Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

UPDATE: My review was based on the HORRIBLE DVD set... the new BLU RAY is absolutely amazing and the TODD AO Version smokes the BR of the Cinemascope version.... I am choosing to leave the rest of the review intact as Amazon.com will apply it to everything with Oklahoma in the title and it still stands not only for the DVD set BUT... the DVD that comes with the recent Blu Ray still stinks... they did not upgrade the DVD version of Oklahoma when they found the new elements and upgraded the Blu ray discs.... so... If you are looking for a review of the Blu Ray... it's 5 stars... the DVD is 1 star and that review and comments follow... I am happy to see a bunch of other folks were as horribly dissapointed as I was to throw this DVD into the player and instead of being treated by what should be a breathtakingly sharp and stunning Todd-AO version on disc two....see a muddy mess...which isn't near the 35mm version on disc one! Fans of the Todd-AO process (watch Patton some time folks) know what an absolutely unsurpassed format it was....and the DVDs that have come out (like the aforementioned PATTON) that have been taken from it stun with clarity and color... I don't know how many generations removed from the original disc 2 of this set is ....but its not worth a $50 DVD players time... Its particularly ironic that 20th Century waste so much other space on the disc on short features extolling the virtues of Todd-AO...only to present such a garbage transfer.... SHAME ON YOU FOX....this should be as gorgeous as the Sound of Music ...and its a big big letdown....and I like many others have been counting the days for this release... ....I am updating this review...with the official excuse from FOX home Entertainment...which follows.. A STATEMENT FROM TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT REGARDING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY DVD EDITION OF RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S "OKLAHOMA!" In recent days we have heard back from a small number of consumers regarding the DVD of the Todd-AO version of "Oklahoma!" and specifically that it appears less detailed than the old Fox DVD release from 2000. We feel it is very important that we communicate the issues on hand regarding the Todd-AO version of the film. As you know well, director Fred Zinnemann filmed "Oklahoma!" using two separate film techniques. The 35mm CinemaScope version and the then new, large gauge 65mm film format called Todd-AO. Firstly, the good news is that the first disc features the CinemaScope version of the movie for the first time on DVD, and looks superlative. This is the main feature of the new 2-disc Anniversary edition. However, when it comes to the bonus disc featuring the Todd-AO version, we have received reports from concerned fans that the Todd-AO version looks 'fuzzy' or 'less detailed' than the old DVD release from 2000. How can that possibly be? When "Oklahoma!" was first released on DVD in 2000 it was the relative infancy of DVD, and Twentieth Century Fox utilized a widescreen video transfer of the Todd-AO version that had been made for VHS and laserdisc back in 1994. The resulting widescreen transfer (with black bars top and bottom) was a very pleasing presentation of the Todd-AO version. Now, in 2005, Fox DVDs are mastered for the highest quality, supporting widescreen TVs and HDTVs that feature a 16x9 screen format (as opposed to 4x3 TV format). We could not simply re-use the old 1994-vintage 4x3 video transfer of the Todd-AO version because on an HDTV the old format would reveal ugly video artifacts, anomalies and edge enhancement that would detract from the film. This would be immediately apparent on any widescreen standard definition TV and more so on a high definition TV. That being decided, it was back to the IP of the Todd-AO version for an all new high-definition transfer. This is where time plays a detrimental role in the process. The Todd-AO print had severely deteriorated since the 1994 video transfer and presented a nightmare for the authoring of the DVD. A painstaking restoration of the original elements was undertaken. The negative was so damaged that a 'wet gate IP' had to be created in order to preserve the film source. The biggest problem inherent in the Todd-AO version is the appearance of soft focus and considerable color breathing. The digital restoration team agonized over using the right amount of dirt removal ('DRS') in order to remove the glue stains and tears, while still trying to keep the already soft image from getting any softer. They addressed the color breathing as well, but too much adjustment would ultimately further harm the video presentation by introducing ringing and aliasing caused by artificially sharpening the picture. Indeed, if you look at the 'Auctioning Ado Annie' scene (chapter 30) on the Todd-AO DVD, you can still see very severe color-flashing on the far left side of the frame. So sever was the flashing that no amount of digital correction would help. The process of restoring a poor element is a difficult one, and Fox stands by its decision to give accurate representations of source materials. While artificial edge enhancement fixes one problem, it actually introduces more problems. Ultimately, the decision was made to allow the DVD to present the Todd-AO version as accurately as it can be without artificially making it appear sharper. In 1954/5, "Oklahoma!" was the first studio feature film to utilize the new Todd-AO process, and as such, the movie was a shake out for the system. Todd-AO lens and equipment were retro-fitted to existing camera technology, which resulted in anomalies that would prove significantly challenging some 50-plus years later in the digital age. By the time of "Around the World in 80 Days," released nearly two years later, the Todd-AO process was significantly more stable. Sadly, in this day of high definition programming and movies, the current Todd-AO print of "Oklahoma!" does not stand up to scrutiny of what we think a large format film should look like. It simply isn't as sharp or as detailed as we remember it being. And it certainly doesn't compare to today's high definition programming. So while the CinemaScope version is stunning, the Todd-AO version of "Oklahoma!" confounds DVD fans and aficionados 50 years after it was created. It may indeed suffer by comparison, but is, in its own right, a good transfer given today's technology.