[Request] FEMALE PRISONER SCORPION series

[The Griff]

Anyone keen on tackling the FEMALE PRISONER/CONVICT SCORPION series that Arrow put out on blu ray towards late '16?

The colours and contrast of the transfers were just off and a radical departure from previous releases.

http://screenanarchy.com/2016/08/have-yo...-blue.html

Apparently they get worse as the series progresses (I haven't brought myself to view them, yet). So, who's to blame?

From Arrow:

"A set of low-contrast 35mm prints struck from the original 35mm film elements were supplied by Toei Company, Ltd. These prints were scanned in 2K resolution on a pin-registered 4K Northlight Scanner. Picture grading was completed on a DaVinci Resolve and thousands of instances of dirt, debris and light scratches were removed using PFClean software. Overall image stability and instances of density fluctuation were was also improved. All restoration work was completed at Pinewood Studios.

The images on all four Female Prisoner Scorpion films favor a noticeably cyan/blue look throughout. This look was inherent in the film materials supplied and relates to how these lab materials were created, as well as how the original elements have faded over time. With these restorations, we have aimed to present the films as close to their intended original style and appearance as possible."

Fair enough.

I found this example of somebody's quick attempt to mimic the look of the DVD, which suggests something can be done:

[Image: gAv7neb.gif]

For comparisons of the individual 4 films, see here.

I will personally* suck the toes of any one who can rescue these movies from a fate worse than death.

And, of course, I'd be happy to help out with source materials if/where necessary.





*may not actually be me. May be a (poorly) paid proxy in my stead.

[deleted user]

Why, such a beautiful green tint lol

[PDB]

That's a pretty big difference!

I use to have the US Scorpion DVD from years...wonder if I can dig it out.

[The Griff]

That's a pretty big difference!

Isn't it just? I've been dying to revisit these but, urgh, not like this! And I don't think the DVDs will hold up too well on my projector.

Definitely one of the most disappointing releases of late for myself.

[The Griff]

I've discovered that there exists 720p WEB-DL versions of the first 3 films that contain the original colour scheme (but with typically poor blacks - prob RGB level). They're pretty small files (~1.5 GB) so I'll have to see how they look. Happy to share or point people in the right direction if they're interested.

EDIT: Sadly, they seem to be pretty crappy upscales.

[The Griff]

RANT TIME!

This release continues to sadden me almost to the point of anger. To see these, quite frankly, gross transfers now propagating to other mediums further erodes any hope I had of them being corrected.

We've heard Arrow's explanations but they're simply not adequate when it's possible they've done more to damage the future of these films than they have to preserve them.

Unless someone can point me to unbiased sources saying that this is unequivocally the way the films were intended to look, I simply can't forgive Arrow for their part to play in this travesty, however big or small.

So far, everything seems to indicate that this is revisionism at best and sheer vandalism at worst. The discs need to be withdrawn from sale and suppressed. The masters destroyed.

And Matsu the Scorpion must have her vengeance.

[LucasGodzilla]

Arrow has always had the reputation for me as being the company that makes good quality restorations but always end up screwing up on the colors (as proven time and time again with numerous releases over the years). Unfortunately, unless someone is able to locate an unfaded 35mm print of their own, the best that could be done is utilizing the prior SD releases as color reference.

In theory, I could do this regrade as I believe I have access to the Arrow discs, but I don't have any DVDs (nor would this be a personal priority as I'd sooner tackle other film regrade projects and / or 35mm preservations in my limited spare time).

[The Griff]

It's unclear (probably intentionally so) whether Arrow made these colour choices or if they were already present on the materials provided to them.

What matters, I guess, is that Arrow proceeded to restore and then distribute the movies looking like this, so now we're stuck with them! And it looks like that Toei have in turn taken Arrow's work and used that for distribution elsewhere.

If you (or anyone) does ever feel like they'd like to give one or more of the movies a shot, or even just perform some tests, I'd be happy to make the DVDs available.

Having just revisited all six Lone Wolf & Cub movies, I would have loved to have moved onto this series. But the DVDs don't hold up too well on my projector and as for the blu rays... I just can't.