Opera (1987)

[Akijama]

This new deluxe 3 disc blu-ray set features A new 2K Scan with Extensive Color Correction in 3 Presentations - 2.35:1 Super 35, 1.78:1, and the US Orion Pictures Cut.

The blu-ray includes a Limited Edition Slipcover and 9x11 Mini Poster with the new artwork by Yannick Bouchard while supplies last. Plus, the first 450 units ordered on launch date will also include a Limited Edition VHS Box Style Magnet

Here a breakdown of each disc:

• DISC 1: Opera - 2.35:1 Super 35, 4 Audio Tracks: English 5.1, English Stereo, Italian Mono with English Subtitles, and Cannes English Mono, English Captions, Audio Commentary by Mondo Digital's Nathaniel Thompson, Interviews with Director Dario Argento and Coralina Cataldi Tassoni, International Trailer
• DISC 2: Opera - 1.78:1, 4 Audio Tracks: English 5.1, English Stereo, Italian Mono with English Subtitles, and Cannes English Mono, English Captions, Audio Commentary by Film Historian Troy Howarth, Interviews with William McNamara, and Barbara Cupisti, Opera Music Video
• DISC 3: Opera - US Orion Pictures Cut, English Stereo Audio, Interviews with Composer Claudio Simonetti, Screenwriter Franco Ferrini, Special Effects Artist Sergio Stivaletti , Makeup Artist Franco Casagni, Inspector Urbano Barerini, Press Agent Enrico Lucherini, and Film Historian Fabrizio Spurio, Backstage: Behind the Scenes Footage, US Trailer

[Show spoiler]Well, how about that? Certainly an unexpected bit of news. Hopefully, CR will deliever, even though I'm not the biggest fan of this flick out there.

Code Red had posted the pic from Opera on their FB page, and their release was confirmed by Don May (of Synapse) (check the last two posts):

[RiFiFi1955]

OH SNAP, it's true! OKay Code Red, do it good!

[cakefactory]

Nice, good for him. This is definitely the biggest title he's gotten yet on blu-ray at least (dunno about DVD). The only problem I can see with it is that if it's another limited to 1500 or less run it might sell out in 5 seconds flat on SAE.

[MifuneFan]

Maybe Arrow also will claim rights, and there will be another Pit Stop situation upcoming

[RandyK]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Maybe Arrow also will claim rights, and there will be another Pit Stop situation upcoming

Arrow put out a DVD of it a few years ago. They could still have the UK rights. I'll wait awhile and see if they put it out.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Maybe Arrow also will claim rights, and there will be another Pit Stop situation upcoming

Assuming Bill funds a new scan, I would expect more of a Madman situation where they just come in and do a copy of his edition after they see how successful it is. As long as he's first, whatever. I'll go with his version if they're similar, and both if they're not. They might also just never release it!

[Brian81]

Is the current HD master making rounds mediocre to bad? Noting Don May Jr.'s comment.

[Frightener22]

Wonderful to see some confirmation on this. One of my favorite Argento flicks!

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by Brian81

Is the current HD master making rounds mediocre to bad? Noting Don May Jr.'s comment.

http://www.landofwhimsy.com/archives...essions-opera/

First up, the transfer clearly isn’t brand spanking new. The framing and colour balance differ substantially from that of the 2001 DVD release from Anchor Bay (and the 2003 release from Arrow, which used the same transfer), but it does have a similar overall look to other HD transfers created in the early 2000s (e.g. the non-remastered version of GLADIATOR). The result is an image that is not especially well-defined. It doesn’t have the harsh video noise that afflicts the likes of THE CAT O’ NINE TAILS and DEEP RED, but since that noise itself creates an illusion of detail that isn’t actually there, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that there is actually as much if not more actual detail present here than on the BD releases of the aforementioned two films. It’s soft, but not disastrously so, and in the tight close-ups of the actors’ faces that Argento often favours in this film, it actually looks pretty good. The awful edge enhancement that plagued the aforementioned initial release of GLADIATOR is also absent, putting this disc well ahead of that notorious botch job.
What IS present, unfortunately, is a number of artefacts derived from a bad deinterlacing job. I’m not sure whether the source genuinely was 1080i or someone who didn’t know what they were doing mistakenly clicked the “deinterlace” checkbox, but throughout the film you can see all sorts of dancing gunk along the top and bottom of the letterbox bars (see Example 2). This isn’t the end of the world, since when you’re paying attention to what’s happening within the frame rather than what’s happening on the edges of it, but it’s there, and distracting if your eye happens to catch it. However, on top of that, there’s also quite a bit of aliasing. Much of the time, it’s not particularly noticeable as, owing to the overall lack of detail, there aren’t too many well-defined diagonal edges to be affected. On occasions, though, as in Example 10 and Example 28, it does rear its ugly head and can be quite distracting. The rendering of the grain is also extremely variable. Sometimes it looks pretty good; other times, it appears quite clumpy --the result, most likely of poor encoding. For the record, the disc is a BD25 and the film itself takes up 21 GB.
Despite these significant negatives, I’m inclined to cut this presentation some slack. No, it doesn’t look brilliant, but it’s a long way from the worst-looking BD of an Argento film. It represents a sizeable upgrade over both the Arrow and Anchor Bay DVDs, and overall looks rather better than the first set of screen captures I saw led me to believe.

[Brian81]

cakefactory: Just looked at the caps on the review/link you posted. The look of them reminds me of the master for 'Inferno' (ie. a bit soft). It looks good, not great. I wouldn't complain about it unless there's aliasing.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by Brian81

cakefactory: Just looked at the caps on the review/link you posted. The look of them reminds me of the master for 'Inferno' (ie. a bit soft). It looks good, not great. I wouldn't complain about it unless there's aliasing.

Yeah, it sounds like it could be improved on, and that review also mentions the audio is pretty screwed up, but the video quality doesn't sound intolerable. Also, Don May Jr is the guy that thought the Wild Side transfer of Tenebre (I believe it's widely considered one of the very best transfers out there of an Italian genre flick) could be improved on and went about doing the tedious work of fixing it himself. Guy's about the best in the business and one of the biggest perfectionists (Synapse is famous for not releasing things until they're perfect and thus having extensive delays), so of course he hopes for other people going the extra mile(s).

[kp404]

Originally Posted by J-BONE

So going by Bill's previous work I can expect a low quantity run of lets say 1000, no reversible artwork, no inside artwork, no insert or booklet, barley any special features and a so so transfer (yes its a little too early to judge). I am going off of what I have seen for a while now. Sorry I am a little salty about this because this Film needs a really good treatment and who knows maybe this is a dream project for Bill and will knock it out of the park with this one but I am not holding my breath. I honestly think this is one of the biggest Titles for Code Red if not the biggest.

Outside of Nail Gun Massacre, this is easily the biggest Code Red title ever and I believe Bill, (probably working in conjunction with Scorpion to help with extras), will really do this title justice.

[Undeadcow]

Originally Posted by J-BONE

So going by Bill's previous work I can expect a low quantity run of lets say 1000

That would be foolish; Code Red has had higher printing of more in demand titles and even recently reprinted a second 1000+ run of popular releases.

Originally Posted by J-BONE

...barley any special features...

Code Red produces many of their own special features; it's highly likely they will continue to do the same for such a high profile film as Opera. While the quality/quantity of CR features varies I would hardly call them 'bare.' For a while that was Code Red/Scoprion's "thing," making special features.

Originally Posted by J-BONE

...no reversible artwork, no inside artwork, no insert or booklet...

What?!? No reversible artwork? Skip from me!

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by kp404

Outside of Nail Gun Massacre, this is easily the biggest Code Red title ever and I believe Bill, (probably working in conjunction with Scorpion to help with extras), will really do this title justice.

If CR is working in conjunction with Scorpion I wonder what the likelihood is of this title being distributed by Kino.

[schlock]

Originally Posted by kp404

Outside of Nail Gun Massacre, this is easily the biggest Code Red title ever and I believe Bill, (probably working in conjunction with Scorpion to help with extras), will really do this title justice.

I agree Opera is his biggest title, but you're putting "Nail Gun Massacre" in the same league???

[kp404]

Originally Posted by schlock

I agree Opera is his biggest title, but you're putting "Nail Gun Massacre" in the same league???

I was saying before Opera, Nail Gun massacre was Code Red's biggest release

[Seymour]

I think Just Before Dawn is definitely bigger than Nail Gun Massacre.

[Undeadcow]

Originally Posted by kp404

I was saying before Opera, Nail Gun massacre was Code Red's biggest release

Arguably Just Before Dawn, Messiah of Evil, Tobe Hooper's Spontaneous Combustion, Neon Maniacs, Savage Streets and/or some of the Roger Corman titles are "bigger" than Nail Gun Massacre.

[WesReviews]

Excited to finally own this on Blu.

[Kriztoffer Swank]

Hoping for a new scan (I have the JP BD and it looks pretty good but more could be done) and both US and international English tracks, plus the Italian track with literal subtitles if Bill really wanted to go all out.