Todd Haynes on Blu-ray

[James Luckard]

I feel like Dark Waters gets left out of the conversation about his films, because it's so wildly different from anything else he's done, but I thought it was fantastic.

He shoots the whole thing like a 70s paranoia thriller. The locations are really characters. The law office is not a set, it's the real office of the real firm from the story in Cincinnati, he talked about it at a Q&A I went to. The design of the offices is super cinematic and photographs really well.

I really loved that film, even though almost nobody saw it.

[Christian Muth]

I got POISON today and am not happy with the presentation. I really think this should have been 1.33:1 pillar-boxed, and two shots in a row with burned-in text starting at 21:52 seem to confirm this (EDIT: another series of "stretched" shots hits earlier, starting at 14:08). Since there was seemingly no way to "crop" those shots to 1.78:1 while maintaining a decent shot composition as well as the on-screen text, the image suddenly reverts to "stretched", with everybody looking really fat. Really obnoxious! The sound is also pretty lousy, sounding like a noisy optical track.

Chris

[iamnoone]

Originally Posted by Christian Muth

I got POISON today and am not happy with the presentation. I really think this should have been 1.33:1 pillar-boxed, and two shots in a row with burned-in text starting at 21:52 seem to confirm this (EDIT: another series of "stretched" shots hits earlier, starting at 14:08). Since there was seemingly no way to "crop" those shots to 1.78:1 while maintaining a decent shot composition as well as the on-screen text, the image suddenly reverts to "stretched", with everybody looking really fat. Really obnoxious! The sound is also pretty lousy, sounding like a noisy optical track.

Chris

How was the DVD presented? I sold it off in anticipation of this. Argh. Stretching aspect ratios is my worst pet peeve, like visiting my mother years ago and she had all the full-frame shows stretched fat to "fill the widescreen". Asked her if she noticed how fat and distorted everyone was, and she said she didn't care, just wanted that screen to be filled.

[Christian Muth]

Originally Posted by iamnoone

How was the DVD presented? I sold it off in anticipation of this. Argh. Stretching aspect ratios is my worst pet peeve, like visiting my mother years ago and she had all the full-frame shows stretched fat to "fill the widescreen". Asked her if she noticed how fat and distorted everyone was, and she said she didn't care, just wanted that screen to be filled.

I never had the POISON DVD, just the full-frame 1.33:1 Laserdisc (which I still have- gonna have to make a DVD-R of it now!). The "stretching" of the various shots that were uncroppable to 1.78:1 is a clear indication that it shouldn't be presented in this aspect ratio. Being that it was shot on standard 16mm, that makes some sense. So ridiculous for an "arthouse" film of all things to be compromised this way!

Chris

[Wernski]

Originally Posted by iamnoone

How was the DVD presented? I sold it off in anticipation of this. Argh. Stretching aspect ratios is my worst pet peeve, like visiting my mother years ago and she had all the full-frame shows stretched fat to "fill the widescreen". Asked her if she noticed how fat and distorted everyone was, and she said she didn't care, just wanted that screen to be filled.

The 1999 DVD is fullscreen; the 2011 DVD has the same stretching as the blu.

[Christian Muth]

Originally Posted by Wernski

The 1999 DVD is fullscreen; the 2011 DVD has the same stretching as the blu.

Is the entire 2011 DVD stretched, or just certain shots like the Blu-ray with the rest of it cropped?

Chris

[Wernski]

Originally Posted by Christian Muth

Is the entire 2011 DVD stretched, or just certain shots like the Blu-ray with the rest of it cropped?

Chris

Yeah, they're both equivalently screwy throughout.

[James Luckard]

At last!

Originally Posted by BunyipPouch

The Criterion Collection has announced a bluray release of The Velvet Underground from Director Todd Haynes (Carol, Safe) for December 2022.



Features:

• New 4K digital master, approved by director Todd Haynes and cinematographer Ed Lachman, with Dolby Atmos soundtrack
• Audio commentary featuring Haynes and editors Affonso Gonçalves and Adam Kurnitz
• Outtakes of interviews shot for the film with musicians John Cale, Jonathan Richman, and Maureen Tucker; filmmaker Jonas Mekas; and actor Mary Woronov
• Conversation from 2021 among Haynes, Cale, and Tucker
• Complete versions of some of the avant-garde films excerpted in the movie, including Piero Heliczer’s Venus in Furs (1965)
• Teaser
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Optional annotated subtitle track that identifies the avant-garde films seen in the movie
• A 2021 essay by critic Greil Marcus

[CelestialAgent]

Glad to see May December not being forever consigned to streaming only.

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

May December (only a Netflix Original in the US/Canada and a Sky Original in the UK) is getting a UK Blu-ray from Dazzler Media on 5th February.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

Glad to see May December not being forever consigned to streaming only.

Excellent news!

I'm adding the link you posted in the Netflix Originals thread:



https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CP2N3KSM/

[DAT_JB]

After seeing Todd Haynes in the CC closet last week I immediately thought about May December getting a Criterion release. Very excited to see this on Netflix this Friday.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by DAT_JB

After seeing Todd Haynes in the CC closet last week I immediately thought about May December getting a Criterion release. Very excited to see this on Netflix this Friday.

There were also conflicting accounts of Velvet Goldmine getting a Criterion release, since it was recently restored and remastered. It wasn't clear if both Velvet Goldmine and Velvet Underground were getting Criterion editions. When Underground got one, I lost a bit of hope for Goldmine, but it's still possible.

[James Luckard]

Seems conceivable May December might get a BD from Criterion.

Charles Melton is in Criterion's latest Closet Picks video:

https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=665775732388628

[James Luckard]

Until then, UK BD coming on May 20:

[James Luckard]

FYI, the Museum of the Moving Image published an amazing book about Haynes, to coincide with a retrospective exhibit there recently:



The physical book itself was only sold by their giftshop and their online shop, and sold out almost immediately:

https://museum-of-the-moving-image-s...42943030362270

However, the entire book has been temporarily posted online by Netflix for awards season, you can page through a virtual version of it:

https://toddhaynesrapturousprocess.com/

The book draws from his own archives and is stunning, filled with photos, design documents, script pages, and tributes from coworkers and an interview.

[CelestialAgent]

Liking the French art for May December.

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

Liking the French art for May December.

The UK cover is a bit less elegant, but does that French label have a history of forced French subtitles? Lots of French labels seem to do that.

[James Luckard]

Be aware, the UK BD of MAY DECEMBER has a technical error, it looks like a 1990s Quicktime file, it's SUPER pixely and compressed.

Another member reported the South Korean BD used the same faulty master.

The French and Italian BDs are okay, but lack the onscreen English-language text for multiple scenes when Charles Melton is texting with a friend.

The Australian BD is the best option: