New DVD Releases Coming From TCM

[Uncle Stevie]

TCM has partnered with Universal to remaster some select old movies for distribution. Deanna Durbin is on the list. Here is the article describing their activity and down in the article you will see the mention of Deanna Durbin on the list. I would look forward to these releases as possibly being better quality than I have now since they used the word "remaster".

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show ... 8766.shtml

[Tony]

Now that's great news for all DD fans!!

[Sarah]

Many terrific films have been unavailable on home video for far too long, especially the holiday classic Remember the Night," Osborne said. "It's wonderful that today's movie fans will be able to enjoy these rare movies. TCM and Universal have put great effort into restoring them digitally and providing historical context, bonus material and behind-the-scenes information, something DVD collectors, like me, are sure to appreciate. I'm very pleased to be part of this great project with TCM and Universal.

"Restoring them digitally" is music to my ears.

[Peter]

I doubt that "It's A Date" will be included? And "Spring Parade" is in the hands of a private owner.

[Uncle Stevie]

Was It's a date purchased by MGM in order to remake it as "Nancy Goes To Rio" starring Jane Powell?

[Tony]

Was It's a date purchased by MGM in order to remake it as "Nancy Goes To Rio" starring Jane Powell?

Well I did hear that Joe Pasternak bought the Rights to "It's A Date" then went to work for MGM.

Who the current owner of the film is I'm not 100% sure, but it could even be Warner Brothers.

[ednamayfan]

Well those remastered Deanna Durbin DVD's are available as from the 27th of April, 2010.

THE TCM UNIVERSAL DEANNA DURBIN COLLECTION - 5 DVD SET

MAD ABOUT MUSIC - 1 DVD

THAT CERTAIN AGE - 1 DVD

THREE SMART GIRLS GROW UP - 1 DVD

BECAUSE OF HIM - 1 DVD

FOR THE LOVE OF MARY - 1 DVD

[Peter]

[Uncle Stevie]

I wrote in response to to release news about new DD DVDs and here is the response I got.

Dear Video Enthusiast,

Although we hope these films are remastered, we have not received word one way or the other.

Once again, thank you for your interest in our products. We look forward to serving you in the future.


Sincerely,

Ed Tomaszewski
Internet Customer Service
MOVIES UNLIMITED
3015 Darnell Road
Philadelphia, PA 19154
215-637-4444
research@moviesunlimited.com


----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve Goldschmidt" <Stevgold@verizon.net>
To: <answers@moviesunlimited.com>
Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 4:38 AM
Subject: Deanna Durbin Romance collection (Thread:4537780)


Will the Deanna Durbin Romance DVD collection due out on April 27 2010 be
digitally remastered? It is important for me to know that and it is not
just a DVD copy of the old VHS movie.

Steve Goldschmidt
18 Ferncliff Rd.
Bloomfield, NJ 07003-5414 - USA
Email: stevgold@verizon.net

[ednamayfan]

Thanks for sharing that information, Steve!

Well the original article mentioned the following:

Many terrific films have been unavailable on home video for far too long, especially the holiday classic Remember the Night," Osborne said. "It's wonderful that today's movie fans will be able to enjoy these rare movies. TCM and Universal have put great effort into restoring them digitally and providing historical context, bonus material and behind-the-scenes information, something DVD collectors, like me, are sure to appreciate. I'm very pleased to be part of this great project with TCM and Universal.

Certainly strange words from that fellow who responded to your email considering both Movies Unlimited & TCM have been taking advance orders for their new releases.

[Peter]

"Dear Video Enthusiast,

Although we hope these films are remastered, we have not received word one way or the other.

Once again, thank you for your interest in our products. We look forward to serving you in the future."

Sounds like a standard response from a desk jockey.

[fossy]

In "Mad About Music" (1938), vain movie star Gail Patrick decides she wants to forget about daughter Deanna Durbin, so she sends her to a Swiss boarding school.


I have watched this movie a number of times, and regard it as one of Deanna`s best.
However this TCM description of the movie is inaccurate. Widow Gail Patrick was pressured into hiding her daughter because (in the words of Dusty, her manager) “a glamour girl can`t have a fourteen year old daughter”.

As a matter of interest I went through the mechanics of placing an order to find out if TCM will sell this new set to me. They will but with a warning that it is designed for region one only. This is in contrast with Warner Brothers Classics who will firstly offer a movie and then refuse to sell it.

[Uncle Stevie]

I just saw this ad for her "Romance Collection" I have all of these movies on DVD so I will not be buying it but if I new, for sure, it was remastered then I would buy it. It is due for release on April 27, 2010.


http://www.moviesunlimited.com/musite/p ... izon%2Enet

[Tony]

Something has happened to Deanna's DVD's - links not working for MOVIES UNLIMITED or TCM - what goes on??

[Uncle Stevie]

I have just written to them and hope for a reply soon.

[ednamayfan]

The release date is now the 8th of July, 2010.

[Peter]

I can't believe TCM changed the date again!!!

[Uncle Stevie]

I received notice today that my Deanna Durbin "Romance Collection" has shipped today. Whoopie!!! I am looking forward to this "remastered" series and hope they are as good as I have been dreaming of. I already own all of the selections but will be gloriously happy to see them again. Now if only they are colorized ------- actually no I don't think that would be appropriate. Deanna's world is in Black and White for me. Her one color movie is a great imagination point for me and I plug her into all her roles in color.


Uncle Stevie

[ednamayfan]

Looking forward to letting us know what you think of the quality of this new collection!!

[Peter]

I haven't received my DVD's as yet, so I would love to know your thoughts about the set with a quick review.

[Uncle Stevie]

I just received them today. I have not checked them out yet but will tonight. I will let you know.

[Uncle Stevie]

I can report that I only saw two movies and not in their entirety but they were great For The Love Of Mary was brilliant with deep shades of black and white and excellent sound quality. I also viewed Mad About Music and got the same impression. All five movies were on separate DVDs and seem to all have a "pre-movie" introduction by the TCM announcer. It was a pleasant beginning. I can only imagine that all five movies are similarly good.

THE TCM UNIVERSAL DEANNA DURBIN COLLECTION - 5 DVD SET

MAD ABOUT MUSIC - 1 DVD

THAT CERTAIN AGE - 1 DVD

THREE SMART GIRLS GROW UP - 1 DVD

BECAUSE OF HIM - 1 DVD

FOR THE LOVE OF MARY - 1 DVD


I also hope the furture will bring remastering of more titles from Deanna.


Uncle Stevie

[Uncle Stevie]

Now I can report that the Romance Collection is a winner. Each DVd has an introduction by Robrt Osbourne, the host of TCM. One of the DVDs also has an interview with John Pasternak about Deanna the early years. All five DVDs have special feature which have many special still photos of Deanna both posed and behind the scenes. I recommend the Deanna Durbin Romance Collection for all.

Uncle Stevie

[ednamayfan]

A big thanks to Uncle Stevie for reporting to us that wonderful news about the new TCM DVD collection.

It certainly is nice to know that fans can enjoy great quality DVD movies which adds to the enjoyment of watching Deanna in action.

And the Pasternak interview is something I'm really looking forward to seeing!!

[Peter]

It's a great that TCM have also included some rare photos of Deanna with the DVD set.

[ednamayfan]

HERE IS AN EXTRACT FROM A REVIEW ABOUT THE NEW TCM RELEASE:

Deanna Durbin: The Music and Romance Collection set is currently available exclusively at Movies Unlimited or through their store at Turner Classic Movies. The collection of 5 discs are in a folded digipack without any slipcase to hold it together, with pretty artwork and short information about the movies in the set. Each film gets its own single-layered disc, and these are pressed discs, NOT DVD-Rs (we can not confirm if individual releases, also available through Movies Unlimited are pressed discs as well). Progressive transfers are similar for all the films, with some grain and damages evident on the prints. These are not thorough and costly restorations, but progressive transfers are very good and much better than what was available on VHS for a long time. Unfortunately, we don't have discs from other countries to compare these transfers. The mono audio is likewise very fine and Ms Durbin's songs are clear without any distortions. Unfortunately, unlike the first set, there are no English or any other language subtitles available for these films. Original trailers were also dropped, but each film gets a two-and a half minute introduction by TCM's own Robert Osborne, a few galleries and an article about the film from TCMDb. The first disc with Mad About Music also gets a 7-minute interview with producer Joe Pasternak's brother and a Deanna Durbin biography on several text screens. Overall, this is a nice package.

[Tony]

The mono audio is likewise very fine and Ms Durbin's songs are clear without any distortions.

Now that information is music to my ears!

[ednamayfan]

A great new review coming soon from Devotee #2.

[Jane]

Looking forward to reading any information about this wonderful new DVD set!

[ednamayfan]

NOT QUITE A TREASURE CHEST

by Devotee #2

Content
Like the ‘Sweetheart Pack’, the ‘TCM Five’ spans almost the whole of Deanna’s career, though if that was the aim, it was a little odd to include Mad About Music, That Certain Age and Three Smart Girls Grow Up, which were released consecutively. Luckily there is no duplication of the films in the ‘Sweetheart Pack’, although that does rather suggest that those six will not soon be remastered. To be fair, they are in no great need of it. The pity of the ‘TCM Five’ is that it does not include Spring Parade or Hers to Hold – the two films that are the most difficult to obtain and, in the experience of most of us who have seen them, would most benefit from restoration. As to peripherals, the lack of subtitles does not trouble me, but the surprising absence of any scene index is a drawback.

Quality
We are told that these five films have been ‘remastered’. ‘Remastered from what?’ I cannot but ask; ‘Remastered how?’ A short feature, somewhere in the bonus materials, would have been fascinating. Most Devotees will also ask, ‘Remastered how well?’ if they have already seen the films, and ‘What is the quality that has been achieved?’ if they have not.
Newcomers to the films will find them generally clean, bright and sharp, with good greyscales and good deep blacks – a pleasure to watch, with only very occasional uncorrected defects. For the Love of Mary is in splendid condition, possibly because it is the most recently made of the five; the others don’t quite come up to that high standard. Throughout the set there is the occasional missing frame, and occasionally the image remains a little unstable, owing, I imagine, to worn sprocket holes.
As a previous reviewer remarked, these are not thorough and costly restorations. To be fair, they are not billed as such; they are billed as remastered, which does not necessarily imply any restoration at all. Those who already have these films on DVD (probably obtained, as mine were, via a Brazilian outlet) will want to know whether it will be worth while to buy this new edition. Without assuming that it is an improved version of the ‘Brazilian’ edition – TCM or Universal may well have used different prints – a word or two of comparison may not be out of place.
I shall take Three Smart Girls Grow Up as typical of the set. The video quality is good, as noted above. As compared with the ‘Brazilian’ version, it is generally rather lighter – always to be desired in Deanna’s films – but still with good contrast. There is no apparent mismatch of brightness or contrast between reels, and the reel cues have been eliminated.
The chief improvement is that the film is generally clearer and sharper, and that has two important side-effects. First, it has improved the depth of focus, which is noticeable for example when Penny sits down to eat during the ball. Secondly, some small details have emerged that I hadn’t noticed before. For example, the well-known four moles on Deanna’s upper chest (they remind me of the Big Dipper) are in fact five (03:26). The pillar at the bottom of the stairs can be seen to be made of wood rather than the stone (or plastered brick) that it would have been in a real house (06:23). One ought now to be able to lip-read Joan when she first stands with Richard on the balcony (09:06). We can see water-drops on her face after she has taken her shower (16:31). (They don’t move – one suspects particles of glitter – but they attest to an admirable attention to detail.) We catch the rueful expression on the voice-teacher’s face just before he sits down at the rehearsal, as if he realizes rather sadly that he has taught Penny all he can (26:20). I don’t say these details weren’t there in the earlier edition – they were, as I now see when I go back and look for them – but they are now so much clearer that I am not surprised that I had not noticed them before.
The sound is still good. I have sometimes found it lacking a bit of ‘top’; but that the soundtrack as a whole may actually be better is, once again, suggested by occasional moments of detail. For example, when Kay kisses Joan to congratulate her on her engagement, one can hear the two kisses, now; and one can now hear Judson Craig say, ‘I know you’ll be happy, dear,’ when he finally realizes which daughter he is to congratulate.

Bonus Materials
The set contains a splendid selection of supporting photographs, but the number presented with each film varies widely. Their presentation is rather clunky and time-consuming, especially as one cannot see them beforehand and select them individually.
The spoken introductions by Robert Osborne of TCM add little to the print articles that are also to be found on the disks. Would that the space given to them had been given to some trailers and deleted scenes! There are none – not even Deanna’s performance of ‘It’s a Big, Wide, Wonderful World’ in For the Love of Mary. It was included in another version of Mary issued for home viewing, so why not in this one? It cannot have been left out simply because of a wish to present the films as they would have been seen in the cinema, because that would logically imply the inclusion of no bonus materials at all. Its omission is an opportunity missed.

Packaging
The packaging is still pretty basic – it is a slight improvement on that of the ‘Sweetheart Pack’, but the Digipak here is actually less robust than that of the ‘Sweetheart Pack’, and there is still no slip case. Considering the price, TCM might have done better by us. Had I known that the ‘TCM Five’ would also be issued separately, I should have ordered them individually and had what I see as the distinct advantage of individual cases. The earlier reviewer, however, is right about the attractive artwork on the new Digipak. I particularly like the way in which five still photographs, one from each of the films, have been arranged as a single banner on the inside, with the backgrounds to the photographs skilfully blended one into another.

Summary
Unless one particularly wants the bonus materials, the video image, good though it is, does not represent a startling improvement over the quality of what was available before. For ardent Durbinites, any improvement makes this set a ‘must-have’; but the chief value of the set probably consists not so much in a better picture quality for those of us who have the films already as in their availability to those who could not get hold of them before – they then have the marginal advantage of starting with a slightly better edition than the rest of us did. As far as I know, however, the only available version of this set is for Region 1, though there are ways round this restriction. Given my caveats, this set is by no means a disappointment, but it is not quite the treasure chest that I had been hoping for.

[Uncle Stevie]

That was a fair review but I must leave a few of my own comments.

There was an interesting interview included with John Pasternak who is Joe's Brother. His knowledge of Deanna was personal and meant a lot to me.

My general impression of the set of five DVDs' was an improvement over what was available before from the marketplace. Yes it is diappointing that those poorer quality films like Her's To Hold and Spring Parade were not remastered but I understand the selection was made by choosing those films that would best represent the process after eliminating the six from the Sweetheart Pack.

I also very much appreciated the DVDs as individuals instead of cramming three movies on one DVD using both sides. I personally like to store all my movies in a separate container so my selection to view them is independant at my preference.

In general I like the collection but will forever anticipate a better Her's To Hold and Spring Parade. I am not a fan of Christmas Holliday and hope they never remaster that.

Uncle Stevie

[ednamayfan]

Thanks to Devotee #2 and Uncle Stevie for sharing their thoughts on the TCM release!!

[Tony]

I also very much appreciated the DVDs as individuals instead of cramming three movies on one DVD using both sides.
Uncle Stevie

Yes, the TCM discs are so much easier to play as individuals.