Great Story, terrible transfer
This DVD set is a real heartbreaker!
The Jewel in the Crown is absolutely one of historic the highlights of "quality" television. An absolutely arresting story. Wonderful script, wonderful acting, etc. I can't add anything on that count to the reviews already here.
That makes the TERRIBLE quality of the DVD transfer all the more disappointing. This set has literally the WORST video quality I have ever seen on a DVD! Murky, muddy picture with visible scratches and dirt on the film. The soundtrack is a little better. On my home theater setup it sounds like its coming over a half-decent clock radio. Seriously, the picture looks like they took an old VHS tape of the show and just ran it through a disc burner.
No, I don't expect blockbuster quality from an 30-year old BBC film, but I would have expected something more like the recent DVD set of Elizabeth R, which is quite watchable.
Sadly, this is almost surely the only DVD we'll ever see of this marvelous series...
Excellent series - Appalling digital transfer
Heed Spoffo's warning.
While the series itself is wonderful and certainly worth owning, I have NEVER seen a worse DVD transfer. Even my seedy Madacy Entertainment copy of Fritz Lang's 1226 "Metropolis" is of higher quality. The visuals are fuzzy and grainy at the same time, and there are severe block artifacts everytime the screen gets even slightly dark. All scenes shot at night or in the darkness are almost unwatchable because of the visual noise.
The sound seemed alright to me at first, but then I turned the volume up a bit and found that there is a kind of low-pitch static, like machine noise underneath the vocals and music.
Please buy the VHS tapes - and let A&E know that this is simply unacceptable!
A MUST SEE CINEMATIC GEM...
This powerful and moving eight part miniseries has lost none of its impact since it was first aired nearly twenty years ago. Highly acclaimed, it won numerous awards. Beautifully filmed on location in India, England, and Wales, it is a highly atmospheric and complex drama, redolent of the flavor of the turbulent years just before India gained its independence from British rule.
The story begins in 1942, and through its memorable characters, both British and Indian, it masterfully weaves a tapestry of events that explains the state of flux that India was in at the time and the collision between East and West that often occurred, as the old guard made way for the new. Pivotal events become symbolic of India's struggle for independence, and it is those events that impact on those living in India and struggling to survive through those turbulent years. This tumultuous and sumptuous saga ends with India's independence in 1947.
Masterfully acted, lushly filmed, and awash with period...
Click to Editorial Reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment