Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb on June 16, 2009

[musick]

Dr. Strangelove Blu-ray

Dr. Strangelove Blu-ray Review

USA Today reported in today's Life section that Stanley Kubrick's landmark 1964 satire DR. STRANGELOVE or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb will finally make it's high-definition premiere on Blu-ray Disc, in a deluxe 45th Anniversary Special Edition on June 16.

At a suggested retail price of $39, the black-and-white classic will feature a disc loaded with extras, including:

• Documentary: "No Fighting in the War Room"
• Featurette: "Best Sellers or: Peter Sellers and Dr. Strangelove"
• Interview with former Defense secretary Robert McNamara
• "The Cold Facts" - a bonus track that offers trivia and background information on the Cold War, plus interviews with experts and analysts (including Daniel Ellsberg and former counter-terrorism chief Richard A. Clarke)

-Additional Special Content to be announced

http://www.dvdtown.com/news/dr-stran...b-june-16/6336

[Seretur]

Just saw this at dvdtimes.co.uk.

There are still a few substantial extras missing -- like those weird splitscreen interviews with Sellers and Scott, or the brilliant trailer.

However, both a 5.1 remix and the original mono track have been announced (and this being Sony, here's hoping they're both lossless) -- great!

Additional features that will be up there:

# Inside the Making of Dr. Strangelove
# Inside: Dr. Strangelove
# The Art of Stanley Kubrick: From Short Films to Strangelove

So this is shaping up to be an excellent release. Here's hoping Sony can include those DVD extras that are still MIA, though.

[DAROCKNESSMONSTER]

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001DJLCPE/ref=nosim?tag=dvdbeaver-20&link_code=as3&creativeASIN=B001DJLCPE&creative= 373489&camp=211189

June 16th 2009.
45th anniversary.

[quirkmanly]

https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=2337

[Mr.White]

Hello dimitri!!!

[GORT]

Good day one purchase for me

[MTRodaba2468]

Originally Posted by GORT

Good day one purchase for me

Likewise.

[ahoward1126]

I know it was pushed back to june, but was just curious to know if anybody knew why?

[jacobb1313]

I cannot find any decent info so I'm hoping kicking around the problem on here would be a big help.

The Dr. Strangelove Blu-Ray release is up for pre-order on Amazon, slated for a June 16 release. It has the cover art of the 'Special Edition', but with a ratio of '1.66:1'.

This is one of my absolute most favorite films. But a big point of contention with the DVD releases has been the film's 'intended' aspect ratio: Some have 1.33:1 full-screen, some 1.66:1 letterbox, and some BOTH (I'll get there in a sec). Kubrick often filmed in full-screen and then matted the image accordingly for theatrical release (The Shining is a case-in-point), but only did this because he was horrified at widescreen films being butchered to 4:3 on those small, B&W TV sets. So, he would matte his films for theatrical release, intending this as a 'preferred' viewing experience, but shot at a different ratio (Cronenberg did this for Dead Ringers, De Palma for Carrie, off the top of my head).

The Wrench: Kubrick, while he was alive, supervised a Criterion Laserdisc that had shifting aspect ratios, between 1.33:1 and 1.66:1 (the fullscreen was, I believe, to give the film a more "documentary" or "newsreel" feel during these sequences). Since he supervised it, this is the 'director approved', and therefore assumed to be the 'intended'.

However, the last "40th Anniversary" edition of the film simply matted the full-screen images he approved, in order to "enhance" the film for 16X9. (Details: http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCom...trangelove.htm). All the other DVD versions got it right (the "Special Edition" being the most decent stateside).

My question (finally) is:
Will This Blu-Ray be completely 1.66:1?? Or have BOTH approved ratios?

If it is completely matted to 1.66:1, then I won't buy. Cutting off the top and bottom of the image is just as evil as cutting a Widescreen film down to fit 4:3 (irony?). I can't believe I may have to keep my Criterion LD over a blu-ray, but that might be the case here. Can anyone help figure this out!?!

[musick]

SPHE press release makes no note of the aspect ratio(s) for the upcoming BD

[Deciazulado]

I projected the Dr. in 1.85 for the LoC. If they open the matte a bit to show how it looks on a 1.66 screen that's fine. If they show it at 1.85 that be fine too.



Most Standard Widescreen films (1.66-1.85) have been shot with the full frame on the negative and that's what you got on the VHS/4:3 DVD/analog broadcast video versions.

On the "full frame" DVD, you can see the boom mike on some shot.

[Rhylliam]

I remember the 2-disc DVD was supposed to be 1.66, but appeared more like 1.78... so expect that I guess.

[F-Man]

Kubrick sure didn't mind having the whole movie in widescreen for its original theatrical representation.

And making some scenes full screen to give them a documentary feel wouldn't work with the TVs we have now.

It's like saying that if a director preferred his movies to fill the screen, then we should watch full screen versions for eternity, even though the widescreen version would be the one to take nearly the full screen now.

[bigbadwoppet]

Originally Posted by F-Man

Kubrick sure didn't mind having the whole movie in widescreen for its original theatrical representation.

And making some scenes full screen to give them a documentary feel wouldn't work with the TVs we have now.

It's like saying that if a director preferred his movies to fill the screen, then we should watch full screen versions for eternity, even though the widescreen version would be the one to take nearly the full screen now.

Back in '63 when Strangelove was made, filmmakers were not expecting their movies to be on tv six months after their theatrical exhibition.

Why would anyone then compose a movie for its broadcast exhibition rather than its original theatrical?

Movies are always composed for the ways they're shown in theatres. Otherwise they would be unshowable as they'd behead actors and cut other essential information from the frame.

What Kubrick didn't mind was that his movies showed more when broadcast on tv. If he'd composed his movies so they'd be butchered during its primary theatrical exhibition, he'd have been an amateur idiot like his personal assistant.

[#Darren]

Kubrick did this as a compromise. His "theatrical" intentions were wide screen.

Having BOTH wide and 4x3.... I'm GUESSING he did this because he didn't want to lose the wide screen "effect" in certain scenes where it was superior in visuals to the compromised 4x3 image...

[wnicholas76]

All right here:

http://www.dvdactive.com/news/releas...rangelove.html

It looks like Sony is following Warner Bros. lead by having the Dr. Strangelove Blu-ray in the Digibook packaging. I didn't expect the Digibook, but I guess a movie this classic deserves the full treatment! I so can't wait for June 16!

[Blu Titan]

Originally Posted by wnicholas76

All right here:

http://www.dvdactive.com/news/releas...rangelove.html

It looks like Sony is following Warner Bros. lead by having the Dr. Strangelove Blu-ray in the Digibook packaging. I didn't expect the Digibook, but I guess a movie this classic deserves the full treatment! I so can't wait for June 16!

I will have to bite the bullet with the digibook. I love this movie.

[Hep]

Thanks. Looks like a nice package for this great flick; worth the wait.

[frozenhamster]

I hope that this digibook is the same dimensions as the Warner ones, at least then it could sit with them on the shelf and still look fairly uniform.

[Riff Magnum]

Who freaking cares? It's Dr. Stangelove on Blizray. You know, eventually a lot of the movies you absolutely love will be out on blu in odd size packaging. I bet you don't complain when a book publisher makes a book you want that isn't the same size as all your other books. Do you look at your bookshelves and just shake your head and sigh at the un-uniformity of it all?