|
|
This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2
|
|
Author
|
Topic: Looking for Blade Runner & King Kong
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stephen Furley
Film God
Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002
|
posted 09-10-2003 03:35 PM
Martin wrote:
quote:
A beautiful print of King Kong was run in the last year at the Loews Jersey
Were you there Martin?
I flew over with just a few days planning because things were bad at work, and I just had to get away from things for a few days. I arrived on the afternoon of the first screening of the weekend, and returned home on the Wednesday morning. As I walked past the theatre an hour or so before the show I met Bernie Anderson; he was quite surprised to see me there.
It was indeed a very good print, as has been almost everything, at least the features, that I have seen there.
The last two film seasons there have been programmed by Bob Furmanek. He has been very successful, both in programming material which has brought in a good sized audience, and in obtaining some very good prints. I don't know if he will be programming the next season of film at the theatre, at the moment he is involved with the forthcomming 3-D festival.
| IP: Logged
|
|
Martin Brooks
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 900
From: Forest Hills, NY, USA
Registered: May 2002
|
posted 09-10-2003 07:00 PM
Yep, I was there (otherwise I wouldn't have posted comments about the print quality.) Here's my comments about the show from my original posting:
quote:
I was at the screening last night for King Kong, which I enjoyed thoroughly. I didn't realize how much I had forgotten about my childhood experiences viewing movies in a "palace."
Although most of the original ornamentation is in place at the Loew's Jersey (except for statuary and fountains in the hallways and lobbys), it was sad to see the toll that time has taken on the theatre. It was like going back to the childhood home that you loved and seeing the windows broken, the paint peeling, etc. And yet, the details and ornamentation were overwhelming and the atmosphere made me feel like I was 10 years old again.
Perhaps even more than the movie itself, all of the trailers and other ancillary materials and snipes brought me back to my childhood (and also gave the audience lots of laughs.) Even the trailer for Ghostbusters seemed like it came from some long by-gone era.
The image was impressively large, seemingly using all of the height available in the theatre. Seems to me that a 1.85 and especially an anamorphic presentation in this theatre would have so much less height as to be far less impressive.
The color images in the trailers had a color depth and sheen that you don't usually see today (in the older films, but not in the later Ghostbusters trailer, which was dark and murky). How much of this is due to the Technicolor processes used in the films and how much is due to the carbon arc presentation, I couldn't tell you. But while watching it, it almost made me think that either the carbon arc or the color processes were the equivalent of "analog" as compared with today's colder "digital" images. There were very warm colors in the "Horror of Dracula" trailer and extremely bright colors in the "Artists & Models" trailer that you never see on film today. But maybe that's because most filmmakers today desaturate the colors in their films.
The other aspect that impressed me was the sound quality. I had expected to be completely turned off by the optical (obviously non-Dolby) 1930's sound quality. Even as a kid I thought that film sound sucked, especially after getting a chance to see some of the Todd-AO and Cinerama films in first-run theatres. But the sound was surprisingly effective. I didn't miss the stereo spread, the higher frequencies or lower distortion of today's sound systems. At the same time that much of the dialogue sounded clipped, it also sounded surprisingly warm. And the long reverb delay time of the theatre's acoustics also brought me back to my youth and made me smile.
The print of King Kong was probably as good as could be expected for a 70-yr-old film and it was great to see it on a large screen, but the problem in seeing Kong in a theatre is that it made all of the special effects so much more obvious.
I'd estimate the crowd at 200-300 people. They were all very enthusiastic and cheered and laughed throughout the presentation. I just might swing back there tonight for the two horror films.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
Stephen Furley
Film God
Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002
|
posted 09-11-2003 03:06 PM
MMartin wrote:
quote:
Yep, I was there (otherwise I wouldn't have posted comments about the print quality.) Here's my comments about the show from my original posting:
I didn't know if you had seen some of it other than at the public show, e.g. at a trial run if you worked at the theatre.
I've been to three events there, the science fiction weekend in April 2002, and the Frankenstein weekend, exactly a year later being the others. I had hoped to go back again this year, but it won't be possible. Maybe next spring, before the next film season ends.
The stock of carbons isn't going to last forever, there are still quite a few left, and I want to get over at least once more while they still have some.
When I was there in April this year the organ console was on the lift, but incomplete at that time. It shouldn't be too long before at least some of the organ is playable.
There's still a lot of work to be done on the theatre, and it won't be a quick job, but they have been getting some good audiences, about 700 for the Saturday of the Frankenstein weekend. If I lived a bit nearer I would join the volenteers, but I can't exactly pop over after work.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
Stephen Furley
Film God
Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002
|
posted 09-12-2003 02:35 PM
When I was there for 'King Kong' I asked Bernie about the carbon supply. He said that he had enough to last for about two years. That was almost a year ago. In April I went up to the projection box with Scott Norwood after the show; there were still quite a few boxes left, there has only been one film weekend since then before they closed for the Summer. The Ashcraft manual lists two suppliers for the uncoated positives and 'special' (whatever that means) negatives, National and Lorraine. Both have now stopped production of carbons. Carbons are still being produced in Japan, India and China, but I have heard that Chineese production may end soon.
My guess is that the Loews will have to convert eventually. I hope to get there at least once more before that happens. In the meantime, if anyone has any spare carbons for Ashcraft Super Core-lites that they would like to donate ....
I am old enough to remember the time when most cinemas were burning carbons. Gradually, they all converted. I could always tell, as soon as the light hit the screen that this had happened. Xenon just looks somehow different, it's not just a question of the colour temperature, there's something else different about it; I'm not even sure what it is. There are now no cinemas that I know of using carbons in the South of England; the last two converted quite recently. The last I heard there were a couple of places in the North still on carbons, but the future of one was thought to be in doubt.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stephen Furley
Film God
Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002
|
posted 09-14-2003 03:45 AM
If you want something like '7s and 8s' for a Peerless Magnarc, then it's not hard to find old stock of carbons, the ones for the Ashcraft Super Core-Lites are a rather different matter, far less places used them for one thing. These are big carbons, not quite wartime searchlight size, but much larger than most projection lanterns use. The postives are about 13mm diameter, at the moment the Loews is using joinable ones which are about 11 inches long, non-joinable ones are much longer, about 20 inches. They are rotated as they burn, and are not copper coated; the current is fed in via water cooled silver jaws, close to the arc end of the carbon. They run at about 160 Amperes. I dread to think what they would cost today, even the smallest sizes were over a pound a pair the last time I looked.
Joinable carbons haven't been made for years, I don't know why, they seem like a good idea.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All times are Central (GMT -6:00)
|
This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2
|
Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM
6.3.1.2
The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion
and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.
|
Home
Printer-friendly view of this topic