Warning to Kubrick Fanatics: Start Saving Your Pennies!
Filed under: Classics, Warner Brothers, Home Entertainment
Wowwy wow wow. I knew there were some new Stanley Kubrick special editions on the way, but I had no idea that Warner was going all out with new features! I don't even know where to begin! (OK, breathe.) According to DVDActive.com, five of the master's films will be hitting the shelves as part of a massive box set. Those films are The Shining, A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Eyes Wide Shut. All of 'em 2-disc widescreen treat-laden Special Editions! (And yes the DVDs will also be available outside of the box set.)Each of the 2-disc sets come with documentaries / featurettes both old and new, but what I find most exciting are the all-new audio commentaries. (Yes, I'm a commentary nerd. No apologies.) The new chat-tracks break down like so: On 2001 we get actors Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood; on Clockwork it's the awesome Malcolm McDowell and film historian Nick Redman; on Eyes Wide Shut we'll hear from actor/director Sydney Pollack and professor Peter J. Loewenberg; The Shining delivers Steadicam creator Garrett Brown and Kubrick biographer John Baxter; and (this should be great) on Full Metal Jacket the participants will be actors Adam Baldwin, R. Lee Ermey, Vincent D'Onofrio and film critic-turned-screenwriter Jay Cocks. (What, Matthew Modine was too busy?)
And again I'll reiterate an important factor: All of these DVDs (which have been approved by Mr. Kubrick's estate) will come in digitally remastered widescreen. (The old-school Kubrickians know what I'm talking about.)
The discs will hit the stores on October 23, and if you're not satisfied by these five offerings, you can also pick up the new-but-movie-only releases of Kubrick's Barry Lyndon and Lolita. And just to quell any confusion, I'll remind you that Dr. Strangelove and Paths of Glory are Sony properties, whereas Spartacus is a Universal title. That's why they're not included here. But hats off to Warner Bros. for this inevitably awesome box set!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-22-2007 @ 11:50AM
Norm said...
Wowwy is right! Holy moly, the commentary selections are just superb. Whether you like, hate, love or just admire Kubrick, I can't imagine this edition of 2001 not being mandatory in everyone's library.
Thus begins the flooding of the used DVD market with all those single DVDs from the weaker "Kubrick Collection."
-Norm S.
www.meetinthelobby.com
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8-22-2007 @ 5:16PM
Buck.Turgidson said...
Um...I could be mistaken but Eyes Wide Shut's aspect ratio was not "widescreen".
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8-22-2007 @ 6:33PM
Carsten said...
The only movie in this box which was shot widescreen is 2001. All the other were shot standard academy 4:3 and were intended to be like that. Kubrick's framing of shots are based on that aspect ratio. Just imagine those wonderful shots in The Shining were you can actually see bottom and ceiling. If they release it in widescreen that must mean that they are actually CROPPING those masterpieces into something Kubrick did not want. If those DVDs really come in widescreen I will definitely stay far, far away from them. This is as bad as making widescreen movies full screen. Are we getting the "this movie's format was changed to fit your screen" back but now they are making full screen movies wide? I cannot wait for a "widescreen" special edition of Casablanca...
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8-22-2007 @ 10:25PM
Adam Schoales said...
Not according to IMDB. i quickly checked out the shinning and eyes wide shut.
SHINING:
1.66 : 1 (theatrical ratio, Europe)
1.85 : 1 (theatrical ratio, USA)
EWS:
1.66 : 1 (theatrical ratio, Europe)
1.85 : 1 (theatrical ratio, USA)
1.37 : 1 (negative ratio)
so I dont know if its just cropping or what, but it looks like they were shown in the theatres widescreen. I remember Kubrick wanted them to be in full frame on TV because the TV is a square, but that was before widescreen tvs were available. Im sure were he alive today he'd want them to fill the whole television set.
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8-23-2007 @ 12:50AM
Esoterikal said...
No high definition? Sure, its taken them this long to give these movies their due, but still... high def? please?
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