King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

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pvitari
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King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

Post by pvitari »

(This looked great digitally projected at Graumann's Chinese during the TCM classic film festival. Really looking forward to having it on Blu-ray.)

One of the Greatest Adventures of All Time Makes Its Long-Awaited Blu-ray™ Debut

KING KONG (1933)
Newly Remastered and Loaded with Extras
Presented in a Visually Stunning Blu-ray Book

Burbank, Calif. May 31, 2010 – On September 28, 2010, the original 1933 RKO classic King Kong makes its long awaited debut on Blu-ray Disc™. Presented by Warner Home Video, the newly remastered King Kong features extensive bonus content, including a collectible Blu-ray Book written by renowned film historian Rudy Behlmer; a feature length documentary on Kong creator Merian C. Cooper, directed by acclaimed filmmakers Kevin Brownlow and Christopher Bird; commentary by Ray Harryhausen and Ken Ralston with Merian C. Cooper and Fay Wray; and a seven-part documentary that delves deeply into just about every aspect of the making of the film. Orders are due August 24, 2010 (SRP $34.99).

With 32 pages of rare photography and trivia, the captivating Blu-ray Book, written by Rudy Behlmer, centers around the vision of director, Merian C. Cooper and his larger than life persona that brought the story of King Kong to the screen. A prolific film researcher and historian, Behlmer personally interviewed Cooper and has written numerous books and contributed to a wide variety of documentaries, videos, DVDs and laser discs about Hollywood's Golden Age.

In this very special Blu-ray release, the newly remastered film is presented in its 1933 entirety and includes scenes that were originally considered too shocking for the 1938-1956 re-releases. With equal parts adventure, horror and old-fashioned romance, King Kong is a milestone of movie-making that has endured for more than seven decades. Named as one of the “100 Best Films of All Time” by Time Magazine, King Kongpremiered in New York City in 1933. The film was an instant success, breaking box-office records to become one of the top moneymakers of the 1930s.

King Kong’s state-of-the-art visual effects, entertaining story and touching conclusion captivated audiences and started a worldwide love affair with the giant ape. The film has also been included in seven of the American Film Institute’s Top 100 lists, including the “100 Years...100 Movies” list.

A film ahead of its time, King Kong defied the technological limitations of the 1930s. Special effects pioneer Willis O’Brien’s revolutionary stop-motion animation was not only technically brilliant but also highly imaginative and continues to impress even in today’s era of computer-generated wizardry. Directed and produced by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, with a rousing score by Max Steiner (who also scored Gone with the Wind), King Kong stars Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot and Fay Wray, whose memorable performance as damsel in distress Ann Darrow cemented her place in pop culture and earned her the nickname “The Queen of Scream.”

In addition to its Blu-ray debut, King Kong is available On Demand from cable and satellite providers, and for permanent download and digital rental through iTunes, Amazon Video On Demand, PlayStation Store and Xbox LIVE Zune Video Marketplace.

Film Synopsis

King Kong (1933)
Robert Armstrong stars as movie producer Carl Denham who travels to a mysterious, uncharted island in search of material for his next film. Also aboard are unemployed actress Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and adventurer Jack Driscoll (Bruce Cabot). Once the crew reaches Skull Island they discover it is home to prehistoric beasts including Kong, a giant ape who becomes obsessed with the crew’s blonde starlet. King Kong teems with memorable moments, from the audience’s first glance at the giant ape to his last stand atop the Empire State Building.

Special Features:
Commentary by Ray Harryhausen and Ken Ralston, with Merian C. Cooper and Fay Wray
Merian C. Cooper Movies Trailer Gallery
I’m King Kong! The Exploits of Merian C. Cooper (2005 documentary)
RKO Production 601: The Making of Kong, Eighth Wonder of the World
a. The Origins of “King Kong”
b. Willis O’Brien and “Creation”
c. Cameras Roll on Kong, The Eighth Wonder
d. A Milestone in Visual Effects
e. Passion, Sound and Fury
f. The Mystery of the Lost Spider Pit Sequence
g. King Kong’s Legacy
Creation Test Footage with Commentary by Ray Harryhausen

Note: All enhanced content listed above is subject to change.

Consumer Demand for Blu-ray Continues to Surge

According to DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group, with input from all major motion picture studios, Blu-ray software continued to see significant growth in the first quarter of 2010, with sell-through up 61 percent and rental up 36 percent, compared to the same period last year. The DEG also announced that Blu-ray hardware sales experienced remarkable growth, with set-tops up an astounding 125 percent versus first quarter 2009, indicating a strong consumer demand for Blu-ray.


King Kong (1933)
Blu-ray Disc™
Rating: NR
Aspect Ratio: 1:37: 1
Black & White
Subtitles: English, French and Spanish (Feature Film Only)
Street Date: September 28, 2010
FERT #: 1000088610
UPC #: 883929055609
$34.99 SRP
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Gagman 66
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

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:roll: With respect, KING KONG has been seen Millions of times, and released over and over again. I have a tough time getting pumped about yet another restoration. What's more I struggle to see a huge difference in the Stop-Animation technique from this move and 1925's THE LOST WORLD. Now when are we gonna get THE BIG PARADE???? TCM just aired a unique segment on the new restoration of the4 1954 version of A STAR IS BORN. It was great, but basically, the same thing was done with THE BIG PARADE clear back in 2004, and the new master still has not been seen on TCM these past 6 years, let alone released on DVD and now Blu-ray. :cry:
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MichiganJ
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

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Gagman 66 wrote:I have a tough time getting pumped about yet another restoration. What's more I struggle to see a huge difference in the Stop-Animation technique from this move and 1925's THE LOST WORLD.
I'm surprised that you struggle so to see the differences in O'Brien's Stop-Motion techniques between The Lost World and King Kong. The Lost World, as fun as it is, is light years behind Kong in both artistry and most importantly, characterization. I would argue that the performance O'Brien achieves from Kong, a ten-to-twelve- inch puppet (depending on the scene), is one of the more amazing things in cinema, especially considering that performance was achieved one frame at a time. In Kong, O'Brien not only enhanced his animation skills, but he also created all sorts of innovative techniques, including combing rear and front screen projection with live action.
Gagman 66 wrote:KING KONG has been seen Millions of times, and released over and over again
While perhaps seen millions of times, Kong finally saw its initial DVD release in late 2005, coinciding with the release of Jackson's film. (By the way, Jackson modeled his CGI Kong on the performance of Andy Serkis, and O'Brien's puppet still gave a better performance).

It's been my experience that the older films benefit the most from Blu-ray, at least if they are struck from an HD master. (The new films look nearly the same on DVD as Blu, but the uncompressed sound on Blu is substantially better.) On Blu, the older films have a much greater depth-of-field (almost 3-D in effect, without needing the glasses), and easily involve the viewer more. King Kong seems a perfect fit for Blu and I'm really looking forward to it.

Who knows why The Big Parade hasn't been released, but I don't see the correlation between the impending Kong release with the non-release of The Big Parade. There have been a number of silents released on Blu (considering how few classics are out on Blu, silents aren't doing too badly--City Girl looking the best), so maybe there's hope yet for a release.
"Let's be independent together." Dr. Hermey DDS
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Gagman 66
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

Post by Gagman 66 »

Kevin,

:shock: Hey, I don't mind KONG. I have seen it dozens of times over the years. And than there's Fay Wray. So what's not to like. KONG not released on DVD until 2005? Interesting because that is the year that THE BIG PARADE should have been released. Both BEN HUR (1925) and THE GARBO SILENTS set with FLESH AND THE DEVIL came out that year. It is unclear if the new Blu-ray of the 1959 BEN HUR will contain the 1925 release or not?

Did you get my E-mail about 75 Lost Silents being found in New Zealand? Including some pretty dig discoveries. John Ford, Clara Bow, Mabel Normand, Ramon Novarro, Jacqueline Logan movies just to name a few.


http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/movies/07silent.html


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Clara Bow from MAYTIME (1923) One of the many previously lost Silents uncovered in A New Zealand Archive in the past few months.
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MichiganJ
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

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Gagman 66 wrote:Did you get my E-mail about 75 Lost Silents being found in New Zealand? Including some pretty dig discoveries. John Ford, Clara Bow, Mabel Normand, Ramon Novarro, Jacqueline Logan movies just to name a few.
I did, and perhaps redundantly I started a thread in the Silents & Precodes section, also including a link to the National Film Preservation Foundation's partial list of films.

Pretty awesome news.
"Let's be independent together." Dr. Hermey DDS
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pvitari
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

Post by pvitari »

I would think the news about the New Zealand discovery definitely deserves a thread of its own rather than being stuck onto a thread about the King Kong Blu-ray/DVD.

Though Clara Bow looks so adorable in that still, she would make any man go ape!
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pvitari
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Re: King Kong -- Remastered and on Blu-ray Too

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Blu-ray Packaging! (Paula's beats chest, leaps about the jungle, and howls in anticipation)

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