The Mad Magician 3D (1954)

[GlacierTuba]

Hadn't a breeze until recently that the Indicator release had the 3D and 2D versions of the film on it. I'm a sucker for 3D and had to get it!

Watched the film in full fat 3D on my Panasonic UB820, connected wirelessly (full fat 3D, lossless original, unconverted audio etc over a DVDO Air3) to a Sony HMZ-T3 and Sennheiser HD598's (perfect for films and telly).

Never seen or heard of this film before, which is bizarre considering I also own the WAC Blu of House of Wax 3D. Anyway, I had an absolute RIOT with this film! Thoroughly enjoyed every single one of its all too brief 72 minutes!

I thought the presentation of the film was superb, both in terms of print quality and that the 3D worked perfectly and wasn't shonky at all. I felt the use of 3D was mostly subtle, but effective and the gimmick 'pop out' shots were absolutely superb. You don't have to wait long for those either, I particularly enjoyed the 'water wand' sequence, that was a joy to watch.

I didn't feel like the gimmick shots outstayed their welcome either. The balance felt just right, and given the subject matter of the film and the profession of the lead character, you'd be asking serious questions as the viewer if the film was devoid of gimmick shots. For the rest of the film, the 3D is subtle but very effective, conveying wonderful depth with each shot coming across like it was planned and dressed specifically for 3D. From actor positional marks to set dressing, even to the ruffs of the sleeves of one actors dress as she is writing her book. It all gels so well and comes across really nicely on screen, even on my left field 3D viewing setup.

Films like The Mad Magician are what 3D was made for and thrives on and I feel it would be criminal to watch this one in 2D (though the option is there if you so desire; the choice is not even present if you are hooked up to a 2D display). Sound quality was nice and clean and clear, no complaints from my amateur ears.

It was nice to see two Super 8 prints presented in anaglyphic 3D. I have a pair of red and cyan glasses so gave both condensed prints a try. The 3D is alright but the full fat feature 3D presentation is leagues ahead of these.

I don't understand the connection, but you also get two short films featuring The Three Stooges on this disc, and BOTH are in 3D! One last 3D bonus is a feature on 3D film history which has some nice clips from.3D films in it so is well worth a watch for those alone, as well as an interesting and informative 3D film history lesson.

I haven't listened to the commentary yet, but I have ripped it to *.ogg and put it on my DAP to listen to on a future commute. Hopefully it's as entertaining as the main feature film!

I had a blast with this film and the disc as a whole. I just wish I had the Luxe edition with the booklet, I'd love to read it. Highly recommend this disc and this film, but whatever you do, watch it in 3D, its what this film was made for and what this film expects and deserves.

Enjoy.

Side note: Did anyone else get an odd proto-Murder, She Wrote meets Columbo vibe off of this film? Just me was it?