I know there have been some projects here that set out to fix Lord of the Rings.
I've recently got the 4k set, and am curious if any projects based on fixing the films are currently in progress.

I've heard a lot of the complaints about the 4k set, and while I appreciate the uptick in resolution and bitrate, the DNR and edge enhancement have cost some detail.
I looked at posts on Adywan's wordpress, and saw what he was doing with Return of the Jedi, assembling his own master of that movie combining the current home video release, with the 2011 release in order to have a master that DNR didn't totally fuck on certain shots.

With Return of the King's 4k there was one shot in particular, that's on display Caps a Holic, and shows where Gandalf's staff is smeared out, and there is a temporal artifact left by a horse.
So, other than replacing that shot with a prior bluray's version, are there any other approaches that could be used to fix that shot?
Rotoscoping and painting perhaps?

Also, is there a color profile that anyone could share from the prior DVD release of the extended editions of the films?
The first DVDs I bought were those, and I'm in love with the color pallete from those versions of the films, I don't have the DVDs anymore, sadly.

Edit

I'm aware that these are 2k upscaled to 4k, with maybe the exception of Fellowship.

Anyone here authoring BDs and UHDs on their Mac?

Back in the mid 2000-2010s I used to create my custom DVD menus, button designs and navigation using DVD Studio Pro. Now that I'm going back into the game I'd like to apply the same level of design with BD and UHD menus. Unfortunately it seems like non of the programs this used to be achievable with are running on OSX (I'm on Mojave). I've tried using Roxio Titanium Toast 17 / MyDVD Pro, but both have extremely limited menu building templates and "holiday home video" templates with garrish colors that won't even let you change font size or color.

It seems the art of home medium menu design is lost. It must be restored!

So I just stumbled upon info on this regrade of The Terminator that seems to be 200% spots on.

This is an Alternative Regrade from a U Matic copy.

Here's information about this U Matic trend that is exclusively german as far as I know:

U-Matic came onto the market around 1972 and was used professionally by TV stations (e.g. also replaced the 16mm film, reporting, documentaries). In contrast to the later VHS / Betamax, U-Matic offered the better picture, but could not establish itself in the home video sector. U-Matic was still in daily use somewhere up until 2002.

When VHS / Betamax found its way onto the German market at the end of the 1970s, pirate copiers became active, every current cinema film (often a week before the cinema release), and tons of older film titles were copied using U-Matic machines. As a rule, the films were split into 2x60 min. U-Matic tapes.

This resulted in VHS mother tapes, that were a 1: 1 copy without any significant loss of quality. Copies of these original tapes were brought into households nationwide. Avarice Mentality already existed back then, so the first copies of the VHS mother tape were almost exclusively bought by pure film collectors (at 30-70 DM).

The bulk of other copies came from these copies on VHS / Betamax / Video 2000, i.e. with further decreasing picture quality, film titles flooded German households. Copies were sold / lent out and copied again at home for friends / relatives.

Anyone who still has the original 1: 1 copies knows that their quality, especially the original cinema format to be admired here (sometimes slightly zoomed in), was always better in terms of the picture than that of later original rental and purchase tapes from video stores .

It seems that in many cases, U Matic tapes are the only pristine preservations left of the original colors of films that are completely modified on home-video, like The Good The Bad & The Ugly, Alien or The Terminator.

There are dozens of Regrades for Terminator (1984) and the author of this U Matic regrade Der Rabe shows two other alternatives here as a comparison.


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":


3Li - Hybrid Color Restoration:


DonaldFaQ - Regrade:


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":


DonaldFaQ - Regrade:


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":


Blu ray - Remastered - Original Screenshot:


der rabe - Regrade from one of the last "U Matic cinema copies":





Media - Info:

Hello everyone!

I'm nicky90. I am passionate about cinema in its originality.

Thanks for all the site content and interesting discussions.

Thanks.

Best regards.

Was searching for the best possible version of Man Of Steel

Just an example of the difference I have noticed between 4K HDR and Blu-ray SDR

https://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/9611

I feel like 4K HDR is a downgrade comparable to Blu-ray SDR

What do you think?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn3KWM1kuAw

Yojimbo (1961)
Criterion 48/24 FLAC synced to Toho Blu-Ray

Per Moshrom
"...the Criterion mono track, which has been restored surprisingly well -- the Toho mono mix has so much tape noise that it sounds like it's raining in every scene"

I thiiiiink he meant the Criterion Blu-ray. I haven't heard either Criterion DVD releases so I can't vouch for them.

PM if interested!

Somewhere in Time (1980)
NTSC DVD Audio (not sure which edition. likely the Special Edition)
2.0 mono
Synced to the Region 1 Blu-ray

The Blu-ray's audio is muffled by noise reduction. The DVD is considerably better.

PM me if interested

Hello from lock down Los Angeles. I am fairly new to the world of Fan Edits/Fan Restorations etc. Though I have been collecting concert audio and video recordings for MANY years. Some of the reasons I collect those apply to the edits found here. I collect concerts because A) I like the music and B) See A. It all started with wanting copies of the shows I attended. Progressed to recording shows myself then trading and on and on.  People ask why do you have some 800 Springsteen recordings? I look at each show as history. One show is not the same as the next , something small happens to make that show unique. Plus I am what is called a "completeist"(sp?). Any way what I think applies here is that fans TRUE fans when they see something they can maybe improve on do so and in doing so, do (so many do's) a so much better job than the studios. Because they do it form a fans view rather than a marketing view . This is what I appreciate from the editors. All the work and effort put in to the project. And these days with the lock downs, especially here in California. Without being able to go to theatres the edits make time go by so much more enjoyable. So in advance I would like to thank all the editors for their work and efforts. A few of my favorite editors are Dr. Saperstein, Mainiac, TM2YC and MBTM. But I have enjoyed all the edits from everyone that I have watched.

Hey all.

Just joined and sending warm shout out to all.
Hope to seeing you all around.

Take care and stay stay.