8mm Forum: Brainstorm

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Posted by Burton Sundquist (Member # 5813) on November 24, 2019, 09:19 PM:

Brainstorm (1983) MGM/UA Starring Christopher Walken, Natalie Wood, Louise Fletcher, Cliff Robertson. Directed By Douglas Trumbull. The print reviewed is a Kempski/Derann Super 8 scope print with magnetic mono sound, mounted on 2 X 1200' reels/spools.

THE PLOT: Brainstorm is a Science Fiction Film about a group of scientsts working on a device that can record sensory data from the brain of the subject, all sights, sounds, tastes, smells as well as physical sensation and emotions. That experience can be re-lived by anyone wearing the device headset and playing back the tape. A type of VR but with the added elements of physical sensation and emotion. The team soon learn that the Firm backing the research is intending to offer its capabilities to the Military, Code named Operation Brainstorm. Not wanting the device to be used by the Military, The Group conspire together to sabotage the project and put and end to Operation Brainstorm.

THE PRINT: The Super8 Scope print I received is Poly Eastman LPP. There is German printing on the original heads and tails but not enough to confirm it to be a Kempski print. Now on 2 X 1200', It was originally mounted on 6 X 400' based on splices where the reels were joined. The color is very nice, however I did notice on the second and fourth reel there is a slight blueish hue, not as obvious as I have seen on other Prints. The chrominance is a little low in the early lab scenes but over all the color rates a B+. Having recently screened Kempski Scope Poltergeist and Soylent Green I was a little disappointed with Brainstorm as it lacks the Fantastic Sharpness quality of the previously mentioned releases. It is a nice clear pint with some stunning effects but here too the film scores B+ in the Sharpnesss category. The Mono sound is crystal clear and the full acoustic range is excellently reproduced. A+ for the sound, which will sound even better once re-mixed to Dolby Digital Stereo. To sum it up, This is an above average Scope Release, an entertaining film with "This is Scope" type effects ( the regular scenes where filmed in 35 mm at a 1.7 to 1 ratio and the VR sequences were shot in 70 mm at a 2.2 to 1 ratio ).
This film would be Final Film for Natalie Wood, who tragically drowned before the film was completed. A unique and visually impressive print. Good enough reason, I think, to add to the collection.

[ November 25, 2019, 12:26 AM: Message edited by: Burton Sundquist ]

Posted by Brian Fretwell (Member # 4302) on November 25, 2019, 02:41 AM:

I originally saw this at a West End cinema off a 70mm print, billed as "Expanding screen 70mm".
I saw an extract of the Kempski release at a Widex event and thought that the "normal" scenes not filling the screen suffered a little (compared to normal flat prints) from being on only part of the film width then expanded.

[ November 27, 2019, 03:12 PM: Message edited by: Brian Fretwell ]

Posted by Oliver F. R. Feld (Member # 1911) on November 25, 2019, 08:54 AM:

Thank You, Burton, for this great review.
My print is exactly the same. But although there is a lack of sharpness
this print belongs definitely onto the big screen.
I like James Horner‘s soundtrack; especially at the „The last journey“ beginning in the phone box.

Posted by Bruno Heughebaert (Member # 2756) on November 25, 2019, 09:42 AM:

Brainstorm was directed by Douglas Trumbull to promote the showscan a process he developped in the 80's (70mm print 60 fps)
That's the reason of the different scope format used in the movie.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Showscan

Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on November 25, 2019, 12:19 PM:

Thanks for the review! This has been on my "wanted list' for a LONG time ... stereo or mono, I'd LOVE to have it!

(Kempski preferred!) [Smile]

Posted by Joe Taffis (Member # 4) on November 25, 2019, 12:49 PM:

Thank you for your detailed review Burton! A good film with some interesting novelties to it...

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on November 26, 2019, 03:06 AM:

I have a 70mm print of this and ran it recently. The non-VR sequences were nowhere near as wide as they are on your screenshots. I can only assume Since the official aspect ratio of this movie being 2:20 means 35mm prints were struck cropping the top and bottom to create 2:35 ratio, it could also be expected that the Super 8mm scope further cropped the top and bottom down to 2:66 ratio (making the non-VR sequences look much wider than originally intended).

I had never even thought about how the regular "movie" scenes would differ between formats until now. However it does make perfect sense. Very interesting!

Posted by Bruno Heughebaert (Member # 2756) on November 26, 2019, 06:15 AM:

Douglas trumbull's interview about showscan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgYj5D7PnUk

"Slate it" - Douglas Trumbull's Brainstorm (60fps mixed HFR Test)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJcLndVO-Pc

This is the description of the youtube link (not my text)

This is a test of my attempt to re-create a mixed frame rate version of Douglas Trumbull's vision for Brainstorm using a small portion of the film.

It was Trumbull's vision to shoot Brainstorm in Showscan, an early version of HFR (high frame rate) cinema. Unfortunately, due to the limitations of theatrical equipment at the time and the prohibitive cost of retrofitting them to play Showscan, this vision was never realized, and Brainstorm was instead filmed and released in traditional 24p.

Although Trumbull's R&D tests of Showscan were at 72fps (3X the speed of 24p) I have only upsampled the footage to 2.5X, which is 60p which can be played on YouTube. The point of this exercise is to see sometime approximating what Trumbull envisioned, so please make sure you watch this clip at 60fps for the desired effect.

Trumbull left clues in the editing about which parts were intended for high frame rate. In regular 24p scenes, the frame was cropped to a 4:3 frame and pillarboxed, but the cuts meant for Showscan were filmed in wide screen 2.35:1 (and usually with a wide angle lens).

Software and upsampling technique used:
The original film was placed into an Adobe Premiere Project. The footage was then placed onto a 59.94 FPS timeline. Select edits were identified, cut and placed onto a new layer, and upsampled using Optical Flow time interpolation.

It necessary to make sure the interpolated clips were not cut on an original edit boundary, and instead each interpolated clip was given "handles" of 1-2 frames to ensure that Optical Flow did not try to interpolate between two scenes.

Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on November 26, 2019, 11:54 AM:

THAT was really interesting!!!

So, the original idea was to have the shots that were a simulation of what people to saw (while recording with the head set), to be literally like "videotape", and look truly real?

If that is the case, with movie theaters having went digital, THIS would be an EXCELLENT re-issue of the film to theaters!!

Posted by Burton Sundquist (Member # 5813) on November 27, 2019, 12:33 AM:

Thank you Bruno for those excellent links and further information regarding this film and the Man behind it, Douglas Trumbull. And Brad is correct. The the Super 8 Scope print crops the top and bottom of the frame, changing the aspect ratio. This was noted during the Stereo remix : there was more top and bottom information on my monitor than on the projected image while in sync with the DVD. As mentioned, a unique print but I would love to see it again in 70mm!

Posted by Bruno Heughebaert (Member # 2756) on November 27, 2019, 07:40 AM:

I was lucky to see it in 70mm gauge showcan but it's such a long time ago that my memory....
Douglas Trumbull does not like his movie very much, he did it to promote the showscan that's all, i was lucky to talk with him at the bradford widescreen weekend, he was so excited to see 2001 in 70mm on the curved screen.

Posted by Burton Sundquist (Member # 5813) on November 28, 2019, 12:43 AM:

Thanks Bruno, Great feedback. Brando wasn't happy with his performance in On The Waterfront. You are very fortunate to have met Trumbull . I too would have been excited about seeing 2001 in 70mm. I saw it's first run in the Cinema a 7 year old.
Of course an artist will have a beef If they don't get their way. I think Trumbull made a good film but the studio missed the point.

[ November 29, 2019, 08:11 PM: Message edited by: Burton Sundquist ]

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on November 28, 2019, 08:38 PM:

I cannot think of enough negative things to say on how simply AWFUL HFR ("high frame rate") looks. Even in that simulated video link above, the "upframed" shots look terrible and it is a jarring way to knock me out of the movie.

This is an interesting video on the subject.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaZnxAfcvY4

Posted by Brian Fretwell (Member # 4302) on November 29, 2019, 01:16 PM:

I would think Brainstorm is about the only film that this (High Frame Rate) would be suitable for with the main story as a film and the "Brainstorm" sequences taking you out of it for an experience as startling to the audience as to the people in the film experiencing it.

I do remember a TV movie in which there was horse race course sequence which had been shot on video and was edited into the movie - that was jarring.

Posted by Burton Sundquist (Member # 5813) on December 01, 2019, 12:36 AM:

Thanks for the link Brad! I agree totally. And MGM may have saved the film by not approving the Showscan process for this film. We got instead a regular 35mm presentation with 70mm scenes. The other thing I noticed in the VR sequences is they are almost beyond wide angle, it almost looks like a fishbowl lens was used. The edges of the frame are concave
And linierity is distorted. Still, I am happy with this print.

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