British Film Institute (BFI) Discussion Thread

[bygberbrown]

Is it just me, or is BFI releasing a lot of T&A on BD?

ALSO, FYI, seems like The Leopard might not have been delayed at all, but just fogged to allow for an HMV exclusive, coming out in like two weeks. I'll be posting the minute I find a review for it; would be grateful if anyone in UK picks it up, could they give us a general idea whether its ok?

[bygberbrown]

Also, I can't watch Charge of the Light Brigade since hearing it was the movie that caused the establishment of the 1937 Animal Welfare Act because of its method of using tripwires to create a sequence filled with horse falls, at the expense of many horses. Haven't got a good source on the number, but I heard it was ridiculously high.

[quirkmanly]

Originally Posted by bygberbrown

Also, I can't watch Charge of the Light Brigade since hearing it was the movie that caused the establishment of the 1937 Animal Welfare Act because of its method of using tripwires to create a sequence filled with horse falls, at the expense of many horses. Haven't got a good source on the number, but I heard it was ridiculously high.

I think you are referring the 1936 Michael Curtiz's film, whereas the earlier discussion was about the 1968 Tony Richardson effort.

[bygberbrown]

Originally Posted by quirkmanly

I think you are referring the 1936 Michael Curtiz's film, whereas the earlier discussion was about the 1968 Tony Richardson effort.

Ah, yes, sorry. Strike that from the record.

[manicsounds]

"The Leopard" BD is apparently out in HMV as an exclusive. Anyone seen it or can comment on it?

[Arkadin]

for anyone interested--the thread I started at HDD on the Bfi releases.
It's still not completely up to date, but I'll get back to it at some point.

[pro-bassoonist]

Peter Watkins's Privilege (1967) ha received a preliminary release date: January 25, 2010. Courtesy of the BFI.

* All films remastered to High Definition
* Original trailer
* The Diary of an Unknown Soldier (Peter Watkins, 1969)
* The Forgotten Faces (Peter Watkins, 1961, 17 mins)
* Extensive illustrated booklet with essays by Peter Watkins, film historian Robert Murphy, and Watkins specialist John Cook.

Roger Ebert:

In the opening scene of Peter Watkins "Privilege," a pop singer is handcuffed, stuffed in a bag and carried to the stage, where two uniformed guards dump him out.

They hit him with nightsticks and then lock him in a cage. Dazed and bleeding, he sings one song.

Watkins' camera cuts back and forth between the caged singer and his audience, which is filled with tearful screaming, yearning little girls. They love him. They want him. As long as he's safely out of reach up there on the stage, they desperately desire him.

This is the psychology that the pop idol's managers cynically exploit in "Privilege."

But they go one step further in creating their new hero, Steve Shorter (played by Paul Jones). They force him to really suffer, right there on the stage. Then his songs beg his fans to set him free. They'd love to, but a wall of poker-faced cops (also part of the act) protects the stage.

At the end of every act Shorter escapes his cage, the fans riot and the cops pound him some more with nightsticks. Then he's "locked up" again until his next unveiling.

Watkins sets his film in England, "sometime in the near future," and it is intended as the same sort of warning as his brilliant "The War Game."

At the time the movie opens, Shorter is the single most influential person in the country. We are told a coalition government has taken over England, that parties and factions are bad because they divide a nation, and that the new motto is "We All Must Conform."

The government decides to use Shorter as symbol of the new national unity. His managers agree. The three most influential power groups in the country (church, state and public relations) stage a public ceremony in which the singer is freed of his handcuffs, confesses his sins and is set free to embrace the new Fascist state.

Using the semidocumentary approach he developed in "The War Game," Watkins has a narrator comment on the plot. "When asked why they loved Steve Shorter," a dispassionate voice says, "93.5 per cent of those questioned replied, because he gives so unselfishly of himself."

But he doesn't, of course, and with the help of a girl who comes to paint his picture (Jean Shrimpton), the singer steels himself to repudiate the monster that the mass media have made of him.

This is a bitter, uncompromising movie, and although it isn't quite successful it is fascinating and important.

Watkins made a mistake in bringing the newsreel techniques of "The War Game" into a narrative film, where a director should be able to make his point with his story, the performances and the photography.

Still the movie isn't a failure so much as an interesting episode in the career of a director who I think will eventually be ranked with Fellini and Bergman.

Because it is a "director's picture," I've neglected to mention the acting. But if you care, Jones is quite adequate as the pop singer, and Jean Shrimpton is better than I expected. She has something of Julie Christie in her style. Not much, but something.

Pro-B

[pro-bassoonist]

Lindsay Shonteff's Permissive (1970) has received a preliminary release date: January 25, 2010. Courtesy of the BFI.

Synopsis:

When Suzy arrives in London to visit an old school friend, she is unwittingly plunged into the ruthless world of the 'groupie'. Fuelled by sex, drugs and jealousy, her new lifestyle fosters in her a cold, cynical instinct for survival. But tragedy is never far away.

With its effective blend of gritty location work, brooding flash-forward devices, and a soundtrack by cult acid folk and prog rock legends Comus, Forever More - who also star - and Titus Groan, Permissive is a dark British counter-cultural artefact that's shot through with grim authenticity.

As a bonus, this release also includes Stanley Long's ultra-rare Bread, a film which, whilst exploring the same cultural milieu as Permissive (and featuring its own bona fide cult British rock band, Juicy Lucy), takes a somewhat more lighthearted approach to its subject.

Suitable for 18 years and over. Not for sale to persons under age 18. By purchasing this product, you declare that you are 18 years of age and over.

* All films remastered to High Definition
* Original Permissive trailer
* Bread (Stanley Long, 1971, 67 mins)
* Bread - deleted scenes (13 mins)
* 'Ave You Got a Male Assistant Please Miss? (Graham Jones, Jon Astley, 1973, 4 mins): an unreservedly '70s take on the safe sex message
* Extensive illustrated booklet with contributions by I Q Hunter and Lee Dorrian, and Comus band-members' recollections of working on the film.

Gerry O'Hara's That Kind of a Girl (1963) has received a preliminary release date: January 25, 2010. Courtesy of BFI.

*The People at No. 19 (J.B. Holmes, 1948, 17 mins): melodrama exploring the themes of adultery, sexual hygiene and pregnancy from the perspective of an earlier era
*No Place to Hide (Derrick Knight, 1959, 10 mins): a snapshot of the first 'Ban the Bomb' march to Aldermaston
*A Sunday in September (James Hill, 1961, 27 mins): a compelling documentary about a nuclear disarmament demonstration in London, with Vanessa Redgrave.
* Robert Hartford-Davis interview (1968, 14 mins): hods
*Extensive illustrated booklet featuring essays from novelist Cathi Unsworth and director Gerry O'Hara

Synopsis:

In 1960s London, a beautiful continental au pair finds herself wrestling with the affections of an earnest peace-protestor, a dashing young toff and a roguish older man. But fun and freedom turn to shame and despair when she finds that her naivety has put her lovers, and their partners - including the well-meaning Janet (played by Big Zapper's Linda Marlowe, in her first role) - at risk. Stylishly shot in crisp black and white, and set against a backdrop of smoky jazz clubs, 'Ban the Bomb' marches, and evocative London locations, this finely-tuned cautionary tale was the directorial debut of Gerry O'Hara (All the Right Noises, The Brute), and is presented in a new high-definition transfer.

Pro-B

[TedK]

Hi Pro-B!

For clarification purposes, are these Blu-ray? I'm assuming they are, since we're discussing them on this forum. Privilege is one of my all-time favorites! I remember watching this on television (!) back in the late 1970s and thinking how ahead of its time it was, with what Alice Cooper, Bowie, et al, were doing at the time. The SD release last year was wonderful, but I'll upgrade for sure. I watched it earlier this year with my 16-year old son, who was so captivated by it that he became a huge Paul Jones fan! He was also thrilled when I pointed out that he had the vinyl OST album (from my old collection) now in his collection. As a vinyl collector, it is a Holy Grail item! Anyway, I digress.....great news!!!!!!!

Best wishes,
Ted

[Blodskur]

Originally Posted by MichaelB

All Flipside releases are on DVD and Blu-ray, very much including these three.

Privilege will be Region B (non-negotiable contractual stipulation by Universal, the rightsholders), but the other two will be region-free.

Considering all of Universal's Blu-rays are region free anyway, I find that a strange decision. I can't complain as I only have a Region B player, but still.

[pro-bassoonist]

Originally Posted by TedK

Hi Pro-B!

For clarification purposes, are these Blu-ray? I'm assuming they are, since we're discussing them on this forum. Privilege is one of my all-time favorites! I remember watching this on television (!) back in the late 1970s and thinking how ahead of its time it was, with what Alice Cooper, Bowie, et al, were doing at the time. The SD release last year was wonderful, but I'll upgrade for sure. I watched it earlier this year with my 16-year old son, who was so captivated by it that he became a huge Paul Jones fan! He was also thrilled when I pointed out that he had the vinyl OST album (from my old collection) now in his collection. As a vinyl collector, it is a Holy Grail item! Anyway, I digress.....great news!!!!!!!

Best wishes,
Ted

Hello Ted,

I am sorry for the late reply - I've was very busy during the last 48 hours.

Michael has already confirmed what you needed to know (thanks Michael)

I am also looking forward to these releases.

Pro-B

[Bruce Morrison]

Originally Posted by manicsounds

"The Leopard" BD is apparently out in HMV as an exclusive. Anyone seen it or can comment on it?

Unfortunately, there has been what appears to be a video mastering error affecting the last part of the film (roughly the last 70 minutes or so). In this portion of the film, the contrast levels are far too high with the result that the blacks are completely crushed. Sadly this is very evident in the long final ballroom scene, where all the men are wearing black and no detail can be seen at all.

As BFI's official release is scheduled for February, I hope they will take advantage of the intervening period to have this error corrected. This is a classic film and deserves to be treated as such on Blu-ray.

It would help if as many people as possible could write to BFI to express their disappointment and urge them to rectify the problem. The BFI address is:

21 Stephen Street
London W1T 1LN

(I think there's a better chance of them taking notice of letters as opposed to emails.)

[Bruce Morrison]

Originally Posted by MichaelB

Bruce, I know you mean well, but there's really no point.

I can assure you that all the relevant parties are fully aware of the issue you're highlighting, because I emailed them myself (and directly via their personal emails) as soon as the problem came to my attention a couple of days ago.

So a mass letter-writing campaign will achieve absolutely nothing aside from wasting the time of both the letter writer and the recipient - and I don't think that's especially constructive.

OK point taken Michael, but do you know whether the BFI are going to do anything about correcting this problem before the official release date in February? Have you had any response from them?

[pro-bassoonist]

Michael,

Thank you for informing the community.

Pro-B

[Bruce Morrison]

Originally Posted by MichaelB

As promised, I'm posting news on the situation with The Leopard, literally hot off my email.

Excellent news! Thanks for the update, Michael.

[Dubstar]

anyone heard anything if BFI has any future plans on releasing Tati's Playtime on blu, with the feature length commentary track and sourced from an actual 65mm print (Criterion's bluray hidef transfer to me looks mediocre at best)

[johndoyle123]

apparently bfi will release tokyo story blu-ray is this true anyone know

[Arkadin]

that would be sweet!
hope it's true.

[johndoyle123]

http://www.moviemail-online.co.uk/fi...7/Tokyo-Story/

and also a few others

institute benjamenta
http://www.moviemail-online.co.uk/publisher/109/BFI/

[TedK]

Is there any update on the BD of Privilege? This is probably my most eagerly-awaited title at this time.