Scanners (1981)

[Spire]

Originally Posted by tele1962

Looking at those grabs the Criterion is by far the best.

Sure, if you like your movies to have a dulling instagram looking filter on them.

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by Spire

Sure, if you like your movies to have a dulling instagram looking filter on them.

This shot right here is the most telling IMHO: http://www.screenshotcomparison.com/...n.php?id=83905

I have seen those red theater seats all over the country and they look like the Subkultur release. I don't know what Cronenberg was thinking, but bathing the film in so much green/gray that the grain is virtually gone was not the way to handle this horror classic.

[Mr Kite]

Originally Posted by Spire

Sure, if you like your movies to have a dulling instagram looking filter on them.

I will stick with the director on this one.

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by tele1962

I will stick with the director on this one.

*Cough* The French Connection *Cough*

[alexpeden2000]

Keen to pick up the German disc at some point soon, not that keen on the Criterion one. Is there much print damage on the Subkultur transfer?

[Mr Kite]

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

*Cough* The French Connection *Cough*

Different film and director, for me watching the Criterion version of Scanners just feels right.

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by alexpeden2000

Keen to pick up the German disc at some point soon, not that keen on the Criterion one. Is there much print damage on the Subkultur transfer?

No.

[Rockercub]

Originally Posted by StingingVelvet

The Criterion disc looks more appropriate to the film for me, personally. It doesn't look flat or dull when you watch it either, it just looks that way in direct comparison to the brighter overseas discs when flipping back and forth. Sort of like how warm color temp looks beige or red if you switch to a cooler temp and then back again.

I can go with the argument that the color scheme works for the film. It actually doesn't bother me, and if it was the only issue, I'd have a tougher time picking my favorite. But I have to disagree on the flatness and dullness, which I see clearly while watching it on the TV without a comparison. That ruins it for me, although I think I mentioned earlier that a few tweaks to my settings makes it watchable.

Originally Posted by alexpeden2000

Keen to pick up the German disc at some point soon, not that keen on the Criterion one. Is there much print damage on the Subkultur transfer?

I agree with HD Goofnut, no, but I thought the Second Sight release was cleaner.

[Spire]

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

...bathing the film in so much green/gray that the grain is virtually gone was not the way to handle this horror classic.

Thats the weird part, too. People (when this was really a hot topic) commented that the Criterion had superior detail. In some places I could almost agree, but in other places that dirty gray look DID seem to interfere with the look of the grain. Makes some of it seem smeary and you lose detail. Glad someone else noticed.

http://www.screenshotcomparison.com/...n.php?id=83906

Just look at his face. His 5 o'clock shadow just kind turns to mush.

I can accept maybe thats the look the director wanted, but it isnt "superior" looking.

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by Spire

Thats the weird part, too. People (when this was really a hot topic) commented that the Criterion had superior detail. In some places I could almost agree, but in other places that dirty gray look DID seem to interfere with the look of the grain. Makes some of it seem smeary and you lose detail. Glad someone else noticed.

http://www.screenshotcomparison.com/...n.php?id=83906

Just look at his face. His 5 o'clock shadow just kind turns to mush.

I can accept maybe thats the look the director wanted, but it isnt "superior" looking.

Yep, there's the entire tint/loss of detail argument and there's the fact that the DE disc has the correct aspect ratio.

[StingingVelvet]

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

This shot right here is the most telling IMHO: http://www.screenshotcomparison.com/...n.php?id=83905

I have seen those red theater seats all over the country and they look like the Subkultur release. I don't know what Cronenberg was thinking, but bathing the film in so much green/gray that the grain is virtually gone was not the way to handle this horror classic.

It really depends on how they're lit though. The brighter red looks too vivid to me in the Sub release.

[Goremeister100]

Originally Posted by StingingVelvet

It really depends on how they're lit though. The brighter red looks too vivid to me in the Sub release.

That's how I remember the red being when it played theatrically. Very vivid to go along with the head explosion. The Second Sight and Criterion didn't get the color right.

[StingingVelvet]

Originally Posted by Goremeister100

That's how I remember the red being when it played theatrically. Very vivid to go along with the head explosion. The Second Sight and Criterion didn't get the color right.

I hope you're not talking about 30 years ago, because remembering a little thing like seat colors from then would be prodigy level memory and I'd have to call your bluff there.

In any event, this is gonna be like Thief, everyone is gonna have a different opinion on what is most loyal. Criterion defaults to the director or cinematographer opinion, and that's good enough for me really.

[EddieLarkin]

Here they're not even red on the Subkultur release:

http://www.caps-a-holic.com/hd_vergl...ess=#vergleich

They're a browny orange. On the Criterion they're red.

[Rockercub]

Originally Posted by EddieLarkin

They're a browny orange. On the Criterion they're red.

More like purplish red. The Second Sight wins for red on that capture. But I'm not gonna claim I remember what shade of red the seats were when I saw it in the theater nearly 35 years ago.

[I KEEL YOU]

Originally Posted by EddieLarkin

Here they're not even red on the Subkultur release:

http://www.caps-a-holic.com/hd_vergl...ess=#vergleich

They're a browny orange. On the Criterion they're red.

They're not properly RED on either release, but the skin tones look more natural on the Subkultur IMO.

[batman144144]

Originally Posted by StingingVelvet

The Criterion disc looks more appropriate to the film for me, personally. It doesn't look flat or dull when you watch it either, it just looks that way in direct comparison to the brighter overseas discs...

Not in my case. I didn't even know there were foreign transfers, or that there was even any debate whatsoever on the topic. As I described earlier, I just popped the Criterion in, and was underwhelmed by it. It looked like a very dated print that had been cleaned up the best they could. It was not until I saw clips of the German transfer that I realized the film could look much, much better.

Too bad we don't have access to the Criterion version before the Cronenberg tweaks.

[Mr Kite]

Originally Posted by batman144144

Not in my case. I didn't even know there were foreign transfers, or that there was even any debate whatsoever on the topic. As I described earlier, I just popped the Criterion in, and was underwhelmed by it. It looked like a very dated print that had been cleaned up the best they could. It was not until I saw clips of the German transfer that I realized the film could look much, much better.

Too bad we don't have access to the Criterion version before the Cronenberg tweaks.

I think it suits the film much better and as I say he directed it and this is how he wants it to look...........which on my TV is very nice indeed.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by batman144144

Not in my case. I didn't even know there were foreign transfers, or that there was even any debate whatsoever on the topic. As I described earlier, I just popped the Criterion in, and was underwhelmed by it. It looked like a very dated print that had been cleaned up the best they could. It was not until I saw clips of the German transfer that I realized the film could look much, much better.

Too bad we don't have access to the Criterion version before the Cronenberg tweaks.

Last time I checked, Criterion actually has the version without the tweaks on Hulu still (presumably iTunes too). It's much better than the BD's colors in my opinion.

I made a post about it earlier with comparisons

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

BD on the top (resized to same width as other shot). Hulu Plus version on the bottom (not in HD). There also appear to be some framing differences too. This is very surprising to me considering this is coming directly from Criterion, and added after the BD release. In my opinion this is how the movie should have looked on BD. Again, not trying to start anything here, but I figured some might find this interesting.

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Last time I checked, Criterion actually has the version without the tweaks on Hulu still (presumably iTunes too). It's much better than the BD's colors in my opinion.

I made a post about it earlier with comparisons

It's also no surprise that it's similar to the DE disc.