7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 5.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Running from the law after a bank robbery in Mexico, Dad Longworth finds an opportunity to take the stolen gold and leave his partner Rio to be captured...
Starring: Marlon Brando, Karl Malden, Katy Jurado, Ben Johnson, Slim PickensDrama | 100% |
Western | 32% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Nominated for Oscar Award for Best Cinematography, Marlon Brando's "One-Eyed Jacks" (1961) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; new filmed introduction of the new restoration of the film by Martin Scorsese; new video essay by film historian Toby Roan; new video essay by filmmaker and critic David Cairns; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring writer Howard Hampton's essay "Zen Nihilism" and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
Surrounded
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Marlon Brando's One-Eyed Jacks arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:
"Undertaken by Universal Studios in collaboration with The Film Foundation, this new restoration was created from the original 35mm, 8-perforation Vista Vision negative and the 35mm Y-layer separation master (to recover faded blue). These film elements were scanned, using pin registration, at 6K resolution on a Northlight film scanner. Restoration work then proceeded at 4K resolution. The negative and Y-layer files were digitally recombined using 3D image manipulation tools. The film elements were configured for A/B printing, so all transitions, such as fades and dissolves, were recreated to conform to the theatrical cut of the film. Dirt and damage removal was accomplished with a host of digital tools, including MTI Film's Nova, Digital Vision's Phoenix, HS-Art's Diamant, and Autodesk's Flame. The monaural soundtrack was remastered from the original 35mm, 3-channel discrete dialog, music, and effects magnetic master. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX.
Restoration supervision: NBCUniversal Global Media Operations - Content Management, in consultation with Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg.
Restoration services: NBCUniversal StudiosPost, with additional work performed by Prasad Group and MTI Film."
The improvements in terms of depth, clarity and stability are substantial. There are entire sections of the film, not just small segments, that now have the type of appearance that a film shot in Vista Vision should have. (The previous release is so problematic that it actually creates the impression that the film was shot with an amateur camera). On a large screen it is also very easy to appreciate the dramatically improved fluidity. During the nighttime footage as well as some indoor footage shadow definition is vastly superior now and as a result there are small details and nuances that are a lot easier to distinguish. There is a visible layer of very fine grain. Some minor fluctuations emerge, but they are never distracting. There are traces of very careful denoising/degraining corrections, which I assume were done in an effort to rebalance the image as best as possible. There are some visible density fluctuations, but the most noticeable ones are actually a byproduct of age/preservation-related issues that can be traced back to the available elements. The film has a stable color scheme. There are healthy primaries and a very good range of nuances. However, I feel that the overall balance could have been even better. For example, it does feel like the blues are not strong enough; the overall range of reds is also a bit too dark, while in a few segments the yellows/browns really come off too strong. There are no distracting cuts, debris, damage marks, stains, or warped/torn frames. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.
The lossless audio track is excellent. One thing that immediately makes an impression is the vastly superior depth. There is an overall better balance as well, with the mid/high registers now being free of the 'thinning' that is present on the previous Blu-ray release of the film. There are no audio dropouts, distracting background hiss, or digital distortions to report.
It is unfortunate that we do not have at least some sort of rough print of the long version of One-Eyed Jacks endorsed by Marlon Brando. The production history of One-Eyed Jacks is beyond fascinating and if even half of the information floating around is actually true then what Brando wanted us to see was probably a very different film. However, I still think it is fair to say that even in its current form, the film very effectively separates itself from all other westerns of the same era. Criterion's new Blu-ray release of the recent restoration of One-Eyed Jacks should remain the film's definitive presentation on the home video market. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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