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Tristan & Iseult (Blu-ray)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - United Kingdom - Powerhouse Films Review written by and copyright: Rick Curzon (21st January 2023). |
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The Film
 Amongst overlooked filmmakers, British director Michael J. Murphy ranks as one of the most sorely neglected. Having cut his teeth on a variety of homemade 8mm shorts, he had completed three feature-length productions by the age of eighteen. Over the next five decades, Murphy would go on to make many more films across a variety of genres, dividing his production time between Greece, Portugal and the UK, with family, friends, and local stage performers becoming his regular cast and crew in exchange for holidays in the sun. Despite this prolific output – a total of more than thirty completed films over a half-century, of which twenty-six survive – Murphy’s work remains rarely seen and little championed. Fitfully available on videotape and barely represented on DVD, this comprehensive and long-gestating ten-disc Blu-ray collection seeks to rectify that situation once and for all. Boasting all-new 2K restorations from archival 16mm and 8mm elements, as well as a number of new digital captures from Murphy’s personal tape masters, this extensive retrospective of the obsessive auteur’s work is bolstered by a wealth of bonus features, including surviving fragments from lost works, and a 120-page book, all of which provides the definitive account of the weird and wonderful worlds of Britain’s great unheralded DIY filmmaker.
Video
DISC ONE: The Micro-Budget Cinema of Michael J. Murphy 1967-1979 The 120-page booklet has this to say regarding the films on DISC ONE: Because Murphy took a frustratingly blasé approach to his early works, and would cut into his reversal masters to isolate sequences which he intended to include in a documentary that he never finished, the original 16mm elements for Tristan & Iseult, Happy Ever After, Secrets and Almost a Movie! were incomplete. Not only were they missing portions of picture and sound, but the surviving reels also contained mute or otherwise compromised sections. The existence of standard-definition (SD) camcorder footage, captured by Murphy whilst he projected the films in his home during the 1980s, meant that it was possible to reconstruct each film by filling in many of the gaps in picture and sound. Elsewhere, it was possible to harvest audio from each film’s soundtrack and to sympathetically paste music, atmos, and / or effects over the mute sections. As a consequence of this painstaking reconstruction work, there are noticeable, and unavoidable, shifts in quality throughout the presentations of all four films. While this is by no means ideal, it should be noted that these restorations represent the most complete versions of the films that it’s possible to see. The following onscreen text cards appear before the films: Tristan and Iseult (1970)
Happy Ever After (1974)
Secrets (1977) Althouch original 16mm materials for Secrets were used as the basis of the following 2K restoration, the only surviving film elements wore incomplete and the soundtrack was compromised in a number of sections. However, thanks to the existence of camcorder recordings captured by Murphy whilst projecting the film in his home in the 1980s, it has been possible to supplement the 16mm footage by inserting this standard-definition material. As a result, there are a number of evident shifts in image quality in the following presentation, as well as some sections of audio that are mute. Despite these issues, this restoration represents the most complete version of the film that it's possible to see. Amost a Movie! (1979) Although original 16mm materials for Almost a Movie! were used as the basis of the following 2K restoration, the only surviving film elements were Incomplete. However, thanks to the existence of camcorder recordings captured by Murphy whilst projecting the film in his home in the 1980s, it has been possible to supplement the 16mm footage by inserting this standard-definition material. As a result, there are a number of evident shifts in image quality in the following presentation. Despite these issues, this restoration represents the most complete version of the film that it's possible to see. THE VISUAL QUALITY Before I get into the image, it's important to note that these excellent reconstructions were done by Michael Brooke who generously made himself available via Messenger with any questions I had regarding the technical aspects of the transfers. Onwards and upwards! Colours are surprising robust and natural when we're watching actual 16mm footage although owning to production limitations they're not as strong as professional 16mm productions from the same period like The Owl Service (1969) or later like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) or The Sweeney (1973-78). Black levels and contrast are strong but detail rarely stands out, these are soft-looking films. Obviously, the quality drops dramatically when standard definition inserts appear which where shot on low grade VHS videotape. The framing is zoomed slightly making compositions look cramped, there's lots of black crush, detail is weak and smeary, colours are hotter and there's plenty of bleed. But, these bits are watchable. Grain is ever present and very heavy on any 16mm material but obviously not on the standard bits. As is usual for Powerhouse Films, it's all beautifully encoded by David MacKenzie and Fidelity in Motion lending the film-sourced sections the proper filmic look and feel. Lots of texture making it all feel organic with no signs of digital tinkering. There are signs of print damage but not much as the superb restoration has minimised things to a surprising degree. Powerhouse and their restoration team have done a colossal amount of work to make these films look (and sound) remotely good and they look (and sound, see below) as good as it's possible for them to ever be. 1080p24 / AVC M-PEG 4 / BD50 / 1.37:1 / 60:09, 47:59, 88:03, 48:06
Audio
English LPCM 2.0 Mono (48kHz) Subtitles: English HoH All four films on disc one sound rather similar. The 2-channel mono tracks are solid, nicely restored but bear all the hallmarks of the four films ultra low budget productions. If your amp is set to ProLogic II (or similar) then there is bleed and echo into the rear surround channels, so the films are best viewed with the amp switched to straight (or the equivalent) in which it plays the sound precisely as presented on the disc with no processing and no bleed or echo. The music used throughout is loud and well represented by the uncompressed track being surprisingly robust and clear with decent fidelity and even occasionally getting the subwoofer rumbling ever so slightly. Dialogue sounds breathy, canned, sometimes watery and distorted and is obviously added to the soundtrack in post production although generally the dubbing and sync jobs are very good. In any case, given the state the assets were in, these LPCM tracks get the job done for these four films. Broadly speaking, audio quality does improve over the years represented on DISC ONE (1970-79) from film to film as Murphy and his technical team got better and ore confident at what they were doing. Hard of hearing English subtitles are present for all of the main films on the set and are typically excellent as we've come to expect from Powerhouse Films.
Extras
"Murphy's Lore, Part 1: Origin" 2017 featurette (21:27) A vintage 3-part 2017 documentary that interviews various individuals who knew Murphy personally after he died suddenly and unexpectedly in 2015. It also features an interview with the great man conducted in the year he died. This segment covers his early years. Featured interview subjects: Judith Holding (actress), Stephen Longhurst (film producer / actor), Phil Lyndon (co-founder MURLYN), June Murphy (actress) and Patrick Oliver (actor). Parts 2 and 3 are on other discs in this set. Sound is lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo. In a communication with disc technical producer Michael Brooke* I asked if this documentary was 1080i50 or i60 because it didn't activate the 24p on my player. His response was thus: The overwhelming majority of the video material across the entire box set will be 23.976fps for maximum compatibility. The Murphy's Lore episodes were the major exception because they were natively 29.97fps, so it made sense to retain that framerate (even if it didn't do some of the clips too many favours). * Wayne Maginn is the overall producer of the set. Surviving Film Fragments (1967-1979): - Atlantis: City of Sin (1967) (6:02) - Boadicea (1968) (5:28) - Gods and Heroes (1971) (2:31) - Seventh Day (first version, 1976) (7:07) - Insight (1978) (3:13) - Seventh Day (second version, 1979) (5:07) - Seventh Day (second version) Outtakes (2:11) 31:39 of bits and pieces from films now lost or never completed. Boadicea is presented in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio with all of the others in the Academy ratio (1.37:1). Image and sound are highly variable as one would expect. All are presented in 1080p24 with lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound. The Micro-Budget Cinema of Michael J. Murphy 1967-1979 Image Gallery: Original Promotional Material (64 images) HD still gallery of promotional images. 120-page liner notes book with new essays by Murphy experts Wayne Maginn, Paul Higson, Darrell Buxton and Johnny Walker, a comprehensive filmography and film credits A massive hardcopy tome designed to increase understanding and appreciation of Murphy's films. The booklets that Powerhouse Films do for their Indicator releases are second to none and this one is well up to their supremely high standards. The articles here provide exceptional contextual added value.
Packaging
Unknown at this time.
Overall
Holy zarking fardwarks, major hardcopy disc release alert of the year! I had never heard of Michael J. Murphy (1951-2015) prior to the announcement that Powerhouse Films were going to restore, remaster and release this whopping 26-film set which brings together all surviving films (he made 30 between 1967 and 2015). This amazing complete career package of the late British micro-budget director is must have for anyone into Z-grade, micro-budget film production or genre cinema in general. Disc one in the set contains the first four surviving films plus all known fragments of his other now lost or never completed productions dated between 1967-79. Image and sound quality are problematic but not due to the herculean efforts of those individuals producing this set, they've done the absolute best it's possible to do with the surviving elements. I've given both image and sound an overall 'B-' because of this. Extras are excellent, strong and my rating of 'A+' applies to the whole set rather than this first disc alone. An absolutely essential purchase for those so inclined and given the year long gestation period I hope Powerhouse Films and those specific individuals responsible for bringing this mammoth set to release are justifiably rewarded by nominations come the end of 2023 for the best release of the year. Highly recommended. (Reviews of each of the other nine discs will follow)
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