The Lost World on Bluray: any news?

[davidsal]

I just bought the Image DVD edition of The Lost World, and is very good. I was wondering, this edition is more than 10 years old. When will be a bluray edition available? Do any of you have heard something?

[WaverBoy]

The Image edition painstakingly restored by David Shepard is really nice, but is unfortunately missing a shot of Londoners being swept off their feet by the dino's tail that was included in the George Eastman House restoration (which itself is available as an extra on the dvd of the 1960 Irwin Allen remake; unfortunately, this version is missing some stuff included in the Shepard restoration); also, for PC revisionist reasons, it is missing some shots of Zambo and has altered intertitles for Zambo's speech which remove the "darkie" dialect contained in the originals.

Additionally, I believe more elements on this film have turned up since these two restorations; it would be lovely to see an improved restoration done in hi-def for Blu-ray release that contains the bits missing from David's restoration, plus any restorable bits that have turned up since then, plus the original intertitle texts, which would put it as nearly as possible to the original theatrical release, non-PC warts and all.

[Christopher Jacobs]

I've always loved THE LOST WORLD, as it was one of the first half-dozen features I bought on 8mm film. I'll echo that it would be wonderful to have a truly "ultimate" restored version with all the currently known shots included, the best of David Shepard's and the Eastman House's reconstructions (and good music scores, of course, especially Phil Carli's thundering pipe organ). If/when there ever is a Blu-ray edition, however, I would also like to see an option (perhaps through seamless branching) for viewing the complete Kodascope version, which, although it is missing some really nice scenes that enhance the story and characters, is nevertheless much better paced!

This is a key film from moviemaking history, and what better time to release a Blu-ray edition than to tie in with the theatrical rerelease of JURASSIC PARK!

[fwtep]

For me it was the only full-length film I had on Super-8 (well, full-length other than not being restored to actual complete length). My copy was silent and I'm thinking it was from Niles, though I could be wrong but I can't check because it's in storage 1000 miles away. I have multiple versions of Lost World in VHS, Laser Disk and DVD. It was actually the first DVD I ever bought, and was a few months before I even had a player. I just figured I'd better get it while it was available, because with my luck it wouldn't be available any more by the time I got a player. I was still on the fence about DVD at the time (1997) because the first DVDs had horrible compression and were very blocky and MPEGgy looking. I was SO angry that it was a new technology and would replace Laser Disk but was worse. Luckily t got better. And luckily I got that disk when I did because it did go out of print.

So yeah, it would be great if there was a Blu-ray of it as restored as possible regardless of who owns what, so we don't have another "this version is more complete, but this other version has better image quality and has one scene that the other one's missing." I understand the reasons why it is usually thus, I'm just bummed about that thusness.

[Scoundrel]

The Kodascope version was available on LD and DVD through Lumivision and \ or Trition.

[Christopher Jacobs]

The Kodascope version was available on LD and DVD through Lumivision and \ or Trition.

I've got the Lumivision DVD, and it's very nice indeed with nice bonus features. But since it's my understanding that the surviving 35mm nitrate negative survived on the 5-reel Kodascope edition (and/or some old 35mm Kodascope diacetate prints), the reconstructions are based on that edition with additional material that had been deleted from the cutdown inserted from various surviving release prints of various quality and condition. Thus it would be a welcome option, besides having the latest restoration, to view the Kodascope abridgement in full-HD quality on a Blu-ray, since its source material is also the highest consistent quality (over and above its snappier pacing).

Now that we have fine Blu-ray releases of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, THE GENERAL, THE THIEF OF BAGDAD, THE GOLD RUSH, SPARROWS, THE BIRTH OF A NATION, POTEMKIN, METROPOLIS, and WINGS, a restored edition of THE LOST WORLD in full-HD would help fill in the missing gap from a typical 8mm "top-10" collection of 40 years ago -- besides providing music scores and restored unseen footage (as with METROPOLIS and POTEMKIN) that we could only dream about back then.

[DShepFilm]

THE LOST WORLD is in the queue but there are several projects ahead of it. The new edition will incorporate a major find since the publication of the last one: a 35mm tinted nitrate of nearly half of the original theatrical American version.

David Shepard

[Christopher Jacobs]

THE LOST WORLD is in the queue but there are several projects ahead of it. The new edition will incorporate a major find since the publication of the last one: a 35mm tinted nitrate of nearly half of the original theatrical American version.

David Shepard

Wow -- great news! Thanks for keeping us in the loop, David!

[davidsal]

Thanks for the update Mr. Shepard. Looking forward to it.

[WaverBoy]

THE LOST WORLD is in the queue but there are several projects ahead of it. The new edition will incorporate a major find since the publication of the last one: a 35mm tinted nitrate of nearly half of the original theatrical American version.

David Shepard

WOW! Thanks for the stupendous news on this classic; so looking forward to the improved quality and restored footage, and thanks again for your tireless efforts over the years to restore these treasures and make them available on video to us occasionally nitpicky and annoying but always enthusiastic and extremely grateful collectors.

[Scoundrel]

To paraphrase Montgomery Burns:

EXCELLENT...!!!!

Keep up the good work Mr. Shepard.

[fwtep]

I'd like to add my "yippeeeee!!!!!" too.

[Micromegas]

Can't wait. Might be time to buy a Bluray!!

Steve

[Gagman 66]

David,

Wow! This is amazing news? A new Nitrate print of most of the film has since serviced? Incredible! Not to mention the previously lost footage! Thanks for keeping us updated!

[davidsal]

Just in case for those of you thinking of buying the Image DVD, you should know that Image is distributing it now as a MOD from Amazon. My copy arrived and I was looking forward to the reproduction of the original program. To my surprise it wasn't there. Then I look the disc and notice it was DVD-R. No big deal, I myself sell my films that way, but I was mad about the booklet.

Then I looked more carefully at the description on Amazon and it says that is a MOD title, and there's no mention of the booklet.

Oh, well, let's hope the new bluray includes it too.

[Gaucho]

David -
Wonderful news about the discovery - I'm looking forward to seeing this release.

[Nosferatu]

According to this amazon review on the second paragraph and comments underneath, the eastman house print while only being 75 minutes, looks much better than the 93 min shepard version. If there is a rerelease of this movie, there should be a combining of the existing materials to get the best print.

http://www.amazon.com/review/RJCR6VCW9I ... =movies-tv" target="_blank

[Micromegas]

According to this amazon review on the second paragraph and comments underneath, the eastman house pring while only being 75 minutes, looks much better than the 93 min shepard version. If there is a rerelease of this movie, there should be a combining of the existing materials to get the best print.

There were 2 Eastman House restorations, btw. Your comments might be referring to the 1st one (too lazy to check running times but it sure seems like it). I believe that the 2nd one can only be found as an extra on the Irwin Allen DVD. It's way more complete.

I'd consider the 2nd Eastman House and the DS versions to be very comparable. And I wouldn't waste my time on a cut down show at this point.

Steve

[Nosferatu]

http://www.amazon.com/review/RJCR6VCW9I ... =movies-tv" target="_blank

The link would have been helpful. Above is the review link. The print in question is a bonus feature in the 1960 version dvd.

[WaverBoy]

The Eastman House restoration found on the '60 version DVD runs at a faster speed, which would account for most of the time discrepancy. But each has shots not found in the other. Can't wait until David's latest restoration from the latest and greatest found elements, which should hopefully render all earlier restorations obsolete.

[Allen Perkins]

I prefer the Eastman House restoration by a large margin even if it isn't perfect. I don't find the 2000 Shepard version that impressive, to be honest... the slowed down and repeated shots, clips gleamed from an irrelevant newsreel and digital fades make me feel like I'm watching a documentary on the film instead of the film itself. So many silent presentations are like this. Restoration should be about bringing a movie closer to what it once was... reinserting missing footage or intertitles, recreating original intertitles using any extant originals as a basis, cleaning up footage, replicating original tints, constructing a composite that switches between several sources to get the best picture quality, etc. etc. etc. is fine, but there's a line that shouldn't be crossed. When you cross that line, the result is another alternate version. When missing footage is substituted by completely incongruous material, it's probably best to stick with preserving what's left instead. I'd rather watch the theatrical cut of GREED than the version with stills half the time, and I'd rather watch the Czech print of LOST WORLD with optional subtitles and the Kodascope than any of the presently available restorations.

I hope the 35mm nitrate American print discovery combined with other surviving elements will generate something more in the league of the great Murnau Foundation restorations and Kino's Buster Keaton Blu-rays. And I, too, think the Kodascope version should be included, since it was the only publicly available version known to exist for 75 out of 88 years.

[Scoundrel]

No more " Politically Correct " subtitles, please..

[WaverBoy]

No more " Politically Correct " subtitles, please.

Or intertitles, even.

I absolutely agree. No PC whitewashing, if you please.

[Battra92]

No more " Politically Correct " subtitles, please..

Yes, this is my biggest pet peeve. I also don't need Leonard Maltin or Whoopie Goldberg coming out before hand explaining that there once was racism or something in the world and we should view these films through the prism of their time (Disney and Warner are guilty of these atrocities with their cartoon sets.) I like my intelligence to not be insulted when I watch an old picture.

[silentfilm]

Yes, this is my biggest pet peeve. I also don't need Leonard Maltin or Whoopie Goldberg coming out before hand explaining that there once was racism or something in the world and we should view these films through the prism of their time (Disney and Warner are guilty of these atrocities with their cartoon sets.) I like my intelligence to not be insulted when I watch an old picture.

Maybe you don't need these films placed in their proper context, but quite a few people do. That's what the chapter skip button is for.

[bigshot]

Except that these apologies usually are forced on the disk authoring. You can't skip past them.

[Doug Sulpy]

I tend to think the people who are going to buy "The Lost World" on blu-ray are already well aware there were cultural differences in the 1920's. This isn't a mass market item, after all.