Masters of Cinema Blu-ray in October

[John Johnson]

As mentioned before, here is the artwork and the extras.






Eureka Entertainment have announced the UK Blu-ray Disc release of two films as part of their Masters of Cinema Series on 25th October 2010. Priced at £22.99 each are…

Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? - Tony Randall and Jayne Mansfield star in this comedy set in the world of television advertising. Ad man Rockwell Hunter (Randall) gets his big break when he secures the services of famous movie actress Rita Marlowe (Mansfield) to front the campaign for Stay-Put lipstick. But Marlowe wants something unusual in return. Rock must act publicly as her new love interest - a set-up that leaves his fiancee Jenny (Betsy Drake) far from impressed.

Features include:
Gorgeous high-definition transfer of the film in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio
New and exclusive video introduction to the film by director Joe Dante (Gremlins 1 & 2, InnerSpace, Looney Tunes: Back in Action)
Vintage Movietone short which captures Jayne Mansfield on tour promoting the film
Alternate music & effects track with a different musical score for the opening of the picture and other 'temporary' effects-placement
Original theatrical trailer
Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hearing-impaired
44-page booklet featuring two new essays by film writer David Cairns, and an exclusive 2003 interview about the film with Tony Randall conducted by Ethan DeSeife

Make Way For Tomorrow - Leo McCarey directs this tear-jerking family drama based on a stage play by Helen and Nolan Leary, which was in turn based on the novel 'The Years Are So Long' by advice columnist Josephine Lawrence. When elderly couple Barkley and Lucy Cooper (Victor Moore and Beulah Bondi) lose their home during the Great Depression, none of their five children will take both parents in and the two are forced to live separately. While Barkley moves in with daughter Cora (Elisabeth Risdon), Lucy goes to live with son George (Thomas Mitchell) - but both find it difficult to fit in with the busy cosmopolitan lifestyles of their middle-aged children.

Features include:
Gorgeous high-definition transfer of the film in its original 1.37:1 aspect ratio
20-minute video piece with filmmaker and writer Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show; The Cat’s Meow) discussing the film and Leo McCarey’s career
21-minute video piece with writer Gary Giddins discussing McCarey’s work and the social and political contexts of the film
Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hearing-impaired
Lengthy booklet featuring a new essay on the film by writer and Library of America editor Geoffrey O’Brien, and an excerpt from Josephine Lawrence’s source novel Years Are So Long

http://homecinema.thedigitalfix.co.uk/c ... tober.html

[John Johnson]

The great news is that Eureka's Masters of Cinema Series has brought Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? to Blu-ray. The bad news, for some, is that the single-layered disc is locked to Region B (plus there's no DVD equivalent). At this point, it seems impossible to imagine Fox releasing this title on Blu-ray disc in Region A. It only emerged on DVD as part of a Jayne Mansfield box set in R1 and still hasn't had an individual release. I guess the moral would be to invest in a region-free player if you haven't already. The Criterion Collection and MoC are, probably through no real fault of their own, forcing savvy consumers to be able to play both Region A and Region B discs in order to enjoy the best of what can be had in the marketplace.

The transfer is simply spectacular and immaculate and other beautiful superlatives. It's an amazing watch. Tashlin's colors burst forth from the screen in such vivid clarity that it's difficult to believe this film is well over fifty years old. Transitions from scene to scene can be a little uneven but this is an issue relating to the materials rather than this presentation. I believe this marks the third Fox-licensed Blu-ray from MoC (after Sunrise and City Girl) and they've all looked just incredible. Now how about a noir, like an upgrade of Nightmare Alley? No damage is evident here. Really, no complaints period. A beautiful transition into high definition. The wide Scope image is respected, with the aspect ratio here at approximately 2.35:1.

Audio also gets a boost to an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. It's a clean and impressive listen that ups the clarity on even the Fox DVD. Dialogue is emitted smoothly and at a consistent volume. The "You've Got It Made" song sounds quite nice. One potential quibble is that the Fox disc tried to reproduce the original four-channel audio that the film played with in cinemas while MoC opted not to use the extra speakers. A second audio option is the alternate music and effects track. It has a few differences from the final version, including the opening music, and apparently exists as an earlier work-in-progress. That too is in DTS-HD audio. There are optional English subtitles for the hearing impaired provided.

The extra features on the disc are not plentiful but they do include an exclusive introduction (6:42) by filmmaker Joe Dante, shot at his office in Los Angeles. It's in HD, as are the short Movietone piece (0:57) with Jayne Mansfield and the original theatrical trailer (2:23).

Regarding the booklet for this release, I can only repeat what MoC list as its contents because I haven't been able to view it for myself. The insert is billed as a "44-page booklet featuring two new essays by film writer David Cairns, and an exclusive 2003 interview about the film with Tony Randall, conducted by Ethan DeSeife." Because this clearly makes up a significant portion of the supplemental material I'm omitting a score for that section. If the booklet is later provided for review I will update accordingly.

http://homecinema.thedigitalfix.co.uk/c ... unter.html