Twilight Time Discussion Thread

[bruceames]

The first two movies in the the Samurai Trilogy (The Twilight Samurai and The Hidden Blade) are my favorite Japanese movies, period. They are one of the few movies I rewatch every year. Love and Honor (the 3rd movie in the trilogy) is very good as well, and I watch it yearly as well.

[Page14]

I was on the fence about blind buying The Twilight Samurai during the most recent sale on SAE's website. Seeing these comments make me glad that I went for it. Nice.

[Reddington]

Just finished watching Thunderbirds Are Go / Thunderbird 6. What a great TT release!

I was born a few years after Thunderbirds debuted on British television. I first caught repeats of the show as a young boy and was instantly hooked. I bought the original VHS releases, the A&E DVD sets after moving to the US, and the Shout Factory BD set last year. However, I had never seen the two feature films released after the end of the television run, so finally picked up the TT BD a couple of weeks back.

Both films are great fun. Thunderbirds Are Go plays more like an extended episode of the television show. It gets a little sidetracked with a Mars/alien sub-plot that adds nothing to the story, but features a remarkable and almost surreal dream sequence that includes a performance by real-life 60's Brit pop icons Cliff Richard and the Shadows - who frankly look and sound incredible as marionettes. Thunderbird 6 is perhaps the more satisfying of the two films: Although both feature espionage, the latter more closely resembles a "thriller" while still adhering to the Thunderbirds "rescue" format.

PQ is excellent, and highlights the incredible model work that exemplifies the attention to detail for which Thunderbirds became famous. At the forefront is the astonishing special effects work of Derek Meddings, who went on to make significant contributions to the Bond films of the 1970's. AQ is fine; as a purist, I chose the mono option.

The films are essential viewing for fans of the show (what took me so long?), and for anyone interested in science fiction with a 60's espionage bent. According to the most recent Low Quantity Update on Page 1 of this thread there are fewer than 350 copies remaining, so if you are at all interested, or intrigued by these films, I wouldn't hesitate in ordering your copy.

[Mr. Thomsen]

Originally Posted by oildude

haha.... after the posts above, I just noticed I have advanced in Blu-ray rank. After six years on the forum, I have become a samurai.

So I'll use that as an excuse to plug one of Twilight Time's best films, Yoji Yamada's magnificent The Twilight Samurai. I rank this one up near Harakiri (1962) as one of the best samurai films I have ever seen. If you are not a samurai fan, this film will still make you fall in love with its gorgeous cinematography and interesting story that begins deceptively as a well-acted drama, slowly building suspense, before unleashing a searing chain of events that will leave you on the edge of your seat. With a hauntingly beautiful music score from master musician Isao Tomita (of 1970s electronica fame), The Twilight Samurai is another in a long line of masterpieces to come out of Japan over the decades, and reminds me why I can't get enough of great movies.

I love the Twilight Samurai. Still have my asian DVD of it, and would very much like to upgrade it. But wasn't there som issue with the PQ of TT's release?

[Davidian]

Some possible good news for those that missed out on Night of the Living Dead 1990.



Thanks to Cevolution for the heads up!

[Aunt Peg]

Really wish Twilight could/would dip into some older Fox titles like Tin Pan Alley & State Fair (1931). Clearly Fox has no interest in them.

[oubukibun]

I'm not sure if TT still has access to MGM's archives, but more and more, Nicholas Nickleby (2002) seems to me like such a perfect TT port of an under-appreciated release MGM will probably never put out themselves. I can even see this under Olive Films, but, <shudder>, here's hoping someone out there decides on the better option. A lossless track of the lovely Rachel Portman score would be quite, er, lovely.

Anyway, just a thought. I've had the film poster (and the film, as a result) in my head for a while now, with the Twilight Time label right over it, colored gold just like the borders of the poster itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7lenqzIGwI

[tallrichard]

Originally Posted by Aunt Peg

Really wish Twilight could/would dip into some older Fox titles like Tin Pan Alley & State Fair (1931). Clearly Fox has no interest in them.

I'd be happy with some of the Tyrone Power films from the 30s and 40s....

Fox made them available in sets for DVD but nothing from Blu-ray.

He was their biggest star for many of those years.

[belcherman]

Originally Posted by Aunt Peg

Really wish Twilight could/would dip into some older Fox titles like Tin Pan Alley & State Fair (1931). Clearly Fox has no interest in them.

I think that would depend on how well some of TT's older titles are selling. Movies like Cover Girl and Stormy Weather don't appear to be sell-out risks anytime soon. I wonder if TT could negotiate a lower licensing fee for some of these older titles by offering them at an even more limited run of 1000 copies.

Another thing to keep in mind is that many of TT's decisions are driven by the availability of musical scores. Many of the older titles don't have the best sound quality.

[bruceames]

Originally Posted by belcherman

I think that would depend on how well some of TT's older titles are selling. Movies like Cover Girl and Stormy Weather don't appear to be sell-out risks anytime soon. I wonder if TT could negotiate a lower licensing fee for some of these older titles by offering them at an even more limited run of 1000 copies.

Another thing to keep in mind is that many of TT's decisions are driven by the availability of musical scores. Many of the older titles don't have the best sound quality.

I think that's the best option for older titles. Someone mentioned elsewhere that they have been considering lower press runs (at least on some movies) due to sales being down in general. If that's what it takes and the studios oblige with lower fees, then I'm all for it.

[docc]

Originally Posted by belcherman

I think that would depend on how well some of TT's older titles are selling. Movies like Cover Girl and Stormy Weather don't appear to be sell-out risks anytime soon. I wonder if TT could negotiate a lower licensing fee for some of these older titles by offering them at an even more limited run of 1000 copies.

Sadly it seems that musicals for some reason don't do particularly well at TT in terms of sales, with Bye Bye Birdie being an exception. Pal Joey in spite of its fantastic score and cast is still around since the beginning.

[klauswhereareyou]

Makes sense if they go to smaller print runs on some titles. I'm going to guess that most of the UK stuff they've released haven't even come close to breaking 1,000 sold yet. Same goes for thing like The Roots of Heaven and Desiree.

[Blu Titan]

Originally Posted by oildude

haha.... after the posts above, I just noticed I have advanced in Blu-ray rank. After six years on the forum, I have become a samurai.

So I'll use that as an excuse to plug one of Twilight Time's best films, Yoji Yamada's magnificent The Twilight Samurai. I rank this one up near Harakiri (1962) as one of the best samurai films I have ever seen. If you are not a samurai fan, this film will still make you fall in love with its gorgeous cinematography and interesting story that begins deceptively as a well-acted drama, slowly building suspense, before unleashing a searing chain of events that will leave you on the edge of your seat. With a hauntingly beautiful music score from master musician Isao Tomita (of 1970s electronica fame), The Twilight Samurai is another in a long line of masterpieces to come out of Japan over the decades, and reminds me why I can't get enough of great movies.

The Twilight Samurai Movie Trailer HD (2002) - YouTube

The Twilight Samurai is awesome but I love The Hidden Blade even more ... a must if you have not seen it (part II of Yamada's trilogy).

If only TT would release Love and Honor as this is only available in Japan and it does not have English subs.

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by Aunt Peg

Really wish Twilight could/would dip into some older Fox titles like Tin Pan Alley & State Fair (1931). Clearly Fox has no interest in them.

I think it might be more accurate to say that Fox has no interest in spending the money necessary to restore these films for release on blu-ray via their own label, or a boutique label like Twilight Time.

Remember, Fox destroyed most of their original negatives at one point (circa 1970); I think there are less than a dozen titles for which the original materials were spared (the upcoming Where the Sidewalk Ends is one of them). Restoring the archival safety prints is expensive, and the results are usually disappointing to collectors; just listen to all the complaints surrounding their Technicolor releases, which are always criticized for being "too blue" or "too aqua." And these problems only look worse on blu-ray than they do on lower-resolution formats.

Complicating the issue is the fact that 20th Century-Fox has never been very respectful of the films released by Fox Films and 20th Century Pictures, prior to the 1935 merger. That includes the 1933 version of State Fair, which looked a little rough around the edges the last time I saw it on TCM. Fox Home Video seems content to release most of their catalog titles on DVD-R via the MOD Fox Cinema Classics collection; these discs are cheap to manufacture and consumer expectations are naturally lower than they would be for a blu-ray release.

**************

I may be wrong, but I don't think there's been a classic 20th Century-Fox film released by the company itself in Region A since The Razor's Edge (1946) came out in January of 2015. Thank heaven for Twilight Time and Criterion, etc.; otherwise the slow trickle of releases might be non-existent.

[Rafows]

Actually, FOX is committed in restoring its classic library. There are many of them already restored and pending of a blu ray release, some of them technicolor musicals. Some of them:

- Down Argentine Way
- The Best things in life are free
- Centennial Summer (legal issues)
- Chad Hanna
- The Adventures of Haji Baba
- Beneath the 12 Mile Reef
- Berkeley Square (1933)
- Pilgrimage (1933)
- Sailor's Luck (1933)
- Me and my gal (1932)
- Disorldely Conduct (1932)
- Now I'll tell (1934)
- Society Girl (1932)
- The Black Rose
- Black Window
- Bottom of the Bottle
- The Bravados
- Cry of the City
- Hilda Crane
- The Mark of Zorro
- Kiss of Death
- The Girl Can't help it
- Hell and High Water
- A Privates Affair
- The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend
- Young Mr. Lincoln

As well as brand new 4K restorations of:

- The Lieutenant Wore Skirts
- The Son of Robin Hood
- Boy on a dolphin
- Curly Top
- Heaven can wait
- The Gunfighter
- The Ox Bow Incident
- Peyton Place
- Unfaithfully Yours

So, there are plenty ready to go, the reason for thei unavailability is unknown to me.

[Musicguy]

Originally Posted by docc

Sadly it seems that musicals for some reason don't do particularly well at TT in terms of sales, with Bye Bye Birdie being an exception. Pal Joey in spite of its fantastic score and cast is still around since the beginning.

With close to 200 films TT has released only a few musicals. "Bye Bye Birdie" has sold out but some of the others ("Oliver!") were available region free from Germany. Some of the musicals were less than popular at the box office so it can be expected they wouldn't sell out quickly. "Pal Joey" was the only other hit musical TT has released and it is a good transfer.

[belcherman]

Originally Posted by Rafows

Actually, FOX is committed in restoring its classic library. There are many of them already restored and pending of a blu ray release, some of them technicolor musicals. Some of them:

- Down Argentine Way
- The Best things in life are free
- Centennial Summer (legal issues)
- Chad Hanna
- The Adventures of Haji Baba
- Beneath the 12 Mile Reef
- Berkeley Square (1933)
- Pilgrimage (1933)
- Sailor's Luck (1933)
- Me and my gal (1932)
- Disorldely Conduct (1932)
- Now I'll tell (1934)
- Society Girl (1932)
- The Black Rose
- Black Window
- Bottom of the Bottle
- The Bravados
- Cry of the City
- Hilda Crane
- The Mark of Zorro
- Kiss of Death
- The Girl Can't help it
- Hell and High Water
- A Privates Affair
- The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend
- Young Mr. Lincoln

As well as brand new 4K restorations of:

- The Lieutenant Wore Skirts
- The Son of Robin Hood
- Boy on a dolphin
- Curly Top
- Heaven can wait
- The Gunfighter
- The Ox Bow Incident
- Peyton Place
- Unfaithfully Yours

So, there are plenty ready to go, the reason for thei unavailability is unknown to me.

I'd love to see The Oxbow Incident and The Gunfighter, as well as Cry of the City. Heaven Can Wait has been hinted at as coming from Criterion.

[30hertzrumble]

I'm going to need an autograph bonus promo and I'm going to need it soon. I've been saving up a few cycles worth of TT orders and I'm itching to finally place that order for SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SHERIFF. C'mon. I know it's getting close....

[movieben1138]

Originally Posted by 30hertzrumble

I'm going to need an autograph bonus promo and I'm going to need it soon. I've been saving up a few cycles worth of TT orders and I'm itching to finally place that order for SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SHERIFF. C'mon. I know it's getting close....

Same here! And I've got tax return money to blow!

[baheidstu]

Originally Posted by 30hertzrumble

I'm going to need an autograph bonus promo and I'm going to need it soon. I've been saving up a few cycles worth of TT orders and I'm itching to finally place that order for SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SHERIFF. C'mon. I know it's getting close....

I was thinking the same thing. I had hoped it would have been yesterday as they usually seem to be the week following the pre-orders. Hopefully this coming week. I was also saving up a few titles but I couldn't resist and had to pull the trigger on a couple during the 20% off sale that SAE had.