matte full frame and then later matted for 1.66, meaning they "cover" the vertical (top and bottom), creating a 1.66 frame out of the traditional 1.37 so you don't see the boom, too much headroom, etc for theatrical presentation. However, most shot 1.37 as safe because it could also be projected as 1.37. This may be the case here when initially released. Making the film available in 1955 for those projectors that could only show 1.37, and the newer format of 1.66 was pushed on everyone with the release of the movie "The Robe" (1953).

What was the intended theatrical aspect ratio? I assume it was 1.66. If so, the 4K should have included both 1.66 and 1.37. 4K physical media is a niche collector's medium, so it makes sense to include both aspect ratios for the collector.

I was looking forward to getting the Kino version of The Lady Killers, but because of this silly oversight, I'll be getting the Studio Canal version from the UK instead.

Here is a fascinating article put together by Tarantino's The New Beverly Cinema in LA on the origins of some of these aspect ratios and the movies that affected them the most: https://thenewbev.com/blog/2016/11/a...atio-juggling/

[koberulz]

The Robe was 2.55:1, not 1.66:1.

[Gacivory]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

So that I understand clearly, the film was initially shot as 1.37 open matte full frame and then later matted for 1.66, meaning they "cover" the vertical (top and bottom), creating a 1.66 frame out of the traditional 1.37 so you don't see the boom, too much headroom, etc for theatrical presentation. However, most shot 1.37 as safe because it could also be projected as 1.37. This may be the case here when initially released. Making the film available in 1955 for those projectors that could only show 1.37, and the newer format of 1.66 was pushed on everyone with the release of the movie "The Robe" (1953).

What was the intended theatrical aspect ratio? I assume it was 1.66. If so, the 4K should have included both 1.66 and 1.37. 4K physical media is a niche collector's medium, so it makes sense to include both aspect ratios for the collector.

I was looking forward to getting the Kino version of The Lady Killers, but because of this silly oversight, I'll be getting the Studio Canal version from the UK instead.

Here is a fascinating article put together by Tarantino's The New Beverly Cinema in LA on the origins of some of these aspect ratios and the movies that affected them the most: https://thenewbev.com/blog/2016/11/a...atio-juggling/

To quote from the article you linked.

The one notable piece of information most immediately recalled about The Robe is that it was the first major Hollywood release to be filmed in a 2.55:1 aspect ratio, sold at the time under the more marketable name of CinemaScope.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by koberulz

The Robe was 2.55:1, not 1.66:1.

My mistake. I was getting the Robe confused with Sabrina which was an experimental 1.76 which projectionists weren’t sure how to project.

Because 1.66 was more common in Europe was that the preferred aspect ratio for UK cinemas and 1.37 was for American theaters? If so then I assume it was shot 1.37 open matte and didn’t need to be matted except as a preference per country. (meaning it wasn’t hiding garbage outside the intended frame).

Since both aspect ratios are included on the blu-ray. I’m assuming that both are correct depending on the audience. Looking for clarification if anyone knows