Voyage of Time (2016) - overseas versions

[James Luckard]

Terrence Malick's documentary VOYAGE OF TIME got a very limited release in its 45 min form at a few IMAX theaters in the US in fall 2016, but I blinked and missed it.

There has been no US BD, because the studio that released the film here went out of business.

It looks like the longer 90 min version has been released in three overseas markets:

Germany
https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Voyag...lu-ray/194477/

France
https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Voyag...lu-ray/180985/

Japan
https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Voyag...lu-ray/189773/

I found this one comparison online, between the French and German discs:
http://caps-a-holic.com/c.php?d1=11507&d2=11506&c=4544

However it doesn't list bonus features and the Amazon pages for each item are vague.

Does anyone know which is the best release? I'm region-free, and the Japanese Region A disc is 3 times as expensive as the German, so I'm leaning toward the German.

[Dubstar]

it's too bad there isn't a comparison to the Japanese edition, as the one between the French and German discs is virtually identical. The image on the Japanese edition overall is quite impressive. Sadly the audio is only 5.1 and from what I can tell, the 90 minute cut was 7.1/Atmos and Dolby Vision ~ one can only imagine if the US home video studio hadn't up and closed could have delivered for it's US disc edition. Speculation is that since Criterion is working on a deluxe edition of 'Tree of Life', they might bite and release 'Voyage' as well, but time will tell if this is more wishful thinking or actual fact.

In my ideal world the deluxe edition would include:

45 minute version ~ Brad Pitt narration
45 minute 'director's cut' version - narration-less as it went out in IMAX
90 minute cut ~ Cate Blanchett narration

at the Q&A (IMAX 'director's cut') screening I saw with Malick in attendance he stated he wanted to redo the 90 minute cut and remove the narration all together.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

it's too bad there isn't a comparison to the Japanese edition, as the one between the French and German discs is virtually identical. The image on the Japanese edition overall is quite impressive. Sadly the audio is only 5.1 and from what I can tell, the 90 minute cut was 7.1/Atmos and Dolby Vision ~ one can only imagine if the US home video studio hadn't up and closed could have delivered for it's US disc edition. Speculation is that since Criterion is working on a deluxe edition of 'Tree of Life', they might bite and release 'Voyage' as well, but time will tell if this is more wishful thinking or actual fact.

In my ideal world the deluxe edition would include:

45 minute version ~ Brad Pitt narration
45 minute 'director's cut' version - narration-less as it went out in IMAX
90 minute cut ~ Cate Blanchett narration

at the Q&A (IMAX 'director's cut') screening I saw with Malick in attendance he stated he wanted to redo the 90 minute cut and remove the narration all together.

Wow, so was the version that played in IMAX theaters totally without narration? I had no idea there was a third version of the film.

Do all three BDs only include the 90min Cate Blanchett-narrated cut? Or do any of them include the 45min cut too?

[Snicket]

I have been looking at picking this up but I have a hunch Criterion may be releasing it in the US.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by Snicket

I have been looking at picking this up but I have a hunch Criterion may be releasing it in the US.

Since the company that released it in the US went out of business, there might be a rights issue though. The French and German discs are both pretty cheap, I'm leaning toward picking up one of them.

[Dubstar]

Originally Posted by James Luckard

Wow, so was the version that played in IMAX theaters totally without narration? I had no idea there was a third version of the film.

Do all three BDs only include the 90min Cate Blanchett-narrated cut? Or do any of them include the 45min cut too?

there were actually three IMAX versions

45 min. with Brad Pitt narration
45 min. 'Ultrawidescreen 3.6' version
45 min. 'Director's Cut' / with no narration, just sound effects & music.

[Hazel Motes]

Originally Posted by Snicket

I have been looking at picking this up but I have a hunch Criterion may be releasing it in the US.

I've been thinking the same thing. I would bet on it. I just wonder what will hit first, this or Tree of Life.

[BluCollector13]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

there were actually three IMAX versions

45 min. with Brad Pitt narration
45 min. 'Ultrawidescreen 3.6' version
45 min. 'Director's Cut' / with no narration, just sound effects & music.

The Ultra-widescreen version also nixed the narration.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

there were actually three IMAX versions

45 min. with Brad Pitt narration
45 min. 'Ultrawidescreen 3.6' version
45 min. 'Director's Cut' / with no narration, just sound effects & music.

Bizarre, did people go in knowing these three existed? Did they play in different theaters? How did you learn about the differences? It's fascinatingly weird.

[James Luckard]

Does anyone in this thread own one of the discs? Sounds like someone above owned the Japanese disc.

The German one just came out, while the others came out last fall, though I never knew about them till today.

I'm leaning toward the German disc, because I like the artwork, and the title will be the right direction on the spine, haha, unlike the French, and it's 1/3 the price of the Japanese.

[BluCollector13]

Originally Posted by James Luckard

Bizarre, did people go in knowing these three existed? Did they play in different theaters? How did you learn about the differences? It's fascinatingly weird.

I saw the 70mm IMAX version with narration and the Ultra-widescreen version when it played for a week leading up to the release of "Rogue One". As a big Malick fan, I kept track of the different edits of the film.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by BluCollector13

I saw the 70mm IMAX version with narration and the Ultra-widescreen version when it played for a week leading up to the release of "Rogue One". As a big Malick fan, I kept track of the different edits of the film.

How weird, I saw it listed at the science museum in downtown LA, which is inconveniently far from me, and I figured because this is the film capital, it would last a while, and I'd see it over the holidays, but it was gone after a couple of weeks. Nobody I knew in the industry saw it, I'd be shocked if most people I know are even aware it existed. Very sad.

[mikesncc1701]

I love me some Malick. I traveled 90 minutes when THE TREE OF LIFE was released just to see it on the big screen but haven't gotten as lucky with his more recent output. It would be much appreciated to have the best blu of this recommended to me as I haven't had much time to research the cuts and availability.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by mikesncc1701

I love me some Malick. I traveled 90 minutes when THE TREE OF LIFE was released just to see it on the big screen but haven't gotten as lucky with his more recent output. It would be much appreciated to have the best blu of this recommended to me as I haven't had much time to research the cuts and availability.

Until anyone else chimes in with more detailed info, I'll say that all 3 appear to have the longer 90 min cut with the Cate Blanchett narration. The French and German are most likely Region-locked, but the Japanese costs 3x as much. If you're region-free, the German looks best. If you're Region A, the Japanese is likely your only choice, until we have people testing the French and German discs properly to confirm.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by BluCollector13

I saw the 70mm IMAX version with narration and the Ultra-widescreen version when it played for a week leading up to the release of "Rogue One". As a big Malick fan, I kept track of the different edits of the film.

I somehow missed the existence of the "Ultra Widescreen" version, so I'm fascinated to learn about it.

This Variety article gives a great overview of it:

http://variety.com/2016/film/in-cont...se-1201933834/

The IMAX footage for the film was scanned at 11K. Incredible!

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

there were actually three IMAX versions

45 min. with Brad Pitt narration
45 min. 'Ultrawidescreen 3.6' version
45 min. 'Director's Cut' / with no narration, just sound effects & music.

I'm a bit confused, the Variety article makes it sound like the Ultra Widescreen version dropped the narration. Are you saying there was also a regular IMAX version that dropped the narration? Where did that version run?

[lemonski]

Originally Posted by BluCollector13

I saw the 70mm IMAX version with narration and the Ultra-widescreen version when it played for a week leading up to the release of "Rogue One". As a big Malick fan, I kept track of the different edits of the film.

What was the ultra-widescreen version like?

[inderweltsein]

Of all the three, the best is the French one.
The Japanese version has some problems on some sequences (ratio-wise).

As for the best maneer to keep track of all the released versions:
https://www.facebook.com/OneBigSoul....15595505207540
https://www.facebook.com/OneBigSoul....12880652145692
https://www.facebook.com/OneBigSoul....12881935478897
https://www.facebook.com/OneBigSoul....14663038634120

Broad Green is not out of business (yet). Only the production part has shut down (and also they seemed to have stopped buying for now external productions - the Malick ones were external productions, even if they took a production title on Voyage), so they have almost nothing in their future slate at the moment.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by inderweltsein

Of all the three, the best is the French one.
The Japanese version has some problems on some sequences (ratio-wise).

Do you have any more details on the flaws in the Japanese disc?

Curious what makes the French disc superior to the German, which just came out a week or two ago. Have people already compared them beyond the one link I posted above?

Thanks!!!!

[inderweltsein]

The Japanese disc has some ratio problems for example on some of the early universe shots (first stars glowing in the darkness for example); those are - from some mysterious reason - presented in narrow IMAX format.

Also there are some other minor imperfections throughout the movie for example overlooked lights from the modern human settlement in one brief storm shot in the late part of the movie.
As if (maybe) they used an unfinished master by error.

For the German vs French disc, the thing is really minor, but the bitrate difference slightly appear on screen (in minor detalis often, but sometimes more visible, for example in colour gradation from black to colour where there are more bad blocks on the German one).
These are my own comparisons (helped also by some finds of a friend for the Japanese one)

Disclaimer: I'm French, but my preference for the French edition has nothing to do with this...