Before Criterion was blowing us away with groundbreaking restorations of classics, art films, and foreign treasures on Blu Ray and DVD, they had humble beginnings with the Laserdisc format. Their library spanned over three hundred releases, and they paved the foundation for ideas such as special features, and widescreen letterboxing to preserve the original intent of the filmmakers. They pushed for preservation and celebration in a time when most studios were fine throwing out a movie on VHS or Laserdisc with mono sound, and pan and scan picture to make a quick buck off of the unsuspecting masses with little fan fare. As a result, their reputation among filmmakers was incredible, and because of that they were able to license not only forgotten classics and whatnot, but also major studio films from the likes of Stephen Spielberg, and David Lean. They covered everything from 8 1/2, to Armageddon over the course of fifteen years. This series looks at the Criterion Collection through its origin: the Laserdisc releases.
To start off this series, we're going to take a look at one of their more exciting early-ish releases, Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, spine #125.
The movie:
Hot off the trails of Jaws, Spielberg took to Colombia Pictures with the idea to make a movie about aliens, inspired by his childhood experiences with meteor showers and various recounts of alien encounters from various sources over the years. The results is, of course, an incredibly intimate movie ultimately about two people from separate paths colliding to help each other solve a problem. One hopes to recover a lost child, and the other wishes to fulfill an urge that something more exciting is out there, lusting for it with a child-like hunger. Their respective quests lead them to the southwest desert, where they hope to seek out help from extra terrestrials in solving their problems.
Chances are, you've already seen CE3K, and if you haven't, stop what you're doing and seek it out. The film has some absolutely wonderful special effects, and a classic John Williams score. The acting is quite good, and the story inspires a sort of wonder that few filmmakers can inspire in me. I don't have much to say other than that I love this movie. A lot.
On to the good stuff:
Packaging:
There are two different pressings of the Criteron CE3K release, one in a tri-fold sleeve, and one in a box set. For all purposes, I only have the box set release, and it seems to be, well, a large box. The cover art, designed by Beth Dorfman, features a a shot of a long, empty desert road with a bright, almost sun-like light at the edge of the horizon. I guess that its supposed to represent the flashy lights of the alien vessels in the movie, but I don't really recall any of them flying around, beaming like a star as it does on the cover of this set.
The back cover of the boxset features a detailed essay written by Don Shay, in which he talks about Spielberg's process that led to the making of the film, a little bit of praise for Douglas Trumbull's special effects, and why they chose to make the special edition of the film in 1980. Also featured are technical bits about the presentation of the film, special features chapter listings, and credits for the cast and crew of the film, as well as production credits for the Laserdisc release itself.
Once the box is opened, and a layer of protective foam is pulled away, you are greeted to three Laserdiscs, held in flimsy plastic sleeves, a standard practice. Also included is a single sided sheet printed on card stock that details the chapter selection for the entire film, as well as the chapter selection for scenes exclusive to the special edition while highlighting all of the different UFOs from the film.
Finally, there is a sheet of paper titled, "Some important notes about The Criterion Collection edition of CE3K." This paper how you would go about programming your Laserdisc player to show you the special edition of the film, as well as a description of what elements were used to create the video and audio for this set. Incredibly helpful stuff, if you ask me.
Features:
This Laserdisc release of CE3K was the first release of this film to include both the 1980 special edition of the film, as well as an approximation of the original theatrical cut showing in theaters in the late 70s. As the note sheet explains, all of the special edition scenes from the 1980 cut are included at the end of each of the five CAV(30 minute long, standard play) sides. In order to access them, you have to program using your remote the a different order in which to play the chapters on the disc. This is, as far as I know, the first mainstream example of branching used to present alternate cuts of the movie.
The entire second side of the third disc is dedicated to a special feature program titled, "Making Close Encounters." The program is incredibly dense, offering large archives of stills, and interviews with all of the major players behind the movie: Spielberg, Douglas Trumbull, Dennis Muren, and John Williams. They like to utilize at any given point 3 different audio tracks present on the disc; digital stereo, analog left, and analog right to present three different parallel conversations about the topics at hand. As a result, what's presented on screen is also broken into three distinct windows for each of the three audio tracks. Overall, the features for this release of CE3K are absolutely engaging, and incredibly informative. There are 30 different chapters of interviews, and galleries of stills from the making of the film. This release is incredibly comprehensive, especially for 1990.
The Video:
According to the note sheet included, the film was transferred from a 35mm interpositive for the 1980 special edition, as well as trims made from the original theatrical edition in order to present both cuts of the movie. These elements were then transferred for D-1 component video under Spielberg's supervision, and presented in 2.35:1 widescreen video. As per the standard on Laserdisc, the video is non-anamorphic 4x3 widescreen, and is analog.
That being said, viewing this box set on my 24 inch Sony WEGA television yielded wonderful results. Under a rather non-intrusive layer of video noise inherent to analog video of the time, there is an alight amount of detail preserved for the time period. Colors are vibrant, and appear to match newer, more accurate presentations of the film on DVD and Blu Ray. The film's special effects were shot on 65mm negative, and as a result, they come out very clean, without any signs of optical artifacts present in so many other films of time period. There is a little bit of wear and tear present here and there, but this film was not aggressively restored, unlike the Criterion releases of today. They were limited in both money, and the means to do so in 1990 when the film's video masters were made.
Overall though, the film looks great, and the look of the film is faithfully preserved with this release. I have a soft spot for the look of 60s and 70s films shot using Panavision C-series anamorphic lenses, so I absolutely adore the look of the film, even in standard def on Laserdisc.
The Sound:
According to the notes. a matrixed stereo surround track was prepared from the original 35mm magnetic 4-channel mix using a Dolby DS-4 Surround Sound Processor, whatever that means!
Listening to the film through my Sony receiver from the late 90s, the film carries a decent stereo surround track. I played the film through my Dolby Surround processor, with creates a 3 speaker front, and a mono surround spread to both of my back speakers, as my bedroom is designed for 5.1 discrete surround sound. Dialogue comes out nice and clear through the center channel, with the score tending to occupy the rest of the soundscape when necessary, effectively sharing that space with the sound effects and whatnot. The film doesn't really have a ton of intense action pieces, or explosive battles, and as a result, low frequency really doesn't have many opportunities to shine. When it does however, it is deep, and satisfying, however limited its application is.
I didn't really notice any crazy directionality to the soundtrack though, and I'd chalk that up to the limitations of the original sound design in conjunction with Dolby Surround processing. I've heard some really wonderful 4-track Dolby Surround tracks that have really wowed me, but I've also heard loads more average ones that don't really do a whole lot for me. Unfortunately, I wasn't all that impressed with the sound on this one, it was merely average to me.
Overall:
This film was treated with the utmost respect by those who were part of Criteron in 1990. The film is presented beautifully, and there is an incredibly large helping of special features that cover almost every aspect of how the film was made. The film itself is an incredibly personal feature, and one of the very few films out there that presents the idea of extra-terrestrial life as a peaceful entity. That alone makes it worth checking out. The movie is well paced, well acted, and has some absolutely groundbreaking special effects. The film was only licensed once for release by Criterion, and as a result, the film is no longer part of the collection moving into the DVD and Blu Ray era. The film was later released under the guise of "The Collector's Edition," by its original studio, Columbia Tri-Star on Laserdisc, with a brand new cut of the film, and a new 5.1 discrete Dolby Digital audio transfer. I do not have this release, so I can't comment on the nature of its special features or its video and audio transfer.
Regardless, this Laserdisc release by Criterion feels comprehensive, and includes two wonderful cuts of the movie via branching, something I don't think I've seen again with any of my 500+ Laserdiscs. Its some good stuff, and if you have the chance and the appropriate equipment, I would definitely track this release down.
To start off this series, we're going to take a look at one of their more exciting early-ish releases, Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, spine #125.
The movie:
Hot off the trails of Jaws, Spielberg took to Colombia Pictures with the idea to make a movie about aliens, inspired by his childhood experiences with meteor showers and various recounts of alien encounters from various sources over the years. The results is, of course, an incredibly intimate movie ultimately about two people from separate paths colliding to help each other solve a problem. One hopes to recover a lost child, and the other wishes to fulfill an urge that something more exciting is out there, lusting for it with a child-like hunger. Their respective quests lead them to the southwest desert, where they hope to seek out help from extra terrestrials in solving their problems.
Chances are, you've already seen CE3K, and if you haven't, stop what you're doing and seek it out. The film has some absolutely wonderful special effects, and a classic John Williams score. The acting is quite good, and the story inspires a sort of wonder that few filmmakers can inspire in me. I don't have much to say other than that I love this movie. A lot.
On to the good stuff:
Packaging:
There are two different pressings of the Criteron CE3K release, one in a tri-fold sleeve, and one in a box set. For all purposes, I only have the box set release, and it seems to be, well, a large box. The cover art, designed by Beth Dorfman, features a a shot of a long, empty desert road with a bright, almost sun-like light at the edge of the horizon. I guess that its supposed to represent the flashy lights of the alien vessels in the movie, but I don't really recall any of them flying around, beaming like a star as it does on the cover of this set.
The back cover of the boxset features a detailed essay written by Don Shay, in which he talks about Spielberg's process that led to the making of the film, a little bit of praise for Douglas Trumbull's special effects, and why they chose to make the special edition of the film in 1980. Also featured are technical bits about the presentation of the film, special features chapter listings, and credits for the cast and crew of the film, as well as production credits for the Laserdisc release itself.
Once the box is opened, and a layer of protective foam is pulled away, you are greeted to three Laserdiscs, held in flimsy plastic sleeves, a standard practice. Also included is a single sided sheet printed on card stock that details the chapter selection for the entire film, as well as the chapter selection for scenes exclusive to the special edition while highlighting all of the different UFOs from the film.
Finally, there is a sheet of paper titled, "Some important notes about The Criterion Collection edition of CE3K." This paper how you would go about programming your Laserdisc player to show you the special edition of the film, as well as a description of what elements were used to create the video and audio for this set. Incredibly helpful stuff, if you ask me.
Features:
This Laserdisc release of CE3K was the first release of this film to include both the 1980 special edition of the film, as well as an approximation of the original theatrical cut showing in theaters in the late 70s. As the note sheet explains, all of the special edition scenes from the 1980 cut are included at the end of each of the five CAV(30 minute long, standard play) sides. In order to access them, you have to program using your remote the a different order in which to play the chapters on the disc. This is, as far as I know, the first mainstream example of branching used to present alternate cuts of the movie.
The entire second side of the third disc is dedicated to a special feature program titled, "Making Close Encounters." The program is incredibly dense, offering large archives of stills, and interviews with all of the major players behind the movie: Spielberg, Douglas Trumbull, Dennis Muren, and John Williams. They like to utilize at any given point 3 different audio tracks present on the disc; digital stereo, analog left, and analog right to present three different parallel conversations about the topics at hand. As a result, what's presented on screen is also broken into three distinct windows for each of the three audio tracks. Overall, the features for this release of CE3K are absolutely engaging, and incredibly informative. There are 30 different chapters of interviews, and galleries of stills from the making of the film. This release is incredibly comprehensive, especially for 1990.
The Video:
According to the note sheet included, the film was transferred from a 35mm interpositive for the 1980 special edition, as well as trims made from the original theatrical edition in order to present both cuts of the movie. These elements were then transferred for D-1 component video under Spielberg's supervision, and presented in 2.35:1 widescreen video. As per the standard on Laserdisc, the video is non-anamorphic 4x3 widescreen, and is analog.
That being said, viewing this box set on my 24 inch Sony WEGA television yielded wonderful results. Under a rather non-intrusive layer of video noise inherent to analog video of the time, there is an alight amount of detail preserved for the time period. Colors are vibrant, and appear to match newer, more accurate presentations of the film on DVD and Blu Ray. The film's special effects were shot on 65mm negative, and as a result, they come out very clean, without any signs of optical artifacts present in so many other films of time period. There is a little bit of wear and tear present here and there, but this film was not aggressively restored, unlike the Criterion releases of today. They were limited in both money, and the means to do so in 1990 when the film's video masters were made.
Overall though, the film looks great, and the look of the film is faithfully preserved with this release. I have a soft spot for the look of 60s and 70s films shot using Panavision C-series anamorphic lenses, so I absolutely adore the look of the film, even in standard def on Laserdisc.
The Sound:
According to the notes. a matrixed stereo surround track was prepared from the original 35mm magnetic 4-channel mix using a Dolby DS-4 Surround Sound Processor, whatever that means!
Listening to the film through my Sony receiver from the late 90s, the film carries a decent stereo surround track. I played the film through my Dolby Surround processor, with creates a 3 speaker front, and a mono surround spread to both of my back speakers, as my bedroom is designed for 5.1 discrete surround sound. Dialogue comes out nice and clear through the center channel, with the score tending to occupy the rest of the soundscape when necessary, effectively sharing that space with the sound effects and whatnot. The film doesn't really have a ton of intense action pieces, or explosive battles, and as a result, low frequency really doesn't have many opportunities to shine. When it does however, it is deep, and satisfying, however limited its application is.
I didn't really notice any crazy directionality to the soundtrack though, and I'd chalk that up to the limitations of the original sound design in conjunction with Dolby Surround processing. I've heard some really wonderful 4-track Dolby Surround tracks that have really wowed me, but I've also heard loads more average ones that don't really do a whole lot for me. Unfortunately, I wasn't all that impressed with the sound on this one, it was merely average to me.
Overall:
This film was treated with the utmost respect by those who were part of Criteron in 1990. The film is presented beautifully, and there is an incredibly large helping of special features that cover almost every aspect of how the film was made. The film itself is an incredibly personal feature, and one of the very few films out there that presents the idea of extra-terrestrial life as a peaceful entity. That alone makes it worth checking out. The movie is well paced, well acted, and has some absolutely groundbreaking special effects. The film was only licensed once for release by Criterion, and as a result, the film is no longer part of the collection moving into the DVD and Blu Ray era. The film was later released under the guise of "The Collector's Edition," by its original studio, Columbia Tri-Star on Laserdisc, with a brand new cut of the film, and a new 5.1 discrete Dolby Digital audio transfer. I do not have this release, so I can't comment on the nature of its special features or its video and audio transfer.
Regardless, this Laserdisc release by Criterion feels comprehensive, and includes two wonderful cuts of the movie via branching, something I don't think I've seen again with any of my 500+ Laserdiscs. Its some good stuff, and if you have the chance and the appropriate equipment, I would definitely track this release down.
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