Quo Vadis

[Jeff]

Quo Vadis Two-Disc Special Edition

The Biblical Epic That’s Nothing Less Than Colossal!
QUO VADIS
TWO-DISC SPECIAL EDITION
Restored and Remastered Classic Finally Comes to DVD
November 11 from WHV

Burbank, Calif., July 21, 2008 – It’s taken more than half century but the wait is finally over. On November 11, Quo Vadis, one of the most lavish and spectacular films ever to be released, joins the impressive roster of Warner Home Video’s Two-Disc Special Editions DVDs. This panoramic spectacle -- an historic biblical epic with literally a cast of tens of thousands and filmed in brilliant Technicolor –has been the beneficiary of a meticulous photochemical restoration especially for its premiere DVD issue. This new release also restores -- and marks the video debut of -- composer Miklos Rozsa’s magnificent overture as originally presented during the film’s premiere roadshow theatrical engagements.

Nobody had ever made a movie quite like Quo Vadis prior to its release in 1951, five to ten years before other classic biblical spectaculars like Ben Hur and The Ten Commandments. The film was more than a decade in the making and was the most expensive movie made at the time of its release.

Directed by Mervyn LeRoy and based on the Nobel Prize-winning novel by Henry Siekiewicz,
Quo Vadis was filmed on location in Rome and starred Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, Leo Genn and Peter Ustinov, who was nominated for an Oscar® and won a Golden Globe® for his definitive performance as the Roman Emperor, Nero. Elizabeth Taylor, originally cast in a larger role but then replaced, made an uncredited cameo appearance as a slave, as did the relatively unknown Sophia Loren, who was appearing in her first American film.

Quo Vadis won two Golden Globes® (aforementioned Best Supporting Actor and Best Cinematography) and was nominated for a total of eight Academy Awards,® including Best Picture, but surprisingly took home none. Despite that fact, it was a huge hit, out grossing to date every other theatrical release, other than Gone With the Wind. It has continued to maintain its popularity throughout the world for nearly six decades.

Warner Home Video’s much anticipated release of Quo Vadis Two Disc Special Edition boasts not just a stunning restoration of the film, but also includes brand new special features, such as a documentary tracing the roots of the film from its start as a bestseller, and a commentary by filmmaker/writer F.X. Feeney on the details of the lavish and complicated production. Quo Vadis Two Disc Special Edition will be available for $20.97 SRP, with a Blu-ray™ Hi-Def version to follow just in time for Easter 2009.

Synopsis
Quo Vadis takes place in ancient Rome from 64 – 68 AD during the reign of Emperor Nero (Ustinov). General Marcus Vinicius (Robert Taylor) returns home from war after three years to a city rife with conflict between the new Christianity and the corrupt Roman Empire. He finds himself falling in love with Lygia (Deborah Kerr), a devout follower of the new religion, and his loyalty to the megalomaniacal Nero is shattered. The characters and events depicted are a mixture of actual historical figures and situations and fictionalized ones.

Special Features
Disc 1
Commentary by F. X. Feeney -- Filmmaker/writer Feeney explores the genesis of one of M-G-M's most glorious, grand-scale productions
Theatrical trailer
Teaser trailer

Disc 2
Commentary by F. X. Feeney continued from Disc 1
Documentary -- In the Beginning: Quo Vadis and the Genesis of the Biblical Epic - This documentary walks the road as long and complex as the film itself, from its roots as a Nobel Peace Prize-winning bestseller to its various ground-breaking adaptations to its place as the most daring and lavish film that MGM, and Louis B. Mayer, dared to undertake.

Quo Vadis Two-Disc Special Edition
Street Date: November 11, 2008
Pricing $20.97 SRP
Run Time: 170 Minutes; Not Rated

Technical notes: Quo Vadis was made prior to the advent of widescreen projection and stereophonic sound. It is presented, as in its original theatrical release, with a 1.37:1 aspect ratio and monophonic soundtrack. Because of its extreme length and detailed photography, WHV has spread the film over two discs in order to maximize bit-rate and insure the highest quality picture presentation.

Note: All enhanced content listed above is subject to change.

[domino harvey]

The Biblical Epic That’s Nothing Less Than Colossal!

vom

[AfterTheRain]

At last! The long wait is over!

Now if they could only get Raintree County out on DVD.

[tryavna]

Nobody had ever made a movie quite like Quo Vadis prior to its release in 1951, five to ten years before other classic biblical spectaculars like Ben Hur and The Ten Commandments.

The folks at WHV are conveniently forgetting about Paramount's Samson and Delilah, which is really the film that kicked off Hollywood's obsession with Biblical extravaganzas.

I actually really like Quo Vadis, though. It's a guilty pleasure, I guess.

BTW, why is WHV again spreading a less-than-three-hour film over two discs? Not that it was huge deal for me when they did it with O Lucky Man! -- just that it's unnecessary.

[Darth Lavender]

Best of all, didn't Warner make an announcement some time ago that all their new Special Editions would get simultaneous Blu-Ray releases?

As for spreading it over two disks; if the movie itself had an intermission (and even the 140 minute 'The Cowboys' did) then I'm all in favour of it. Bitrates aside, I just find it 'aesthetically' preferable having the movie in two disks with a break in between.

[Jeff]

Best of all, didn't Warner make an announcement some time ago that all their new Special Editions would get simultaneous Blu-Ray releases?

The Blu-ray is coming Easter of 2009. It is my understanding that plants capable of pressing Blu discs are really backed up.

[pro-bassoonist]

Best of all, didn't Warner make an announcement some time ago that all their new Special Editions would get simultaneous Blu-Ray releases?

The Blu-ray is coming Easter of 2009. It is my understanding that plants capable of pressing Blu discs are really backed up.

The Blu-ray is actually slated for a Spring 2009 release.

Warner Home Video has revealed that they will bring the 1951 Mervyn LeRoy religious epic film 'Quo Vadis' to Blu-ray during Spring 2009. The film, which featured a cast list that numbers in the tens of thousands and was filmed on location in Rome, has gone through a special photochemical restoration in order to present the film in a way not seen since its original release over fifty years ago.

No technical specs or special features have been announced at this time, but you can expect that this Blu-ray will at least receive all the extras from the two-disc DVD release (November 11th, 2008). These extras include a documentary tracing the roots of the film from its start as a bestseller, and a commentary by filmmaker/writer F.X. Feeney on the details of the lavish and complicated production.

Pro-B

[HerrSchreck]

Has anyone ever seen or gotten their hands on a copy of the 1912 Italian version of Quo Vadis? directed by Enrico Guazzoni? Supposedly massive in scale, i e equally fantastic as Cabiria and Last Days of Pompeii, the film was a smashing world success and helped put Italian cinema on the map. One of the first features, I believe, to exceed the 60 minute mark (of course USA's Bronx NY production of Richard III came close as well).

[HypnoHelioStaticStasis]

Shreck, I'd like to for only one legendary piece of movie lore: during a scene in which lions attack and eat various christians and so forth, some of the untrained lions got loose and leapt into the crowd of the theatre, mauling an untold number of extras! And incredibly, the director used some of this footage in the final cut of the film! DeMille, eat your heart out...

Oh, and this DVDs cover art is horrendous. It looks Robert Taylor has the runs and needs to rush off the set of the chariot race, handing his whip to the production manager.

[HerrSchreck]

Yeah I heard that story-- someone actually gotten eaten on the set by a lion.

The use of real deaths on a massively-scaled silent film set reminds me of the ship attack scene in the sublime mid-20's MGM version of Ben Hur... a real fire broke out of control on one of the to-scale ships, and extras had to dive for the water to save themselves... many of whom could not swim (though mandated by their contract/application/casting-call to be swimmers... kind of like the way "everyone" who showed up to a casting call for a western "could" "ride horses"-- work-desperation in other words). That's the scene we see in the long shot of the water filling up with flailing bodies jumping out around the burning boat. It's not known exactly how many died that day, but it seems relatively certain that a few drowned. Even the star Ramon Novarro (who played Judah Ben-Hur) was seriously burned on his upper back/shoulder, due to the fire.

I love hearing interviews conducted by real truth seekers like Richard Koszarski, with grizzled cranky old timers who say "Some people call them the good old days, but they're crazy! They weren't good old days, they were horrible, and the studio could work you 16 hours a day for peanuts, with no breaks, and no protection against accidents etc"

Fun to look at, a bitch to work on.

[rollotomassi]

Yes, I have seen the 1912 version. I actually have it on an old NTSC tape running around 75m with English titles. The famous stills of nudity are, one assumes, from a longer European cut long since lost, but though essentially a series of filmed tableaux, the lion sequences are still quite impressive and it remains a milestone of sorts.

If only WB had gone the extra yard to include it - or the even rarer 1924 version with Emil Jannings as Nero, also not lost, but never seen - as extras.

Mind you, there's also the 1926 Gallone version of The Last Days of Pompeii, grogeously restored to hand painted colour and uncut, but onlys een on DVD in an awful narrated, 60m print as an extra on the Steve Reeves abomination.

[Petty Bourgeoisie]

It's been out a week and nobody has commented (not even BluRay Beaver) so I'll throw in my opinion. The transfer looks great. Vibrant colors, sharp, and good audio. There have been some reviews ripping the transfer but I just don't agree. Some on the net have even gone so far to say that Warner is lying and it's not a real Hi-Rez restoration like The Wizard of Oz or The Searchers. Who knows for sure except the suits at Warner. And yes the movie is hindered by Robert Taylor but it is still tremendous viewing. definitely worth $15 if only for the technicolor and Deborah Kerr! Now if Fox would release The Egyptian. And if Paramount would release Samson and Delilah. And if...

[domino harvey]

It's been on Very Long Wait since it streeted, and it doesn't look like it's ever moving from my Number One spot any time soon

[Fred Holywell]

Watching one of the documentaries on the "Quo Vadis" disc(s), I was amazed listening to that legend-in-his-own-mind Drew Casper, excuse me, Dr. Drew Casper (I'm surprised he doesn't make them spell out Dr. like MGM did with "Doctor Zhivago"). He repeatedly referred to the fact that Henryk Sienkiewicz's novel on which the film is based had won the Nobel Prize. Trouble is, it won the Nobel Prize in Literature, not the Nobel Peace Prize as Casper thought it had. Didn't anyone clue him in before the interview, or is he such an idiot that he read 'Nobel Prize' and, not knowing any better, assumed it was 'The Big One' as MGM would say about "QV". The Nobel Committee does give out prizes in other categories, Drew. Really, you can look it up on the web. Assuming you know how to use it.

I'm sorry, but this is the same 'authority' on American musical films who repeatedly calls director Vincente Minnelli 'Vin-cent-ay Minnelli'. Please Drew, I knew the man later in his life. He pronounced his name 'Vin-cent' and anyone who actually wrote a book about him, as you did, should know that. Admittedly, you're not the only one who's been known to mispronounce Minnelli's first name, but you're the only one that markets himself as an 'authority' who does it over and over again. (Listening to Casper's commentary on Minnelli's "Lust for Life" is nearly unbearable because of this, as well as another reason: Casper's insufferably obnoxious) Please Drew, get a clue. (End of rant)

[TMDaines]

The audio commentary of his on Notorious that I listened to a few days ago is awful. He's by far the most annoying contributor to any of those talking heads pieces on the Hitchcock MGM Blu-rays too - but then again most of the contributors sound so insincere and like they're reaching for hyperbole every time.

[MichaelB]

Peerpee on why the MoC Lifeboat lacks the Drew Casper commentary that adorned the US edition.

Incidentally, how does he pronounce Henryk Sienkiewicz? The surname is harder than it looks if you're not familiar with Polish phonetics. (The 'wicz' bit is the easiest: it's the multiple 'ie's that are less intuitive for an English speaker).

[Fred Holywell]

Peerpee on why the MoC Lifeboat lacks the Drew Casper commentary that adorned the US edition.

So, according to Dr. Casper:

"Hands are a structuring metaphor and technique throughout this movie. Just like feet."

(Who knew?!)

But... wrong again, brain-trust! The defining body parts of "Lifeboat" are neither hands nor feet, but snatch and ass:

During filming, several crew members noted that star Tallulah Bankhead was not wearing any panties. When advised of the situation, Alfred Hitchcock observed, "I'm not sure if this is a matter for costuming, makeup, or hairdressing." (per Hume Cronyn)

and

At the start of filming, featured player Mary Anderson asked Hitchcock what he thought "is my best side." He dryly responded, "You're sitting on it, my dear." (per Miss Anderson)

I, for one, do my research before spouting off, Doc.



I'll have to check on the 'Sienkiewicz'. Knowing the good doctor, he probably took a crash course in Polish just to get the pronunciation right, then proceeded to mangle it, nonetheless.

[MichaelB]

I'll have to check on the 'Sienkiewicz'. Knowing the good doctor, he probably took a crash course in Polish just to get the pronunciation right, then proceeded to mangle it, nonetheless.

Here are three recordings of native Poles, for reference.

[TMDaines]

Google Translate is always pretty accurate too for pronounciation tips on words in their native languages.