Well, I know this is certainly going to make a few folks around here happy!
I've never seen this movie, but perhaps given its pedigree and champions, I should check it out. There are other late-in-the-year Criterion releases forthcoming that are higher on my agenda, though.
I've waited a long time for this, so yes I'm very very that Criterion is releasing the restoration. Very very.
I would have thought, that with all the research and writing Paul Seydor has done on the film, they would have invited him to do a commentary. I had also hoped that all the various interviews done with the cast and crew over the years -- Ben Johnson recorded several -- that some of it would have found a way into the supplements. While I relish the transfer and release, the film screams out for more supplements.
Finally!! A decent representation from The Criterion Collection. I swore i would never buy that crummy looking public domain version on D.V.D. until I got word that both Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg supervised a fully restored version. I'm finally going to see this film in its true widescreen technicolor glory, with that great Hugo Friedhofer score too!!! Congratulations Criterion!!!
A friend saw the film restoration at AMIA's The Reel Thing just last night. He reports that
"The results look great--sharp, detailed with excellent color. Sourced from a DME mag [dialogue, music effects], the audio was also superb. A Universal exec said the original negative suffered from fading in the blue layer, so one of the separations on file was used to help recover the color. They had three vintage prints to look at for reference. Scorsese and Spielberg were active participants, providing a lot of feedback as the restoration progressed. At one point Spielberg showed Scorsese images from the film on his iPhone by long distance, as it screened. Scorsese appears in a video introduction before the film, mostly discussing its production and history. The intro will presumably be on the Criterion disc. Those of you who like the film should be very pleased."
