Empire Leicester square, one Bondfantsic day and more!
I arrived at, Victoria train station, "shaken but not sired" LOL because I couldn't get a single nights wink, fearing I would miss the coach trip.
It was said by Lewis Gilbert, that this is one of favourite Bond films that had everything in it.
And so rightfully it does a lot new dervish or should I say old, villains and lots of tongue and cheek that made nearly packed out Empire chuckle at some of the one-liners. "All those feathers, and he still can't fly" yeah that typical Bond, attitude all right.
The atmosphere was very nice, different types of technical crew members turning up for this, one day event willing to share there views or even allow a few pictures to mark the days one off showing on one the UK largest THX screens and one Europe's most powerful THX certified JBL sound system boasting sonic delight of 56KW on tap for even the die hardest of Bond fans.
Lewis Gilbert commented about the state of digital "digitally" and it seemed why over his head, from going to 35mm film to restoration of single frame being captured, cleaned up and stored digitally.
There where a few technical issues that I heard [instantaneously 50 minutes into the presentation]! The centre channel shifted from centre and no, this wasn't intentional dialogue panning, I do know what dialogue panning sounds like, now then!
Also there was edging something I never thought I'd see on this transfer as is the same with the first edition that I have on region 2 DVD.
Going back to the sound issue, the film was original mixed for [monaural] and played back in optical mono on the original 35mm prints back in (1977).
My first thought was "oh my god" they've f&^%ked the mid and high range drivers up due to aggressive overload! I knew somehow that was imposable because mid and high range drivers are protected via the (dbx4800) fast peak audio limiters.
So it must have been a dodgy print they like to call it, a print. I call it transfer because its nothing more than transfer from film to digital storage that failed due to deaf ears or lack of supervision.
What also makes me laugh is when I brought it to the management's attention where they informed the projectionist who checked the issue out. I had to leave my seat again twice! And I've had to do that once in all the years that I have attended Empire 1.
I missed the best part of 20 minutes of the film and that really chassed me off! I was slightly ignored by the chief projectionist on when the film ended and I wanted to have few words, seeing that I have paid £13.50 and travelled 120 miles, he rudely walked out turning his back on me!
I have to say the other projectionists that I have meet there in the past where a lot more welcoming even as far as offering a cup of coffee in the coffee room, that is beside the projection booth.
Dave was the guys name and I don't think I'd what to ever talk to him again, first impressions comes first and he really pissed me off.
Anyway I can't help, "if I know what to look for and listen for".
The sound pressure level was still top at 120dbc peak at the front thou the lows on this film where different then Transformers which I saw on 35mm scope Dolby SR-D last year, perfect even for 35mm film, now then!
The Spy Who Loved Me was played back in Dolby digital, or SR-D thou I have never seen it all working in booth and seeing its digital and not on film where it would normally hold a back-up analogue track in Dolby type SR.
Said hello to Mr. Lewis Gilbert, and thanked him. These seats reserved for the technical crew or as its referred to as the sweet spot or money spot. Yeah sure I've sat here on numerous occasions in the past. Hello Mr. Gilbert smile please. I think this was one of the technical personnel who responsible for the presentation of The Spy Who Loved Me. "Please don't blame me, blame them" was rough quote that Mr. Gilbert said to the audience, with slight chuckle of laughter.
The guy hare is partly reasonable for last Sunday's screening and from the looks of him, he's way younger than me, and it doesn't show that he knows what to look for or even listen for because I want my £13.50 back or free THX admission for next year with legitimate perfect Dolby film mixes not some half a££ fake that's been stripped from a mono soundtrack with trained Monkeys mixing it! That's why NASA sent Monkeys into space first! Any fool can be trained to push buttons!
Dave, ^^^^the guy in the white shirt was very snobby and very RUDE towards me, when he iginored and turned his back on me, I was f^*&king projectionist once and this rude little git dares to turn his back on me, when all I wanted was a few minutes to have calm conversation! I F%*king travelled 120 miles I bet he only has to travel 10 miles or so to his home the snobby little ignorant git!
Yeah I'm a little fanged to teeth. £13.50p! What WASTE! So don't ever take these f&*)king re-mixes for granted that's unless they really get done RIGHT!
"Oh there is just one other thing." just because he's got his back turned towards the camera on this image, that was before I knew what he looked like when an usher pointed him out in the foyer, some 57 minutes into the digital show! And losing another 14 or so minutes including the 6 minutes when I had to leave the seat first time around!
When I called out to him and said excuse me, excuse me, he walked out the side-door entrance like he's hot sh!t to London's Empire!
See the person in the grey with a bra! It's a GUY!
LOL Transsexual or is that THsexual in a THX sound system cinema, no wonder they had sound issues 50 minutes into The Spy Who Loved Me, this guy left with the projectionist I Kidd you not!
And she I mean it left with Dave, in the white shirt, YIKES! No LOL thanks do I want to be in booth with this guy! Bend over let me, show the cake plate LOL! YIKES!
When I asked if I could swap images she I mean YIKES! LOL anyway the guy sat next to me said she's got a low deep voice? Isn't that a guy! YIKES! I thought it was the Empire's acoustics playing tricks on my ears. She I mean YIKES left me a calling card YIKES! I and just phoned her I mean YIKES it's the crying game! YIKES! And yes it's a guy! YIKES I didn't leave message I hanged up! YIKES!
Here is rough view of the edging that I noticed. Its similar to this first edition region 2 DVD where I've taken a screen capture and marked in red arrows where the edging is.
50 minutes into the Dolby digital remix transfer!
Also here is rough 99.999% point of, when the sound fault occurred on this Dolby digital re-mix transfer, which resulted in the shifting of the centre channel dialogue ping-ponging back and forth, and no it wasn't dialogue panning, I've heard far too many perfect mixes to know what dialogue panning sounds like!
After 5 or 6 seconds where the dialogue and sound effects including music was 80% on the right and 60% on the left sounded very foggy and very off putting!
YIKES! And yes it's a guy! YIKES I didn't leave message I hanged up! YIKES!
