Posts: 130
From: London, United Kingdom
Registered: Jul 2017
posted December 16, 2017 06:04 AM
Hello,
I have a situation with a pair of 16mm films and wanted to ask for your opinions on what you would suggest or do.
A while back I purchased a 16mm print of Invasion of the Body Snatchers from the States. It was a flat print and it turned out to be a dupe, which the seller failed to mention. It's an okay copy but it was lacking the high contrast of an original.
Now I've acquired the same title as an original scope, this was on eBay if some of you saw it on there. This print is clearly far superior. However, the down side is it's missing most of the opening titles and approximately 20secs or so near the end of the film.
My question is; would it be worth it or right to cannibalise the dupe to fill in the missing parts of the original to make it a "complete" film albeit a none perfect one? Also the missing sections added would be flat and not scope.
The value of the dupe as is won't be much I think and if certain sections were to be missing from it it would lessen its resell value even more.
Or is it best to just leave them alone and keep the two as they are?
Posts: 978
From: Bapchild, Kent, UK
Registered: May 2004
posted December 16, 2017 07:00 AM
Hello Can
You can get the missing sections for your 'scope print printed on 16mm bw stock for about 8 Euros per minute filmed from digital sources - I recently added replacement titles to some of my 16mm features and the match between new and old was perfect.
Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007
posted December 16, 2017 09:49 AM
If these were mine I would remove the titles from the flat print and add them to the start of the scope print. Then add the flat end section to the scope print. When done you will have a complete print. The flat sections will not look too bad being shown in scope. You can then try and sell the remains of the flat print. However; if you think obtaining reprint sections are worth the time, trouble and expense, this is probably a reasonable way to go.
Posts: 978
From: Bapchild, Kent, UK
Registered: May 2004
posted December 17, 2017 03:55 AM
Thank you for your help with this Mark - yes you are right the black and white stock is more expensive but worth every penny when it looks as good as the replacement titles I received for my Hunchback Of Notre Dame print.
Each to their own of course but I can't see any logic at all in ruining one print to fix another when they are in entirely different formats (one 'scope one flat).