We've got updates to yesterday's movie-nerd-rupturing news that Ken Russell's 1971 masterpiece The Devils has gotten a 4K restoration and it will premiere at Cannes later this month -- it's going to play in U.S. movie theaters too! It's getting a one week theatrical engagment on october 1th and there's the poster above -- the poster calls this "The Director's Cut" and they sent out more detail via their press release:
"Assembled from the original camera negative, this new 4K restoration presents Ken Russell's definitive vision of THE DEVILS by referencing the edit he privately constructed in 2004. KEN RUSSELL'S THE DEVILS is the uncut and unfiltered theatrical experience that Russell always envisioned - and the first time the film will be presented restored and in 4K... This new 4K restoration of Ken Russell's masterpiece was assembled from the original camera negative. The film's sound has been remastered from original English Composite 35mm Mag Film, transferred at 96kHz, plus other original film elements in selected spots as needed. "
Granted it's only been twenty-four hours but this news is still breaking my brain -- I can't believe the White Whale has been speared! While not confirming confirming a physical media release I hugely doubt we need to worry about that at this point -- now that it's not a one time Cannes thing I fully expect a 4K disc down the road. Hopefully in time for the holidays so every one of us sickos can gift our families The Devils in their stockings! Anyway they also sent along some images from the restored film and prepare to have your eyes blown back through your heads after the jump...
(click em to emggien muchly!)
Posts
2 comments:
I delighted to hear about this. On a personal note, about twenty years ago, I ran the Repertory Dept. at Warner Bros. One of the first thing I wanted to do was to restore THE DEVILS. Management told me not to pursue it as it would have to be resubmitted to the MPAA and it would certainly receive an X Rating. At that time films were still advertised in newspaper and many would not take an ad for an X Rated film. I had hundreds of other films to play with but, I was always sorry I couldn't release the Director's Cut for theatrical.
Something has changed at WB to have changed their mind. In this case I'm glad, but I doubt much has really changed otherwise at the studio. Hollywood still has it's head up it's ass.
Wow incredible story! Thank you for trying! It's good to know that we had somebody there pestering them -- It finally paid off!!
Post a Comment