Second Sight (UK): Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Martin (1978)

No details yet, but...

https://twitter.com/SecondSightFilm/status/1083839893745401858

 

Counting Laserdisc, DVD and Blu-ray, I have over 20 releases of Dawn. I'm optimistic, but sceptical. This will require a new scan or lost footage for me to buy it yet again.

 

Saw the discussion over at Blu-ray.com but it still feels like it's a joke. Rubinstein owns worldwide rights, so all of a sudden a small UK label has miraculously broken through and gotten Rubinstein to license it to them? I'm going to need more than a "teaser" to be convinced. Even then, it's gonna have to be a complete remaster and not some BS half-assed special edition for this to be worthwhile. I love Second Sight as a label but they're still a small UK label. Why hasn't Arrow had any luck? What about a Stateside edition - not that it would matter since Second Sight will more than likely crush any generic US version with a cartoony slipcover

 

Maybe it's the Argento cut that gets released separately?

 

Just announced DOTD and Martin for UK Blu over on Facebook.

“We’re incredibly excited to officially announce our acquisition of George A Romero’s DAWN OF THE DEAD and MARTIN for UK Blu-ray and VOD following a licensing deal with New Amsterdam Entertainment. We will be releasing later this year and have a lot planned. More details to follow in coming weeks, keep watching this space...”

 

Oooo, MARTIN! I'm glad I can hopefully cross off that overpriced Japanese Blu-ray now...

 

I was soooooo tempted but held off hoping it would happen elsewhere. My patience is seemingly awarded.

 

It's gonna have to be an impressive release for me to purchase this again and part with my arrow blu.

 

Yeah I saw the news about Dawn on the blu-ray.com forums, apparently it’s an IP scan (the OCN would be ideal) but at this point, a beautifully remastered IP would look light years ahead of the terrible HD scans that have been circulating over the last decade.

Finally. FINALLY we’re getting a proper edition of Dawn.

Rubinstein must’ve either finally come to his senses or Second Sight paid out the ass to remaster this. DAY ONE.

~Matt

 

https://www.facebook.com/SecondSightFilms/posts/1390177687783327?comment_id=1390187627782333

 

So wait...if they have access to the OCN of the theatrical cut, wouldn't it make more sense to just restore that, and then splice in the IP elements for the other cuts? It's not like there's gonna be a My Bloody Valentine-level jump in quality, if the IP they're using is in excellent shape they should just restore those scenes unique to the Argento and extended cuts and have the main bulk of the film be the OCN scan.

~Matt

 

It would probably be an editing nightmare to try to piece each of the cuts together like that.

https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=632043
https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=177418

 

Yeah you’re definitely right. It’s been years since I’ve seen the other 2 (I prefer the theatrical cut) I thought it was mostly music cues in the Argento cut.

Makes more sense now lol.

~Matt

 

A good scan of a well-preserved IP should look amazing. In fact, I've seen knowledgeable industry folks express a preference for scanning the IP over the original negative--especially when the project in question is a low-budget flick shot on the cheap. The IP can help mitigate some contrast issues caused by slight exposure mistakes. It also gives a silkier look to prestige productions that some (including David Lean) prefer. I have to assume Christopher Nolan feels the same way, since his Batman trilogy was transferred to 4k from the IPs. The bottom line is elements shouldn't be an issue here.

This is another Suspiria situation for me. I don't give a damn what this set costs. It will be mine.

 

Oh there's no doubt that a well-preserved IP can look very very good and can sometimes come close to the quality of a negative. The fact that these are fresh new scans, done on modern equipment, they will look night and day (pun intended) compared to the previous HD versions and I couldn't be happier that Dawn is finally getting the treatment it deserves. The current versions of the Argento and extended cuts are of such dubious quality that almost any new IP scan would look better. The bar isn't exactly set very high. So, while I'm not disappointed that two of the cuts are coming from an IP and only the theatrical -- which actually is my favourite version -- is coming from the OCN, I think the preference in the industry for scanning an IP instead of the negatives has more to do with it being "easier" to restore a movie from an IP. There's more work required when restoring from the OCN (it's just raw footage) even though a colour-timed IP would be used as a reference anyway. Not to mention it costs much more. However, there IS a drop in quality. Without question, with the IP already being one generation removed from the camera negative.

Christopher Nolan's preference in using IPs to master his films in 4K has been highly controversial, and I tend to agree with the criticism. Why scan from an interpositive when you can use the OCN and fully take advantage of what 4K is capable of? It's not a case of IPs necessarily looking bad -- Interstellar looks fantastic on UHD blu-ray -- but rather a case of "this COULD look better" because there are issues on the UHD transfers that would've been eliminated had they used the OCN and I think that's an extremely fair point. Why market the jump in quality that 4K presents if you're not gonna use the best-possible print? Warner has a policy of only allowing 4K scans if it's done from the OCN (for a reason), but the 4Ks of Nolan's films were mastered from IPs at his insistence.

That being said, this is also another Suspiria situation for me as well. I think I dropped almost $100 CDN on that set with shipping and the exchange. While I don't think Dawn will cost THAT much, I'm getting this set regardless.

~Matt

 

I own this set and I'm very happy with it. I just wish it was the theatrical or extended cut that was 4k in it. Not much of a fan of Argento's cut.

 

The only problem with that release is that the masters they used were less than ideal (and that's being nice). I had this set and thought the A/V was so godawful that I sold it.

Truly one of the worst 4K discs in existence.

~Matt

 

I hear you, I also see Nolan’s point. I often wonder - when we scan from the OCN on modern equipment, if there isn’t some loss from the filmmakers’ intention? DPs shooting on film knew that the process from OCN to print we watched would alter the presentation and protected for that. I watch something like Zombie and I’ve seen vintage prints projected and that original theatrical experience was darker, more contrasty than the bright OCN scans currently on disc... so what’s more “genuine”? Not saying anything is better or worse, but I see the logic.

 

Both 4k UHD release and standard Blu-ray release confirmed for Dawn of the Dead! From Second Sight's Facebook page this morning:

"GEORGE A ROMERO’S DAWN OF THE DEAD is coming to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in the UK and will feature ’Theatrical’, ‘Cannes’ and ‘Argento’ cuts!! We will also be releasing on standard Blu-ray together with our Blu-ray release of MARTIN. Many thanks to producer Richard P Rubinstein for allowing us access to the original elements, which includes the original camera negative for Dawn and dupe negative for Martin. New 4K scans are underway at Final Frame in New York which will be followed by grading and extensive restoration supervised by DP Michael Gornick. It will then be over to David Mackenzie at Fidelity in Motion for mastering and encoding. Currently slated for a late summer release, more news to follow…."

 

Wow. I guess when there's already a UHD release on the market you've got to respond in kind. And HDR too!

I'm rather surprised by all of this as I figured Rubenstein would have held out a year or two more. But I'm guessing the new normal of 4k is what finally convinced him to give in. Once all the distributors started pushing that it needs to be a 4k master or no deal he probably realized the window of opportunity had finally closed on his lil 3d project.

Will be interesting to see what makes it to 4k. If all three cuts are on UHD that will be awesome. And since UHD is region free that'll make prospects for a US release interesting...