Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Cinerama Holiday Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 24, 2013

Robert L. Bendick and Philippe De Lacy's "Cinerama Holiday" (1955) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Flicker Alley. The supplemental features on the disc include new video interviews with Betty Marsh York and Beatrice Troller; three Cinerama Holiday behind the scenes stories which were deleted from the feature documentary Cinerama Adventure; footage from a breakdown reel used during "Cinerama Holiday" screenings; new featurette on the restoration and reconstruction of the film; slideshow; and more. The release also arrives with a 28-page reproduction of the original program, as seen by viewers of the film's first theatrical screening. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Las Vegas

Robert L. Bendick and Philippe De Lacy's Cinerama Holiday is a fascinating travelogue that follows closely the journeys of two different real-life couples, one from Kansas City, the other from Switzerland. After a short overture followed by an introduction, the two couples head in opposite directions and the camera begins rolling.

Betty and John Marsh land in Switzerland and immediately head to St. Moritz, one of the most prestigious and luxurious ski resorts in the world. There are spectacular panoramic shots in this segment that effectively capture the beauty of the Swiss Alps. There is also an outstanding, very well shot sequence showing John’s one and only experience on St. Moritz’s legendary bob run. Indeed, considering the bob’s speed, the stability and clarity of the footage are quite remarkable.

Later on, Betty and John move to Davos, where they decide to learn more about skiing. This proves to be a rather challenging task, but the nightlife more than makes up for it. And again, there is plenty of footage in this segment that must have been quite difficult to shoot but looks absolutely spectacular.

Meanwhile, Fred and Beatrice Troller land in America and head to Las Vegas. As they move through the city, Fred comments on the motley crew of people who seem to have completely forgotten about their everyday problems. Next is Arizona, a place the Swiss visitors know only from the different westerns they have seen back home. Here Fred and Beatrice meet a group of Indian ranchers with ‘surprising’ names. Once in San Francisco, Fred and Beatrice finally realize how far they have traveled, and then head east with Amtrak’s California Zephyr. New Orleans fascinates the couple. Its unique rhythm of life is unlike anything they have experienced before.

Following a fifteen-minute intermission, the journeys on both sides of the Atlantic are resumed. Now Betty and John travel to Paris, where they meet other Americans and visit some of the city’s most famous sights. The couple also has the opportunity to spend some time in a ‘real French home’. At the same time, Fred and Beatrice visit Washington D.C. and from there head to New York, where later on they finally meet Betty and John.

Structured as a documentary, Cinerama Holiday is a light and breezy film that should appeal to a number of different viewers. It is very informative but it has a casual tone that makes it very easy to enjoy. Also, the narration effectively compliments the visuals; it does not detract from them.

There are many spectacular sequences in the film, but the bob-sled sequence from St. Moritz is unquestionably the most impressive one. Considering the size of the camera that was used to film it and the velocity of the actual run, the final footage seems almost unreal. According to an article included in the booklet provided with this release, seven takes were needed to film the sequence. During the first six, the velocity of the run and the cold weather apparently collapsed the film.

For the restoration and reconstruction of Cinerama Holiday David Strohmaier and his colleagues at Image Trends had access to the film's original camera negative. This was not the case with the previous two Cinerama projects Mr. Strohmaier was involved with, Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich and This Is Cinerama. The negative was scanned on a ScanMaster 4000 scanner at Image Trends in Austin, Texas.

Cinerama Holiday Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.56:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Robert L. Bendick and Philippe De Lacy's Cinerama Holiday arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Flicker Alley.

For the restoration and reconstruction of Cinerama Holiday David Strohmaier and his colleagues at Image Trends had access to the film's original camera negative. (This was not the case with the previous two Cinerama projects that were released on Blu-ray by Flicker Alley, Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich and This Is Cinerama). After scanning the negative -- which was apparently badly affected by vinegar syndrome -- on ScanMaster 4000 scanner at Image Trends, Mr. Strohmaier and his colleagues digitally restored and reconstructing the film. The result is a lovely presentation with solid organic qualities. Indeed, image depth and clarity are consistently very pleasing. The daylight footage, in particular, often boasts very good detail (see screencapture #2). Contrast levels also remain stable, even when locations change and it is easy to see that the shooting conditions were drastically different (compare the footage from Las Vegas with that from St. Moritz, Switzerland). Color reproduction is good. It is clear that in some areas color saturation can be better, but the current levels of saturation are more than adequate and color stability is very good. Furthermore, there are absolutely no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Also, there are no traces of sharpening adjustments. Overall image stability is very good. Finally, there are a few faded spots and extremely light vertical lines that could not be fully removed with current digital tools, but there are no large damage marks, debris, or cuts to report in this review. To sum it all up, the restored and reconstructed Cinerama Holiday is yet another competent project from the folks at Flicker Alley that allows one to experience the film at home in a convincing manner. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).

Reconstructed and Remastered by David Strohmaier.
Produced by John Sitting for Cinerama Inc.
Special 6 perf film scanning and image restoration by Image Trends.
Cinerama Sound remastered by Gregory Faust and Wade Chamberlain.
Seven Channel Cinerama Sound transferred at Chace Audio by Deluxe/Thom Piper, Jr. & Gilbert Paul.

Cinerama Holiday Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English Dolby Digital 2.0. For the record, Flicker Alley have not provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Depth and clarity are consistently very pleasing. The film's orchestral score, in particular, sounds notably crisp and vibrant. However, occasionally some very light background hiss sneaks in and its presence can be felt. The dialog is stable and easy to follow. For the record, there are no pops, cracks, audio dropouts or distortions to report in this review. (Note: The audio restoration was created from the original 7 channel mix).

Cinerama Holiday Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Breakdown Reel - Cinerama 3-panel systems could breakdown during a show. If this happened, a regular projector had an emergency or breakdown reel ready to screen. The footage presented here comes from one such reel which was used during Cinerama Holiday screenings. In English, not subtitled. (15 min, 480/60i).

• Cinerama Holiday at the Dome - on April 28th, 2013, the TCM Classic Film Festival hosted a screening at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood of the newly restored and reconstructed. Presented here is footage from the event. Betty Marsh York and Beatrice Troller attended the historic screening. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, 1080p).

• Return to Cinerama Holiday - in this new video piece, Betty Marsh York and Beatrice Troller recall their contributions to Cinerama Holiday and explain how some of the more challenging sequences in the film were shot. In English, not subtitled. (22 min, 1080p).

• Betty's Scrapbook - Betty Marsh York kept a scrapbook during the 1954 production of Cinerama Holiday. Lost for more than 50 years, it was recently located by Cinerama historian Roland Lataille. In this video piece, Betty Marsh York discusses some of scrapbook's content. In English, not subtitled. (12 min, 1080p).

• 1997 Cast Interview from Cinerama Holiday - on April 26th, 1997, the four cast members of Cinerama Holiday were reunited and interviewed in Dayton, Ohio. Presented here is footage from the interviews. In English, not subtitled. (23 min, 480/60i).

• Deleted Scenes from Cinerama Adventure - three Cinerama Holiday behind the scenes stories which were deleted from the feature documentary Cinerama Adventure made in 2002. With comments from co-director Bob Bendick, cameraman Gayne Rescher, and associate producer Louis de Rochement III. In English, not subtitled.(9 min, 480/60i).
  
  1. Runaway Camera
  2. Mona Lisa Incident
  3. Filming the Bobsled

• 8mm Home Movies - presented here are director Bob Bendick's 8MM Kodachrome home movies. The films were taken during the shooting of the European sequences he directed. In English, not subtitled. (16 min, 480/60i).

• Aussie Newsreel - 1958 newsreel about Cinerama at the Hoyts Plaza Theatre in Sydney, Australia. In English, not subtitled. B&W. (3 min, 480/60i).

• Restoration of Cinerama Holiday - in this short but very informative featurette, David Strohmaier, director of restoration and remastering projects at Cinerama, discusses the digital restoration and reconstruction of Cinerama Holiday. In English, not subtitled. (13 min, 1080p).

• Slideshow - Behind the Scenes with Cinerama Holiday - a collection of production stills, posters, photographs, etc. With music. (8 min, 1080p).

• Booklet - 28-page reproduction of the original program, as seen by viewers of the film's first theatrical screening.

Cinerama Holiday Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Robert L. Bendick and Philippe De Lacy's Cinerama Holiday is yet another terrific addition to Flicker Alley's impressive catalog of Cinerama films. The film is wonderful and the technical presentation enormously pleasing. Kudos to David Strohmaier and his colleagues for making this film available on Blu-ray. Buy with confidence, folks. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.