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I own the original 3 CD recording of this score. Is there any major difference between this and the 'newer' version which came out a few years ago?
By the way, this is another of those classic scores I would love to see released in its entirety.
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I've read that the re-issue has improved sound engineering (I only have the original release as well). The problem with both issues (I believe the contents are the same) is sequencing and the inclusion of the non-Newman Verdi and Handel excerpts. I would like to see the score in narrative order, with Newman's original "Hallelujahs", the original "Raising of Lazarus" (and, as an extra, the re-worked music from THE ROBE for this scene), the original music for "The Carriage of the Cross," and the harrowing music for "The Crucifixion" as a stand alone cue.
I'm not sure I follow this. Discs 2 and 3 contain all the pieces you mention in Newman's original compositions. Only Disc 1, the old LP presentation, has the Handel replacements, although the Verdi for the Via Dolorosa is linked to those sessions.
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Posted: |
Oct 29, 2015 - 4:59 PM
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By: |
mgh
(Member)
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I've read that the re-issue has improved sound engineering (I only have the original release as well). The problem with both issues (I believe the contents are the same) is sequencing and the inclusion of the non-Newman Verdi and Handel excerpts. I would like to see the score in narrative order, with Newman's original "Hallelujahs", the original "Raising of Lazarus" (and, as an extra, the re-worked music from THE ROBE for this scene), the original music for "The Carriage of the Cross," and the harrowing music for "The Crucifixion" as a stand alone cue.
I'm not sure I follow this. Discs 2 and 3 contain all the pieces you mention in Newman's original compositions. Only Disc 1, the old LP presentation, has the Handel replacements, although the Verdi for the Via Dolorosa is linked to those sessions.
What William said; my copy is the same.
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Does the Varese have all the same cues? Including the original lp recording?
I have this, but it's currently in a box, awaiting being moved here to my new home in St. Petersburg, FL.
Saw TGSET several times as a roadshow in its initial release. Each time seemed to be a different edit, since I understand Stevens kept tinkering with it. Chief problem was his "Spot the Stars" approach, whereby the tone of a reverent scene would be disrupted by the discovery of a recognizable personality in the middle of it. Like Shelley Winters, suddenly appearing as a cured leper! Or a fleeting glimpse of Carroll Baker as Veronica, wiping Christ's face. Or Pat Boone (!) as the personage in Christ's tomb, announcing to an astonished Mary Magdalene that Jesus has risen.
But the worst of these was John Wayne as the Roman soldier officiating at the crucifixion. In the first version I saw of this, immediately after Christ dies, the Cinerama scene was filled with a closeup of Wayne's face, stating, "And this man is truly the Son of God!" Which was embarrassing and laughable, totally destroying the mood. It was so universally criticized, in fact, that Stevens later changed the shot to view of Wayne's character standing in shadow, though still with the same vocal on the soundtrack. (I believe this is the version in all the current commercial video versions.)
Interestingly, I love having the complete score, with Newman's own Hallelujah Choruses, which were a kind of myth for years, before they finally materialized. Like the gentleman above, I had a private recording of them, and thought then they were much more suitable to the material. But even the score can get overwhelming, especially when you listen to the whole thing, one reverent cue after another.
On the other hand, the movie, and the score are so reverential and plodding, that one sometimes yearns for anything to break the tedium, humor, movement, laughter, violence, anything. I remember seeing this with my mother, in Boston in 1965 at the Boston Cinerama Theatre, and her take was that it was "static." Good point.
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Saw the original premiered version. Was 3 hours and forty some minutes but felt even longer. That said would view it again if made available.
It is available on Blu-ray, though I'm unsure which version it is.
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Saw the original premiered version. Was 3 hours and forty some minutes but felt even longer. That said would view it again if made available.
It is available on Blu-ray, though I'm unsure which version it is.
I'm not sure which version the one on Blu-ray would be considered as, but it only runs 3 hours and 19 minutes so it is definitely not the premiere version. It also does no justice at all to the Ultra Panavision 70 photography, but considering the current regime at MGM's other "restoration" efforts, I guess it can't be too much of a shock.
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I'm not sure which version the one on Blu-ray would be considered as, but it only runs 3 hours and 19 minutes so it is definitely not the premiere version. It also does no justice at all to the Ultra Panavision 70 photography, but considering the current regime at MGM's other "restoration" efforts, I guess it can't be too much of a shock.
Indeed. MGM has puzzled me ever since DVDs and now Blu-rays came to market. They did some fantastic work with restoration in the laserdisc days, but have effed up so consistently in the higher- and hi-def markets. It's baffling, but then again this is a company whose inability to remain solvent time and time again certainly indicates much about how it does business. What's so sad is that MGM has so many incredible film assets in its library (or had).
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My point is that neither version presents the score in chronological film order (of course, you can program the discs any way you want), and it is impossible (without effort) to separate the Newman cues from the Verdi and Handel interpolations.
Discs 2 and 3 are in chronological order. But some tracks have been left out, presumably because the LP disc 1 used them already, notable the Palm Sunday choral bit.
The keening and Inbal Theatre cues, and the Herodian court music have never seen a release of any kind.
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Saw the original premiered version. Was 3 hours and forty some minutes but felt even longer. That said would view it again if made available.
It is available on Blu-ray, though I'm unsure which version it is.
The version that has been available on VHS, Laserdisc, DVD and Blu ray has always been the cut general release version. Mind you that this version also played Roadshow as the film was cut about 2-3 weeks after the premiere in NYC in Feb 1965.
The current DVD/Blu-Ray is not the general release version. It's the version which the vast majority of people saw as a roadshow attraction. The initial long version opened on 15 February 1965 and on 17 February director George Stevens began work on cutting the length. The film was therefore only shown for a few weeks in New York before it was re-edited. It then continued its 70mm roadshow season in its existing shorter version (quite long enough really!). Same thing happened with 2001 and Lawrence of Arabia which were fine-tuned following audience reaction. Greatest Story was shortened even further for general release. The original version probably no longer exists in any restorable form.
2001 was shortened almost immediately after its initial premiere. Probably less than a week playing (in NYC)at the long version. WB supposedly has all the deleted scenes but has not gone against Stanley Kubrick's wishes that they not be shown. Lawrence of Arabia is another story altogether. Premiering in Dec 1962 at 221 minutes or so it played approximately one month at that length(in NYC) at which time it was reduced to 3 hrs 20 minutes. That is the length most people had seen the picture until the restoration by Robert Harris. However, in 1970 or 1971 it was reduced even further to 185 minutes or so making much of the movie incomprehensible to people who were not familiar with the film. The restoration reinserted most deleted scenes and David Lean fine tuned the film to 217 minutes.
Being owned by MGM GSET will probably never be restored or shown at it's original premiere length. There have been rumors that a long version70mm print exists at the Library of
Congress. If true it is probably faded...
Same thing happened with Mad World - only people who saw it in its first four weeks at the Dome EVER saw the complete version. 99% of the people who've seen Mad World had only seen the shorter version that Kramer edited in those four weeks - that version became the roadshow version, and from there in general release all that happened was the removal of the overture, entr'acte and exit music.
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I was under the impression that 2001 was shortened just prior to its opening, after the press showings. I'm fairly certain, in fact I'm VERY certain that the longer version never played in LA and I think the LA run opened almost at the same time as the NY run.
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