Network release The Quiller Memorandum as part of its The British Film collection and present it in its original 2.35:1 theatrical ratio. The film is apparently “…featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements…”. Now, I’m not the most prolific blu-ray viewer in the world and I’m sure there are far worse examples out there, but I can safely say that this is the worst looking transfer I have ever seen on blu-ray. Right from the opening titles, the low light and night scenes are smothered in digital noise, creating a snow effect over most dark areas. Throughout the film, brightness levels fluctuate within each scene, at times creating a flickering effect similar to watching an old silent movie and occasional bands of grain drift across the duller areas of some shots. Daylight scenes come off best and are sharp and clean, although possibly due to over-brightness, the colours appear a little flat and washed out.
The soundtrack is provided in a Linear PCM 2.0 mono form and is very clear, with dialogue and score both coming across well. Optional English subtitles are also available.
Extras amount to 34 minutes of interviews with the main cast, director and producer. Filmed on location in Berlin, these are black and white and both sound and picture are in a fairly rough state at times.
The opening and closing scenes of the movie are included without their title sequences and as these are both reasonably static shots, are as fascinating as one might expect. A trailer and a very comprehensive 24 minute roll of promotional and behind-the-scenes images rounds off the package.
Overall
The Quiller Memorandum is a fine example of the way thrillers used to be made. There’s no frenzied action or hyperkinetic camerawork. The pace is steady and barely changes throughout the course of the film, instead relying on the plot reveals and character development to drive the film along. All aspects of the production are first-class and the end result is a movie that offers a mature and thoughtful take on the spy genre. That, in itself, makes the film a definite recommendation.
What I can’t recommend is this home release. Why nobody at Network questioned the transfer is beyond me and it’s all the more disappointing that it was deemed acceptable to release it in this state. Hopefully at some point Network will realise the error of their ways and do justice to a film that still deserves to be seen nearly fifty years after its release. Until such a time, however, this release is one to avoid.
British distributors Network have revealed that they will add three additional titles to their Blu-ray in early 2015: Blake Edwards' The Tamarind Seed (1974), Ralph Thomas' Hot Enough for June a.k.a. Agent 8 3/4 (1964), and Leslie Arliss' A Man About the House (1947).
The Tamarind Seed
A captivating romantic drama unfolds against a backdrop of Cold War paranoia in this acclaimed feature by multi-award-winning director Blake Edwards. Featuring an outstanding score by multiple Oscar-winner John Barry and presented here in a brand-new High Definition transfer, The Tamarind Seed stars Julie Andrews as a Home Office minister s assistant, and Omar Sharif as the Paris-based Soviet attaché with whom she falls in love; among an outstanding support cast are Anthony Quayle and Sylvia Syms, whose performance earned her a BAFTA Award in 1974.
Holidaying in Barbados where she hopes to overcome the unhappiness of a broken love affair, Englishwoman Judith Farrow meets debonair Russian Feodor Sverdlov. As they explore the island paradise together they are, outwardly, simply two people falling in love. Yet as their mutual feelings grow, so too do the suspicions of the intelligence agencies in London and Moscow. In a world where no-one is to be trusted and appearances can be fatally deceptive, every move they make is being watched...
Special Features: •Music suite featuring John Barry's outstanding film score •Theatrical Trailer •Image Gallery •Archive interviews with Omar Sharif and Blake Edwards
STREET DATE: FEBRUARY 9TH.
Hot Enough for June
British film legend Dirk Bogarde gives a whimsical performance as the unwitting replacement agent Number 008 in director Ralph Thomas's frantically funny spy comedy from the early 1960s. Also starring screen siren Sylva Koscina and key character actors Robert Morley, Leo McKern and John Le Mesurier, Hot Enough for June is presented here in a High Definition transfer from original film elements, in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
Out-of-work author Nicholas Whistler is happy to accept the offer of a luxurious, all-expenses-paid business trip behind the Iron Curtain. On his arrival in Prague, everyone - including his beautiful and seductive chauffeuse, Vlasta - assumes the Czech-speaking Nicholas to be a spy and it doesn't take long before he's alone and evading the Czech secret police!
Special Features: •Original theatrical trailer •Extensive image galleries •Original promotional material PDFs
STREET DATE: FEBRUARY 23.
A Man About the House
Having directed and scripted some of Gainsborough Pictures best-known melodramas, Leslie Arliss was well chosen to helm this atmospheric thriller of 1947. Boasting cinematography by Oscar winner Georges Périnal and an early film role for Kieron Moore, A Man About the House is adapted from the novel of the same name by noted English writer and composer Francis Brett Young. It is featured here in a brand-new High Definition transfer from the original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
Two English sisters, Ellen and Agnes Isit, inherit a Neopolitan villa from their uncle and move to Italy in order to sell the property. Once there, they fall under the spell of the villa s handsome and charismatic caretaker, Salvatore. The villa was once owned by Salvatore's family, and he longs to regain ownership of the property; when he marries Agnes, his dream moves a step closer. But Agnes begins to suffer from a debilitating illness, and her sister s suspicions are aroused...
British distributors Network Releasing will bring to Blu-ray Roy Ward Baker's film The One That Got Away (1957), starring Hardy Kruger, Colin Gordon, Michael Goodliffe, Terence Alexander, and Jack Gwillim. The release will be available for purchase on March 2, 2015.
Based on a remarkable true story, The One That Got Away is the story of the only German prisoner of war to escape Britain and return to his homeland.
Hardy Krüger – one of Germany's leading actors and himself a prisoner of war who escaped from the Americans on three occasions – stars as the charismatic Lieutenant Franz von Werra; a strong supporting cast includes Michael Goodliffe, Colin Gordon and Alec McCowan. This classic feature, directed by Golden Globe winner Roy Ward Baker, is presented here in a High Definition transfer from the original film elements.
With the Battle of Britain at its height, fighter pilot von Werra is shot down over enemy soil and captured by British soldiers. But interrogation and captivity cannot deter him from the single aim of escaping back to his homeland. The course of his escape takes him through Canada and a still-neutral United States before he makes it home, some two years after first being captured.
Network release The Quiller Memorandum as part of its The British Film collection and present it in its original 2.35:1 theatrical ratio. The film is apparently “…featured here in a High Definition transfer made from original film elements…”. Now, I’m not the most prolific blu-ray viewer in the world and I’m sure there are far worse examples out there, but I can safely say that this is the worst looking transfer I have ever seen on blu-ray. Right from the opening titles, the low light and night scenes are smothered in digital noise, creating a snow effect over most dark areas. Throughout the film, brightness levels fluctuate within each scene, at times creating a flickering effect similar to watching an old silent movie and occasional bands of grain drift across the duller areas of some shots. Daylight scenes come off best and are sharp and clean, although possibly due to over-brightness, the colours appear a little flat and washed out.
The soundtrack is provided in a Linear PCM 2.0 mono form and is very clear, with dialogue and score both coming across well. Optional English subtitles are also available.
Extras amount to 34 minutes of interviews with the main cast, director and producer. Filmed on location in Berlin, these are black and white and both sound and picture are in a fairly rough state at times.
The opening and closing scenes of the movie are included without their title sequences and as these are both reasonably static shots, are as fascinating as one might expect. A trailer and a very comprehensive 24 minute roll of promotional and behind-the-scenes images rounds off the package.
Overall
The Quiller Memorandum is a fine example of the way thrillers used to be made. There’s no frenzied action or hyperkinetic camerawork. The pace is steady and barely changes throughout the course of the film, instead relying on the plot reveals and character development to drive the film along. All aspects of the production are first-class and the end result is a movie that offers a mature and thoughtful take on the spy genre. That, in itself, makes the film a definite recommendation.
What I can’t recommend is this home release. Why nobody at Network questioned the transfer is beyond me and it’s all the more disappointing that it was deemed acceptable to release it in this state. Hopefully at some point Network will realise the error of their ways and do justice to a film that still deserves to be seen nearly fifty years after its release. Until such a time, however, this release is one to avoid.
Why are these people, who obviously know nothing about transfers, allowed to review these things for public consumption. The most egregious problem with this transfer is the one he minimizes - taken from a completely faded internegative, the film's color is a sorry brown mess. Fix that and the contrast and you'd at least have something you could watch.
British distributors Network will release on Blu-ray director Lawrence Huntington's thriller The Tower of Terror (1941), starring Wilfrid Lawson, Michael Rennie, and Movita. The release will be available for purchase on March 23, 2015.
1940s Germany: Marie, a death camp escapee on the run from the Nazis, swims towards Westrode Island, where a lighthouse is manned by a half-mad keeper, Wolfe Kristan. Brought aboard the lighthouse she begins to fall in love with the assistant keeper who, unknown to her, is a British spy. As the couple become more intimate, Kristan's jealously finally pushes him over the brink and into full-blown madness…
Featuring a career-best performance from Wilfrid Lawson – as the deranged lighthouse keeper – alongside Hollywood stalwart Michael Rennie and Mexican-American actress Movita Castaneda, this intriguing, genre-defying wartime thriller is presented here in a brand-new High Definition transfer from the original film elements, in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.
Special Features: Image Gallery Original Script PDF
British distributors Network Releasing have announced the titles within their The British Film collection for January – March 2015. Please note that the announcement is for the complete line-up, which includes Blu-ray and DVD releases.
The British Film collection was launched by Network Distributing in April 2013 as part of a five-year plan to release over 450 vintage British films through a deal with Studiocanal, one of Europe's leading distribution and production companies. Many of the films have never been available to own and will benefit from new transfers, affirming Network Distributing's commitment to classic British cinema.
Titles include significant works from studios including Associated Talking Pictures, Ealing Studios, London Films, British Lion, Associated British Picture Corporation and EMI from the Studiocanal archive.
Highlights include three films available on Blu-ray from Alfred Hitchcock in January – The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Lady Vanishes and Young And Innocent; two features from Michael Winner - The Nightcomers starring Marlon Brando, and early feature West 11 with an outstanding performance from Diana Dors; the third instalment of British Musicals Of The 1930s; and two Blu-rays featuring original scores from Oscar-winning composer John Barry - Raise The Titanic and The Tamarind Seed.
The countdown is under way! After months of speculation, one of our most hotly-anticipated releases is set for lift-off in 2015
Stunningly restored in a brand-new high definition transfer from original film elements, this iconic series is set to look better than ever, and will be released in a complete series set on Blu-ray and DVD in autumn 2015.
We know you can't wait that long... and neither can we. So, as a foretaste of what's in store, we're releasing two episodes ahead of schedule: providing fans with their first glimpse of the incredible restoration work that has been done on the series.THE BRINGERS OF WONDER was the only two-part episode in the entire run of Space:1999 and very soon, you'll be able to see it as never before on blu-ray, in restored HD quality, along with a new HD transfer of the feature film version 'Destination: Moonbase-Alpha.'But you'll have to act fast – just as the wandering moon never stays in one place for long, so too with this limited edition release. Just 1999 copies are being produced, in a digipack format that will be deleted from our catalogue as soon as it sells out. Get it now... before it goes out of orbit!What's more, every 'pre-buy' order we take, ahead of the release date of December 8th, will automatically be entered into a draw to win one of five copies of the complete series 2. Three order numbers will be drawn at random, so keep alert for our special 'countdown to series 2' display at networkonair.com, where the Moonbase-Alpha computer will display the winning numbers soon after the release on December 8th.
British distributors Network have revealed that they are planning to bring to Blu-ray The Professionals: MkIII. The four-disc set will feature all episodes that comprise the third series, which have been recently restored. The release will be available for purchase on March 30, 2015.
Ten years ago Network embarked on its most ambitious release schedule ever by teaming up with ITV, persuading them to open up their archival treasure trove and allowing us to release pretty well whatever took our fancy from across the decades. The intervening years saw a wealth of commercial television hits, misses, oddities and orphaned titles unleashed to a tv-hungry audience and which today has culminated in more than 1,500 individual releases.
So we are delighted to announce, finally, that we have entered into a new agreement with ITV for a further ten years. This enables us to mine the archives yet further to bring you more hidden gems and titles you thought you would never see again or even imagined as well as continuing our programme of restorations and special editions of the best titles in the collection. We’re also working on new ways to deliver this amazing content to you so whether you love discs, box sets or digital sit back, get comfy and prepare yourself for another journey through time and space…
The countdown is under way! After months of speculation, one of our most hotly-anticipated releases is set for lift-off in 2015
Stunningly restored in a brand-new high definition transfer from original film elements, this iconic series is set to look better than ever, and will be released in a complete series set on Blu-ray and DVD in autumn 2015.
We know you can't wait that long... and neither can we. So, as a foretaste of what's in store, we're releasing two episodes ahead of schedule: providing fans with their first glimpse of the incredible restoration work that has been done on the series.THE BRINGERS OF WONDER was the only two-part episode in the entire run of Space:1999 and very soon, you'll be able to see it as never before on blu-ray, in restored HD quality, along with a new HD transfer of the feature film version 'Destination: Moonbase-Alpha.'But you'll have to act fast – just as the wandering moon never stays in one place for long, so too with this limited edition release. Just 1999 copies are being produced, in a digipack format that will be deleted from our catalogue as soon as it sells out. Get it now... before it goes out of orbit!What's more, every 'pre-buy' order we take, ahead of the release date of December 8th, will automatically be entered into a draw to win one of five copies of the complete series 2. Three order numbers will be drawn at random, so keep alert for our special 'countdown to series 2' display at networkonair.com, where the Moonbase-Alpha computer will display the winning numbers soon after the release on December 8th.
It’s been a long wait for news of the release of Space: 1999 – Season Two on Blu-ray. As you probably know, Network (in the UK) and A&E (here in the States) first released Season One in HD way back in 2010. In the four years since, Season Two has seemed an on-again, off-again proposition. Fortunately, the good news is that Network has finally officially announced that work is underway to bring Season Two to Blu-ray in Autumn 2015. To celebrate that announcement, they’ve just released the Space: 1999 – The Bringers of Wonder: Special Edition teaser disc on Blu-ray.
Unfortunately, there’s a bit bad news. First, the Space: 1999 – The Bringers of Wonder: Special Edition is only available on Blu-ray from Network’s online store in the UK (networkonair.com) in a limited edition of 1999 units – it’s not being released here in the States. It’s also a Region B only disc, so you’ll need an all-region Blu-ray player to view the disc outside of the UK. The other bit of bad news is that I’ve just confirmed with sources that A&E (which is now distributed by Lionsgate) has lost the US distribution rights to Space: 1999. That likely means that some other company has either already picked up the US release rights, or they will soon. Rest assured, I’ll post an update in my daily column here at The Bits as soon as I know more.
In the meantime, Network’s Blu-ray is a single-disc release that includes the Season Two episodes The Bringers of Wonder, Part 1 and The Bringers or Wonder, Part 2. The two-part story features the arrival of an apparent faster-than-light mission launched from Earth to rescue the inhabitants of Moonbase Alpha, who were lost when the Moon was blasted out of Earth’s orbit a year earlier. But when Commander Koenig (Martin Landau) wakes up from injuries sustained in a recent Eagle crash, he sees these rescuers for what they really are – mind-controlling aliens who want Alpha for their own purposes. The only question is: Will Koenig be able to convince the rest of his people of the truth before it’s too late?
A quick side note before I continue: Something I’ve never realized before watching this Blu-ray, is that there’s a familiar face in the cast. An actor named Drewe Henley plays Eagle pilot in these episodes. If his name isn’t familiar to you, his face surely will be – a couple years after this work, Henley played Red Leader in little film called Star Wars.
In terms of presentation quality, I’m pleased to report that these episodes look terrific on Blu-ray. Remastered in HD from the original negatives, they’re included here in the correct 1.33:1 aspect ratio, with excellent detail and contrast. Blacks are deep, colors are vibrant and accurate. If you have Space: 1999 – Season One on Blu-ray (reviewed here at The Bits) you’ll know exactly what to expect on this disc. The audio is only included in LPCM stereo (48kHz/24-bit), but it still sounds quite good. Presumably, when Season Two arrives on Blu-ray in late 2015, it will feature true 5.1 remixes as did Season One.
In terms of extras, this Blu-ray also includes the complete Destination Moonbase-Alpha film, which was essentially a feature-length version of these two episodes combined, with select footage from a smattering of first-season episodes mixed in. Destination Moonbase-Alpha runs 100 minutes. It’s clearly an HD transfer of the original film version, but the film elements look a generation or two down from the episode negatives, so the quality isn’t nearly as good looking as the episodes themselves – it’s a little softer in detail, with muddier blacks and colors that aren’t as accurate as the individual episodes. Still, it’s entirely watchable and it’s nice to have it on the disc. The aspect ratio is also 1.33:1, with audio in LPCM 48kHz/16-bit stereo. This Blu-ray also includes the trailer for Destination Moonbase-Alpha (2:06). It’s poor quality (probably upconverted PAL), but again it’s good to have.
After such a length wait, it’s great to finally know for certain that Space: 1999 – Season Two is coming to Blu-ray, at least in the UK. But while it’s unfortunate that we don’t yet know who will release it here in the States, given the sheer number of U.S. Bits readers that have continued to ask about it over the last few years, I’d be stunned if Season Two isn’t released BD here too.
To that point, I’ve also confirmed that A&E is losing the rights to UFO, and probably other Gerry Anderson/ITV properties as well. With UFO newly available on Blu-ray in Japan and Germany, plus Space: 1999 – Season Two on the way, there’s a real opportunity here for a distributor to nab the rights to a couple of great cult properties with a ready U.S. Blu-ray audience. In any case, while we wait to learn more on that, this teaser BD from Network is fun, cheap and – provided you can watch Region B discs – well worth importing.
We’re kicking the week off with a new Blu-ray review. This one is my look at Network’s new Space: 1999 – The Bringers of Wonder: Special Edition teaser disc, designed to promote the late 2015 release of Space: 1999 – Season Two. Keep in mind when reading the review that it’s a Region B disc. But if you’re a fan of Space: 1999, the review (and the disc if you have an all-region player) is worth a look.
Speaking of which, I’ve got a quick update for you. I’ve confirmed that A&E has lost/is about to lose the U.S. distribution rights to Space: 1999 and also Gerry Anderson’s UFO (which is out now on Blu-ray in Japan and Germany). We suspect that those rights have either already been picked up or will be soon, and given that ITV made a deal for film and TV properties with Shout! Factory late last year – and that Gerry Anderson’s Stingray (1/13), Captain Scarlet and the Mysterions (2/10), and Fireball XL5 (3/10) are already listed as coming from Shout! on DVD in early 2015 – we’d be surprised if Shout! isn’t where Space: 1999 and UFO will land in 2015. We’ve already made inquiries, so we’ll let you know as soon as we hear anything.
Just received Network's two part episode of Space 1999, The Bringers of Wonder. Nice HD transfer. Looking forward to the complete second season later next year.
