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| Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Aug 17 2007, 05:39 PM (1,165 Views) | |
| Laughing Gravy | Aug 17 2007, 05:39 PM Post #1 |
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The legendary original version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame starring Lon Chaney has long been promised in a restored edition, and after years of promises Image Entertainment will release a Deluxe Edition on October 9. In addition to a beautifully restored print of the film with a score conducted by Robert Israel, there are plenty of bonus materials, too, including essays and commentary by Chaney biographer Michael F. Blake, footage on the set with Lon, 2-D and 3-D stills (with 3-D glasses), and much more, all for under $25. One of the best buys of the year. |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| Johnny Sokko | Aug 17 2007, 08:07 PM Post #2 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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Would the restoration be any better than their "Milestone Collection" Hard to imagine how they could improve on that print.Its gorgeous. This one. http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-Opera-Ultima...87409806&sr=1-5 |
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| Laughing Gravy | Aug 17 2007, 09:12 PM Post #3 |
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It is, and this is another Milestone presentation, I believe! |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| Laughing Gravy | Oct 11 2007, 07:25 AM Post #4 |
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I tore open that new Image Hunchback last night, and here's what I found. Peripherals: 2 pairs of 3-D glasses so you can look at the "3-D" photos of the set included on the disc (not, alas, paper copies). They look strange, but not 3-D on my set. I wonder how they'd look on my computer, or printed out? There's, oh, a couple dozen 3-D snapshots, maybe. A 90-sec. newsreel, silent, of Chaney sans makeup showing somebody around the set, and imitating Quasimodo climbing up the building, sans stuntman. Very interesting (the set, we're told, covered 19 acres, you know). A colorful reproduction of the 1923 souvenir book sold (for 25¢) wherever the film played. A treat, despite the exaggerations in the pressbook part (Chaney did NOT do his own stunts). Best bonus in the package. A colorful booklet with a lengthy essay from Michael F. Blake, who wrote 3 books on Chaney. Blake, a makeup man himself, does commentary on the film. Okay, the movie. It is NOT as impeccably restored as Milestone's Phantom of the Opera, which looks like new. It IS the best looking version of this film I've ever seen. The score, from what I've heard so far, is appropriate. I haven't watched the film yet, but I will this weekend, I'm sure. I love this movie; Chaney's Quasimodo is one of the great performances in film history. This version, incidentally, runs 117 min. |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| Stony Brooke da Mesquiteer | Oct 11 2007, 07:32 AM Post #5 |
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Sapient Balconeer
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Another MUST BUY for me. My only copy cost a buck and looks like it's worth a buck. |
| It's like Rodney King used to say, "Can't we all get a bong." | |
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| Inspector Carr | Oct 11 2007, 10:45 AM Post #6 |
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Funny this is a film I don't have in my collection (probably because it has been around the PD circuit for years and I could always find a copy somewhere if need be.) how much longer is this restored version? |
| "Life is a Crapshoot however you need a pair of dice to participate" | |
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| Laughing Gravy | Oct 11 2007, 12:17 PM Post #7 |
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According to amazon.com, the old Image offering (the best I'd seen, prior to this) was 97 min. long. This is 117. That's nearly 20 min. If this is to be believed. I will compare when I can. Channel 43 (Lorain/Cleveland) used to show a Saturday Night Silent Film for awhile; that's where I first saw this film, and Metropolis, The General, and The Last Laugh, and many other great films that are still amongst my favorites. |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| George Kaplan | Oct 14 2007, 02:52 PM Post #8 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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I think this is the most complete version we're going to get. The commentary by Michael F. Blake is generally detailed and interesting but occasionally somewhat aimless (a hazard for anyone who has to hold forth for nearly two hours, it's true). I wish someone had made an effort to discuss the print that was used for this "ultimate" edition. It was "mastered in high definition from an original multi-tinted print," we're told; yet Blake describes one blue-tinted scene as having originally been tinted green. Was any restoration attempted? The images are far sharper than any p.d. print I've ever seen, but the scratches make some scenes look like they were filmed during a driving rain. Fortunately, the scratches diminish significantly during the final reel. |
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| Laughing Gravy | Nov 15 2007, 02:24 PM Post #9 |
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The nearly 20-min. difference in running times appears to be, not new footage but, caused by running the film at a proper, slower speed on the new edition. |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| Inspector Carr | Nov 15 2007, 05:53 PM Post #10 |
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Charter Member
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A similar tale was spun when there were two versions of Haxan Witchcraft through the ages..........the original silent version as well as a later narrated version by William S. Burroughs......remarks were made about the longer running time of the silent version...........the only reason being is that the extra time for that version was the extra time for title cards.........
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| "Life is a Crapshoot however you need a pair of dice to participate" | |
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| Laughing Gravy | May 25 2013, 08:51 PM Post #11 |
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![]() Universal Horror Classics #1 The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) Prod. Irving Thalberg; Dir. Wallace Worsley Watched this again to kick off a new series 'round the Balcony of Universal "monster movies". Pretty much everything worth sayin' about the DVD has been said in this thread; I love this film for Chaney's performance and the wonderful Cathedral set, partially full-sized and partially a "hanging miniature" suspended in front of the camera to line up with the full-sized portion of the set. If I ever noticed that Raymond Hatton is in this film, I'd forgotten it. Treat to see him when was so young (he plays Gringoire). Chaney fought bitterly with Universal over a choice of directors; he wanted an "A-list" guy but Universal wanted a guy who could bring the expensive film in economically and on time. Worsley was a compromise, and he does a good job. Chaney's makeup was based on actual sketches by Victor Hugo, and most of what you've heard about it isn't true (the hump weighed 70 lbs? Puh-leeze). It's not Chaney's best makeup (The Phantom is that, I think) but it sure is bizarre. The film cost $1.25 million to produce, but played in New York's Astor Theatre for 21 weeks and ended up pulling in $3 million, Universal's most successful silent film. |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| riddlerider | May 26 2013, 10:42 AM Post #12 |
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Balcony Gang, Foist Class
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After reading Gravy's latest addition to this thread, I reviewed some of the earlier posts and came across a reference to the discrepancy in running times. And that reminded me of a story about HUNCHBACK. Twenty-some years ago, I happened to be in L.A. on business the week that a screening of HUNCHBACK was being hosted by the Silent Society, which generally meets at the reconstructed DeMille Barn in Hollywood. Leading lady Patsy Ruth Miller, who had just finished her autobiography, was due to attend, and I could count on seeing most of my film-buff friends in the area. So the whole affair was quite serendipitous. David Shepard bought his lovely tinted 16mm Show-at-Home print and ran it on a specially constructed projector that enabled him to project at variable speeds, rather than the standard 18 or 24 frames per second. Those of you who are acquainted with David know of his film-speed fetish, and can probably guess that he insisted on projecting HUNCHBACK at 16 fps. It was a warm night, so the close quarters and slow speed took their toll on some of those in attendance -- including David, who started nodding off about a half-hour in. My friend Bob Birchard, another Silent Society officer, was waiting for that. When he saw David's head sink to his chest, he scuttled back to the projector and adjusted the speed to 20 fps, what it should have been in the first place. A little while later, David woke up, looked at the screen, and decided the film was running too fast. So he turned the rheostat control back down to 16. But a few minutes later he was dozing again and, once more, Bob tiptoed back and cranked the speed up to 20. Five minutes later David revived and again readjusted. This went on for the rest of the movie and provided a great deal of amusement to those of us who could see what was going on. I don't think the constant fluctuations in speed mattered much to the audience members, most of whom had seen the picture a half-dozen times and were there primarily to hear Patsy reminisce about it afterward. But I seem to remember David and Bob having quite the little set-to after the proceedings ended. |
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| panzer the great & terrible | May 27 2013, 10:31 AM Post #13 |
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Mouth Breather
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I think it's worth pointing out that David does not like this film -- and I agree with him. |
| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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| Laughing Gravy | May 27 2013, 10:39 AM Post #14 |
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Ah, and yet... I love it, and consider it one of the quintessential films everybody must see before they die. It took me a long time to warm up to the '39 version 'cause I enjoy this one so much... it's a spectacle and a half. To me, the only weak point is Patsy Ruth Miller, who is not very attractive and a howlingly bad dancer. But I've never seen a movie with so many subplots. Highly entertaining stuff. And Lon Chaney! |
| "I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley | |
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| panzer the great & terrible | May 27 2013, 11:38 AM Post #15 |
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Mouth Breather
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That's what makes a horserace. |
| Life is just a bowl of cherries, it's too mysterious, don't take it serious... | |
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