World of Wong Kar Wai

[Drucker]

Thank you so much for your efforts!

[willoneill]

Now that the (virtual) screenings have begun, are we expecting an announcement soon?

[tenia]

I hope this giant post about Fallen Angels is acceptable.

Here's a google drive link to a folder with 157 screenshots. They're not all in chronological order, but some are. To be fair I chose both: shots that work decently well, and shots that showcase majors issues such as distortion, bad framing, revisionist colors, etc.

Below in the spoiler tag are 14 examples of what I would consider funny looking faces or objects due to the outer edge distortion they utilized (in some of the shots to achieve the aspect ratio conversion) [of course they used wide angle lenses at close range, so things already looked distorted in the original, but this brings it even further. Too far IMO]

Here are some direct comparisons to the original version:

Oh wow, thanks a lot for the effort ! It's indeed very interesting to see what is the effect of these new choices depending on the shots, the original colors, etc. Overall, it seems like the color-grading, except for select parts, is quite similar to the older one while others are more colorful or green tinted. More interesting (to me) is how the new distorsion seems to work quite well on some shots - I found myself surprised at how I could adjust to it (on these caps) and basically thinking "wow, I possibly could miss totally the distorsion on those when watching the movie".

In any case though, it looks like a completely different movie now, and just like Ashes of Time, this is basically a Redux/alternative version, not a restoration, and it should definitely be advertised and handle in the boxset as such.

[criterionsnob]

Thank you for sharing. The colourizing select elements in the frame is the most revolting thing to me, as well as some of the cropping (heads and clocks getting completely cropped out), not to mention grain reduction and some of the stretching looking really off.

That said, a lot of it looks quite nice. Ideally, the box would contain both versions, but I'm not holding my breath.

[cowboydan]

Thank you for sharing. The colourizing select elements in the frame is the most revolting thing to me, as well as some of the cropping (heads and clocks getting completely cropped out), not to mention grain reduction and some of the stretching looking really off.

You're welcome. This is one of my favorite films, so it's my pleasure to dissect it.

To be fair, I think the stream has heavily compressed the video. Whatever video format the Lincoln Center uses is similar to youtube in that, even on 1080p you can lose most (or all) of your grain detail. Vimeo is much better for retaining the grain. So I don't think we should assume DNR just yet. Wait for the disc for a fair judgement in that regard.

The comparisons are mostly for colors, cropping, and stretching. I also updated my other post with 3 additional comparisons, and a disclaimer for one shot that I'm unsure about.

Here's the 3rd of 3 shots in the new version that use the selective colorizing you mentioned:

[soundchaser]

I want to preface this by reiterating that I've never sat down and watched Fallen Angels, but that selective coloring is just about one of the tackiest things I could imagine happening to an otherwise well-regarded film.

[black&huge]

Yeah did WKW finally get around to watching Sin City or something? (also I know selective coloring has been around a long while before that)

[Orlac]

I checked out the Fallen Angels BD from Artifical Eye. It seems to be the original version, down to the original 2.0 audio...though for some reason, the credits copyright the film as 1999.

[DarkImbecile]

March 23

[swo17]

Looks like only Days of Being Wild gets multiple versions

[senseabove]

Welp, the "Special Features" lists includes "Alternate version of Days of Being Wild featuring different edits of the film’s prologue and final scenes, on home video for the first time" but does not mention alternate versions of FA and HT.

Sure hope my copy of the AE disc ships. It's just been sitting there for days now...

[Pavel]

The good news is that the comment sections of Criterion's announcements on social media won't be full of bitching and moaning about the lack of a WKW set anymore.

[Drucker]

Where do you see the special features listed?

[artfilmfan]

Simply Irresistible! I change my mind again about buying this set.

[Andrew_VB]

Where do you see the special features listed?

https://www.criterion.com/boxsets/4117- ... ng-kar-wai

you have to scroll down past the trailer

[senseabove]

They're listed way at the veeeeeery bottom of the page, above the footer, but here they are in their initial version for posterity and the inevitable "I swear it said..." changes:

SEVEN-BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION COLLECTOR’S SET FEATURES
• New 4K digital restorations of Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, Happy Together, In the Mood for Love and 2046, approved by director Wong Kar Wai, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks
• New 4K digital restorations of As Tears Go By and Days of Being Wild, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks
• New program in which Wong answers questions submitted, at the invitation of the director, by authors André Aciman and Jonathan Lethem; filmmakers Sofia Coppola, Rian Johnson, Lisa Joy, and Chloé Zhao; cinematographers Philippe Le Sourd and Bradford Young; and filmmakers and founders/creative directors of Rodarte Kate and Laura Mulleavy
• Alternate version of Days of Being Wild featuring different edits of the film’s prologue and final scenes, on home video for the first time
• Hua yang de nian hua, a 2000 short film by Wong
• Extended version of The Hand, a 2004 short film by Wong, available in the U.S. for the first time
• Interview and “cinema lesson” with Wong from the 2001 Cannes Film Festival
• Three making-of documentaries, featuring interviews with Wong; actors Maggie Cheung Man Yuk, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Chang Chen, Faye Wong, and Ziyi Zhang; and others
• Episode of the television series Moving Pictures from 1996 featuring Wong and cinematographer Christopher Doyle
• Interviews from 2002 and 2005 with Doyle
• Excerpts from a 1994 British Film Institute audio interview with Cheung on her work in Days of Being Wild
• Program from 2012 on In the Mood for Love’s soundtrack
• Press conference for In the Mood for Love from the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival
• Deleted scenes, alternate endings, behind-the-scenes footage, a promo reel, music videos, and trailers
PLUS: Deluxe packaging, including a perfect-bound, French-fold book featuring lavish photography, an essay by critic John Powers, a director’s note, and six collectible art prints

New cover by Nessim Higson

[ftsoh]

Danm... no Ashes of Time!?

[criterionsnob]

...in their initial version for posterity..."

I thought you were talking about the films, not the special features, and had a glimmer of hope for a brief moment.

[domino harvey]

Simply Irresistible! I change my mind again about buying this set.

Oh, I’d say only including the tinkered versions qualifies this as quite resistible

[domino harvey]

No aspect ratio info for 2046... are there more unpleasant surprises to come??

[soundchaser]

The good news is that the comment sections of Criterion's announcements on social media won't be full of bitching and moaning about the lack of a WKW set anymore.

I hope those people are happy with what they’ve foisted upon the world...fate is cruel.

[domino harvey]

Change my mind: Criterion not including the original versions of these films is the biggest blunder in the history of the label. I hope sales are impacted enough to send a message about this kind of thing, though I fear the blind label lovers will just buy it regardless

[Boosmahn]

No aspect ratio info for 2046... are there more unpleasant surprises to come??

The stills should reflect the aspect ratio, no? They look like they're in 2.35:1 to me (I'm on mobile right now).

[DarkImbecile]

Change my mind: Criterion not including the original versions of these films is the biggest blunder in the history of the label. I hope sales are impacted enough to send a message about this kind of thing, though I fear the blind label lovers will just buy it regardless

As others have discussed, this is the peril that comes with all the benefits of working as closely with directors as they do; I doubt the company is the main culprit here.

[EddieLarkin]

Wait, what tinkering on the other films has been confirmed? I thought it was just Fallen Angels.