Il Gattopardo di Luchino Visconti

[Riki333]

After it came out almost everywhere, The Leopard finally will be published in Italy by Medusa. It will be the restored print from Cineteca di Bologna.

Out: 16/11/2011.

Most likely there will be English Subs.

Amazon.it pre order: http://www.amazon.it/Gattopardo-Blu-...7731935&sr=1-3

Saluti

[RDA]

Is this the same print that was used on the French release? Will pick this up if it has English subtitles if so.

[Riki333]

Originally Posted by RDA

Is this the same print that was used on the French release? Will pick this up if it has English subtitles if so.

Sorry, i don't know.

Here there are the technical specifications:

2 BLU-RAY + BOOK

Region: B
Coding System: AVC/MPEG-4

Disc 1:

- IL GATTOPARDO - FILM NELLA NUOVA VERSIONE RESTAURATA DALLA CINETECA DI BOLOGNA

Extra:

- IL GATTOPARDO RACCONTATO DA GOFFREDO LOMBARDO a cura di LUCIANA MIGLIAVACCA
- IL RECUPERO DEL GATTOPARDO intervista a GIUSEPPE ROTUNNO in occasione del restauro della pellicola del 1991
- IL GATTOPARDO – UN VIAGGIO NELLA MEMORIA
- CINECRONACA
- CINEGIORNALE
- PRESENTAZIONE CINEMATOGRAFICA
- GALLERIE FOTOGRAFICHE

Video Format: 2,55:1/1080p
Audio: LPCM Dual mono 2.0 Italiano
Subtitles: Italiano per non udenti, English.

Disc 2:

- L’ULTIMO GATTOPARDO di Giuseppe Tornatore (HD)

Extra:

- A proposito de L’ultimo Gattopardo: Guido Lombardo e Giuseppe Tornatore ne parlano con Gian Luca Farinelli

Video Format: 1,85:1/1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master audio 5.1 Italiano
Subtitles: Italiano per non udenti, English, French.

Book:

"JE SUIS IL GATTOPARDO" a cura di Francesco Ruggeri

Source: http://www.medusa.it/film/1148/il-gattopardo.shtml

Saluti

[RDA]

Looks great! Is someone going to add this to the database?

Amazon listing: http://www.amazon.it/Gattopardo-Blu-Ray-Libro-Stelvio-Rosi/dp/B005PD0VWY/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1320074410&sr=1-2

[pro-bassoonist]

Originally Posted by RDA

Looks great! Is someone going to add this to the database?

Pro-B

[RDA]

[DrewPa]

No visuals yet?

I really hope the box is not going to look in any way like the pic in the "Medusa" site

[RDA]

I'm pretty sure this is the restoration like the French release. I ordered this and a few other titles from Amazon.it last week that have shipped, so should be able to let you know when it arrives if someone else doesn't post first...

[Rob Kwak]

I got it last week. It seems to me that it is the same print as the french version which I also own. Only the black levels are way off. I had to turn up the brightness on my projector to get the same result as the french one.

[Rob Kwak]

My brightness levels on my calibrated projector are 50%. I had to raise that to 66% to get an exceptable picture comparable to the french release. Screen shots are difficult for me to make since I don't have a blu-player on my computer.

[Rob Kwak]

I managed to make two screenshots which clearly show the difference after all.

[Rob Kwak]

The English subtitles are fine although I didn't see the complete film yet. And I think the boosted colors are mainly to blame because of the deeper blacks. If you raise those the colors desaturate to the same level as the french release. Furthermore I think the framing (1-2:55) is a bit wrong because in the scene where Burt Lancaster and the priest are in the carriage you can in the far left and right side see elements (part of the studio set) which are clearly not intended to be seen. All in all I still think this release is much better than the terrible grainy and soft Criterion/BFI one which I (sigh) also own.

[Swearengen]

I've watched the first 15 minutes of the italian version. It looks gorgeous. I can not complain about colors or black. At the contrary. I have the JVC X9 and I would rate the picture (from what I've seen!) a small 10, though still a notch below Sound of Music. Much better than the Criterion!

[Novecento]

Originally Posted by Riki333

Disc 2:

- L’ULTIMO GATTOPARDO di Giuseppe Tornatore (HD)

Extra:

- A proposito de L’ultimo Gattopardo: Guido Lombardo e Giuseppe Tornatore ne parlano con Gian Luca Farinelli

Video Format: 1,85:1/1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master audio 5.1 Italiano
Subtitles: Italiano per non udenti, English, French.

Wow, this has the Tornatore documentary included with English subtitles. I'm tempted to buy it for this alone.

Originally Posted by Swearengen

Much better than the Criterion!

Really I have the Criterion BD and it is gorgeous.

[andreasy969]

I received the Italian release today and took some more screen shots. PQ is great IMHO, but I do agree on the black level problem (but I'm not an expert to say it's wrong).

[Swearengen]

I believe this is a kind of "Bram Stokers Dracula" and "Last of the Mohicans" case. Those two titles made many speculate that the black level were "off".

How many make that call watching screenshots? Monitors contrast levels are usually not very reliable. I have a calibrated 24" HP screen. Brightness is 7% to get it close to D65. But contrast is not more than 2-3.000 on such a screen, making it totally unreliable to trust the cinematic experience. The Pioneer Kuro 9 generation has excellent blacks, the X9 has 1:100.000 native and in a dark room, those two movies and Gattopardo looks absolutely stunning.

Last of Mohicans is so dark, that subtitles during nightscenes makes it impossible for the eyes to get accustomed to the darkness, because the light seems so bright. But without, it's like being there. I would say these blu-rays are future proofed and will show more and more of their inherent qualities, as equipment gets better and black levels improve.

[Swearengen]

Originally Posted by Novecento

Really I have the Criterion BD and it is gorgeous.

I would've said the same ... actually I did I have the BFI and the Criterion. I would've been very content with the Criterion, hadn't I come across the italian release. The same about Apocalypse Now. Hadn't I watched the HBO HDTV source, I would've thought the new BD release was the ultimate end stage and would've "settled".

[KENTA]

The Criterion BD always looked like an Universal release.
Old transfer with edge enhancement all over the place.

Can't wait to get the Italian Blu, thank you very much for the caps.

[Bad Sandwich]

Haven't seen anyone mention it, but the recent Australian BD release from Madman apparently also comes from the new restoration, so that's another option for English speakers. I wonder if it has the same black level issue as the Italian. It'd be mighty nice to see an extensive comparison between the Australian, French, and Italian (yeah right)

[Fitzcarraldo]

A darker transfer / gamma variation is one thing, but crushed blacks, as evidenced in these screengrabs, are something else... Nonetheless, this release (even moreso the French) is clearly light years beyond the Criterion - rich and lifelike, displaying a level of detail that a standard 35mm negative of the period could never yield (and an improvement that is clearly visible on any 1080P display, regardless of size). This being the case, I find Criterion's reaction to this release, quoted on another forum, questionable at best (!):

"Our master is made from the original negative and from a Blu-ray perspective, we couldn’t ask for a more beautiful piece of film. The color correction was supervised by Giuseppe Rotunno, the cinematographer, and the result is spectacular. The Gucci-sponsored Film Foundation restoration shown at Cannes used our master as a color reference, but it had a different goal — to create newly restored film elements that could yield new theatrical prints and so on."

Firstly, I would seriously question whether the original 8-Perf 35mm Technirama negative was used for the Criterion/BFI release - indeed, whether it still exists at all. More likely, I suspect, that the lab in Rome initially mistook a 35mm or 70mm optical reduction interneg for the original, before the discovery of the 8-perf Technirama print that was used for the new restoration (this print would be one generation + one optical process up from any interneg, explaining the improved level of detail). Secondly, the suggestion that Criterion's compromised master is ideal for blu-ray release is frankly bizarre, especially coming from a company with Criterion's reputation (although Criterion defenders on the internet are already grasping at straws, citing slightly saturated reds in the restoration - the horror!)

On the other hand, I think there's a chance that the BFI might re-release this at some point down the line and it may be worth some inquiries if the Madman doesn't prove up to scratch. The restoration is also apparently screening on TCM, although given the heavily compressed nature of broadcast television this is sadly irrelevent to the discussion.

On the question of aspect ratio, there appears to be a tiny sliver of additional information at the top of the Criterion/BFI transfer, but not so much as to be significant (a contemporary theatrical presentation would have masked off far more information). Regarding the additional information at the sides of the restoration, I'd lean towards the idea that 2.2:1 is more authentic, however this ratio can be achieved on most displays and projectors using a slight zoom, therefore I don't consider it an issue either.