The 1966 Formula 1 film starring James Garner is finally coming out on DVD!! :D
I've worn out 2 VHS copies of this film & am really looking forward to the July 11 release date!


Of all the racing movies made Grand Prix & LeMans (1971) are the only ones that give you a true look at racing IMO.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=602780&highlight=gran+prix

Moose,
Please remove your 10 lines of gear in your sig. Gears lists here are against forum policy. They belong in your profile (there's big note in the sig form asking you not to list gear).

Squirrel :)

I saw this in an HD demo recently and it looked fantastic.
Am looking forward to this disk.

Always wanted to see this movie. Glad it's finally coming out!

I saw this in Cinerama if I correctly remember.

Skip

Always wanted to see this movie. Glad it's finally coming out!

If you've never seen this movie your in for a treat!!
I'm really looking forward to what they did with the 5.1 mix, there is nothing like the scream of a V12 racing engine at full song in surround! :eek:
That alone is worth the price! :D :cool:

there is nothing like the scream of a V12 racing engine at full song in surround! :eek:
That alone is worth the price! :D :cool:


Moose, we like the same kind of music. ;)

It wasn't a V-12. The Honda F1 engine in the movie is a U-16 design, with four seperate 4-cylinder blocks that surround two cranks which are geared togather at the output. Honda's engineers had only experience with racing motorcycles at that time, and based the F1 engine on motorcycle components.

The Ferrari in the film has a flat-12 "boxer" engine. Most of the other cars are Cosworth-Ford V-8's.

Gary

Has anyone been able to confirm whether or not this film has been cropped to 2.20:1? If it is indeed true, that is a shame.

The information on Deep Discount DVD indeed says 2.20:1.

Why after such a long wait would they not do it correctly. Another great film with a bad transfer to DVD.

I have the version shown on TCM TiVo'd. It's in extreme widescreen letterboxed so it must be the OAR. With the multiple images shown side by side I don't see how it could be presented any other way. This thread prompted me to go and watch the opening race at Monte Carlo. With the sound cranked up of course. :)

It really brought me back to when I was 13 and watching the movie up front in a huge theater with all of the best technology of that day. I remember the opening scenes with the mechanics tuning a blipping those glorious racing engines. The sound was out of this word, I was in heaven. The racing scenes were incredible.

Those were the golden days of racing. Pure power on wheels. Little or no down force. A plain steering wheel, analog gages, and a shifter. The driver was in total control, seat of your pants racing. Real racing on real streets with curbs. None of the antiseptic white barriers of today that make you feel like you are racing in a canyon.

What a masterpiece of a movie!

Just in the interest of accuracy, (us car guys are as anal as us AV guys), the Ferrari 12 cylinder of that vintage was, indeed, a V-12 and not a flat 12. The cars Frankenheimer had built for the movie looked very close to the real ones but they all used an 1100cc Cosworth Ford engine. Dummy intake and exhaust systems were attached to make them look like the 3 liter engines they were supposed to represent. They recorded and dubbed in the correct sounds of the various 3 liter engines for the movie, which was indeed released in Cinerama. There were 30 Cinerama cameras in the world at that time and 18 were used for the Monaco race that opens the movie. I am SO pumped for this release - the title sequence alone was worth the price of admission when it came out.

Dick Fogg

I remember the opening in the theater (long time ago) and it will be great to own this jewel. It's dated and the plot is thin, but who cares - it's the Frankenheimer Race Movie! I have 2 car collector clients/friends who are marking an event for the DVD.
I might have to buy Le Mans to go with it ;)
Great Stuff

E

I remember the opening in the theater (long time ago) and it will be great to own this jewel. It's dated and the plot is thin, but who cares - it's the Frankenheimer Race Movie! I have 2 car collector clients/friends who are marking an event for the DVD.
I might have to buy Le Mans to go with it ;)
Great Stuff

E


I watched the Le Mans dvd the other day for the 1st time.
This is the other, "Plot is almost non-existent, but who cares?!", for car guys. :)
I love racing, but I would think twice about cutting loose in one of those old Porsches...they were scary. :eek:


P.S. I just checked out your HOMEPAGE.

HOLY MOLY!!!
I had no idea...superb, Eric.
Wish you weren't on the other coast or I would have you design something for me. ;)

I watched Grand Prix originally at the Drive in & have seen it on TV but never in surround.
I hope I don't blow up my home theatre!!

Has anyone been able to confirm whether or not this film has been cropped to 2.20:1? If it is indeed true, that is a shame.

Why after such a long wait would they not do it correctly.


Folks... 2.20:1 is the film's correct aspect ratio.

I watched the Le Mans dvd the other day for the 1st time.
This is the other, "Plot is almost non-existent, but who cares?!", for car guys. :)
I love racing, but I would think twice about cutting loose in one of those old Porsches...they were scary. :eek:


P.S. I just checked out your HOMEPAGE.

HOLY MOLY!!!
I had no idea...superb, Eric.
Wish you weren't on the other coast or I would have you design something for me. ;)

Nice of you to say.

E

DVD review:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=22616

What I remember was seeing the racing on some of the first road tracks such as Spa and Nurburgring between the farm houses.
They was also racing on the Monza high speed section with the two banked corners.

I'll watch my DVD of LeMans a couple of times this weekend just to get my HT warmed up for this one! :cool: :D

Anyone remember the name of the documentery style film Garner did about his race team??
Was it the racing scene or once upon a wheel?

DVD Beaver reported that this transfer is the best they have seen this year.

DVD Beaver reported that this transfer is the best they have seen this year.


Sounds as though they may have used the master that spawned the HD version I saw awhile back.
It was TRULY awe-inspiring! :)

Wow...
As I entered jr. high I read All But My Life, Ken Purdy and Sterling Moss' book about Sterling's life. He instantly became my hero and I was obsessed with road racing from that day on. This film came out about then and I still remember sitting down with my dad to explain why it was worth a 90 minute drive to see Grand Prix in the only cinerama theater in wisconsin. Must have been persuasive because we made the trek- I still have the program book they sold. Even then I was disapointed by the cliched plot, but it didn't really matter. Driver's eye views of real grand prix tracks, on the state of the art video of the time, the cars driven by real GP drivers.. talk about wide eyed wonder! Its nice to see I'm not the only one who loved this film.
Still PO'd Garner beat the British guy though!:)

[QUOTE=oink]I watched the Le Mans dvd the other day for the 1st time.
This is the other, "Plot is almost non-existent, but who cares?!", for car guys. :)
I love racing, but I would think twice about cutting loose in one of those old Porsches...they were scary. :eek:


Read A French Kiss with Death about the making of LeMans. The book is almost better than the movie giving an insight into Hollywood at the time, Steve McQueen's obsession getting the film made and the endurance racing drivers of the day. Derek Bell had quite the ride when the articulating arm that mounted the camera changed the center of gravity on the 917 he was driving. The added weight at the far rear caused the front of the car to lift at 200 mph+ and the car went airborne.

I had the opportunity to meet Richard (Dicky) Attwood who won the real LeMans race in 1970. I was working for David Hobbs who drove the #22 Gulf Porsche 917 that wins the race in the film. Unfortunately David wasn't so lucky in the real race. His co-driver, motorcycle racing legend Mike Hailwood crashed the car early on in the race.

Read A French Kiss with Death about the making of LeMans. The book is almost better than the movie giving an insight into Hollywood at the time.


Thank you for the recommendation.

Racing back then was surely a crap shoot...I find it amazing.
However, racing is the domain of the young (AKA: the reckless ;) ), most particularly back then...when safety was a rabbit's foot.

The fatalities on the racetrack during that era would be scandalous today.

I was obsessed with road racing from that day on.


NOW I am positive, you are my evil twin! ;)

NOW I am positive, you are my evil twin! ;)

:):):)

BTW, for those that like road racing, may I recommend the ALMS series?

A serious kick in the pants for the true racer.

www.americanlemans.com

BTW, for those that like road racing, may I recommend the ALMS series?

A serious kick in the pants for the true racer.

www.americanlemans.com
I really enjoy the ALMS, it's the closest to my dear departed IMSA series (I'm talking about the real IMSA in the 80"s).
I'm a big time road race fan, F1, Champ Car, ALMS, SCCA, etc.
The only taxicar races I never miss are the road races & Bristol, I refuse to watch indycar races (even though they have Danica Patrick) because Tony George ruined open wheel racing in the US.

Has there been any reviews of the 5.1 mix? I'm already drooling thinking about those engines thundering all around me but I'm also thinking how many older films sounded terrible when surround was forced onto the original soundtrack. Would like to know what kind of job was done with this one before purchasing...
Aw, who am I kidding? I'll have this one clutched in my greedy little hands by 10am tuesday.

OK. I'm officially confused now. What is the correct OAR of this movie?

Everyone talks about this movie being filmed in Cinerama. According to this page:

http://www.widescreen.org/aspect_ratios.shtml

Cinerama had an AR of 2.60:1.

Now I've also read other pages that said it was filmed on 65mm stock and had an OAR of 2.20:1.

WHICH IS CORRECT??? (sorry for yelling, I'm just a little frustrated) Does anyone know?

Has there been any reviews of the 5.1 mix? I'm already drooling thinking about those engines thundering all around me but I'm also thinking how many older films sounded terrible when surround was forced onto the original soundtrack. Would like to know what kind of job was done with this one before purchasing...
Aw, who am I kidding? I'll have this one clutched in my greedy little hands by 10am tuesday.


dvdbeaver and dvdtalk have reviews. :)

GP and LeMans are on my desk as I type. Guess my evening's planned ;) In the mood for some engine sound tonight.

E

Got GP today too...don't know if I'll have time to watch before the weekend.

Race fans rejoice! An absolutely stunning transfer!

I watched LeMans over the weekend but I'm at work today & won't get off until 7am tomorrow, so as soon as BB opens in the morning I'll be there!

Race fans rejoice! An absolutely stunning transfer!


What is a good track to check out the video/audio??? :)

Monaco Spa Monza

Monaco Spa Monza


I meant the Chapter#. ;)

Cinerama had an AR of 2.60:1.

Grand Prix is not in true Cinerama. It was not shot with three strips of film. But I can't help you as to its true OAR.

I meant the Chapter#.

Off hand I couldn't tell ya oink, sorry. All the racing footage is great!

Dang.... the transfer is simply stunning for an old movie. No edge enhancement.

Dang.... the transfer is simply stunning for an old movie. No edge enhancement.

Edge enhancement is one of the first things I look for when evaluating a DVD and was very pleased to find virtually none with the Grand Prix transfer. Kudos to Warner Brothers. Someone tell me why this isn't done with all movies other than the relatively small list in the reference quality thread, please tell me!

Maxi

Agree - This transfer is a total surprise. Amazing for something this old. Makes the racing footage that much better.
The extras are great, and in wide format. Fantastic Work!

E

Warner has done another incredible transfer of an old film...Once Upon A Time In The West.
Jawdropping, truly amazing IMO.

I bought it yesterday, and was also very pleasantly surprised at the transfer.
Absolutely wonderful to look at....

Still no confirmation on the OAR. Oh well...

So when is this title coming out on HD DVD?

IMDB lists the format for Grand Prix as Super Panavision, a 65mm format, otherwise known as Super Cinerama when printed in a 70mm print. This was one of the first one camera anamorphic formats used as an answer to REAL (three camera) Cinerama, and the exact same format that 2001: a space odyssey was shot in. As 2.20:1 is the correct AOR for that movie I completely believe that it would also be the correct AOR for Grand Prix as IMDB lists. I really think these 2.60 numbers flying around are flat wrong.

What a great afternoon!
I started with the theatrical trailer, watched the movie & then watched all the extras! :)

I give the Video an A+, wow it looked great!
I only give the audio a B-, it made good use of the front LCR & dialogue was exelent, but there was many places for use of the rear surrounds but they were hardly used at all.
The engines did sound wounderful though!

Can you imagine trying to duplicate this movie in F1 today?
It would never happen!

Personally, I think the 2.20 aspect ratio is wrong. In some scenes with the multiple "boxed" images you will notice that the boxes are chopped off on the edge of the screen. I don't think that was intended.

What a great afternoon!
I started with the theatrical trailer, watched the movie & then watched all the extras! :)

I give the Video an A+, wow it looked great!
I only give the audio a B-, it made good use of the front LCR & dialogue was exelent, but there was many places for use of the rear surrounds but they were hardly used at all.
The engines did sound wounderful though!

Can you imagine trying to duplicate this movie in F1 today?
It would never happen!


can't wait to see this one.......if they ever duplicted it they would use CGI :(

Moose, you are so right... can't think of anything to add, only I felt the exact same way.
And yes, it could never happen again. Heck. I can't really believe it happened once=the race footage is the most breathtaking thing I've ever seen on film. Its not just the technology used in shooting it-its the artisic sensibility in the way its presented.
And man, does it ever look good.

You guys are right. The sheer amount of footage will never happen again. Riding just before or after the actual events on the same course, and letting an actors drive the cars. No Way!

Interesting trivia about McQueen being offered the role, and then his try with LeMans a few years later. It failed big time. Following GP with LeMans was a bad idea in my HT and in real life. The cars were newer in LeMans, but forget about it. Frankenheimer set the standard.

E

You guys are right. The sheer amount of footage will never happen again. Riding just before or after the actual events on the same course, and letting an actors drive the cars. No Way!

Interesting trivia about McQueen being offered the role, and then his try with LeMans a few years later. It failed big time. Following GP with LeMans was a bad idea in my HT and in real life. The cars were newer in LeMans, but forget about it. Frankenheimer set the standard.

E

Grand Prix is fantastic but for some reason I prefer the car scenes in Le Mans. Maybe because McQueen did most of his own driving. I guess I'm more partial to LM cars than F1. I do however watch both religiously. :)

Sounds as though they may have used the master that spawned the HD version I saw awhile back.
It was TRULY awe-inspiring! :)

Oink - where did you see an HD version of this movie? Has it run on HDNet Movies? Don't be coy, now... ;)

I saw this in an HD demo recently and it looked fantastic.
Am looking forward to this disk.
Was the sound mix any diffrent on the HD version?
Was is HD-DVD or Blu-Ray?

Pleasantly surprised by the picture, whatever the aspect ratio! Colors seem to be right on, very rich without being oversaturated. Haven't noticed any artifacts. Soundtrack is pretty good, but not up to the standard set by the video.

Definitely a good pickup.

Oink - where did you see an HD version of this movie? Has it run on HDNet Movies? Don't be coy, now... ;)


Sorry, not trying to be coy...I honestly can't remember! :confused:
NOT sure...but I think it might have been INHD on cable...

It is running today on TCM but of course not in HD. It is pretty clear and presented in letterbox OAR (whatever that is, it looks to be about the same screen size as the DVD). I rented this one and watched it last night. I am very impressed by the transfer. The audio is fun too, I am glad they didn't mess it up too much by trying to overuse the surrounds for a lot of special effects.

I just noticed it was on TCM.
I hope someone shows it in HD.

I wish TCM would broadcast in HD, or if it is already, I wish we'd get TCM HD. That would be awesome. Our TCM on Verizon FiOS is already almost as good as many DVDs, though. Even blown up with Zoom, GRAND PRIX looked pretty good.

For me, this disc would be exibit 1 of why I love dvd. I've gone 40 years thinking this was a terrible movie with good race footage, and now I know I was wrong.
The funny thing about me is I never realize fully how good a film is while watching. Its usually 2 or 3 days later, when I can't get images of a film out of my mind that I realize how much I liked it. And a week after viewing this I still get flashes of those cars at Spa and Monza, racing through the forest. Might be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen on film. And yeah, the storyline is still as sappy and cliched as I remember, but somehow it doesn't bother me as much as it did when I was 12. And 40 years later, with all the advances in cgi and technology, noone has captured the feel of cars at speed the way this one does..truely awe inspiring.

Well I just got all excited!
I was channel surfing waiting for the news & what do I see?
5 pm on HD net (channel 79 on D*) Grand Prix in HD!!!
I was stoked I was going to be able to see one of my favorite movies in HD less than a week after it came out on DVD!

So I grabbed a beer, put a bag of pop corn in & kicked back to watch it.
How the hell did I know that they called horse jumping a Grand Prix!? :mad:
That's just not right! :rolleyes: :eek:

Sorry to hear, Moose. ( :D :p :D )
And no, that isn't right. ( :D :p :D )
Excuse me, but I have some laundry to do. ( :D :p :D )

Well just wathced it twice and I must say this is one of the best video transfers I have seen in a long time. The only problem I have is with the audio. The 5.1 mix while mostly ok, does drop the ball on inteligibility (sp?) once in a while. This is most obvious when the announcer is speaking over the PA during the races. Also, at times the engine sounds seem a bit flanged. However, the movie just rocks, it didn't make up for missing the Montreal race this year ( wife pregnant, too loud for fetus) but it was a lot of fun.

The extras are pretty good. I really like the bit in the making of GP when JG is yelling at the Frenchman about being cold and wet.

It is a very fun movie that could never be made today.

I didn't know whether to place this in one of the Oppo threads or here. Anyways, a friend brought over his copy of Grand Prix not knowing I already had it. We popped his in anyways and watched it. When the pic came on it; it was not centered on the my display.
There was only a black bar on the bottom. Strange. So, I removed his and put my copy in and it was centered w/ black bars on both top and bottom. --removed my copy and placed his in again and it did the same thing---black bar on the bottom only. I then placed his in my Malata 996 and it was centered. It only occured on the Oppo. Has anyone else come across this? Very odd.

Not on my Oppo 970...

Not on my Oppo 970...

It would only display like I mentioned with my friend's copy and only when I popped in his copy. I can only assume his DVD was defective somehow but it displayed fine in my other players just not on the Oppo.

The only problem I have is with the audio. The 5.1 mix while mostly ok, does drop the ball on inteligibility (sp?) once in a while. This is most obvious when the announcer is speaking over the PA during the races.




The PA announcer sounds the same way on VHS.

You know, the way a 1960's outdoor PA system played real LOUD at a racetrack did sound like in real life as compared with fake studio sound!

For me, this disc would be exibit 1 of why I love dvd. I've gone 40 years thinking this was a terrible movie with good race footage, and now I know I was wrong.
The funny thing about me is I never realize fully how good a film is while watching. Its usually 2 or 3 days later, when I can't get images of a film out of my mind that I realize how much I liked it. And a week after viewing this I still get flashes of those cars at Spa and Monza, racing through the forest. Might be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen on film. And yeah, the storyline is still as sappy and cliched as I remember, but somehow it doesn't bother me as much as it did when I was 12. And 40 years later, with all the advances in cgi and technology, noone has captured the feel of cars at speed the way this one does..truely awe inspiring.
Agreed. I especially loved the banked curves where the camera was on a dutch head so it would stay level as the car tilted. It really emphasized just how high the banked curves were. Amazing cinematography. The wreck involving James Garner was awesome for the time. It was amazing to see how they pulled it off in the special features. No modern film would ever pull off these shots as well as they were done in Grand Prix. CGI would have ruined it.

The movie itself is pretty mediocre, but it's not about the story - it's about the cars and the tracks. In that respect, it succeeds very well.

Sorry to jump into this thread so late, but I just received this as a Xmas gift from my wife and kids. As soon as I got the Xmas Speedgear catalog and saw it was out, I put it on my list right away! I even asked for an extra copy so I could give one to my Dad as a present, only fitting since he introduced the film to me years ago. We're both longtime racing fans and try to attend at least one race a year, be it F1 in North America or a simple trip to Lime Rock in CT to catch some ALMS or SCCA action.

I'm glad it wasn't just me being all gushy about the PQ just since it was finally out on DVD. I agree this is a reference transfer. My RP91 and Elite 510 (ISF'd) may not be the newest equipment on the block but they're more than capable at showing up a mediocre or bad transfer. Sad to say there are quite a few bad ones out there but Grand Prix is just stellar. Colors popped without over saturation and the sharpness is extremely crisp but without any EE. Truly great job. I, too, am glad they didn't over-do the 5.1 sound, after all its a bit of an alchemy experiment IMO when you're starting with 40yr old 2.0 sound. They did clean it up nicely, although I noted in several areas where there was extremely soft background music that the original soundtrack hiss was evident during these scenes. Even the best digital noise filters can't work without impacting the low level audio so they made the correct decision on these portions, just turn it off!

I actually sat down last weekend just to watch the special features and by the end I was so enthused I just had to watch the film. I loved the interviews with the driving legends like Hill and Moss and also with Frankenheimer, insightful and amusing. I particularly loved Hill's account of driving the camera car in the wet at Spa.....oops! And Frankenheimer's retelling of how Ferrari became involved in the film was priceless!

This is a great film in any era, but when you stop to consider that in-car cameras wouldn't become a practical reality for some 25+ years, its all the more amazing. No wonder Ferrari recanted their objections after seeing the 30 minutes of film he'd cut together just from Monaco!

All the racing footage is spectacular but the Monza footage, particularly those high speed straightaway scenes where the camera pans from driver to forward wheel are the best!!

This is a one and only so get a copy while you still can!

It's also available on HD-DVD.

Better late than never Doug!!

I saw it's out on HD DVD also, I sure hope it comes out on Blu-ray so I don't have to buy a HD DVD player for 1 movie!!