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Current Talk '24 I / Re: Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows
« on: November 27, 2023, 04:18:26 PM »
Back in 2021:
And this time around I noticed for the first time that the rain is clearly seen again in this shot -
- and gee, I wonder what my attention has normally been on when that shot comes up? - though again to be fair so far as the VHS version of the film goes, the rain running down the window is not discernible in the slightest -
- and it's barely discernible even on the Laser -
- pretty much only noticeable if you know enough to try to look closely for it.
One thing I have wondered is if the rain on the window is real or a product of the Tarrytown Fire Department aiming their hose at the window? We know that the rain at Angelique's funeral (and the rain at hoDS' Carolyn's funeral) was thanks to the fire department - but I'm pretty sure nothing has ever been said if the rain outside in Scene 85 and upcoming Scene 119 was artificially created - though at least when it comes to Scene 119 we know the rain is actually mentioned in the script.
It's also interesting how the sound playing over the shot on the DVD/Blu-ray is part of the cut audio that mistakenly appears on the DVD/Blu-ray but rightfully not on the VHS/Laser because of the cuts made to Scene 85 to avoid an R rating. It's been so long since I've seen the 97 minute version of the film that I have no real memory what was transpiring on screen when Charles delivers "For more of your dreary moralizing," but I do recall that when Angelique laughs hysterically she throws her head back and Charles is kissing her neck, and clearly that is not what we see on the DVD/Blu-ray before Charles delivers his "moralizing" line, so obviously even though the DVD/Blu-ray contains the extra bits of sound, it's not synced with the footage that actually belongs with it. What would really be interesting is if the footage seen on the VHS/Laser videos above has the correct sound of Gabriel's banging on the door, but who knows if we'll ever learn if it is or it isn't...
Last night I attempted to recreate my first viewing of NoDS as closely as I could. ...
I hadn't actually watched the film in years, so it was definitely fun to watch it, especially so because it was the first time I'd watched it on a 60in TV. And one would think that having seen the film so many times there couldn't possibly be anything that I would notice that I'm not sure if I ever noticed before - but one would be wrong in that assumption. For quite possibly the first time I noticed that rain is running down the tower room windows in the scene in which Angelique and Charles make out and Gabriel and Strack come to get her.
Of course, timewise it should have been raining because the scene takes place soon after the scene in the Gallery in which Sarah watches Strack, Laura and Gabriel plot and Carlotta's voiceover specifically points out how it's raining. But, well, this is DS, which isn't well known for its continuity, especially considering that in the timeline of events of that day the tower scene takes place after the Gallery scene but it shows up in the film before the Gallery scene. Quite obviously whoever they hired to handle continuity for the film was much better than anyone who might have worked on the daytime show!
And we may never know for sure, but I might have honestly noticed the rain because it was the first time I'd watched the film on a 4K TV and not on a dinky old-fashioned TV with a typical screen size...
And this time around I noticed for the first time that the rain is clearly seen again in this shot -
- and gee, I wonder what my attention has normally been on when that shot comes up? - though again to be fair so far as the VHS version of the film goes, the rain running down the window is not discernible in the slightest -
- and it's barely discernible even on the Laser -
- pretty much only noticeable if you know enough to try to look closely for it.
One thing I have wondered is if the rain on the window is real or a product of the Tarrytown Fire Department aiming their hose at the window? We know that the rain at Angelique's funeral (and the rain at hoDS' Carolyn's funeral) was thanks to the fire department - but I'm pretty sure nothing has ever been said if the rain outside in Scene 85 and upcoming Scene 119 was artificially created - though at least when it comes to Scene 119 we know the rain is actually mentioned in the script.
It's also interesting how the sound playing over the shot on the DVD/Blu-ray is part of the cut audio that mistakenly appears on the DVD/Blu-ray but rightfully not on the VHS/Laser because of the cuts made to Scene 85 to avoid an R rating. It's been so long since I've seen the 97 minute version of the film that I have no real memory what was transpiring on screen when Charles delivers "For more of your dreary moralizing," but I do recall that when Angelique laughs hysterically she throws her head back and Charles is kissing her neck, and clearly that is not what we see on the DVD/Blu-ray before Charles delivers his "moralizing" line, so obviously even though the DVD/Blu-ray contains the extra bits of sound, it's not synced with the footage that actually belongs with it. What would really be interesting is if the footage seen on the VHS/Laser videos above has the correct sound of Gabriel's banging on the door, but who knows if we'll ever learn if it is or it isn't...