Ashes of Time (1994) Theatrical Cut

[shiftyeyes]

Thanks. The footage for the text backgrounds in particular is worse in motion. Wobbly, colors going in and out, lots of dirt and specs, and low detail. I think I'll try cleaning up the upscaled footage again and testing out a few things.

[Serums]

If you really wanted to use the HD, you could blend that footage with the relevant SD parts using AVISynth.
However, that may not be as easy as suggested if AVISynth doesn't register them as a match.

As PDB suggested, go with what you think looks the best!

Good luck!

[shiftyeyes]

I've been a bit busy with some other projects lately, but I did complete a version of this project back at the end of June that I shared with a few others for feedback. If anyone's interested, send me a PM.

Ultimately, some of it is pretty good for what it is, while some of it shows the limitations of its sources.

[jerggg]

I've been a bit busy with some other projects lately, but I did complete a version of this project back at the end of June that I shared with a few others for feedback. If anyone's interested, send me a PM.

Ultimately, some of it is pretty good for what it is, while some of it shows the limitations of its sources.

Sorry for bumping up an old thread, but I joined this forum because this thread seems to be the only spot on the internet that also cares about the original 1994 cut of the movie. If I'd like to take my own stab at sourcing the best DVD version + AI restoring it, which DVD version should I look out for (the Japanese or the Taiwanese version?) and what Topaz AI upscaling model is a good fit?

I have a copy of the Mei Ah DVD on hand, which clearly is not ideal haha, but will keep it nonetheless.

[shiftyeyes]

I've been a bit busy with some other projects lately, but I did complete a version of this project back at the end of June that I shared with a few others for feedback. If anyone's interested, send me a PM.

Ultimately, some of it is pretty good for what it is, while some of it shows the limitations of its sources.

Sorry for bumping up an old thread, but I joined this forum because this thread seems to be the only spot on the internet that also cares about the original 1994 cut of the movie. If I'd like to take my own stab at sourcing the best DVD version + AI restoring it, which DVD version should I look out for (the Japanese or the Taiwanese version?) and what Topaz AI upscaling model is a good fit?

I have a copy of the Mei Ah DVD on hand, which clearly is not ideal haha, but will keep it nonetheless.

The best quality overall is probably the French TF1 release, but that version is cut by about 10 min. After that, the Japanese Pony Canyon DVD is okay for the footage missing from the French DVD. It doesn't have burned in subtitles, but I think the PQ is kind of lacking. I think the Mei Ah DVD is alright, but it has burned in subs. The Taiwanese release has a few extra seconds of footage exclusive to that country's release.

[jerggg]

Fascinating, thanks for sharing.

I personally stumbled on this film because I loved the OST that played during the climactic scene in The Chinese Odyssey Part 2 (which was a comedy parody of Journey to the West, released 1 year after Ashes of Time), and after some search found that it was actually just reusing the main theme of Ashes.

On top of that I loved the Legend of the Condor Heroes HK tv show that incidentally also released in 1994, which Ashes is an artistic attempt at building out the "prequel lore" for some of the key characters in the show.

The fact that the original score got scrapped in the Redux version meant that was just not it for me, so I bought a DVD (turned out to be the Mei Ah release) and started playing around with Topaz AI models on some clips and happened to land here.

Maybe in the near future there will also be some sophisticated AI-based audio enhancement tools available too for non-professionals, just to bump the score and dialogue up a notch too.

[shiftyeyes]

Fascinating, thanks for sharing.

I personally stumbled on this film because I loved the OST that played during the climactic scene in The Chinese Odyssey Part 2 (which was a comedy parody of Journey to the West, released 1 year after Ashes of Time), and after some search found that it was actually just reusing the main theme of Ashes.

On top of that I loved the Legend of the Condor Heroes HK tv show that incidentally also released in 1994, which Ashes is an artistic attempt at building out the "prequel lore" for some of the key characters in the show.

The fact that the original score got scrapped in the Redux version meant that was just not it for me, so I bought a DVD (turned out to be the Mei Ah release) and started playing around with Topaz AI models on some clips and happened to land here.

Maybe in the near future there will also be some sophisticated AI-based audio enhancement tools available too for non-professionals, just to bump the score and dialogue up a notch too.

I'm a big fan of the original score as well! I think Wong Kar Wai probably thought some of the more electronic arrangements sounded a little chintzy compared to stuff like Crouching Tiger and Hero so he had them re-arranged for the Redux version.

I'm not sure what happened with the film's original post-production. The color timing is all over the place and the prints are all very dirty. The soundtrack in particular was always a bit unpolished and often sounds rather tinny. It all sort of makes the film feel somewhat dreamy and of a different time.

Redux attempts to expand some of the soundscapes, but I think it still sounds terrible.

I was hoping Jet Tone might have something cooking for the 30th anniversary this year after the 4K restorations of WKW's other films and the release of some deleted footage and tantalizing glimpses of footage from the theatrical cut in good quality.

A lot of improvements in technology from 2008 would help the image restoration and the sound. I saw Redux projected in 35mm earlier this year and much of the noise reduction/image processing looks like garbage. On the sound front, WKW has said he removed the opening sequences from Redux because they didn't have Leslie Cheung's voiceover anymore. But we've seen stuff like Peter Jackson's "Get Back" Beatles documentary where they isolated voices and elements from old recordings, etc. and maybe they could apply something similar here to isolate Leslie Cheung's voiceover. The original soundtrack is available in pretty solid quality (I have it on iTunes) so they could potentially remix the audio properly.

[shiftyeyes]

Happy 30th anniversary to this film!

[Serums]

I haven't had the time to read through the whole thread but if nobody has offered to translate or subtitle the Japanese opening text from the Pony Canyon DVD (to see if it's backstory or not), I'll take a stab at it if anyone can point me in its direction.

Cheers.

[shiftyeyes]

I haven't had the time to read through the whole thread but if nobody has offered to translate or subtitle the Japanese opening text from the Pony Canyon DVD (to see if it's backstory or not), I'll take a stab at it if anyone can point me in its direction.

Cheers.

I had a working translation at some point, but the Japanese text is introductory stuff to explain what wuxia is and why some of the characters are able to do superhuman feats. And then it repeats the "flag is still" quote because (I think) the DVD doesn't have Japanese subtitles for it.