[Request] The films of Wong Kar Wai - original mixes

[NeonBible]

So the new WKW set has been announced by Criterion and they will contain new revisionist versions. Ok fair enough he can do what he wants with his movies but pretty disappointed the original cuts won't be available alongside. Smells of George Lucas!

I'm looking to gather the original mixes of his movies. LaserDisc where possible, but old DVDs or even VCDs would be of interest to me.

Can anyone help?

Looking for these...

As Tears Go By - Cantonese mono
Days of Being Wild - Cantonese mono
Ashes of Time (theatrical cut) - Cantonese mono
Fallen Angels - Cantonese mono
Happy Together - Cantonese mono

Does anyone have the R2 JP Pony Canyon DVD of Ashes of Time? Supposedly looks pretty decent but I can't find any screencaps or info about it. OOP I believe.

I have nothing but I'm happy to help.

The UK release of Fallen Angels has the original mono in 2.0. I got a copy on the way right now I can gladly pull the audio from.

[sertoli]

So the new WKW set has been announced by Criterion and they will contain new revisionist versions. Ok fair enough he can do what he wants with his movies but pretty disappointed the original cuts won't be available alongside. Smells of George Lucas!

I'm looking to gather the original mixes of his movies. LaserDisc where possible, but old DVDs or even VCDs would be of interest to me.

Can anyone help?

Looking for these...

As Tears Go By - Cantonese mono
Days of Being Wild - Cantonese mono
Ashes of Time (theatrical cut) - Cantonese mono
Fallen Angels - Cantonese mono
Happy Together - Cantonese mono

Does anyone have the R2 JP Pony Canyon DVD of Ashes of Time? Supposedly looks pretty decent but I can't find any screencaps or info about it. OOP I believe.

I will get some audios.

I compared Happy Together (1997):
Artificial Eye (2009 release) DVD (with DD2.0 and DD5.1)
Kino BD
Criterion new BD

I think DVD audio is the best, DD5.1 sounds close to DD2.0 (so it seems not a bad remake) and has more high frequency extention (maybe because DD2.0 is more lossy). I need to compare more to know which is better between DD2.0 and DD5.1.

Kino 5.1 audio sounds much more rolled off, but still balanced and better than Criterion new BD, which sounds a little squeezed and more rolled off.

I also like Kino BD video more than Criterion, those blown-out colors and lights (for this particular film) seems not something to be ‘fixed’.

Also I compared Chungking Express (1994) Criterion old BD and Criterion new BD, and the old BD is better IMO (quite likely to the comparing of Happy Together BD).

[NeonBible]

I compared Happy Together (1997):
Artificial Eye (2009 release) DVD (with DD2.0 and DD5.1)
Kino BD
Criterion new BD

I think DVD audio is the best, DD5.1 sounds close to DD2.0 (so it seems not a bad remake) and has more high frequency extention (maybe because DD2.0 is more lossy). I need to compare more to know which is better between DD2.0 and DD5.1.

Kino 5.1 audio sounds much more rolled off, but still balanced and better than Criterion new BD, which sounds a little squeezed and more rolled off.

I also like Kino BD video more than Criterion, those blown-out colors and lights (for this particular film) seems not something to be ‘fixed’.

Also I compared Chungking Express (1994) Criterion old BD and Criterion new BD, and the old BD is better IMO (quite likely to the comparing of Happy Together BD).

Happy Together has been remixed with new/different music and effects though. I think that includes the 2009 Artificial Eye DVD. Its possible the older AF DVD has the original mono mix. I've not got my hands on it yet.

I quite like how the new Chungking looks, more natural I guess. Its very similar to the Artificial Eye DVD:

Code:

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare3/chungkingexpress.htm

I'd be happy to watch it like that. Though I'm quite fond of the older Criterion BD, like everything is under a neon light which suits the mood of the movie and the HK setting.

I just found an older Happy Together DVD iso, which includes the 'original mono audio' I think, but it sounds really poor, muffled. The remix is quite good.

Yeah, I agree that it suits the mood of this 2 films, but that's reduced in the new CC release.

Sorry I made a mistake! The DTS 5.1 audio in Kino BD doesn't lack anything, it's the way I played it makes it depressed, and now it sounds the same with DVD 5.1. My comparison still holds between Kino BD and Criterion new BD. What I did just confirmed Kino BD was a solid release.