UK amigos! TV Heads up!!!

[Garry Cowell]

Just done my usually Tuesday perusal through TV Quick (whilst procuring lunch) to see if there's anything of importance on TV this week to which I was greeted by the wonderful words of...

Once Upon A Time In The West BBC2 22:00 - 0:40 Sunday 31st August.

Incidentally at the exact same moment my MD Walkman spookily track shuffles from The Beggar's March from 'Dynamite' to Frank's Theme from 'West'    

Serendipity deluxe-o!  

[Jayson Kennedy]

I don't know about the U.K. but hopefully it's not the awful panned and scanned version, America's TNT aired it early Monday morning, I could see a person absolutely hating this film if they didn't understand widescreen and only saw this 'version'  

[simon_foulkes]

Good news indeed!  Only problem is that it's very rare for the BBC to show a film in  2.35 : 1 ratio.  I've seen 16:9 ratio but not quite the real deal.  I saw it at the cinema earlier this year and will be buying the UK DVD soon so I might not watch it this Sunday.  

I want a little build up to me watching it for the first time on DVD.  Can't wait for that.

[Nephilim]

Buggeration!!!!!

BBC Scotland have decided, in their infinite wisdom, to show it at 10:30, after some bollocks about Wagner's The Ring Cycle (with apologies to any Wagenr fans out there!)

As said previously, the chances are that they'll show it anamorphically like the upcoming DVD, in 2.35:1 until the train comes into view and the title "Directed By Sergio Leone" chops into the shot, when it'll probably blow up to 1.77:1 (i.e. 16:9 just like a widescreen TV)

Anyhow, the first 12 minutes should be a reasonable indication as to how the DVD should look like!

Roll on October!!!!!!

Nephilim

[Nephilim]

OK, so pretty much as expected.

16:9 until the Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Ha Ha - only laugh if you got the joke) lock up the station master, then 2.35:1 until that train arrives, then back to 16:9, but anamorphic all the way (if you're watching on digital)

Why do they bother?

Anyway, on a lighter note, although some of the titile sequence clearly uses a fake fly on a string, HOW IN THE HELL did they get a fly to dance around on Jack Elam's face?

Presumably, it was an Italian fly to have taken Sergio's direction so well?

Or maybe they had an english speaking fly to translate?

BTW the print looks old, even in anamorphic. I trust the DVD will look a lot better that this. It had better!!!)

[Garry Cowell]

Anyway, on a lighter note, although some of the titile sequence clearly uses a fake fly on a string, HOW IN THE HELL did they get a fly to dance around on Jack Elam's face?

Either sugar water or honey on Elam's face.  

[Cusser]

So you mean that Sergio didn't train that fly himself, acting it out himself first?  OK, I know that the talented fly on Elam's face is real, but actually I always assumed that the fly on the side of the bench was a controlled by a magnet on the other side of the bench.  Maybe I'll look for a string when DVD comes out in USA.

[Angel Eyes]

If you look closely you'll notice that there are actually 2 different flies, they used a stunt fly for the shot when Jack catches it in his gun.