By RAY KELLY
Three hard-to-find Orson Welles titles will be available to fans in Britain on June 29 when Mr. Bongo Films releases Blu-rays of Orson Welles’ restored Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight and Too Much Johnson, as well as a DVD of Immortal Story.
Mr. Bongo founder and managing director David Buttle took time to answer a few questions about the European releases, revealing that early plans for The Stranger on Blu-ray have been dropped. And – sorry my fellow Americans – the distributor declined to comment on possible all-region releases or deals with a highly respected U.S. distributor for Chimes at Midnight, citing ongoing negotiations.
The source materials for Chimes at Midnight and Too Much Johnson are widely known, but what is the source of Immortal Story?
We are always trying to find the best sources possible for our films. Its important to Mr Bongo that we present the current best quality available to us.
For example, our Chimes at Midnight 50th Anniversary release is sourced from the Filmoteca (Española) restoration, and we are delighted with the results (See the trailer for a sneak peak at youtu.be/1qRoyUcOi4E).
The source of Immortal Story is currently from a digibeta. This summer, we are working with Gaumont (Film Company) to make a HD master from the original negatives.
There was no Blu-ray catalog number for Immortal Story. Is that a standard DVD release only?
There was no HD master available to us so we decided to release Immortal Story initially as a DVD. We wanted to make the DVD available as soon as possible for the UK market.
As soon as the HD master is available we will aim to release the film in the Blu-ray format.
Will the Too Much Johnson release include all of the raw footage restored by George Eastman House or an edit?
For our release, we are presenting all the raw footage. We wanted to present the film in its purest form. The 31-minute (edited) version may not have been what Welles wanted to show, so we tried to keep as close to his original vision as possible.
We are therefore putting the Blu-ray and DVD out there in the film’s full unedited version.
We have worked with the amazing Phillip Carli to create a new score that is a homage to the original score.
For those people who want to own the 31 minute version, we are making it available in early November 2015 as part of an Orson Welles box set. This version will include a vocal commentary and title plates.
What extras are planned on the DVD and Blu-rays?
Initially, we are releasing all the films without any extras.
We like to initially present the releases as solely the films, but for the box set we are currently sourcing a wealth of extra material. This is a work-in-progress, but it will include extras such as interviews with Welles’ experts, restoration documentaries, soundtracks, original scripts, English subtitles, and additional Orson Welles material.
Are there plans to release Too Much Johnson or Immortal Story in the U.S.?
Immortal Story rights are with Criterion. We hope to have a U.S deal in place by the end of the year for Too Much Johnson.
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