The Muppets Take Manhattan 4K UHD (1984)

[Gacivory]

Originally Posted by SP77

whenever Disney wants to

The Muppets Take Disney

[bongozoid]

Originally Posted by Eurbane132

okay, since the muppets take manhattan is gonna be on blu-ray 4k, what about the rest of the muppet movies?

When you buy Disney and make it your mission to release everything on UHD.
Thanks!

[Kyle15]

Originally Posted by Gacivory

The Muppets Take Disney

God I wish! Let them take it! We'd get better releases surely. The Muppets know showbiz better than the suits running these things. In fact they'd probly open direct communication with movie fans. Oh, to dream!

[MifuneFan]

Earlier today (well technically yesterday now) I went to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, NY, and they have an amazing Jim Henson Exhibit there. They had some of the set models from The Muppets Take Manhattan, Miss Piggy, and some storyboard documents too.

[BNex99]

Originally Posted by Hardback247

Most of those edits seem to be improvements, IMO.

I disagree, but it's a fair opinion.

The larger issue, though, is that I don't think they were "edits" so much as the wrong elements used.

I don't know if it was an "earlier" mix or simply pre-mix stems that didn't include all the final decisions made, but most of the differences don't seem intentional to me.

[ErickRPG]

Oh yeah I'll be buying this day one for sure. Love the cover art. I remember vaguely the scenes with Joan Rivers and Miss Piggy. So funny. It's been SO long since I've seen this. Can't wait!

[CartoonStudios]

I remember Sony did a survey a while back asking folks which title they would want to get the 4K treatment next and The Muppets Take Manhattan was one of them. I didn't think it would ever happen due to the film not being one of the Muppets most popular productions, personally I think it's one of there best. But color me surprised that this is actually happening and with a new commentary track by Frank Oz no less (I do wish they got some other folks to be apart of it like Dave Goelz, Brian Henson or even Steve Whitmire)! Here's hoping Disney takes note and releases there Muppet titles on 4K physical as well. I know The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper & The Muppet Christmas Carol have 4K masters on Disney+ so the work shouldn't be too hard I'd imagine.

[shinobipopcorn]

New Dark Crystal disc now plz.

[quadruple D]

Originally Posted by CartoonStudios

Here's hoping Disney takes note and releases there Muppet titles on 4K physical as well. I know The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper & The Muppet Christmas Carol have 4K masters on Disney+ so the work shouldn't be too hard I'd imagine.

As much as I want all of the Muppet films released on physical 4k, I pray that Disney doesn’t use their current masters, and start from scratch using the original camera negatives like Sony did… As The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper desperately need updated masters.

I recently compared the Disney+ 4k version of The Muppet Movie to the Blu-Ray disc of the “Nearly 35th Anniversary Edition”… And to my eyes, it looked like the exact same master, but the 4k was just upscaled and had a ton of DNR applied… I still greatly preferred the old blu-ray, as removing so much of the grain for the 4k version noticeably reduced the amount of fine detail.

(Same old DNR story, I know… But this film especially could use a nice balanced approach to the restoration, as it’s always looked extremely grainy. Keep enough of the grain not to lose detail, but clean it up enough that it doesn’t look noisy…)

So please Disney, release the physical 4ks of these wonderful films, but definitely treat them with the respect that they deserve! Here’s hoping…

[SP77]

Originally Posted by Gacivory

The Muppets Take Disney

Hot

[Hardback247]

Originally Posted by quadruple D

As The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper desperately need updated masters.

You really think so? Why's that?

[fighthefutureofhd]

Originally Posted by banandroid

The thing I hate most about Disney's handling of the Muppets is that the company does everything they can to keep the performers and their artistry out of the spotlight -- both to devalue their work and make them more easily replaceable, and out of a misguided idea that knowing who the puppeteers are breaks the "magic" of the characters.

All of that is antithetical to the original spirit of Jim Henson & Co. For a lot of us, the characters were always vessels for that particular troupe of performers, and seeing how they brought the puppets to life was the magic. I came to love puppetry and special effects as a kid largely because enjoying The Muppet Show got me to start reading behind-the-scenes books and watching old documentaries and appreciating Jim, Frank, Jerry, Dave, Richard, Steve, Fran, etc.

All of this is to say, 90 fresh minutes of Frank Oz discussing his time with the Muppets (particularly on this, his first solo directing credit) is the kind of rare treat we're not going to get from any Disney release these days.

What you just said would be counterintuitive (is that right) to the way Disney works. They can't show the people behind the mask. It goes against their whole philosophy of maintaining the illusion. That's why anybody who works at Disney as a character has to say they are "friends" with Ariel or Snow White, for example. They don't want to ruin it for kids. If you even so much as mention how you work or worked as a certain character for Disney you are blackballed, blacklisted, and will not be hired again. It's a huge deal. One of my siblings was a "friend" with some of the characters at DW. It's a much different climate than back when Jim Henson and his gang were operating. We didn't shelter our kids from the truth as much it seems. We could see the people operating the Muppet characters and it didn't ruin things for us. Kids these days seem to be more fragile. Or at least handled more fragilely.

Originally Posted by PonyoBellanote

Funny you say that, because, last year's D23 show for the 30th anniversary of the Muppet Christmas Carol - it's exactly the opposite of what you mention. They had the Muppets and the performers clearly visible, they even had a screen to show the puppeteers. I assume because it was made for fans and not a general audience thing but I'm sure there were kids in the audience too.

I saw that in a video and, honestly? To me seeing the puppeteers didn't even break the immersion. Seeing them together, it just simply amazes me how they do it. It gives such awareness, not JUST to their wonderful work but HOW they manage to make them feel so alive right there and then LIVE, that even with the puppeteer right there, you still believe it, the character becomes alive with their performances.

That is very odd, as it goes against Disney's policy of maintaining the illusion. Though it was a more private event, so that may explain why they were lax in that situation. Cause they are usually super rigid and strict with that particular rule.

[SMD88]

Originally Posted by BNex99

I'd been thinking about doing a comparison video, but someone beat me to it.

The Great Muppet Caper - Theatrical Version vs. 1993 Edit Comparison - YouTube

I especially miss Miss Piggy's yell when she jumps off the motorcycle.

WHAAAAAAAT?!?!!! That is THE iconic scene from that movie! What the hell?

[Torgon]

Originally Posted by CartoonStudios

I remember Sony did a survey a while back asking folks which title they would want to get the 4K treatment next and The Muppets Take Manhattan was one of them. I didn't think it would ever happen due to the film not being one of the Muppets most popular productions, personally I think it's one of there best. But color me surprised that this is actually happening and with a new commentary track by Frank Oz no less (I do wish they got some other folks to be apart of it like Dave Goelz, Brian Henson or even Steve Whitmire)! Here's hoping Disney takes note and releases there Muppet titles on 4K physical as well. I know The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper & The Muppet Christmas Carol have 4K masters on Disney+ so the work shouldn't be too hard I'd imagine.

Sony did two surveys in 2019 and 2020 (this was on the 2020 one). I took those list to mean those movies were serious contenders to become 4K titles in the future. It's been a few years now and Sony has been chipping away at them, albeit slowly, but still going. They've knocked out quite a few off of the 2019 list.

[SMD88]

Originally Posted by rexcrk

While they’re at it, they should rerelease the soundtrack on digital or disc. The few songs they put on the Muppet Show 25th Anniversary album were kind of weak. Anything I’ve been able to find online has been really bad quality.

I remember ordering in the soundtrack record when I was a kid. Wish I still had it and it hadn't been stolen I also, of course, had the CBS The Muppet Movie soundtrack and Rainbow Connection 7". Both used the gorgeous theatrical artwork, soundtrack with a gatefold. So much better than the lame US MCA release

[SMD88]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Earlier today (well technically yesterday now) I went to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, NY, and they have an amazing Jim Henson Exhibit there. They had some of the set models from The Muppets Take Manhattan, Miss Piggy, and some storyboard documents too.

Damn, that is awesome!

[teddyballgame]

I don't recall seeing this as a kid but happy for the nostalgia it can bring for some of you

can't think of a better way to see it for the first time than a Sony 4k so count me in

[dubhousing]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Earlier today (well technically yesterday now) I went to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, NY, and they have an amazing Jim Henson Exhibit there.

The MoMI has held that exhibit for a long time. I saw it back in 2019, pre-pandemic. It is indeed a terrific collection.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by dubhousing

The MoMI has held that exhibit for a long time. I saw it back in 2019, pre-pandemic. It is indeed a terrific collection.

Yeah, I believe it's one of their permanent exhibits. I saw it back in 2021 as well, when I went to see their 2001: A Space Odyssey exhibit. I specifically went yesterday for their exhibit on Laika, which I posted about here:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...8&postcount=45

[banandroid]

God, I wish Netflix would give Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance to Sony for a disc release. Between putting Dark Crystal '82 and Labyrinth on UHD (twice already for Labyrinth) and how many extras they dredged up for the big Fraggle Rock BD set, they're clearly the only game in town when it comes to treating Henson properties right.