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Just a heads up that a blu-ray box set of the two Hercules films starring Steve Reeves is coming March 25th from Japan. I will try and link the page at Amazon Japan. I have no idea what the quality of these transfers will be. For now this is the only option to get these films on blu-ray.
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07NR8BQQ2/ref=pe_492632_159100282_TE_item
I did bite the bullet -- the set, including shipping, was $69.92.
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I love these films, but I would never pay this kind of money, unless they were both pristine remasters in widescreen.
Any announced extras?
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any idea if they have English dialogue
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Oops,twitchy finger
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any idea if they have English dialogue
According to the Google translation of the Amazon web page:
specifications
1920 × 1080 FULL HD (original: scope size) / color / audio 1: Italian ( 2ch monaural) / Japanese subtitles
Typical
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I have absolutely no idea what to expect! Could be a total waste of my money - I will report my amateur opinion when I've had a chance to watch the discs. I have other versions of the films - import DVDs and a version somewhere that I transferred from TCM -- and will compare as best I can.
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TCM generally shows widescreen.
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The box set of HERCULES and HERCULES UNCHAINED arrived on Friday. I’ve had a chance to watch both films. With the caveat that I am absolutely no expert on technical aspects of this release, this is my very amateur report:
Two clear plastic keep cases housed in a dark purple, glossy, cardboard case. Included are 8 postcard stills – standard images from the films that would have been lobby displayed, etc. Booklets are included with each film – containing color stills. Texts in Japanese of course.
Language options – only Italian. Subtitle options – only Japanese.
Timings: my OPPO says HERCULES is 1:43.11, and HERCULES UNCHAINED is 1:40:08.
My OPPO says both films are 60i not 24p frame rate. Both are Region 1.
HERCULES has the bright red opening title sequence – the left side icons are, however, cut off by the transfer. HERCULES UNCHAINED seems framed exactly like the German Concord anamorphic DVD that I own.
I can only compare this box set to the Concord, German, release of the same films. On the Concord, HERCULES is non-anamorphic and is cropped on both sides. As noted above the Concord HERCULES UNCHAINED is anamorphic and seems framed correctly.
HERCULES is a very dark transfer – any dark trees or black or brown togas become black impenetrable blobs. Colors tend to a greenish hue including skin tones. Reds pop but the dark transfer makes everything seem afternoon-ish, even the first athletic competition which takes place in full daylight. Image detail seems concomitant with, for example, the new Blu-ray edition of HERCULES IN THE UNDERWORLD. It definitely looks better than the Concord DVD, but that's really faint praise.
HERCULES UNCHAINED also seems dark – and the image is very fuzzy with no detail at all – the image detail seems just on a part with the Concord DVD as upconverted by my OPPO. Much less image detail than HERCULES. The image is more colorful, with some of Bava’s outré images popping. Reds again pop – for example, in the cave lair of the evil queen, there are many more shades of red, magenta, gold, green and blue. Details, again, just suck – only on a part with an upconverted DVD.
So overall I was mildly disappointed – but my expectations were very low to begin with.
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any idea if they have English dialogue
" Joseph E. Levine presents!"
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Just a heads up that a blu-ray box set of the two Hercules films starring Steve Reeves is coming March 25th from Japan. I will try and link the page at Amazon Japan. I have no idea what the quality of these transfers will be. For now this is the only option to get these films on blu-ray.
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07NR8BQQ2/ref=pe_492632_159100282_TE_item
I did bite the bullet -- the set, including shipping, was $69.92.
The McMaster Mistake
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