The Wong Kar-wai thread!

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 04 Aug 2006, 21:50

Yep. It a clone of the French 2 Disc.

As Tartan fixed the DOBW and ATGB soundtracks a while ago they're a safe bet too. There isn't really anything between them and the R1 Kino versions:

* Anamorphic
* Cantonese DD2.0
* Single Layer
* Trailers on the Kino R1, Commentary on the Tartan UK R2

Yi-Long · Post by **Yi-Long** » 04 Aug 2006, 23:45

Actually, Tartan is already releasing the new DOBW and ATGB discs next month, according to play.com

http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/4-/819424/T ... oduct.html

http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/PROD/3-/741 ... oduct.html

I'll wait for the reviews before I order DOBW. Not really interested in ATGB, but perhaps if AV quality are good I might pick it up.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 05 Aug 2006, 00:08

Interesting thanks. Although to me I read a re-stock of the fixed version now containing Mandarin and Cantonese.

I don't see commentaries mentioned.

That said the F2B Lady Vengeance specifically mentions it's exclusive to the box set it doesn't mention these commentaries are so fingers cross but then it doesn't say the Mr. Vengeance is exclusive but it seems to be.

Like I said I'd pick up DOBW for the commentary (Chris Doyle and WKW make wonderful cinematography) but not ATGB.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 05 Aug 2006, 02:00

Cheers for the heads up Brad. I'll pass, since I've got the Kino boxset on order (there was a massive Kino sale last month at DDD) and I already have the Criterion of ITMFL. ]

Artificial Eye should redo Happy Together, the print they used was pants. The R4 Madman release would've been awesome, if it hadn't had used AE's shitastic transfer.

grim_tales wrote:I may pick that up as I havent got ITMFL yet.
The UK version of that is decent isn't it?

It's a direct port of the French release, so yes it's decent.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 05 Aug 2006, 11:41

I don't want no DOBW or ATGB... Just give me Ashes of Time with remastered subs so I can die happy.

Surely a HK print must still exist somewhere ?

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 05 Aug 2006, 13:49

EvaUnit02 wrote:I already have the Criterion of ITMFL.

That's said to be better than the Frenchie but I'm more than happy with my French 2 Disc LE (it's now in a keep case).

It certainly looks better going by DVD Beaver and has meatier extras too not that the French ones are weak at all.

Tom2681 wrote:I don't want no DOBW or ATGB... Just give me Ashes of Time with remastered subs so I can die happy.

Yes Yes Yes please. For christ's sake why can only the French do this but then the iditots used a cut print anyway???

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Aug 2006, 16:58

Wait, Tartan actually sorted out the ATGB and DOBW soundtracks? I never heard any further updates so I assumed that they hadn't bothered. I'm shocked.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 05 Aug 2006, 17:01

Yep there was a press release "shortly" after their release. It's just no e-tailors bothered to update their listings so you may end up getting the first batch.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Aug 2006, 17:10

bradavon wrote:Yep there was a press release "shortly" after their release. It's just no e-tailors bothered to update their listings so you may end up getting the first batch.

I recall that:
"Tartan Video would like to take this opportunity to apologise that its DVD releases of ‘As Tears Go By’ and ‘Days of Being Wild’ did not meet with the approval of all who bought them and to reassure its loyal customers that if we can obtain a Cantonese version of either film then we will operate a ‘new-for-old’ exchange scheme for those customers who would rather own the Cantonese versions."

I didn't think that they would actually do it though. The "if we can" part. I suppose I'll have to pick them up then.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Aug 2006, 17:12

I notice that there are already 'new' releases of both films as of 05 December 2005 under new cataogue numbers.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 05 Aug 2006, 17:49

Those would be the re-release but what these Play ones? We won't know until release guess or maybe even someone buys them.

The R1's are as good btw.

EvaUnit02 wrote:Artificial Eye should redo Happy Together, the print they used was pants. The R4 Madman release would've been awesome, if it hadn't had used AE's shitastic transfer.

Thanks. Doesn't that have exclusive extras?

It's the R1 all the way then.

You'll like the Kino box set it's decent, considering we don't expect extras and the AV is "fine".

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Aug 2006, 23:31

Well they're touted has being dual audio. Tartan for you.

Does the R1 have the green tint? I only need to pick up a dcent copy of DOBW and HT, no interest in ATGB. Tartan and TF1 it will be ....or not, I don't see a single release of HT from TF1. Cockblocked.

I won't touch a Kino release because they make no effort with discs as exemplified by their special cut of HT with the extended B&W sequence.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 06 Aug 2006, 03:04

bradavon wrote:Thanks. Doesn't that have exclusive extras?

*Sigh* You know bloody well that it does. A commentary recorded by the same bloke who did Madman's 2046 commentary.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 06 Aug 2006, 15:44

I couldn't remember for sure but thanks.

Lourdes wrote:I won't touch a Kino release because they make no effort with discs as exemplified by their special cut of HT with the extended B&W sequence.

That's your loss it's otherwise much better than the UK R2 and R4 but then I guess you don't mind adding your own subs. I do.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 10 Aug 2006, 02:56

Interesting news.

FORTISSIMO SIGNS UP WONG KAR WAI LIBRARY

Fortissimo Films has signed a deal with Cannes jury president Wong Kar-wai's Jet Tone Films to handle the increasing list of titles in the director's library, including films not previously represented by Fortissimo.

The deal is an expansion of the long-standing relationship between Wong and Fortissimo which first worked with the director on Chungking Express in 1994 and most recently handled In The Mood For Love and 2046.

Titles included in the deal include internationally acclaimed films directed by Wong - Chungking Express, Fallen Angels and Happy Together - along with Jeff Lau's Eagle Shooting Heroes and A Chinese Odyssey, Eric Kot's First Love and Kwan Pun Leung's BA Zero Degrees.

Wong is working on supplemental footage to boost promotion of the films which will be exploited through DVD releases and retrospectives.

"Recently we were discussing with Kar Wai what we had done to bring Jim Jarmusch's library back into the marketplace in order to take full advantage of the new licensing, media and revenue opportunities," said Fortissimo co-chairman Michael Werner.

"This coincided with plans that Kar Wai had developed himself and the outcome of that discussion is this new deal."

Fortissimo struck a deal last year for Jim Jarmusch's library of titles, including Down By Law, and also handles the Killer Films collection, including Todd Haynes' Poison and Tom Kalin's Swoon.

The deal with Jet Tone was negotiated by Werner and Jet Tone/Block 2's director of business affairs Irene Leung.

Screendaily | By Liz Shackleton in Cannes | 24 May 2006
http://www.fortissimofilms.com/articles ... 851&type=2

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 10 Aug 2006, 03:02

WOAH, how did we miss this?!

WKW's English-language debut:- My Blueberry Nights

Production stills featuring Jude Law.

The love affair with Christopher Doyle is truly over as he's now working with Jean-Pierre Jeunet's old DoP, Darius Khondji.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 10 Aug 2006, 04:04

I've been ignoring the news, I only care about something once I see it for myself. I don't follow news unless it's about DVD releases so I don't get hyped and can see a film for what it really is.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 10 Aug 2006, 22:33

Thanks Eva.

That NEW WKW DVD news was posted in a very similar fashion at least 2 years ago. I'll believe it when I see it and will equally happily eat my shorts.

I hadn't heard of "My Blueberry Nights" though. At one point I remember Nicole Kidman being attached to a WKW Project. English language better bloody not mean the dumbing down of the great WKW!

Shame he's no longer working with Chris Doyle.

p.s - Fortissimo Films seem to be a Dutch company, what this means in terms of which region we're talking I don't know -

http://www.fortissimo.nl/default.asp

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 11 Aug 2006, 02:07

bradavon wrote:p.s - Fortissimo Films seem to be a Dutch company, what this means in terms of which region we're talking I don't know -

http://www.fortissimo.nl/default.asp

Fortissimo licence to all sorts of territories. The R4 Madman Jim Jarmusch DVDs (Permanent Vacation, Stranger Than Paradise, Down By Law, Mystery Train, Night on Earth, Dead Man) that I have are sourced from Fortissimo masters; the picture quality is superb, beautiful native-PAL transfers (Madman's Down By Law has ALL the Criterion extras too). I'm guessing that the upcoming Tartan Jarmusch DVDs will use the Fortissimo masters too.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 11 Aug 2006, 23:12

Thanks Eva. That sounds promising. I'm really intrigued to see what region they're talking about.

Madman's Down By Law has ALL the Criterion extras too

I bet that cost them.

I'm guessing that the upcoming Tartan Jarmusch DVDs will use the Fortissimo masters too.

Agreed they only seem to go with ntsc-pal for Asian releases. American ones get proper native-pal transfers.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 12 Aug 2006, 02:38

bradavon wrote:I bet that cost them.

Maybe not, I think that they might've obtained the extras from Fortissimo. Jarmusch retains the rights and original negatives to ALL his films, I think it might be the same with extras too. Madman's R4's of Jarmusch's Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai and Dead Man have all the extras from the respective R1 Artisan and Miramax discs.

I got my R1 WKW boxset today. Don't know what to do with the duplicate copy of Chungking Express.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 12 Aug 2006, 03:29

WTF? I'm hanging onto my Kino copy of Fallen Angels then.
"NOTE: The Accent DVD has replaced Takeshi Kaneshiro's Ccantonese voiceover with what I can only assume is the Mandarin dub used for mainland release....why accent was sent an audio track with everyone speaking Cantonese except his character is a mystery. (Thanks Edward)"

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompar ... angels.htm

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 12 Aug 2006, 14:32

EvaUnit02 wrote:I got my R1 WKW boxset today. Don't know what to do with the duplicate copy of Chungking Express.

Do you have the R1 twice? I already owned the R1 too when I decided to pick up the box set so I traded it. No big deal.

EvaUnit02 wrote:WTF? I'm hanging onto my Kino copy of Fallen Angels then.
"NOTE: The Accent DVD has replaced Takeshi Kaneshiro's Ccantonese voiceover with what I can only assume is the Mandarin dub used for mainland release....why accent was sent an audio track with everyone speaking Cantonese except his character is a mystery. (Thanks Edward)"

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompar ... angels.htm

Thanks Eva. What a mess!

Strange the audio still says the Accent is decent. It's not!

This does mean the R1 versions in the box set are now currently all the best versions world-wide with the exception of Chungking Express.

The UK R2 AE Chungking Express isn't better enough to worry about upgrading. The R1 is perfectly fine.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 12 Aug 2006, 15:25

I disproved that shortly after it was posted on the WKW.net forums over a year ago. DVDBeaver is worthless. Compared it to the R3K and a BBC4 recording.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 12 Aug 2006, 15:49

I think you guys are wrong about Fallen Angels.

Fact 1: In modern WKW movies (post- Ashes of Time), every actor speaks in his own language.

Fact 2: Takeshi Kaneshiro should then be speaking mandarin, not cantonese.

Fact 3: In what you call the "mandarin dub", it's Kaneshiro's own voice that you hear.

If you've got a version in which everybody speaks cantonese, it's a cantonese dub.
If you've got a version in which everybody speaks mandarin, it's a mandarin dub.

Both the R4 Accent and the R2FR TF1 use a multilanguage track in which Kaneshiro speaks mandarin.
There's no reason for him to speak cantonese.