Othello - quick thoughts on the new restoration

[Jay]

I saw the new Carlotta digital restoration of the 1992 re-release, and it looks stunning. The transfer supports a healthy grain structure throughout, and the number of flaws inherent to the source material could be counted on one hand. The audio is a bit of a double-edged sword, because while the re-recorded score has never sounded clearer or deeper, that puts it even more at odds with the rest of the film's original dialogue and sound effects. Also, in a few instances, I noticed what sounded like a bit of artificial dialogue splitting into stereo instead of staying in mono. Overall, it was a beautiful presentation and should make for an excellent blu-ray release.

[Roger Ryan]

Good to hear about the grain structure - the on-line trailer made it look like the grain was all but erased completely.

[Dark Horse 77]

Has there been any news on the restoration getting R1 dvd release?

[RayKelly]

Hi Dark Horse, The plan calls for a domestic home video release AFTER the theatrical run in the U.S. ends. They were showing Othello in Washington state last week. No release date for the Blu-ray / DVD has been announced.

[Dark Horse 77]

That sounds promising, thanks for the information.

[jbrooks]

I caught the "Othello" restoration in its brief return to "Film Forum" last night. It looked fine, but I wasn't blown away. It's not markedly better than the 1992 theatrical release or even the Criterion laserdisc of the unrestored version. (Okay, yes, it does have higher resolution than the laser disc, obviously). One problem is that DCP projection has terrible blacks -- the blackest it can get is a dark gray. And Othello has a lot of scenes played in the shadows so that weakness stands out more than it does with some films -- including even "Chimes at Midnight," which looked great as a DCP.

[atcolomb]

Just saw the recent TCM broadcast of Othello and what a nice and sharp looking print with no film damage at all. But it was broadcast to fill my 16:9 tv and not the correct 1.37 aspect ratio. Lets hope Criterion will release it one day.

[RayKelly]

Lets hope Criterion will release it one day.

It's in the works, but Criterion keeps their cards close to the vest on release dates. I have heard it will have multiple versions of the film, and a source in Europe told us Criterion was looking for rare footage. Since it's a Criterion release, you know it will be worth the wait.

[atcolomb]

Great news and I do have the Criterion release on laserdisc which I still play to hear the unrestored soundtrack.