This is one of my favourite movies of the last ten years, and I think other forum members think likewise. It's still unreleased on DVD. It's one of the most asked-about titles for all of DVD history, and recent news confirm that it is going to be released on DVD this year.

According to a post dated May 20 on the fan site kenbranagh.com:

The new transfer of the film is nearing completion, but it has taken a very long time both because of its length and the fact that it comes from a 65mm negative. My Warner sources report that the initial transfer was completed last week. The next phase of the project, the removal of dust and scratches during the digital remastering process, should be completed in about 30 days. Once the master is ready for disc authoring, they will schedule a release date. Things are looking good so far! Unfortunately, I don't have any definite news to report on the supplementary materials to be included with the DVD, but Warner did make it a point to tell me that this remastering has been extraordinarily expensive, but worth it.

My congratulations to Warner for going the extra mile with this.

So, if all has gone well, by now cleaning of the copy should be done, and the painstaking compressing and encoding is probably underway or close to it.

This is a movie shot in 65mm, hence the highest detail a movie frame can show this side of IMAX. That detail must be kept. But it is also a very long movie (242 minutes, in its full version). And they are reportedly preparing a lot of bonus material.

The temptation probably exists to cram it all into one disc, just to prove a point. This approach can be catastrophic, as we have recently witnessed. ;)

My request for any hidef releases of this title:

Put the extras in a separate disc. If necessary, split the movie at the built-in intermission. I shall not complain.

Agreed. I'd be happy to see a two-disc HD DVD or BD edition, with the movie split at its natural intermission and the bonus features matched to the corresponding half of the movie, presented as an In-Movie Experience.

SPLIT THE MOVIE! Duel Layer HD-DVD just isn't big enough. The movie is 4 hours long!!

No one will complain about the split taking place at the intermission.

Lots of people will complain if the quality is sh!t because they cram it all on one disc.

Where's the HD news in this? Is it coming ot either format?

Where's the HD news in this? Is it coming ot either format?

No, it hasn't been announced. But it is rumoured to be released during 2006 (for a 10th anniversary edition), so it is very likely that work for the HD DVD and/or BD editions is already underway.

And considering the array of insiders we have here, I thought it'd be a good idea to tell them where our priorities are, regardless of format preference.

I think doing the movie on a single disc would be very achievable in HD DVD, with supplementary content on a second disc. IIRC, it's a beautiful film, but nothing about it that would require unusually high data rates to provide superlative quality. And it sounds like they're doing the remastering right.

Warner did make it a point to tell me that this remastering has been extraordinarily expensive

Does anyone know what this would mean in terms of real dollars ? Are we talking about 100s of K or 10s of M ?

There's no reason why this shouldn't look really good, even if the new transfer is only done at 2k res.

For the record, I'd like to see Branagh's Hamlet on an HD format. Hell, I'd take Gibson's on an HD disc of some kind...

This is the single most powerful reason I will jump into the new optical HD media. This production of HAMLET is well done and should look gorgeous. Please split it between two discs and make it a statement release in terms of quality. It is an embarrassment that this has not been released on DVD before when we have "less than deserving" movies being cranked out.

I would pay a large premium for this release.

Thanks,
Paul

even though one HD DVD might be achievable. Like the others I cast my vote for 2

I think doing the movie on a single disc would be very achievable in HD DVD, with supplementary content on a second disc. IIRC, it's a beautiful film, but nothing about it that would require unusually high data rates to provide superlative quality. And it sounds like they're doing the remastering right.

The 2.20 aspect does help the ABR get smaller. 04:02 long? Sure. The action level is so low. Big plus. I'm thinking 11Mbps average with a 24 peak could pull it off very nice with a TrueHD, 3 5.1DD+, commentary, and NO extras on one disc. No big quality loss either. When Dukes and Batman comes out and you think the quality sucks, then I'm totally wrong about this...

Cjplay.

I vote for a split, be it HD, BD, or DVD. This is one movie not to do a hack job to.

I vote for a split, be it HD, BD, or DVD. This is one movie not to do a hack job to.

Should I take that as an insult??

I vote for a split, be it HD, BD, or DVD. This is one movie not to do a hack job to.
Certainly, a split if a split is needed. But I think it's quite likely we could hit the optimum video and audio quality target on a single disc, with extras on a second disc.

I promise all of you this. Tests will be done before decisions made. If the first 10 minutes, the confetti throne room plus/minus 5 minutes, and the sword fight sequence towards the end (Robin Williams and the great big moustache...) don't show a clear indication of the required ABR/PBR combo, I'll recommend the split personally. Any other requests from other parts of the film? Please get one thing clear, we all want good looking content at the end of the day.

Cjplay.

Don't forget Act IV, scene 4:


How all occasions do inform against me,
And spur my dull revenge! What is a man,
If his chief good and market of his time
Be but to sleep and feed? a beast, no more.

This is an elaborate shot set in a snow field, going from close-up on Hamlet to a wide shot of Fortinbras' army, all on a snow field. Not much movement, I agree, but

Don't forget Act IV, scene 4:

This is an elaborate shot set in a snow field, going from close-up on Hamlet to a wide shot of Fortinbras' army, all on a snow field. Not much movement, I agree, but

...but it's a white shot with a lot of detail you expect to be present. I've not seen it, but I'll try to keep a look out for it. Do you have TC on the DVD? If not, that would be very helpful...

Cjplay.

Do you have TC on the DVD? If not, that would be very helpful...

Cjplay.

I wish. The movie has never ever been released on DVD, anywhere! :eek:

It's just before the intermission, if it's any help (I'm speaking from memory here).

Don't forget Act IV, scene 4:



This is an elaborate shot set in a snow field, going from close-up on Hamlet to a wide shot of Fortinbras' army, all on a snow field. Not much movement, I agree, but
Of course, individual scene complexity is an issue of peak bitrate required. Aggregate complexity of the whole movie determines average bitrate required. The movie could have 30 really challenging minutes, but if the rest was pretty simple, it wouldn't be a big problem.

http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/1462/dscf07297fo.jpg

Paid $30.00 several years ago for the LD version.

*dies with envy*

Side note for fans of the movie and great PQ in general:

I read on HTF that the film is going to be projected on 70mm in San Francisco next August:

http://www.castrotheatre.com/aug.htm

Paid $30.00 several years ago for the LD version.
Well then, sounds like 'u da man' who can provide Cj with some kind of TC reference point generally for Grube's snow sequence. :)

___________________________________________________
Palladin

Chance favors the prepared mind

Time to dig up this thread.

From thedigitalbits:

I've spoken with Warner Home Video and learned that they've completed the telecine process for a long-awaited release of Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet.

Yay!

Time to dig up this thread.

From thedigitalbits:

"I've spoken with Warner Home Video and learned that they've completed the telecine process for a long-awaited release of Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet."



Yay!

I would assume from a 65mm print..??

This would be an excellent title to encode separately for the two formats, in order to use Blu-Ray's higher capacity and higher bandwidth.

All films should be optimized for each platform separately, but this one especially demands it.

This would be an excellent title to encode separately for the two formats, in order to use Blu-Ray's higher capacity and higher bandwidth.

All films should be optimized for each platform separately, but this one especially demands it.
Yes please! With either VC-1 or H.264/AVC only as choices for video codecs. Otherwise I can't see any advantage for BD if they use MPEG2. :(

Looking forward to seeing BD50 used with an advanced codec.

Bob

^ Warners is only using VC-1 on both HD DVD and Blu-Ray. I agree with you that this is a good choice.

My concern is that, thus far, they are using the same encode for both formats. Since Blu-Ray has higher bandwidth and capacity, they really should re-encode. However, I imagine they do not see this as economically viable at this time.

*dies with envy*

Side note for fans of the movie and great PQ in general:

I read on HTF that the film is going to be projected on 70mm in San Francisco next August:

http://www.castrotheatre.com/aug.htm

I strongly recommend forum members who live nearby to witness this presentation.

I saw Grand Prix in 70mm and recently got the HD-DVD and let's just say we probably need 4k to start to do justice to good 70mm movies !

My concern is that, thus far, they are using the same encode for both formats. Since Blu-Ray has higher bandwidth and capacity, they really should re-encode. However, I imagine they do not see this as economically viable at this time.
Why? If you exceed the quality target with the HD DVD encode, why go through the effort a second time to hit the same quality target with a BD encode?

I got rid of my copy of Hamlet because of laser rot. Damm you Sony DADC!
http://www.lddb.com/laserrot.php?id=7774

Wait, I thought Warner had the Mel Gibson version of Hamlet and Sony had the Branagh version?

Wait, I thought Warner had the Mel Gibson version of Hamlet and Sony had the Branagh version?

Branagh's Hamlet was a Castle Rock Entertainment production, and according to the Wikipedia page on Castle Rock (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Rock_Entertainment), Warner now owns the distribution rights to their films produced from 1994-present through Turner's 1994 acquisition of Castle Rock and subsequent merger with Time Warner. The Shawshank Redemption is another title you may recall that Columbia initially distributed on video.

BTW, now I know why The Last Days of Disco went OOP, and maybe we can expect that on HD-DVD someday. :)

Well, it did have an intermission, so they could make that the break for both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.

Dan

Just saw this on HTF that Branagh's Hamlet 2-disc DVD edition has been announced for August 14. Here's hoping the HD DVD and Blu-ray will be day-and-date.


Hamlet 2-Disc Special Edition (1996)
In this first-ever full-text film of Shakespeare’s greatest work, nominated for 4 Academy Awards®, the power surges through every scene. The timeless tale of murder, corruption and revenge is reset in an opulent 19th-century world, using sprawling Blenheim Palace as Elsinore with much of the action staged in shimmering mirrored and gold-filled interiors. The luminous cast includes actor/director Kenneth Branagh, Kate Winslet, Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie, Robin Williams, Jack Lemmon, Billy Crystal and Charlton Heston.

The excitement of the Bard’s words and Branagh’s adventurous filmmaking style lift the story from its often shadowy ambience to fully-lit pageantry and rage. Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle said, “In the 80 years that works of world literature have been adapted for the screen, few filmmakers have attempted so much and with such success.”

DVD Special Features:
· Introduction by director/star Kenneth Branagh
· Commentary by Kenneth Branagh and Shakespeare scholar Russell Jackson
· New digital transfer from original 70mm elements
· Soundtrack remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1
· Featurette To Be on Camera: A History with Hamlet
· 1996 Cannes Film Festival promo
· Shakespeare movies trailer gallery
Hamlet ’96
Julius Caesar ‘53
Othello ‘65
Othello ‘95
Romeo and Juliet ‘37
A Midsummer Night’s Dream ‘35
Hamlet ’90
· Subtitles: English, French and Spanish subtitles. (feature film only)

Bummer. Just read through this thread without looking at the dates...suddenly I saw a post by CJPlay, and thought: wow he's back! just to look at the date of the post and get depressed again. Too bad it went the way it did. RIP.

This is one of my favourite movies of the last ten years, and I think other forum members think likewise. It's still unreleased on DVD. It's one of the most asked-about titles for all of DVD history, and recent news confirm that it is going to be released on DVD this year.

According to a post dated May 20 on the fan site kenbranagh.com:


I've only seen two film-plays with Kenneth Branagh, and I felt both were excellent (inlcuding his performance). Those were "Hamlet" and "Much Ado About Nothing".

I've also seen him with Harry Potter (good performance but Yucch! character) and Gingerbread man (interesting, but hardly top drawer.)

I've the feeling his forte' is Shakespearean acting and he was magnificent in the above mentioned productions. (Emma Thompson also being remarkable in "Much Ado..." a wonderfully capable actress.)

Good news, but I also hope to hear about an HD release.

Good news, but I also hope to hear about an HD release.

Me too, though this is one of those titles I've wanted for so long, I'll settle for SD if I need to. And if I get double-dipped, I won't be *too* pissed off.

If this is a 65 mm film, then I hope it gets a 4 K master.

What Warner did with Grand Prix was absolutely fantastic - looking forward to more quality releases like that.

The feature runs 242 minutes, and the bonus features may be another hour (two featurettes and seven trailers). So I restate the main request I made on the original post in June 2006:

Put the extras in a separate disc. If necessary, split the movie at the built-in intermission. I shall not complain.

Certainly, a split if a split is needed. But I think it's quite likely we could hit the optimum video and audio quality target on a single disc, with extras on a second disc.
Yes... Because otherwise, the naysayers will point their fingers and say, "See, told ya HD DVD doesn't have enough space!"

Two discs = movie on one; extras on second. :D

P.S. I saw Branagh do this in London...unforgettable!

Bummer. Just read through this thread without looking at the dates...suddenly I saw a post by CJPlay, and thought: wow he's back! just to look at the date of the post and get depressed again. Too bad it went the way it did. RIP.
Ouch! Me, too! :confused:

Sorry to bump this thread (no, cjplay is not back), but I'm supremely disappointed by Warner's decision not to release Hamlet on hidef at all.

According to first reviews of the DVD, it is okay, but of course would be better in HD:

dvdtown:
Warner Bros. present the film in its 2.20:1 ratio, and the results in anamorphic widescreen are pleasing. Colors are strong, rich, and natural. The screen is clean and clear and brightly lit when need be. The sublime sets and costumes show up well. If there is any shortcoming, it is that the delineation and detailing are very slightly soft, perhaps the result of an average bit rate, the whole image crying out for high definition.

dvdverdict:
As expected, the transfer from the 70mm source is nothing short of spectacular. The film has been spread across two discs (thankfully split at the intermission), and is true reference quality. The only weaknesses in the picture are limitations of the DVD format, and I can't wait to see what it will look like in high definition. Since we have no idea how long we will have to wait for that, though, the DVD transfer will hold us until then.


Warners have said that they could be released at a later date 'if demand is there.' That's very fitting with the indecisive and procrastinating demeanor of the Danish Prince, isn't it?


And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprise of great pitch and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.

SPLIT THE MOVIE! Duel Layer HD-DVD just isn't big enough. The movie is 4 hours long!!

No one will complain about the split taking place at the intermission.

Lots of people will complain if the quality is sh!t because they cram it all on one disc.

I hope they listen to people like us. Warner could split the HD-DVD version into two 30GB discs and the Blu-Ray version could be on one. A third disc with the extra's for HD-DVD and a second disc for BD extra's.. This is the most logical way for them to go about doing this release...

I hope they listen to people like us. Warner could split the HD-DVD version into two 30GB discs and the Blu-Ray version could be on one. A third disc with the extra's for HD-DVD and a second disc for BD extra's.. This is the most logical way for them to go about doing this release...

Now that the HDM editions have been scrubbed, I don't think there's any harm in revealing this:

Back in May, I heard from a good source that the HD DVD had been already encoded and authored as a two-sided disc, with the whole movie on one side and the SD extras on the other. So movie + extras would be 39 GB at most, and would fit a BD50.

I think lossless audio for this should be a must as well. I love Patrick Doyle's score on this film. I'd hate to miss out on lossless audio due to the length of the film.

I'd like to hope that lossless it fairly much a given now but Warner isn't always coming to the table on this but its great to see Universal doing better.

Why? If you exceed the quality target with the HD DVD encode, why go through the effort a second time to hit the same quality target with a BD encode?

Indeed, if Warner can meet the quality targets with lossless audio (that has the same bit depth as the original master) within 30Gb - one disk will do fine, otherwise give HD-DVD two disks, keep the BD on one but give the film the space it needs.

There is nothing wrong with splitting the film up at intermission - although the duration up to the intermission is significant longer than that after the intermission - I think its about two thirds of the way through. (I only have the VHS version released by Columbia Tristar, who in possibly the worse decision ever, decided to break the film, not at the intermission, but about 15 minutes before).

Btw, I originally saw this movie at the cinema in 65mm... those were the days.

I'd love to see the whole DVD!

Netflix has sent me the first disc FOUR times. I finally told them to go lump it since if they sent out again, it would again be part one only!:mad:

SPLIT THE MOVIE! Duel Layer HD-DVD just isn't big enough. The movie is 4 hours long!!

No one will complain about the split taking place at the intermission.

Lots of people will complain if the quality is sh!t because they cram it all on one disc.

but the BD fanbois will say "see? it'll fit on a BD50!" :p

Please read post #43.

This isn't being released on HD DVD or Blu-ray. Not in the foreseeable future. Forget splitting the movie, forget 30 or 50 or 60GB, it isn't coming out at all. :(

I would assume from a 65mm print..??


Not to my understanding. According to knowledge members here at AVS, all the 65/70mm productions have been dubbed down to 35mm for the transfer.

OBTW - I believe HAMLET was the last movie that used the Super Panavision 70 process.

but the BD fanbois will say "see? it'll fit on a BD50!" :p

There are actually advantages to higher capacity and higher bandwidth in some cases, even if not in the majority of cases. As long as the discussion is polite and civil, blu boys can talk about higher capacity and those 42.87695Mbps video peaks and the red boys can talk about the differences between PIP on DVD and PIP on HD-DVD and the relative stability of each spec.

Anywho, its very disappointing the disk isn't planned for release. Such a release would be amazing...

Quote:
Warner Bros. present the film in its 2.20:1 ratio, and the results in anamorphic widescreen are pleasing. Colors are strong, rich, and natural. The screen is clean and clear and brightly lit when need be. The sublime sets and costumes show up well. If there is any shortcoming, it is that the delineation and detailing are very slightly soft, perhaps the result of an average bit rate, the whole image crying out for high definition.


I purchased the standard DVD and although it is great I very much agree with the quote above.

Have we CONFIRMED this title is not on the way? Last I heard, WB was retooling it for an HDM release next year. Do we have proof, or are we taking their silence for a bad sign?

Would love for them to re-release it in the theaters as a 70mm film.

But then that might be a disaster. All the ticket holders would see the beauty of a 65/70mm production and realize just how bad 35 mm looks on a big screen today.:eek:

Would love for them to re-release it in the theaters as a 70mm film.

But then that might be a disaster. All the ticket holders would see the beauty of a 65/70mm production and realize just how bad 35 mm looks on a big screen today.:eek:

You're sadly mistaken - the vast majority of people do not care for film shot and presented in 70mm, that's why it disappeared in the first place.

You're sadly mistaken - the vast majority of people do not care for film shot and presented in 70mm, that's why it disappeared in the first place.

And you have no idea of what you are talking about. The demise of 70mm is based on the size of the theaters getting smaller and the use of Digital Sound.

Have we CONFIRMED this title is not on the way? Last I heard, WB was retooling it for an HDM release next year. Do we have proof, or are we taking their silence for a bad sign?

For what it is worth:

From: Jack W
Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2007 9:03 AM
To: Karen Penhale; Marie Remelius
Subject: Hamlet HD DVD



On 2/26/07 WHV executives, George Feltenstein, George Parker and Ronnee Sass on a chat session on the Home Theater Forum indicated: “BRANAGH'S HAMLET is done, and will be out before the end of the Summer. In SD, HD-DVD…!”

Can you please tell me whether you are still planning on releasing Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet on HD DVD this year?

Sincerely,



Jack W



Hi Jack – I’ve attached the press release. No plans for High Def on these titles right now.



Best,

Karen Penhale

carl samrock public relations

330 n. screenland dr. #213

burbank, ca 91505-3870

818-260-0777/cell: 818-599-1588

karenpenhale@cs-pr.com

And you have no idea of what you are talking about. The demise of 70mm is based on the size of the theaters getting smaller and the use of Digital Sound.

Lee,

what an eloquent way to make your point. :rolleyes:

Digital sound marked the end of the 70mm blowups that were made to get better sound from 35mm movies but if picture quality was such a large concern movies shot in 70 mm would have prevailed. In fact only a handful have been made since the early 70ies long before the advent of digital sound and the demise of many big screens. During this time there were dozens of 70mm blowups that were shown on large screens all over the world and it would have been possible to show features shot in 70mm on these, too.

You can argue all you want but these are the facts - picture quality is not appreciated by the masses the way it is appreciated by us videophiles, certainly not enough to make studios reconsider their ways.

And there is one very important thing I forgot - special effects. Special effects of 80ies and 90ies movies would have looked really crappy compared to material shot in 70 mm. There is even an interview with James Cameron where he admits to this and gives this as the reason he could not shot his later big budget features in 70mm. For quite some time special effects meant big budget and big box office - take all these movies out of the equation and you lose most of the productions that have the budget one would like to associate with 70mm film.

But back to the viewers: I will attend a 70mm festival in Germany during the first weekend of October and you would be astonished how few people that I know through home theater plan to attend despite living less than 200 miles from the cinema that runs the festival - even among our community there is little appreciation for 70mm as a format when it comes to actually going to the movies to see it and pay for it.

Sorry to bump this old thread, but with the demise of HDDVD, any word of this coming out for BD?

I held out for close to a year, (lol figured I waited since 97, extra year won't hurt) in hopes of hearing some HD release news. Has anything changed in this past year or so? HD version is still no go?