Macbeth French 3-DVD set

[dkovacev]

An impressive 3-disc box set of Orson Welles' Macbeth is going to be released in France by Wild Side Video, on December 7th. First two discs will contain the brand new restoration of both long and short version, while the third disc is dedicated to bonus material (among other things, the complete Macbeth radio show from 1940 and four minutes of Voodoo Macbeth footage).
The full announcement can be seen on DVDrama
According to this article, the similar r1 release will arrive in mid-2006, and this French DVD is going to be the exclusive world premiere of the new restoration.

[Wilson]

Well, if the American release matches this, it will be impressive indeed, given the film's general lower standing among Welles' films. That listing for a "radio" Macbeth is slightly off though, as it looks like they're including the Mercury records version of the play, rather than the half hour Columbia Workshop version, which does still exist as well. at any rate, this looks like a great release.

[Gus Moreno]

That definitely looks like the ultimate "Macbeth" set. I'm looking forward to it.

[colwood]

Looks like the first review is in. It's in French. Here's the original page,

http://www.ecranlarge.com/test-dvd-1245.php

[R Kadin]

A rousing endorsement, indeed. Looks like a real must for Welles enthusiasts and worth awaiting the Region 1 release for the more patient among us.

I'm not sure I agree with the initial feedback that the rough equivalent of a $50 US price tag is exhorbitant. The screen captures look immaculate and, if the soundtracks are burnished to a similar clarity, then we'll be looking forward to enjoying this exciting experiment in possibly its best shape ever.

Literature and media course instructors take note and make room in next semester's budget. But you'll have to get in line behind me.

[Jeff Wilson]

Though there has been no announcement, this is supposed to be coming out in Region 1 from Paramount next year (minus the French extras, I would think), so those who want to wait can certainly do so.

[NoFake]

That's great news, and certainly worth the wait.

Meanwhile, there's an "original mint factory sealed" Criterion Voyager Ambersons double laserdisc up for bid on eBay: [url=http://cgi.ebay.com/SEALED-DBL-CRITERIONLASERDISC-THE-MAGNIFICENT-AMBERSONS_W0QQitemZ6459934023QQcategoryZ381Q
QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem]http://cgi.ebay.com/SEALED-....iewItem[/url]

It's pretty pricey, but if you've always wanted one, this may be a good opportunity.

[jaime marzol]

check it out

http://translate.google.com/transla....&u=http

the cover alone will sell this dvd to the general public. the guy will get home, pop it in his dvd player, wonder what the hell he bought, and he'll put it on ebay

[jaime marzol]

i love macbeth, but janet nolan would not have been my first choice for lady macbeth

[Terry]

Didn't Welles want Vivian Leigh?

[jaime marzol]

welles wanted jenifer tilly. yeap, i can see her writhing on that fur doing the unsex me scene

[Terry]

[tonyw]

I think he wanted Agnews Moorehead but she was not available.

[colwood]

Has anyone here actually gotten this set yet? Aside from that first review in french, haven't heard anything else about this release and it's been out for 3 weeks now. In the event the US release isn't as good as this french one, would be most interested if the subs on the film are removable.

[Jeff Wilson]

I finally received this, after my first shipment got lost, and Amazon France re-sent it, and then that one arrived late. But it came. The verdict? It certainly looks much better, and sounds much better. The French subs are not removable; there is no option for their use, it's mandatory, presumably as a licensing issue. They're fairly small and not too distracting, though. You can see them in the caps I have provided below. The packaging is very nice, with the 70 page or so book printed on heavy, glossy paper, with several photos I hadn't seen before. All text in French of course. Are there any other negatives? Well, watching the original Welles cut, it looked as if the transfer had been subjected to too much edge enhancement, as figures had that halo look to them sometimes. I will post a fuller review once I have had a chance to go through it all, but check out the quick caps I did below. First cap in each case is from the British DVD, the second from the French one.