Phonebooth scene in Susan Alexander's club. - Question about the image.

[Sir Bygber Brown]

When i first saw Kane, this phonebooth scene blew me away. I couldn't believe the sheer scope of this shot. It was one of my favourite images in Kane.

But every other time i've seen Kane, i've been worried about the different transfer qualities, which always seem to make the image seem darker than i remember it.

If someone has their copy of it (maybe if someone has the French Kane transfer, which Jeff says is a miracle next to their Ambersons transfer, that would be even better) could they tell me if the extreme foreground, especially the right hand side of the phone booth, the phone itself and the reporter, are meant to be in darkness (i know his face is always hidden, but is he meant to be just a silouette (spelling?) here and the bottom and right parts of the phone booth black silouettes), or is this a bad transfer?

[Jeff Wilson]

Aside from anything else, I've never seen any French version of KANE. I'll try to look at my copies of KANE when I have a chance, unless someone else chimes in first.

[Glenn Anders]

Dear Sir Bygber: Let me offer an alternative, less expensive solution to some of the problems with DVD's I see discussed here.

On the advice in an article by Joe Kane (on the level) taken from the magazine Widescreen, I ajusted the black/white ratio on my TV set, turning the brightness way down from its factory settings. By doing this, I found, as Kane wrote, that I got truer monochrome and color images from my favorite films. [If you do it with a new TV set, according to Kane, it will add years of maximum efficiency to your picture tube or system.]

I used a tape and a laserdisc of CITIZEN KANE for my black/white ratio adjustment, and THE RED SHOES for my color adjustment. In the process, once I'd reduced the brightness of my set to near zero, a tiny adjustment would give me any kind of CITIZEN KANE I wanted. If I desired to identify all the actors in the Screening Room Sequence, just a touch would do it, and everything else would be in scale. By the same token, I could come up with my heart's desire in both CITIZEN KANE and THE RED SHOES under the ambiant lighting conditions of my viewing situation. And once set, it works for all commercially made, professional quality films.

It took a few hours to do, but I highly recommend it.

I cannot imagine that there is anything in DVD technology which would prevent a similar adjustment.

It's worth a try, Sir Bygber.

Glenn

[Sir Bygber Brown]

I must have misread something on your DVD page, Jeff. When i was in France, i saw a Cahiers du Cinema big-box version of Citizen Kane, just like the Ambersons one. The little pic of young Kane on the side of the Ambersons box is the one from the cover of the Kane box.

[Sir Bygber Brown]

And thanx 4 the trick, Glenn. I'll see if i can't get it to work. I'll let you know as soon as i try it.