8mm Forum: Metropolis

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Topic: Metropolis - 1927

Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted March 06, 2015 02:30 AM

A near complete print of Fritz Lang's influential 1927 silent classic, "Metropolis", was found in Argentina in 2008.
A restored version of the print is to be shown on FILM4 tonight.
It airs between 0100-0400 on Saturday 7 March.

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Maurice

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Osi Osgood
Film God

Posts: 10204
From: Mountian Home, ID.
Registered: Jul 2005

posted March 06, 2015 11:50 AM

Maurice ...

What film gauge is it? I'm curious, as that "complete" version that was rleased on DVD a few years back was a composite of a brilliant 35MM and a 16MM that was ion extremely poor condition, (it looked horrible, the 16MM, but at least we were able to finally see the footage) ...

So, a complete print on 35MM would be fantastic!!!! [Big Grin]

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"All these moments will be lost in time, just like ... tears, in the rain. "

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Dominique De Bast
Film God

Posts: 4486
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jun 2013

posted March 06, 2015 12:51 PM

16 mm Another copy was found in Chile in 2006 and it was on 9,5 mm.

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Dominique

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted March 06, 2015 02:48 PM

Pathescope issued a 9.5mm silent, possibly in 1931, as a five-reeler with the number of SB.745.

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Maurice

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Dominique De Bast
Film God

Posts: 4486
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jun 2013

posted March 06, 2015 04:13 PM

There has been a thread in the general 9.5 section (not in the buy/trade one) about a copy of Metropolis on sale on EBay for 1.000 €.

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Dominique

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Bradford A Moore
Master Film Handler

Posts: 272
From: Provincetown, Ma
Registered: Jul 2005

posted March 07, 2015 03:56 AM

That Metropolis Griggs print has been up for quite some time. I have the same 16mm print which I bought for $200 dollars from Donald Lee whose father ran The Griggs Moviedrome. I emailed that that ebay seller months ago to tell him he's asking far too much for it. And he told me he had paid what he was asking for it, and I got a great deal. He will never sell it at that price. $200 for a scored Griggs print is more what he should be asking if he wants to sell it.

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Dominique De Bast
Film God

Posts: 4486
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jun 2013

posted March 07, 2015 04:00 AM

Thank you for that information. At that price, you have two main possibilities : it's a rarity (like only one copy in the world) or the seller thinks it's a rarity. From what you said, the first possibility doesn't seem to apply here.

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Dominique

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted March 07, 2015 10:50 AM

A reply to Osi.
Having viewed last night's recording today, it is the print to which you refer.
The 16mm copy was a very poor condition negative. Parts of this were used to augment the existing copy by filling in the missing sections.
It's an abrupt change when the replacement parts come in, but at least it will probably be the best chance we'll ever have to see the complete print minus only a few minutes.

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Maurice

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Osi Osgood
Film God

Posts: 10204
From: Mountian Home, ID.
Registered: Jul 2005

posted March 07, 2015 01:28 PM

Thanks Maurice!

I was kind of surprised when I saw that 16MM initially.

Perhaps they didn't have the money to do a proper restoration of that 16MM, but by doing a frame by frame scan, (takes a heck of a lot of time to "paint out" all of those scratches, but it could be done) that 16MM could have look a good deal better than what was presented.

I've seen some restorations of really beat up film that has been restored, both 35MM and 16MM and while it wouldn't be perfect, it could be achieved.

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"All these moments will be lost in time, just like ... tears, in the rain. "

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Ken Finch
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 543
From: Herne Bay, Kent. U.K.
Registered: Oct 2011

posted March 07, 2015 02:32 PM

I have the Pathescope 9.5mm print. and also a VHS issued by Eureka restored version some years ago. They have recently released a further restoration on DVD and Blu Ray. On the versions I have there are scenes on the 9.5mm print not on the VHS version and vice versa!. I have not seen the latest version. I understand that it was re edited for various countries when it was first released for some reason or other. have never seen a 16mm version. Ken Finch.

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