I saw a REALLY bad print of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" today.

[RandomKoolzip]

My wife rented it from the library.

I swear, when the film companies first started transferring old movies to VHS, they totally screwed the pooch (and the viewer.) Poor framing, unreadable title cards, flickering light covering most of the shots, etc. Unwatchable.

Still, it was a pretty cool flick, the little of it that I could actually see.

[Elidor]

1. I tried to sit through a good print of it once

It was a bit too visceral an experience, not unlike watching Eraserhead. I could see the brilliance, but it was too cold for my soul. I'd rather watch Eisenstein.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

2. I have a poor copy of the movie "M" also

which is a GREAT movie, if you've never seen it. The subtitles are few and far between, which was fine when I was studying German for years.

[RandomKoolzip]

6. I LOOOOOVE "M."

Great movie.

I've been getting into older movies lately, and my most recent favorites are Renoir's "The Grand Illusion" and Bunuel's "Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoise." (Okay, so that last one isn't that old. But it's still fucking great.)

And I'm addicted to reading Pauline Kael. Been a fan of hers since high school, but recently I can't help but to read "Taking it All in" and "For Keeps" when I come home from work; she's probably the greatest critic EVER.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

16. The Grand Illusion is one of my faves! J'adore Jean Gabin!

I love old German and French movies from between the wars. If it wasn't for German expressionism, there would be no film noir! :-)

[sundog]

3. ah, yes...

go with the kino version... kino always does a nice job...

i love that movie... i have it here with me :)

at least it wasn't the butchered giorgio moroder version (i mean i love giorgio moroder & all... but x( )

[RandomKoolzip]

7. Oh, ick...the version with Bonnie Tyler et al. on the soundtrack?

Spare me, Malodor.

[sundog]

10. agh! and that horrible blue & orange saturation

x(

[Spider Jerusalem]

4. Yeah, I have the restored 75th anniversary edition on DVD...

I can recommend it, if you want to actually see the film. I'd seen a different version before seeing this one, and the difference is massive.

[RandomKoolzip]

8. Yeah, I'd like to see an upgraded, restored print.

If there's a good DVD version of "Nosferatu" out there, I'd like to pick that up, too.

[sundog]

13. image puts that one out

it had a 5.1 track that's pretty good... actually there are like 3 you can choose from while you watch it

[Spider Jerusalem]

15. THis one is pretty good.

The best I've seen (I downloaded a public-domain copy online, and this is far superior in quality). http://www.tfaw.com/dvd/profile.html?qt=froogle&DB=V&MID=9d7038aa54cd15ef11f21a0fe763c53e&SKU=DDIMGE++ID0277DSDVD

[sundog]

18. yeah, that's the one i'm talking about

it's pretty damn good :7

[tigereye]

5. they were showing it at the museum here

as part of an art show. It was beautiful. Hard to sit there for a long time and watch it, though. My kid was intrigued by it.

:hi:

[RandomKoolzip]

17. Yeah....

One of the things I've been noticing from watching all these old films recently is how we, as viewers, have gotten used to time compression via editing, which is really a recent phenomenon. Often an older director would linger on a shot long after a scene was "over." Some scenes just seem to drag on, pointlessly (Godard was a culprit here).

We're used to even romantic comedies being editied like they were "Raiders of the Lost Ark" that when we go back and revisit the classics, they seem to creak and lurch like dying, rusty ships.

[tigereye]

26. there is probably a name for that film technique

but I would call it "appeal to attention span." ;) I like the pacing of the old films, they give you time to think.

[khashka]

9. Ever seen the really crap version?

Colour washed with a totally lame rock soundtrack added on? I shudder to remember it.

Maybe it wasn't as bad as I think... I was really drunk and I saw it in a sleazy little theater on the Left Bank... and no, it was actually worse than I remember.

Khash.

[RandomKoolzip]

11. Yup!

Horrid. Worse than Ted Turner's "Colorized Classics."

[BiggJawn]

12. Sounds like you got a copy treated with "Macrovision".

It's a copy-guard treatment intended to prevent copying of videotapes.

what it does do sometimes is make it impossible to even watch the video. White flashes, rolling, tearing at the top of the screen, all signs of either a too-heavy-handed treatment or your VCR's inability to ignore it on playback.

[RandomKoolzip]

20. Nah, we checked.

It was just a poor transfer. Pre-1988 or so VHS transfers were totally slipshod.

Great movie though!

[BiggJawn]

24. If that tape's that old, I'm surprised it didn't clog the heads.

The binders dry out and the oxide comes loose from the backing. I've seen tapes from the early 80's that lterally self-destructed during a pass through the machine. luckily, they were being dubbed specifically for that reason, so the content was salvaged.

[Jeebo]

14. As long as we're talking about silent film classics...

..."Metropolis" is one of my two favorite ones. My other favorite one is "Battleship Potemkin."

Both GREAT movies, even for somebody who doesn't appreciate silent films.

Ron

[khashka]

19. Silent classics?

Nosferatu.

Khash.

[sundog]

22. there is a killer one i saw recently called "cabiria"

from 1914... the technique blew my mind when i watched it... it's one of those flicks that paved the way for everything the grand asshole griffith did, yet gets no credit...

interesting that fellini based "nights of cabiria" on the lead girl in that movie :)

[Spider Jerusalem]

21. I'd recommend "The Cabinet of Dr Caligari", too.

Visually stunning for the time. Very stylised and expressionistic design.

Public-domain download here: http://www.archive.org/details/DasKabinettdesDoktorCaligariTheCabinetofDrCaligari

[sundog]

23. i love that one too

that was full on german expressionism... the sets were so intense... it's a great one to do comparative analysis off of :)

[RandomKoolzip]

25. OOohh... nice.

Thank god for DSL! I'm gonna watch this before work today. Thanks!