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Topic: TREASURE ISLAND!! (Orson Welles) 1972 IFS Release
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Osi Osgood
Film God
Posts: 10204
From: Mountian Home, ID.
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted January 19, 2008 08:44 PM
I have always had a guilty pleasure for Orson Welles, as well as a sucker for the story "Treasure Island", having been nurtured on the 1950's cutesy Disney version. First off, I was surprised when I heard about this version, and more surprised when I heard that Orson Welles was playing Long John Silver!
The story is as follows ...
A man comes to the "Benbow Inn", (owned by the young master Jim Hawkins and his mother) by name of Billy Bones, Captian Billy Bones, a loud gruff indivisual. He gets a visit from a "gentleman" by name of Blind Pew. Billy Bones is given the dreaded "black spot". Soon Billy Bones is dead.
But he leaves a map behind, a map to treasure upon a certian Island. The young man Jim Hawkins takes the map and goes to
local nobleman and doctors who decifer that this is a famous map, and soon they have secured a ship for passage there. They need a crew and soon have a dubious lot headed by the ships cook Long John Silver, (Orson Welles), a large aging seaman with many a story to tell. he takes an instant liking to Jim Hawkins.
Upon arriving at the Island, the mutiny is under way and the good captian and those faithful (ships doctor, ect.) escape, soon making camp in a fort on the Island. The pirates take the ship.
On his wanderings on the Island, Jim meets up with slightly mad
Ben Gunn (I might be wrong about the name), who has been marooned on the Island. He knows where the treasure is.
The pirates try to take out the fort to no avail. The pirates
also get ahold of Jim hawkins, but Long John protects him.
The pirates go on the hunt for the treasure, but soon find that it has already been dug up, (by Ben Gunn). The good guys have the ship back, and are taking Long John Silver back for justice, but Long John escapes.
My short version of the story doesn't do it justice. This is a great swashbuckling film. Orson Welles actually wrote the screenplay for this version of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic, and is no doubt the main reason for this version being as good as it is, as well as how true it is to the characters, (Ben Gunn, for instance is quite like he is in the book). Though Orson doesn't direct this film, you can see a lot of his influence in the composition of shots as well as the editing of the action scenes.
I have read much criticism of this film, but I find the acting to be quite good, considering that this was a international production, which tend to have very messed up acting. That, and if you are seeing a foreign film with dubious dubbing, that takes away from the film. This film had seven different international directors, and thusly, seven different languages.
Orson no doubt relished the chance to play a character that he had admired over the years and he does a fine job and I personally think that, (apart from his last great masterpiece, Chimes At Midnight) this was one of his last really good acting roles, as he wouldn't star in many other films.
Now, onto the print.
I recieved this print from Derann a short while ago. It is an original IFS super 8 print, on 5X400ft reels, and it appears to have had either only one owner or no owners and was a leftover print from somewhere, as the first reels box has the original "cover slip" on it and has no wear and perfect color, (Love to do a photo of this for ya!).
The color has faded slightly. It still has all the greens and blues but the faces are slightly red, but considering when this print was manufactured, it is in immaculate shape. The color loss is quite passable and is quite common for this kind of Eastman color stock, (far better than the dreaded "pinky" Eastman)
The sharpness is absolutely great. I have seen screen shots of 16MM of this same film, and it is literally the same.
Contrast is fine, though could be better, only slightly dupey in this matter. Blacks are pure however. (well pure, but a little warmed, but certianly passable)
One of the great pluss's of this print, is that it is in the adapted scope of it's release. (The 16MM prints of this title are in the same adapted scope), but the print is so sharp that the adapted scope is not a drawback to the enjoyment.
Those who love Orson Welles, really ought to give this version of Treasure Island a good look.
Long Live Super 8MM!!
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"All these moments will be lost in time, just like ... tears, in the rain. "
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Osi Osgood
Film God
Posts: 10204
From: Mountian Home, ID.
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted February 22, 2008 04:53 PM
Your right Barry, Steve Osbourne had a print of that a little while back which I just missed getting.
I would be curious to see or buy a print of "MacBeth". I understand that it was released as a 4X400ft release, and the original feature was approx. 95 minutes, (theatrically, the extended cut on laserdisc was 110 minutes, quite a nice view), so this would be a slight cutdown.
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"All these moments will be lost in time, just like ... tears, in the rain. "
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