Hong Kong Movie Restoration Interview - Blu-ray Forum

drees5761 · 09-11-2015, 11:22 AM

Interesting interview with Bede Cheng about the restoration of A Better Tomorrow and work on HK movies, but right at the end he mentions new 4k restorations of Bruce Lee films, about time.
http://programme.rthk.hk/channel/rad...3723&m=episode

Brown · 09-11-2015, 11:55 AM

The link didn't work for me, but my tablet is wonky sometimes. Thanks, though.

almo89 · 09-11-2015, 06:15 PM

Better Tomorrow, Bruce Lee films and C'est La Vie Mon Cherie were mentioned in the interview that are being restored. I can't wait to see those on blu ray one day.

Fabs · 09-11-2015, 07:57 PM

My first thoughts are that I hope they work on films that actually need attention. As much as people complain about those Bruce Lee Blu Rays, at least his films are available in true HD format. There are a lot of HK classics that don't even have anything close to HD. Hope they work on those too.

The audio stopped working, so if they mention those other films beyond A Better Tomorrow, then I am happy.

OldPangYau · 09-12-2015, 04:50 AM

It had been a rumor for a while, so it's nice to hear some confirmation from the company directly! Doesn't say which films, just "some Bruce Lee movies", so hopefully "the HK four" (Boss, Fury, Way, and Game) are the main focus. I personally don't see the point of a 4K scan of the HK version of Enter, but that's just me.

And the fact that John Woo approved of the transfer of A Better Tomorrow makes me think this is actually a competent restoration company. I do also hope they go after Jackie Chan's GH films. Pretty much Young Master through Police Story III.

reason108 · 09-12-2015, 08:02 AM

It will be interesting to see what FS actually does with these restored movies. Will they actually hit blu-ray at some point or is it being saved for streaming/downloads? It sucks about the condition of some of these films due to the humid weather. So much Chinese history is lost due to negative attitudes towards these older films.
Perhaps they need to restore some lost BL footage; if it still exists.

almo89 · 09-12-2015, 06:40 PM

Going off topic a bit. What actually happened to Bruce Lee's TVB interviews? I've only seen pictures of interviews and some grainy low res film stock. If he was on TVB, wouldn't it have been aired on HK television live? Footage should exist somewhere, but I have never seen TVB air any re runs of it. I would love to see those some day.

drees5761 · 09-13-2015, 10:25 AM

The TVB interviews were apparently destroyed, but i find that hard to believe as clips from the same shows he appeared in have turned up on youtube. I also heard a Japanese collector purchased the footage but again who knows. Its the remaining Bruce Lee footage i would love to see.

Blu2u · 09-13-2015, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drees5761

The TVB interviews were apparently destroyed, but i find that hard to believe as clips from the same shows he appeared in have turned up on youtube. I also heard a Japanese collector purchased the footage but again who knows. Its the remaining Bruce Lee footage i would love to see.

I would love to see the supposed fight footage from the set of ETD that Anita (I believe that is her name) is said to own. It's the only rumored fight footage to exist of an actual Lee fight.

malakaheso · 09-13-2015, 12:33 PM

What about Hard Boiled and The Killer?

Most Asian countries don't seem to give two figs about film preservation.

mttmax · 09-13-2015, 12:48 PM

The new restoration company in HK is a branch from L'Immagine Ritrovata, which is quite simply, one of the best film restoration lab in the world.

almo89 · 09-13-2015, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drees5761

The TVB interviews were apparently destroyed, but i find that hard to believe as clips from the same shows he appeared in have turned up on youtube. I also heard a Japanese collector purchased the footage but again who knows. Its the remaining Bruce Lee footage i would love to see.

Any reason why they would be destroyed? Seems kind of strange to do that.

Leeon0 · 09-20-2015, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fabs

There are a lot of HK classics that don't even have anything close to HD. Hope they work on those too.

Yep, there's plenty of room for improvement.

OldPangYau · 10-02-2015, 05:29 PM

So, the Facebook page for L'Immagine Ritrovata Asia posted this photo with the caption "Guess what film":

So, I got curious... blew up the image to 200%, flipped it, inverted the colors, and tried to tweak the colors a bit until I came with this:

It looked mighty familiar, and then I realized...

It's from Fist of Fury!

Geoff D · 10-02-2015, 05:40 PM

Nice! I just hope they don't end up looking brown and yellow and washed out like other recent restorations handled by the Italian arm of L' Immagine Ritrovita. Still, I guess they couldn't be much worse than what FS spewed out in the first place, though Big Boss has always looked half decent in HD and Way will always look like ass because it appears to have been shot by a blind man: it's Fist of Fury which I'm really looking forward to seeing restored.

OldPangYau · 10-02-2015, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Nice! I just hope they don't end up looking brown and yellow and washed out like other recent restorations handled by the Italian arm of L' Immagine Ritrovita. Still, I guess they couldn't be much worse than what FS spewed out in the first place, though Big Boss has always looked half decent in HD and Way will always look like ass because it appears to have been shot by a blind man: it's Fist of Fury which I'm really looking forward to seeing restored.

Well, apparently John Woo loved what they did with A Better Tomorrow, so hopefully that's a good sign

Fabs · 10-02-2015, 09:52 PM

I'd rather they work on the dozens of HK films that need an actual HD restoration.

OldPangYau · 10-02-2015, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fabs

I'd rather they work on the dozens of HK films that need an actual HD restoration.

I'm sure they will, they just know Bruce Lee has a huge fan base. Plus, they already completed A Better Tomorrow. As I've said elsewhere, I'm hoping they'll work on the original Police Story as well.

Markgway · 10-02-2015, 10:22 PM

I'd smoke pole for 4K restorations of Jackie Chan's classics.

Actually, no I wouldn't... but you get the idea.

OldPangYau · 10-03-2015, 02:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Markgway

I'd smoke pole for 4K restorations of Jackie Chan's classics.

Actually, no I wouldn't... but you get the idea.

If they could restore all of his directed films from the 80s, that'd be awesome... and the Sammo directed Chan films too

Young Master could be a landmark Chan film since it was his first starring and directing role for Golden Harvest. Seriously, YM, Police Story, and Armour of God desperately need proper restorations since even the standard def Fortune Star masters are horrible... contrast is ass-tastic in each one, and the colors are "rusty" in AOG.

09-11-2015, 11:22 AM	#1
drees5761 Expert Member Member since:Nov 2009 Blu-ray collection:274 Blu-ray reviews: 6	Hong Kong Movie Restoration Interview Interesting interview with Bede Cheng about the restoration of A Better Tomorrow and work on HK movies, but right at the end he mentions new 4k restorations of Bruce Lee films, about time. http://programme.rthk.hk/channel/rad...3723&m=episode

09-11-2015, 11:55 AM	#2
Brown Active Member Top contributor Member since:Jul 2010 Location:New York, U.S.A. 4K collection:- Blu-ray collection:- Blu-ray reviews:11	The link didn't work for me, but my tablet is wonky sometimes. Thanks, though.

09-11-2015, 06:15 PM	#3
almo89 Active Member Member since:Dec 2007 Home Theater Gallery:5 Blu-ray collection:3	Better Tomorrow, Bruce Lee films and C'est La Vie Mon Cherie were mentioned in the interview that are being restored. I can't wait to see those on blu ray one day.

09-11-2015, 07:57 PM	#4
Fabs Special Member Top contributor Member since:Nov 2013 4K collection:1 Blu-ray collection:258 DVD collection:33	My first thoughts are that I hope they work on films that actually need attention. As much as people complain about those Bruce Lee Blu Rays, at least his films are available in true HD format. There are a lot of HK classics that don't even have anything close to HD. Hope they work on those too. The audio stopped working, so if they mention those other films beyond A Better Tomorrow, then I am happy.

09-12-2015, 04:50 AM	#5
OldPangYau Blu-ray Samurai Top contributor Member since:Dec 2009 Blu-ray collection:596 DVD collection:194	It had been a rumor for a while, so it's nice to hear some confirmation from the company directly! Doesn't say which films, just "some Bruce Lee movies", so hopefully "the HK four" (Boss, Fury, Way, and Game) are the main focus. I personally don't see the point of a 4K scan of the HK version of Enter, but that's just me. And the fact that John Woo approved of the transfer of A Better Tomorrow makes me think this is actually a competent restoration company. I do also hope they go after Jackie Chan's GH films. Pretty much Young Master through Police Story III.

09-12-2015, 08:02 AM	#6
reason108 Blu-ray Samurai Top contributor Member since:Mar 2013 Blu-ray collection:- Blu-ray reviews: 8	It will be interesting to see what FS actually does with these restored movies. Will they actually hit blu-ray at some point or is it being saved for streaming/downloads? It sucks about the condition of some of these films due to the humid weather. So much Chinese history is lost due to negative attitudes towards these older films. Perhaps they need to restore some lost BL footage; if it still exists.

09-12-2015, 06:40 PM	#7
almo89 Active Member Member since:Dec 2007 Home Theater Gallery:5 Blu-ray collection:3	Going off topic a bit. What actually happened to Bruce Lee's TVB interviews? I've only seen pictures of interviews and some grainy low res film stock. If he was on TVB, wouldn't it have been aired on HK television live? Footage should exist somewhere, but I have never seen TVB air any re runs of it. I would love to see those some day.

09-13-2015, 10:25 AM	#8
drees5761 Expert Member Member since:Nov 2009 Blu-ray collection:274 Blu-ray reviews: 6	The TVB interviews were apparently destroyed, but i find that hard to believe as clips from the same shows he appeared in have turned up on youtube. I also heard a Japanese collector purchased the footage but again who knows. Its the remaining Bruce Lee footage i would love to see.

09-13-2015, 12:33 PM	#10
malakaheso Blu-ray Guru Member since:Oct 2013 Location:Melbourne, Australia 4K collection:103 Blu-ray collection:1057 DVD collection:293	What about Hard Boiled and The Killer? Most Asian countries don't seem to give two figs about film preservation.

09-13-2015, 12:48 PM	#11
mttmax Active Member Member since:Jun 2011 Blu-ray collection:56	The new restoration company in HK is a branch from L'Immagine Ritrovata, which is quite simply, one of the best film restoration lab in the world.

10-02-2015, 05:29 PM	#14
OldPangYau Blu-ray Samurai Top contributor Member since:Dec 2009 Blu-ray collection:596 DVD collection:194	So, the Facebook page for L'Immagine Ritrovata Asia posted this photo with the caption "Guess what film": So, I got curious... blew up the image to 200%, flipped it, inverted the colors, and tried to tweak the colors a bit until I came with this: It looked mighty familiar, and then I realized... It's from Fist of Fury!

10-02-2015, 05:40 PM	#15
Geoff D Blu-ray Emperor Top contributor Member since:Feb 2009 Location:Swanage, Engerland 4K collection:1348 Blu-ray collection:2525 Blu-ray reviews: 6 Trading Score:33	Nice! I just hope they don't end up looking brown and yellow and washed out like other recent restorations handled by the Italian arm of L' Immagine Ritrovita. Still, I guess they couldn't be much worse than what FS spewed out in the first place, though Big Boss has always looked half decent in HD and Way will always look like ass because it appears to have been shot by a blind man: it's Fist of Fury which I'm really looking forward to seeing restored.

10-02-2015, 09:52 PM	#17
Fabs Special Member Top contributor Member since:Nov 2013 4K collection:1 Blu-ray collection:258 DVD collection:33	I'd rather they work on the dozens of HK films that need an actual HD restoration.

10-02-2015, 10:22 PM	#19
Markgway Blu-ray Prince Member since:Jul 2013 Location:Scotland Trading Score:13	I'd smoke pole for 4K restorations of Jackie Chan's classics. Actually, no I wouldn't... but you get the idea.

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