Dracula (1958) Finale - Japanese vs UK 2012 Versions
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- Опубліковано 24 сер 2013
- Here is a side by side comparison of the original Japanese footage discovered by Simon Rowson and the recent BFI / Hammer restoration that includes most of the Japanese footage in the climax.
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I attended a festival screening of this film years ago, Christopher Lee was there giving a Q and A afterwards. A stately gentleman, he was greeted and applauded like a Hall of Fame sports legend. he sat in a Queen Mary colonial smoking chair onstage, lit his pipe, and graciously puffed waiting for the 3 minute applause to subside. It came in waves. Lobby security. The concession people, the follow spot crew on the scaffold overhead. They all applauded. Lee discussed his time in service, his beginnings in the business, how he looked up to Peter Cushing and how Cushing went to bat for him to get the Dracula role. He was also Boris Karloff's neighbor. He was asked about the tears in Dracula's eyes as he was forced back into sunlight. There were people in the audience actually sobbing . Was he crying? Yes. He had to find something redemptive in his demise. Lee said the tears were from the pain of Dracula leaving the body to return to the awful agony of purgatory . When they filmed that close up, the director didn't say cut. He said enough. Lee looked up to see Cushing teared up. The crew had teared up. They had to call lunch. Lee saw Dracula as a " soul in pain not just from vampirism, but from condemnation to commit heinous acts that saddened and repulsed him. The blow torch heat crumbling him to dust from the sun was the pain he had caused his victims so I emoted remorse and contempt for that remorse at the same time which was huge as an actor to do that on cue in a close up. How else to conflict the audience with his demise?" You could hear a pin drop after that answer.
The effects look great for the late 50’s. It’s great that we can get to see this.
Rest in Peace Mr Lee
I agree Jim Bob and Mr Cushing.
In whichever version, still perhaps the finest good v evil climax not just of all horror films but any genre of films
Dracula running his hand across his face i never seen before........usually it just cuts to the desintegrated face
I had never seen it either until now
It's a deleted scene due to it (maybe) got a british X rating.
@@arfansthename X RATINGS OF UK. AND ENGLAND. AND USA IS RATING PG-12.
@@joelthedeerfanking6900 there is no such thing as a PG-12.And the rating system didn't even exist in 1958.
I love the fact that at 2:13 Lee reacts before the curtain is actually down.
Magnificent job for comparisons. Thank you, man! BFI had included the two missing shots (desintegration sequence) of the japanese print in the british restoration. Great ultra classic!
Great comparison, regards.
So where can I watch the Japanese version
There's something that bothers me:
The film reels that were sent to Japan contained longer takes and a few extra scenes yet, as neither the score nor the sound effects were made but until the film followed the BBFC standars, that would mean it wouldn't be possible to fit those scene once again on a restored version of the movie unless there were a considerate substraction of more "irrelevant material" or an adulteration (read "slowing") of the sound track.
Also, I love that part on the Japanese Cut where Dracula is crying 2:46
I like the original version because it's a much brighter picture than the new version we have now, it could be fixed by erasing some of the scratches off the film but keep the film bright.
No one has explained why one of Christopher Lee's facial close ups during the desintegration scene (Dracula crying) is present in the Japanese print..and obviously still cut out in the British restoration version. When viewed side by side, as you have offered so well here, that omission is clearly still present. One of Lee's close ups is still cut from the British restoration. Why leave ANY bit of Lee's incredible performance out? If, as some have suggested, it was done to allow for the audio portion to be synced exactly to the visual...then why not cut out a second of a less important scene ? Bad decision.
Noah Shoup .....but that does not answer the question. If the film need be edited to allow keeping the running time like the censored version....then why not cut the required time from less important scenes?
rickw1100 I agree, the Japanese cut is the better one. Did we really need to have so many reaction shots of Van Helsing? Who wouldn't sacrifice a few seconds of that to accommodate Lee's performance? Stupid, just stupid.
rickw1100 And I find it hard to believe that with all they can do with digital restoration, both visual AND aural, a few seconds of missing audio would be a problem. Come on, the sound has been restored and remixed in projects much more difficult than this one.
+darkprose .....well said darkprose...........how about cutting 2 seconds of the end credits......I mean, who makes these decisions? A lost opportunity.
this was commonplace in the 50-90s Britain, damaged prints, random censor cuts all led the way to the video nasties hysteria of the 1980s. Sad time to be British
Japanese version can be used to actually restore some of the lost damaged reel/segments that were inserted from analog stock footage in the UK remaster ( the washed out blurry scenes ). Thus creating a definitive brand new master with most of the filmed material.
Christopher and Peter were senational in all there films. R I P MY FRIENDS UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN.
Well said.
I prefer the magenta, red and yellow levels of the Japanese version, the color in the restored version is cold and dull.
So from what I understand, these two are the same version, the Japanese copy is missing a few seconds, that's it?
+astroboy royale I agree the original colours are better
So true, the colour levels in the new version are CRAP.. so dull.. it almost ruins it.
Yeah, the Japanese color correction is much warmer
Brilliant video! ❤️❤️
Where can I watch the Japanese version?
Great stuff!
I wish Warner's in the US would release this on blu-ray already!
Hope you guys are watching the blu-ray restoration on a calibrated display because it looks gorgeous to me. The overly bluish white balance is an issue that can be easily corrected on HDtv's. The skin tones suffer with the overly rosy pink hue but that's only in night scenes and interiors where artificial light is being used. The man and woman at the end after Cushing pulls the drapes is outdoor lighting and is properly color balanced for a Technicolor palette. That's probably the best looking scene with regard to correct looking color and skin tones.
I never saw this movie in the theater but did see it in reruns on tv and do remember the pastel greenish hues that can be seen in the hand with the 'cross' mark. There was a lot of complimentary pastel colors that I remember from ' 70's & '80's reruns on tv. The rosy skin tones can be fixed with your TV's tint slider or some HDtv's offer a skin tone adjust. Over all the color is not perfect but it's certainly better than that Japanese version which I never remember that movie looking like that.
Thanks !
Anolis Entertainment is releasing Dracula on blu ray in Germany at the end of the year. They are looking into using the 30 frames that are missing in the restored 2012 edition and inserting them back in to make it complete. The blue tint is also being addressed but unless the early Japanese reels are found it won't be complete without the censored vampire bite in the library.
I believe the reels of the first half of the Japanese version were completely lost, due to a fire in the film library and the consequent water damage. We may never get to see this scene unless there's another foreign version out there which includes them.
What do you know about the Spain release that is all region?
♥️FOREVER♥️
♥️☝🏻🧐HAMMER☝🏻🧐♥️
thanks...
Exquisite!
I always wondered where that trap door on the floor leads, next to the ‘throne’, which Dracula gives up when Van Helsing joins him in the great hall 🤔… Maybe he should have gone that way 😆 !
why they cant just make a complete version
Metaluna Zombie it is impossible
Because some of the original footage was lost.
The most infuriating thing about the extended UK cut (apart from the atrocious blue tint) is that because they cut that shot of Van Helsing noticing the candlestick, it means the audio goes out of sync. When he grabs the candlestick, there's no noise... until a moment later, *after* he's already grabbed it, when the audio catches up and we hear the clinking noise of him grabbing the candlestick followed by the thud of the candle itself falling onto the table!
Like the clarity of the newer version but not the tint, the events and music are enough to give the mood while a reduced colour palette just irritates me. I'm going to have to do my own edit with extra footage and colour correction before I watch it.
El mejor Dracula de toda la historia del cine. De mi chile hermoso. Y querido.
Kind of weird; love the restored version’s look at first especially making the castle look more gothic and moody... but after Van Helsing tears down the curtain I prefered the original Japanese because it made it look more natural and the light more believable
Still love the restored version, which I think does more justice to the whole “Hammer Look” for this film as opposed to original release which looks a bit flat compared to Brides of Dracula and The Mummy especially
ARE there japanese prints of these amazing movies w xtra gore, nudity, horror? long wondered if it's myth -
Not "completely restored." 2:46: Powerful reaction shot from Christopher Lee not reintegrated.
You can see the frames on the disc - - but only on the Extra raw footage of source Japanese
reels. So as 'the nearest we are likely to get as the definitive
version,' it's a botch job. Those missing frames are at least as
startling and dramatic as footage they DID reinsert in the
disintegration scene. There's also a better sound effect of Lee's head hitting the floor on the Japanese print that the BFI failed to integrate. I informed BFI, and they couldn't care less.
Sad that this was a half assed job. HAMMER has one of the greatest adaptations of Dracula and they do nothing with it. Let Criterion restore this masterpiece, their restoration of the Apu trilogy should be enough proof they can handle this project. Warner recently released the curse of Frankenstein with a few added scenes, hopefully they can do the same for this.
Why is the 2012 extended cut sort of darker and blue. Dracula is supposed to be dying because the sun is shining on him. Did the people who made the 2012 DVD version not think of this. They're so obsessed with making everything blue these days. The picture quality on the 2012 version is far superior but the colour is too dull.
2:58 The original Japanese raw footage is not the theatrical version. The DVD 2002 has the old version.
I think there's a fake Shemp in the disintegration scene
I hope the Bluddy Americans restore the Japanese version; the color is better. a definitive 4k version is necessary. bluray is horrible (blue tinge throughout)
Also the sunlight looks blue WTF
Colour levels are horrible in the new version.
2:41
UK: Uh
Japan: Uh
Horror of Dracula was not a Japanese production.
Return, /evil of dracula just Dracula 1958 what is best?
I see they managed to suck all the colour and warmth out of it to give it that faux "modern" teal and orange look (as I have also seen criminally done with recent releases of STAR WARS and BLADE RUNNER). I wish the Japanese version was available- Id take it, scratches and all over what they've turned it into.
BFI always messes up their restorations one way or the other. Terrible organization, not well run. No reason at all not to include every single frame of the Japanese print in their restoration.
Original Japanese raw footage? LOL! Was the film shot in Japan? It should've been: "Damaged copy of Japanese 1958 theatrical release". Also, the descriptions come and go to quickly, really useless.
Legit no difference