Limelight, Great Dictator Comparisons

There are more Chaplin DVD comparisons on dvdcompare.com The NTSC
Warner DVDs are getting knocked rather badly for the PAL conversion.
Badly enough for me to hold off buying them till I hear about the PAL
versions. To the reviewer the Image discs are superior in many ways.

By the way, I've looked at the announcements of the rest of the set
and nowhere did I see any planned releases of the First Nationals
except for The Kid. So Waverboy's panic is premature. Maybe, if they
do redo the FN box they'll include older source material as extras.

Another by the way - nowhere on the Image FN DVD does it say that they
are the "original" versions, just that they are mastered from "the
best film elements in Charles Chaplin's personal archive". That means
image quality to me. Besides, these versions were obviously approved
by CC, as these were the versions to which he put soundtracks for
theatrical release in the early 70's. I think if he found any of them
unacceptable at that point he would have withheld it.

Phil

<Phil P.> wrote in message
news:2o5ohv8tv9ecp2qrh2pp0p39r6dkpd0g89@4ax.com...

> By the way, I've looked at the announcements of the rest of the set
> and nowhere did I see any planned releases of the First Nationals
> except for The Kid. So Waverboy's panic is premature. Maybe, if they
> do redo the FN box they'll include older source material as extras.

Believe me, I'd like nothing better than to have my fears turn out
unwarranted. But...come on.

> Another by the way - nowhere on the Image FN DVD does it say that they
> are the "original" versions, just that they are mastered from "the
> best film elements in Charles Chaplin's personal archive". That means
> image quality to me.

Again, the point is being completely missed. Let me quote an exchange
between David Totheroh and I from another post:

DT:

> Please show ME where it says these are identical to original versions
> (that apparently have not existed in acceptable visual quality for
> about 60 years, maybe even 75 if the Pathe versions are an indication
> the originals were unacceptably worn by that time).

Me:

Please. The viewer shouldn't have to be assured that the films they're
buying, which have the original release dates on them, are the original
films. If I buy a DVD, say, of GONE WITH THE WIND, should it come with a
sticker that says "Don't worry, this is indeed the actual film GONE WITH THE
WIND, made up of the same takes as used for its original theatrical release
of 1939", just so I don't think it's a reconstruction from outtakes that
nobody except maybe one Selznick biographer knows about? Ridiculous. As
someone pointed out to me, they couldn't hide it with the 1942 reissue of
THE GOLD RUSH, but they sure as hell could (and did) with the First National
shorts. These were reissued in the '40s as well, and were reconstructed
from different takes for those reissues, so why don't THEY have '40s release
date notations next to them on the video packaging like the reissue of THE
GOLD RUSH does? And, it's even worse in the case of the First Nationals; at
least in THE GOLD RUSH, the takes are largely the same. In the First
Nationals, the takes are all COMPLETELY different.

DT:

>What the box DOES
> say, correctly IMO, is that these versions come from "the best film
> elements in Charles Chaplin's personal archives." Should the Chaplins
> release something less than the best they've got?

Me:

Again, that is meaningless as far as the fans getting the real deal.
Political doublespeak comes to mind. I can see it now:

Reporter: "So, Chaplin Estate, are the First National films currently
available on DVD the original films as originally released? Are they made
of the same takes as the original releases?"

Chaplin Estate: "We would like it to be known that our father's last
decisions about his films are the ones that guide our own choices regarding
his films."
own choices."

Now, that's a response worthy of a good politician.

Phil, suppose you were familiar with the original versions, and loved them.
Now suppose you read the following on the DVD jacket before you bought it:

"These films have been mastered from the best film elements in Charles
Chaplin's personal archive."

Now, upon buying it, and finding that they were indeed mastered from the
best film elements in Chaplin's archive, but turned out to be completely
different takes, are you telling me that you would just say, "yep, just as I
expected, reconstructed versions made from inferior outtakes with perfect
visual quality. Great DVD!"??? Riiiiiiiiight.