British Film Institute (BFI) Discussion Thread

[rapta]

Me neither...but he's more often known as Godard!

[Hatfield Peverel]

Originally Posted by Foggy

Can't wait for Goddard.

[crazyman]

Asquith > Godard.

[beadelf]

Originally Posted by Fnord Prefect

Had wondered that myself so did a quick search and was reminded of this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/A-Taste-Of-Honey-DVD/dp/B001D07QEO

The last DVD edition was with Optimum meaning the surly inevitable Blu-ray will be Studio Canal. So barebones or borderline and not particularly cheap.

The BFI DVD must be quite old and long OOP, especially as when it was released I bought the movie on VHS (2003 or earlier)

fingers crossed we will eventually get a blu ray release!!

[MacEachaidh]

Originally Posted by beadelf

fingers crossed we will eventually get a blu ray release!!

Yes! But I'm not so sure I want a "surly" one ...

We've lost Dora Bryan, but it would be nice if they paid some attention to Rita Tushingham and Murray Melvin while they're still around.

[rapta]

Beaver review for Culloden + The War Game: http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film5/blu-r...en_blu-ray.htm

Looks pretty good but I may hold of on getting this straight away, myself. Definitely near the top of my BFI 'to buy' list though (and just ahead of Farewell My Concubine).

[DavidGallow]

Is the Alan Clarke set limited to a certain amount?

Not that it matters too much, I guess, the Rossellini sets haven't sold out their limited runs nearly a year later.

[rapta]

Hmm, doesn't look like Culloden + The War Game gets a slipcover after all, but the Ken Russell sets do:

[BarnDoor]

That the Russell slips are sealed over at least suggests they should be around a while.

[rapta]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think BFI always seal their slips. I don't think they do limited slipcovers (i.e. initial print-run), just limited edition releases sometimes with slipcovers.

[BarnDoor]

I think you're right. I believe I only have one, which is Killing of a Chinese Bookie. I believe that was sealed as part of the package but I didn't know if they'd changed in the meantime (it's been a few years since that came out).

[Rich Pure Doom]

What are the chances of the new 4K restoration of Johnny Guitar getting released in the UK. Does anyone know who owns the rights? BFI posted about it on their FB.

[rapta]

Originally Posted by Rich Pure Doom

What are the chances of the new 4K restoration of Johnny Guitar getting released in the UK. Does anyone know who owns the rights? BFI posted about it on their FB.

People have asked for it over at the Eureka thread. I reckon it's something they've at least enquired about already...and the kind of high-profile title they've been known to release before. Also, they've haven't done a Ray title on Blu-ray before now - and had bad luck last time they did try to release a Ray film!

[Jaymole]

Just Ordered Culloden/The War Game & Farewell My Concubine. I could not wait any longer

[oddbox83]

If anything, Culloden gets better with age. War Game is forever more a disturbing what if. Both look great on Blu, really good transfers.

[CelestialAgent]

Originally Posted by Fnord Prefect

If you like the War Game then Threads is also a must see, but be warned that once the bombs start to drop it turns into one of the most grim pieces of TV drama ever. I love it and watch my old VHS edition at least once a year.

Threads is one of my favourites. And absolutely terrifying.

[MacEachaidh]

There's a current discussion on Threads over on the North American boards at the moment.

I've got the DVD release, but I've been hoping BFI might see its way to giving us an upgrade. Agreed it's a very bleak film -- even more so than The Day After.

[MacEachaidh]

Originally Posted by Fnord Prefect

Is it the Simply Media DVD or the earlier Revolver edition you have? If it's the Simply Media version what's the transfer like?

It's this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Threads-DVD-...uct/B0009S9LNK
(Can't post an image here; the site's buttons seem to be broken)

It's boxed away at the moment, so I can't check the transfer. Last time I watched it, I thought it was probably OK for a DVD, but I've upgraded my equipment and watched a lot of BDs since then, so I suspect my expectations will have been raised somewhat. I might be quite horrified if I watched it now!

So, I'd still like to see it HD'd, and I think BFI is the logical mob to do it.

[oddbox83]

The Simply DVD of Threads is literally the old VHS (and Beta?) master, even complete with 1980s BBC Video jingle. A shame Simply have the rights, I'd love the BFI to do a new transfer if the original film still exists.

[BarnDoor]

An online search of the BFI archives suggest they don't have any 16mm materials, but I don't see why the BBC wouldn't have it. One would also hope that the Blu-ray rights would be separate from the DVD ones, otherwise it might be a long time before such a project is even possible.