🥱 Except it hasn’t. People love hating success. You people are akin to those crapping on Avatar: Way of Water. Sorry, but James Cameron nailed you people for exactly who you are.
It blows me mind that Cameroon would willingly allow the majority of his filmography to be destroyed via a lack of preservation. You'd think a filmmaker, an artist, would want their greatest works preserved.
Not if they buy wholly into digital cinema and hate film grain like George Lucas. Who actually went out of his way to ridicule people still shooting on film, like Chris Nolan. He hates the originals he said so at Cannes, he never wants them released again for Star Wars. It's not an accident that the 4K versions of Star Wars were heavily degrained and had further cgi added. Or that the Indiana Jones films were recomposited and no original audio made available on 4K.
Here we come to the core of the issue: Cameron, while obviously a very competent director, has absolutely no understanding of true cinematic things. His movies never give you time to admire the scenery and filmmaking hardly at all, it's all just action-action-action all the time. This same applies to his way of disrespecting of how real cinematic look should be, grain and natural colours are one of the essentials (except on special occations like The Godfather, where you have that specific colour timing, which was designed for that movie). T2 4K remaster is good example of this: it completely wipes out that L.A. orange glow and clean blue skies, which is supposed to be there, and gives that flair the movie needed. His use of teal filtering also mutes all colours from the movies, making them look like Matrix-movies, which they are not supposed to be (as a side note, teal filtering also ruins the pretty purple lasers in the future war scenes, turning them into generic blue). What's also baffling is that doing a natural wet-scan to 4K removes majority of the roughness of the original film, and is not that long process to hurdle through compared to adjusting the colour timings again and even upscaling the footage from 2K scans like some releases have been. T1 would definitely need to be just a natural 4K wet-scan, since it's mid 80's movie, and set in mundane, real-life locations. The grittyness of the footage would have just helped to elevate it even further, removing any grain will remove that feel what the movie will need. He should have instead focused on making the sound mix fixed for good, having the original sound effects intact, while fixing it otherwise.
He wants them to look modern and not organic 80s/90s filmic as shown in theaters, that's the thing. He's tech progressive to a fault and doesn't want his films to look dated or antiquated. Don't agree but they should've included like dual versions for fans so we had options.
James Cameron's restorations aren't "restorations". They're poorly upscaled and denoised monstrosities that abuse nostalgia for profit. A true shame indeed, but Cameron unfortunately gets away with it every time.
@@just_delightful For real. 4K Transfer wise its the "least" bad compared to Aliens and True Lies, but its still frigging terrible lol. The THX DVD regardless of its age still has great color timing and detail and a way better buy than the disasterous 4K.
@@Eva01-jy2qu7pu9r And I am proud to say, I got the Spanish Bootleg Blu-Ray of True Lies. The Spanish Bootleg of True Lies is a million times better than the 4K UHD of True Lies. We are in deep trouble for physical media. Jaws 3 4K UHD suffered the same problems True Lies did on 4K UHD.
The fuck are you on about? Did you make the movies?! You know nothing, you’re not a filmmaker. He is and he decides what is the best look for HIS films.
Why isn't he honest about them being quick cash grabs for profit because a real restoration would cost way more to do. The turn around on these was super quick after years of fans waiting, it's really super bizarre. I'm sure fans would have been willing to wait a few months to a year to get actually 4K quality. While they took the time and effort to locate the negative and all the separate elements. You know they messed up when the D-Theater tape looks better for True Lies.
Listen, and understand! James Cameron is out there! He can't be bargained with. He can't be reasoned with. He doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And he absolutely will not stop... ever, until the people that care about film preservation are dead!
Amusing as digital has faux grain added. In native resolution or in upscaling too and for the latter it's also used to hide upscaling/processing artifacts.
Well while he may be off on his OPINION....ALOT of the people "crying" about it can kinda feel free to STFU because SOME of (not all since some people have reading comprehension with some) people feel that they can say and do the most vile shit, that they can make death threats against the person, or their family BUT then clutch their pearls when that person responds and try to act like "how dare they". These "special" people can dish it out, but hilarious cannot take the reply.
Lol, 35mm looks like s hit. Like William Friedkin said, do you think that if we had digital in the 70's and on we would have used 35mm and wanted our films to look like crap full of scratches? F uck the purists!
@@MrCarpen7er @MrCarpen7er The only reason Friedkin says that is out of ease of use. This is the same bozo that decided that everything needed to be bloody purple with the French Connection Blu Ray! There's no specification on what the limit of resolution of even just 35MM Film is. There is with Digital though. And scratches on a film print is still better than people walking around looking like plastic mannikins due to Digital's sterility. 'Wanted our films to look like crap'. Due you realize how stupid and arrogant that comment is? Films are called Films because they were shot on Film!! You're just basically calling the look of film crap while advocating for everything to be on Digital Video while having the audacity to call them 'Films'. That is fairly hypocritical to be honest. And no, if you think every print by nature is full of scratches, then you have never seen a clean print or you have never seen Film projected at all.
@@robertszvetics210 cameron is a jerk and he's ruining the look of his entire catalogue of films but he's not just some truck driver like back in the day. He's literally one of the greatest and most successful filmmakers ever. Avatar is crap but he's made some of the best films ever so you can't deny the talent or achievements.
James Cameron's recent comments about the criticisms towards his recent 4K restorations of True Lies, Aliens, and The Abyss (and let's not forget the infamous 2017 4K remaster of Terminator 2) gives me the "Ridley Scott criticizes historians for pointing out the historical inaccuracies of his 2023 Napoleon movie" vibes. On one hand, it is his right to present (and alter) his films the way he wanted them to be. On the other hand, the criticisms about the said 4K restorations (such as the DNR and AI upscaling being used) are valid. I also noticed that the color gradings of the restorations are somewhat altered from their original versions, especially True Lies. If movies keep being treated like that, it could give rise to custom and bootleg releases where the films will be treated better than the official releases (like the custom Blu-ray releases of the Star Wars original trilogy presented in initial theatrical versions before George Lucas's excessive tampering with the later official editions). I still remember when William Friedkin supervised the initial 2009 Blu-ray release of The French Connection where Friedkin fiddled with the color grading to give it a 'colder' feel. When it was released, it was met with controversy, with the film's cinematographer, Owen Roizman, calling the release 'atrocious' and 'horrifying'. This resulted in the 2012 remastered Blu-ray 'Signature Series' release with both Friedkin and Roizman supervising the transfer and the color timing was finally corrected as the film was presented on Blu-ray the way it should be. James Cameron should have consulted with the film's respective cinematographers (like Mikael Salomon for The Abyss, Adam Greenberg for Terminator 2, and Russell Carpenter for True Lies; Unfortunately, Adrian Biddle for Aliens passed away in 2005) for his recent 4K transfers (and that includes Terminator 2). I think the aforementioned cinematographers (and perhaps the other crew members that worked on said films) would be furious about Cameron's 4K restorations on the films they worked with him.
I like your idea of providing 2 versions with any release. The original version restored for damages, hopefully a good and hands-off HDR grade, and that's about it. Then provide a version that has every AI algorithm thrown at it to make it modern. Atleast then I could be happy with one of those and I could do what most of us actually want, and that's to simply enjoy the movie. I would love Cameron to re-release all of his movies in this idea. I know which version I'd be watching.
Interesting response from Cameron indicates he is annoyed and sensitive about this, which means he probably delegated this to a team of people he trusted and they messed up leaving him in an awkward place. If he had direct oversight and did these things deliberately I would have expected a less emotional and more logical/reasoned response than this.
Nah, these people live in a bubble. They think they know everything about film and we are fools who only should be praising them no matter what they do.
Once upon a time, we didn’t have The Abyss and True Lies on Blu-ray at all. It took 15+ years for those movies to be released in the format, and people are still complaining. You can't please everybody. Damn it if you do, damn it if you don't!
Nice job with the video. Cameron is just deluded when it comes to this particular topic. What's interesting and sad is that Cameron actually has made comments as far back in 2016 about older films like Aliens about how it's pointless to try to go back and change things about films from the past. But all this time has passed and his opinion has changed yet again apparently. Also he's lying about inspecting every frame. I spoke to someone who works at Second Sight in person who knew the man working on the remaster of The Abyss. Cameron just showed up one day saw the transfer, said a few things, signed off on it and then left. He didn't stay there and inspect every frame or do anything with color timing or grain structure. He just showed up for a bit, signed off on it and then left the building. But this is also the same Cameron that botched the Aliens release on Laserdisc and thought he knew better than the professionals to the point where he brought his own TV from home to watch the playback on. He's been deluded about how remasters work for years.
For Aliens, this must be either the rotted 1991 Special Edition or the theatrical cut 1995 release, which breaks Cameron's promise to keep the film preservation in 1991 when mentioning about T2's release. And how the hell can anyone find the best looking LD release of The Abyss based on the knowledge it has!? Cameron is a hypocrite if mentioning about that (at least starting with True Lies LD release), unless it the releases when Cameron is not involved after all (like mentioning The Terminator 1995 LD release, and the two best T2 releases using the Japanese CDS mix DTS DVD and the 2015 Blu-ray video (theatrically) as the hybrid). Even without Cameron's involvement still screwed us up (like The Terminator 2013 Blu-ray followed degraining the picture before adding fake grain like Aliens BD does which is the Lowry master as MGM later uses for their later flawed "restoration" masters of their movies).
@@phydicollscormain For Aliens it's the original Special Edition release that was botched. The 1995 THX disc was better but still had issues. The fact is because of Cameron's grain obsession, there is no proper remaster of Aliens on home video. Track down a 35MM scan of the film and even in it's rough quality it's better than what has been released on home video and more accurate to what the film is supposed to look like.
People should hang on to their old editions. I always cringe when people declare that they're throwing away/trading in their old copies. You never know what might be altered/missing.
All those that "think" Aliens and True Lies were stunning and remarkable on Hybrid 4K will be wetting their pants with The Terminator. I'm surprised by how many people never question or use critical thought to analyse what exactly is going on here with these films. All I seem to hear is how good the detail is and how clean the image looks on screen. When I watched both Aliens and True Lies, you could clearly see the alterations and issues pertaining to what Cameron had done with the films. The general consensus within the industry now with Aliens, The Abyss and True Lies will be the green light to use extensive A.I. technologies on further classic films. I do find it disconcerting and very frustrating that we now live in a world where an acceptance of A.I. in film is not a significant problem at all. The majority have spoken, and those that project a critical disdain are pushed to one side without a voice on the issue.
I screened The Terminator last night. The new 4K presentation. All grain is scrubbed and added digital grain throughout. Disappointing, but doesn’t look bad. Some detail is smoothed over (faces in some scenes, some Arnold shots). There are some sequences that have heavy edge enhancement… very noticeable and distracting.
Sounds weird. Especially for the poor quality blu-ray transfers of other movies from 2009 that had wax mannequin figures on screen, complete with the cleanup removing some fx smoke and other elements by accident. A bad cleanup is a bad cleanup and HD just means showing more detail. Just like in 2009 when the then-new blu-ray resolution came out.
What is it with these directors messing up transfers with DNR and AI? Is there any expert in charge of informing issues with the transfers before completing the final product? Nothing I see from Cameron’s decisions and statements seem professional.
12:50 Cameron making a movie about the dangers of AI, and then using AI technology to fundamentally destroy presentations of his own films is not "undoing wrongs", it's called him being a hypocrite and liar.
As an auteur, Cameron should understand and appreciate the feedback loop and its role in the creation and preservation of art. Breathtaking arrogance from a man determined to tarnish his legacy.
Cameron does not care about these releases, in fact he never did care about any of his films after they are released, he is a perfectionist who will push everyone and everything to the limit in order to create his vision, but the moment he finishes a movie, he loses his interest, to him its just a case of "Over and done with, next!" His foul unprofessional comments about the "restoration" critique, although I would rather call it "butchering" shows his total disrespect to those who admire his work, but more importantly he himself betrays his own work by slaughtering them, which is remarkable for someone who is a perfectionist, “OCPD?”, and his cheap under the waist remarks are completely unnecessary. To me Cameron has always been a brilliant director who created amazing work. On set he is absolutely brutal but at the same time its mesmerizing to have a director who has a clear vision of what he wants and elevates that to perfection, but when it comes to everything else that does not involve writing and directing he is an complete d*ck, everyone who ever worked on his projects knows this for fact.
That's fair logic to provide a restoration with and without AI, ideally on two separate discs, charged accordingly, though some would no doubt complain to pay a premium...
They can't give people the choice by including both versions because they're too proud to expose how favored the original is and admit they are in the wrong to tamper with it.
It's a tricky argument, I completely see your side, and the problem really goes away if they were to present 2 versions - a la Spielberg's Close Encounters, have the "Director's New 2024 Vision" version, and the original theatrical version side by side on one or 2 discs. Then, as you said people can choose. If you take my favourite movie 'The Shining' - imho the 4K remaster is simply stunning, film grain, depth of field, natural filmic presentation. Leon Vitali played a role in making sure this was done correctly. Wouldn't it be great if all films were treated so well, another example is 'Remains Of The Day.' However, I really don't think James Cameron sees his films in that way, in a historic, film preservation archival sort of a way. In my view he sees his films as constant works-in-progress, a bit like George Lucas does/did. I think he feels they are improvements, and perhaps due to his rather cocky attitude - he doesn't believe these films belong to the fans, but to him. He's got this really crappy attitude towards fans though, solidifying his rather mixed reputation.
This is exactly why I didn’t buy the 4K plus Blu-Ray titles of these films as he literally ruined his own films and just absolutely destroyed them. It’s like he doesn’t even care about his old films anymore.
Well, when I got the 4K version of True Lies, there was a scene where Arnold finds out about his wife's affair, specifically the dining table scene, where the disc just stopped. I played it a few times, but the same scene kept freezing. Unfortunately, I discovered this issue a few months later, as I wasn't in a hurry to watch the movie when I bought it, so I couldn't get it replaced. Some comments suggested that it's due to the High DNR format used, which might have messed up the data writing on the disc. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that at least I still have the 1080p Blu-ray disc. The High DNR actually looks very waxy-it's acceptable but not really necessary. I think audiences prefer upgrades like Atmos sound, recoloring, and bonus features, which are more compelling reasons to buy a 4K version of Cameron's movies rather than the DNR.
It’s like taking a 1950’s racecar that runs on premium and trying to pit a catalytic converter in it so you can run it on premium unleaded. It’s never gonna run the way it was intended to because it wasn’t built to handle the fuel type or run at it’s best on it. To get it to really run perfectly you need to really spend time dismantling it carefully, re-organising and rebuilding the entire engine block to work on that kind of fuel to get anywhere near the same peak performance out of the same thing.
My 2 cents. As long as we waited for some of these, if he was as hands on and meticulous as he claimed during the process, the complaints wouldn't have been as loud and numerous as they are. As for his insults of his fandom, crap like that is why I didn't pay out almost $100 dollars for that making of doc of Aliens Expanded just to get it on a physical disc.
Considering that the vast majority of his audience is in their 30s to 60s his lack of awareness proves he’s had far too much influence for far too long. His need to control the thinking and behavior of society is revolting.
Cameron sounds like a complete (insult of choice) to me, it's a good job I can separate the art from the artist as I do like a lot of his movies. I found the 4K of "The Abyss" watchable and a decent step up from my old non-anamorphic DVD but it did look a little artificial at times and I didn't appreciate the overly blue colour changes...it could (and should) have been better. "Aliens" I found unwatchable, I honestly felt stressed by it, as if my brain was having to work extra hard to try and resolve/make sense of what it was seeing on screen...I'm glad I never bought that 4K and am more than happy to stick with my Blu-ray. "True Lies" was strange, some of it looked good but some of it looked so unnatural that it was just weird to try and watch...glad I never bought that one either. Thanks for the video, your thoughts and your integrity !
I love Terminator 2 and Aliens, but I won't be purchasing any more copies of these movies again until he's gone and someone who cares about preservation eventually (hopefully) restores the originals.
What doesn't make sense is WHY didn't 20th Century Fox actually do the 4k themselves. James Cameron doesn't own anything to Aliens. They could have contracted the rights for all 4 films to someone like Scream Factory who would have worked with the original negatives and put together some sort of set. I get The Abyss, True Lies, Titanic, The Terminator he created those those are James Cameron films. Aliens was a 20th Century Fox property and Cameron was hired to make a sequel. Made zero sense that they did a 4k Remaster of Alien, but then waited on Cameron for Aliens and someone is still working on Alien 3 and Resurrection. So why make Cameron "special"
I thought Id always buy 4k everything cos it must be better. But Cameron's 4k releases have actually made me appreciate why standard blu-ray releases are still sought after. He also seems to have a problem with accepting some his 4k releases look like ass...
I think we all owe George Lucas an apology at this point. Lol. What a terrifying time for film restoration. We thought T2 was bad, well, I cant wait to eat crow when that supposedly new restoration drops.
My new favorite phrase: "Fidelity to the source." If James Cameron ever had an inkling of what that entails, he's unfortunately lost it along the way. What Cameron calls "technical limitations," in terms of filmstock, is in itself an historical document. By Cameron's notion, the Declaration of Independence could just as well be burned and put on a PDF. It absolutely amazes me that a filmmaker with Cameron's imagination can be so short-sighted when it comes to all things related to film preservation.
Its obvious to me that Cameron just hates the look of film grain. I'm sure if the technology was available tk eliminate it during film production he would've done that too. Sadly he has taken a position to antagonise rather than service the fan base over this.
When it comes to Universal 4K releases, only Jaws 3 got the AI treatment (and the HD TV cut of Duel). Jaws The Revenge, released alongside Jaws 3, is intact. Jaws 3 is a very specific case that shouldn't worry anyone about a general trend.
First off - look at that, almost 10 000 subscribers! That's wonderful! When I signed on I think it was about 1 500 or something like that. As for the Aliens 4K, and other subpar restorations - I think at the end of the day it will be the true fans that will preserve the films they love. One just have to look at the amazing Star Wars projects 4K77, 4K80 and 4K83. So all in all I think there is hope :)
I'm honestly impressed how you could make such a fact-focused non-rant video given the spiteful, derisive and downright hateful remarks this man has made towards movie fans. It really makes me wonder what is going on in his head. Does he hate his own art? Does he look down upon his earlier attempts at movie making, thinking the Avatar movies are him at his peak? (if that's what he thinks, he is wrong, they are both much too long pieces of digital crap) I'm just glad there are so many other amazing and fascinating movies to discover that, even if it's sad, I will have enough great movies to watch even without Cameron movies. So screw him and his crap, and if he thinks that someone who cares about film preservation is a loser, well, maybe Mr. Cameron, you should stop making movies and go golfing instead - at least we won't have to suffer through any more Avatar movies any more...
I still like Cameron's films (Avatar films, too), but I think he needs to think about what he's going to say before saying it. If he keeps this up, the fans will eventually step away. As I've said before, in terms of his 4K transfers, I have custom blu-rays of Abyss and True Lies that I got for my birthday a couple years ago, and they look far better than what I've seen from the "official" releases. If I ever do pick up those 4K releases, it will only be for the new extras, and when they're at a discount.
I like someones idea for two 4k releases; preserve film for one as is; then make another with all the tecno changes. James cameron and even peter jackson have both become george lucas with their remasters of older films!! Awesome channel name! So cool you quoted camerons messgae from the t2 laserdisc!
Lets face it, most "casual viewers" are happy with the transfers. I remember the praise that Peter Jacksons WWI documentary THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD" received when it came out - the first time that I started noticing what certain people in the industry do older material. That doc looked horrible, you cant even see the facial expressions of the soldiers on most shots because of the processing but people still loved the project. And dont get me started on his treatment on GET BACK. I think Jacksons treatment of OTHER PEOPLES footage upsets me even more than Cameron destroying "his" films. Still, its a shame.
Shame Cameron went this route to remove grain and/or take short cuts. As Nerrel's video showed AI is unproven, inconsistent. As a result, unhappy fans and ruined film.
Cameron's upset that people have standards and call him out on his substandard work, resorting to ad hominem attacks and a lame appeal to authority because he can't back up his position, because deep down he knows it's true.
Great find of Cameron's write up in the laserdisc. A good example of how values have changed from the director from one era to another. I know people are upset at Cameron's action and I won't defend them, but this is kind of expected. Cameron is a director who does not really live in the past. He lives in the now, and he's a super alpha-type male. He doesn't give a damn what we think, and it shows in the type of films he makes and how he deflects criticism. He's obsessed with tech and does not want to be left behind on it, which explains how colour timing, grain structure and stuff might vanish in his old work. I just think like any director who is still relevant, they come to their work as something they made nearly half a century ago and do no really put themselves in that mind set. While I agree that the new masters of Cameron's work and the poor use of AI manipulation of Jaws and other releases are well, junk, I'm not surprised that he'll double down on it. That's his style. I feel like directors like Cameron, George Lucas, and even Michael Mann are all going to have pass on before people can touch their work from a more historical perspective. Mann maybe gets a bit more slack, because he makes thrillers and crime films, slightly less nerdy genres than science fiction so there's less of a film-nerd-outcry! ;)
Not really. This kid claims you can poke holes in that letter because of Cameron’s comments on the 4:3 ratio and his later movie to frame his movies for that ratio for TV. So was James Cameron not going to have a ready for TV version? This kid does realize that movies being shown on TV was a big deal and did generate money. This person is an absurdist. He’s a disgrace to cinephiles. He exemplifies the most intolerable “collectors.” This kid reminds me of Kathy Bates in Misery. That’s what modern fandom is. It’s disgusting and rife with disingenuous pretentious takes from absolute nobodies. Yeah, James Cameron being the most successful creator in Hollywood history should listen to this kid…whose biggest accomplishment was categorizing DVDs known to rot.
Thank god I have restored 35mm scans of his movies. The 4K of T2 looks absolutely gorgeous, it's color timing is corrected with all of the home video audio tracks, including the English Laserdisc DTS. Only one I'm waiting on to be cleaned up is True Lies, and The Terminator is open matte I'd like the wide-screen version.
I learned about the T-grain structure for Kodak's mid-80s emulsions from his audio commentary on ALIENS. This is the guy who now says "Fuck you grain structure nerds!"? Here's the thing: if Criterion or Arrow or Vinegar Syndrome wanted to release their own restorations and tried to access the negatives, would JC step in and block them?
'When people start reviewing YOUR grain struction'....it's OK JC, we all know it's YOUR grain structure 'they need to move out of mom's basement'...ah, the classy, high IQ, personal attack when someone who doesn't agree with you 'I've got a great team'...well, obviously NOT 'I do all the color and density work. I look at every shot, every frame'...go ahead, tell us you suck at film preservation without telling us you suck at film preservation 'All the Avatar films are done that way. Everything is done that way'...a child's argument 'Get a life, people, seriously'...we already have one and quite enjoy it. Thanks though!
I blame the interviewer for deliberately asking a very negative question that’s targeted towards the fans and James, and I’m also not letting Cameron get away Scott free. Depending on a very imperfect piece of software to restore your movies or to make them similar to his Avatar movies is honestly pathetic at best, and how he handled the criticism is awful. He needs to learn to take constructive criticism because how he handled it was very bad.
That's a good point. How else would Cameron, or anyone respond to something they are attached to as their job? "So this was released and it was called bad. Many people said so. What's up with that?" I guess we can't win!
There's film preservation, and there's film revisionism. Cameron and George Lucas are notorious for the later. Unfortunately this attitude is nothing new from James Cameron. At this point it's best to separate the art from the artist....
I wish they had both versions so people like yourself would be happy. I’m fine with all the new technology that is giving me a better sound mix & for me a better picture. Cameron could have replied more politely though.
What bothers me is the condescending tonality with a Hollywood elitist attitude. Instead of name-calling and attacking their character explain why you made the decisions you made and defend them. If you can't stand criticism then don't become an artist.
I finally saw the hideous American Graffiti 4k from Universal, it was hard to watch and I’ll stick with the dvd. I thought the Inglorious Bastards 4K looked bad as is, I can’t imagine if they used AI on it now.
You're absolutely right. There is no reason not to offer original renditions alongside these new concoctions so that audiences have a choice. There's no valid excuse to alter anything without a preservation master, but it's always been, and still is, an industry practice, making it an exhaustive and/or expensive job to restore even fairly recent material. It's a disservice to the public and a major loss to the permanent historic record in many cases.
It is not so difficult, it is only requested that the films look as natural as possible, it is not necessary to do so much digital processing, most of the films of different studios are usually impeccable, only those of Cameron and his obsession to look so digital is that they ruin those restorations, his films look like pixar animations, a lot of plastic texture.
My way of taking a stand is not to buy this nonsense. Unfortunately with the Abyss the old DVD was not anamorphic so I had to buy the 4K to have a watchable picture but I am not upgrading anything else so it is lost sales for Cameron.
Good video they should not change the look of the films we love, but I really did enjoy the 5.1 mix on the terminator blu ray, of course the original mono track should be included, but that 5.1 really surprised me in a good way. I Hope your video Will be seen by mr. Cameron himself.
Honestly, outside of abandoned audio mixes and/or edits of films and TV shows losing their copyrighted status and failing into the public domain (which will NEVER happen, of course), this race to the bottom will not stop.
The worst part is that we had to wait a decade for these crappy releases. And the justification for the wait was that he was supposedly a perfectionist and needed to find time in his busy schedule of making Smurf movies and cosplaying as Captain Nemo to personally do it so it was "right".
Jimmy's just reacting how petulant kids do when they're exposed in their b.s. I certainly can't imagine him speaking to Scorsese, Spielberg, or Anderson like that, despite those gentlemen standing for the same things that the audience is complaining about. Good luck with that revolutionary legacy, Jimmy.
In fairness, the JC letter was likely merely concerning that version of the film, and even that particular physical version alone. Albeit with in retrospect a seriously unrealistic expectation on the theoretical lifespan of a laserdisc. Just a guess though, but it seem the most reasonable interpretation I think. Maybe even to visionaries it can at times be hard to not go "Surely nothing will ever be better than this!".
I wish more people viewed films as art that must be protected and preserved before they are destroyed by age or outside forces (Cameron or any other ego-maniacal director). if this was a Monet or Picasso no one would allow it to be altered to an unrecognizable state but since it's moving art some people still see them only as entertainment and don't care. you're doing incredible work fighting for film preservation on this channel. thank you for always saying what needs to be said.
Pretty rich for a man so obsessed with grain structure that he removed all traces of it from his films, and who once lived in his car. To complain about fans critiquing the grain structure of said films and potentially living in basements...
Finding Nemo animasyonunda köpekbalığının adının Bruce olmasının Jaws filminin yönetmeni Steven Spielberg'ün köpekbalığı maketlerine o zamanlarki avukatının adı olan Bruce adını vermesinden kaynaklanıyordu.
That crack about nerds living in their mom’s basement (an insult from 30 years ago) was a bit much. I get it that he hates nerds, but (besides five year olds) who does he think he’s going to see his Avatar movies?
James Cameron is a sellout. Never am I supporting him again. And I am someone who did like the first Avatars that he worked on. Never will I buy anymore of him upcoming films.
I'm now moving into my mother's basement purely on principle because of how bad these transfers are.
Anarchy is The Way...Anarchy is The Life!
I find it ironic that a movie about the dangers of artificial intelligence has been destroyed by artificial intelligence
It's doubly ironic that Cameron himself has a love for AI. He is even quoted as saying AI should be allowed to have it's own ego and no restrictions.
@@OcpCommunications Hey Mike, Didn't expect to see you here, I hope you tear Cameron's ass another one lol
😂🤣 Cameron became the very thing he grace to the silver screens.
🥱 Except it hasn’t. People love hating success. You people are akin to those crapping on Avatar: Way of Water. Sorry, but James Cameron nailed you people for exactly who you are.
@@OcpCommunicationsFor what purpose?
It blows me mind that Cameroon would willingly allow the majority of his filmography to be destroyed via a lack of preservation. You'd think a filmmaker, an artist, would want their greatest works preserved.
He's not an artist. He's a technology guy. The films are just a way for him to try out new tech.
It's utterly insane.
Not if they buy wholly into digital cinema and hate film grain like George Lucas. Who actually went out of his way to ridicule people still shooting on film, like Chris Nolan. He hates the originals he said so at Cannes, he never wants them released again for Star Wars. It's not an accident that the 4K versions of Star Wars were heavily degrained and had further cgi added. Or that the Indiana Jones films were recomposited and no original audio made available on 4K.
Here we come to the core of the issue: Cameron, while obviously a very competent director, has absolutely no understanding of true cinematic things. His movies never give you time to admire the scenery and filmmaking hardly at all, it's all just action-action-action all the time. This same applies to his way of disrespecting of how real cinematic look should be, grain and natural colours are one of the essentials (except on special occations like The Godfather, where you have that specific colour timing, which was designed for that movie). T2 4K remaster is good example of this: it completely wipes out that L.A. orange glow and clean blue skies, which is supposed to be there, and gives that flair the movie needed. His use of teal filtering also mutes all colours from the movies, making them look like Matrix-movies, which they are not supposed to be (as a side note, teal filtering also ruins the pretty purple lasers in the future war scenes, turning them into generic blue). What's also baffling is that doing a natural wet-scan to 4K removes majority of the roughness of the original film, and is not that long process to hurdle through compared to adjusting the colour timings again and even upscaling the footage from 2K scans like some releases have been.
T1 would definitely need to be just a natural 4K wet-scan, since it's mid 80's movie, and set in mundane, real-life locations. The grittyness of the footage would have just helped to elevate it even further, removing any grain will remove that feel what the movie will need. He should have instead focused on making the sound mix fixed for good, having the original sound effects intact, while fixing it otherwise.
He wants them to look modern and not organic 80s/90s filmic as shown in theaters, that's the thing. He's tech progressive to a fault and doesn't want his films to look dated or antiquated. Don't agree but they should've included like dual versions for fans so we had options.
James Cameron's restorations aren't "restorations". They're poorly upscaled and denoised monstrosities that abuse nostalgia for profit. A true shame indeed, but Cameron unfortunately gets away with it every time.
The color grading always needs to be mentioned too - The color grade on the Abyss is Abysmal.
@@just_delightful For real. 4K Transfer wise its the "least" bad compared to Aliens and True Lies, but its still frigging terrible lol. The THX DVD regardless of its age still has great color timing and detail and a way better buy than the disasterous 4K.
@@Eva01-jy2qu7pu9r And I am proud to say, I got the Spanish Bootleg Blu-Ray of True Lies. The Spanish Bootleg of True Lies is a million times better than the 4K UHD of True Lies. We are in deep trouble for physical media. Jaws 3 4K UHD suffered the same problems True Lies did on 4K UHD.
The fuck are you on about? Did you make the movies?! You know nothing, you’re not a filmmaker. He is and he decides what is the best look for HIS films.
Why isn't he honest about them being quick cash grabs for profit because a real restoration would cost way more to do. The turn around on these was super quick after years of fans waiting, it's really super bizarre. I'm sure fans would have been willing to wait a few months to a year to get actually 4K quality. While they took the time and effort to locate the negative and all the separate elements. You know they messed up when the D-Theater tape looks better for True Lies.
Jimmy is going to make people do 4K84 and 4K91.
Please make this trend
4K91 is already out there...
@@calibri1182Where can I find it?
And more power to them.
The open matte 84 floating around ain't bad neither.
Listen, and understand! James Cameron is out there! He can't be bargained with. He can't be reasoned with. He doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And he absolutely will not stop... ever, until the people that care about film preservation are dead!
“All the Avatar films are done that way” as if fucking Avatar was ‘Cinema Paradiso’.
Movies shot with film need to have grain. They are not digital.
The grain is the picture.
Amusing as digital has faux grain added. In native resolution or in upscaling too and for the latter it's also used to hide upscaling/processing artifacts.
Even videogames do. Either to look more cinematic, or just less lifeless static.
He’s 💩’ing on the only people that care about his releases. 🙄
Well while he may be off on his OPINION....ALOT of the people "crying" about it can kinda feel free to STFU because SOME of (not all since some people have reading comprehension with some) people feel that they can say and do the most vile shit, that they can make death threats against the person, or their family BUT then clutch their pearls when that person responds and try to act like "how dare they". These "special" people can dish it out, but hilarious cannot take the reply.
It's the Hollywood way
@@lutherheggs451wtf are you on about?
@@lutherheggs451 That made no sense.
You flatter yourself.
I will stick with my 35mm film print scans of Aliens, T1, T2, Titanic & True Lies.
That's awesome that there are scans for those films out there. Where can they be found?
@@CuriousEnthusiast956they can be found by looking. But I got them on my server so friends can see them.
Lol, 35mm looks like s hit. Like William Friedkin said, do you think that if we had digital in the 70's and on we would have used 35mm and wanted our films to look like crap full of scratches? F uck the purists!
@@MrCarpen7er @MrCarpen7er The only reason Friedkin says that is out of ease of use. This is the same bozo that decided that everything needed to be bloody purple with the French Connection Blu Ray! There's no specification on what the limit of resolution of even just 35MM Film is. There is with Digital though. And scratches on a film print is still better than people walking around looking like plastic mannikins due to Digital's sterility.
'Wanted our films to look like crap'. Due you realize how stupid and arrogant that comment is? Films are called Films because they were shot on Film!! You're just basically calling the look of film crap while advocating for everything to be on Digital Video while having the audacity to call them 'Films'. That is fairly hypocritical to be honest. And no, if you think every print by nature is full of scratches, then you have never seen a clean print or you have never seen Film projected at all.
@@MrCarpen7er Purists want it pure. You want altered history garbage. 🤔
Such disrespectful comments from Cameron. Shame on him.
He's a jerk always was always will be nothing but a truck driver😂
Do not insult truck drivers, half of them are not that divas 😜@@robertszvetics210
@@robertszvetics210 cameron is a jerk and he's ruining the look of his entire catalogue of films but he's not just some truck driver like back in the day. He's literally one of the greatest and most successful filmmakers ever. Avatar is crap but he's made some of the best films ever so you can't deny the talent or achievements.
I’ll move out of my moms basement if Terminator 1 has a decent transfer lol
Looks like you going to have to stay because from early reports who've seen it it's horrible.
Like wise. Let hope he doesn't fuck this one up.
It's The Terminator. Terminator 1 doesn't exist.
I got rid of all my VHS/DVD and blurays when I bought into 4k UHD.. What a terrible mistake.
James Cameron's recent comments about the criticisms towards his recent 4K restorations of True Lies, Aliens, and The Abyss (and let's not forget the infamous 2017 4K remaster of Terminator 2) gives me the "Ridley Scott criticizes historians for pointing out the historical inaccuracies of his 2023 Napoleon movie" vibes. On one hand, it is his right to present (and alter) his films the way he wanted them to be. On the other hand, the criticisms about the said 4K restorations (such as the DNR and AI upscaling being used) are valid. I also noticed that the color gradings of the restorations are somewhat altered from their original versions, especially True Lies. If movies keep being treated like that, it could give rise to custom and bootleg releases where the films will be treated better than the official releases (like the custom Blu-ray releases of the Star Wars original trilogy presented in initial theatrical versions before George Lucas's excessive tampering with the later official editions).
I still remember when William Friedkin supervised the initial 2009 Blu-ray release of The French Connection where Friedkin fiddled with the color grading to give it a 'colder' feel. When it was released, it was met with controversy, with the film's cinematographer, Owen Roizman, calling the release 'atrocious' and 'horrifying'. This resulted in the 2012 remastered Blu-ray 'Signature Series' release with both Friedkin and Roizman supervising the transfer and the color timing was finally corrected as the film was presented on Blu-ray the way it should be. James Cameron should have consulted with the film's respective cinematographers (like Mikael Salomon for The Abyss, Adam Greenberg for Terminator 2, and Russell Carpenter for True Lies; Unfortunately, Adrian Biddle for Aliens passed away in 2005) for his recent 4K transfers (and that includes Terminator 2). I think the aforementioned cinematographers (and perhaps the other crew members that worked on said films) would be furious about Cameron's 4K restorations on the films they worked with him.
I like your idea of providing 2 versions with any release. The original version restored for damages, hopefully a good and hands-off HDR grade, and that's about it. Then provide a version that has every AI algorithm thrown at it to make it modern. Atleast then I could be happy with one of those and I could do what most of us actually want, and that's to simply enjoy the movie. I would love Cameron to re-release all of his movies in this idea. I know which version I'd be watching.
Interesting response from Cameron indicates he is annoyed and sensitive about this, which means he probably delegated this to a team of people he trusted and they messed up leaving him in an awkward place. If he had direct oversight and did these things deliberately I would have expected a less emotional and more logical/reasoned response than this.
Nah, these people live in a bubble. They think they know everything about film and we are fools who only should be praising them no matter what they do.
Once upon a time, we didn’t have The Abyss and True Lies on Blu-ray at all. It took 15+ years for those movies to be released in the format, and people are still complaining. You can't please everybody. Damn it if you do, damn it if you don't!
Nice job with the video. Cameron is just deluded when it comes to this particular topic. What's interesting and sad is that Cameron actually has made comments as far back in 2016 about older films like Aliens about how it's pointless to try to go back and change things about films from the past. But all this time has passed and his opinion has changed yet again apparently. Also he's lying about inspecting every frame. I spoke to someone who works at Second Sight in person who knew the man working on the remaster of The Abyss. Cameron just showed up one day saw the transfer, said a few things, signed off on it and then left. He didn't stay there and inspect every frame or do anything with color timing or grain structure. He just showed up for a bit, signed off on it and then left the building.
But this is also the same Cameron that botched the Aliens release on Laserdisc and thought he knew better than the professionals to the point where he brought his own TV from home to watch the playback on. He's been deluded about how remasters work for years.
For Aliens, this must be either the rotted 1991 Special Edition or the theatrical cut 1995 release, which breaks Cameron's promise to keep the film preservation in 1991 when mentioning about T2's release.
And how the hell can anyone find the best looking LD release of The Abyss based on the knowledge it has!?
Cameron is a hypocrite if mentioning about that (at least starting with True Lies LD release), unless it the releases when Cameron is not involved after all (like mentioning The Terminator 1995 LD release, and the two best T2 releases using the Japanese CDS mix DTS DVD and the 2015 Blu-ray video (theatrically) as the hybrid). Even without Cameron's involvement still screwed us up (like The Terminator 2013 Blu-ray followed degraining the picture before adding fake grain like Aliens BD does which is the Lowry master as MGM later uses for their later flawed "restoration" masters of their movies).
@@phydicollscormain For Aliens it's the original Special Edition release that was botched. The 1995 THX disc was better but still had issues. The fact is because of Cameron's grain obsession, there is no proper remaster of Aliens on home video. Track down a 35MM scan of the film and even in it's rough quality it's better than what has been released on home video and more accurate to what the film is supposed to look like.
@@OcpCommunications Hey Mike.
When you look long into an abyss, Jim Cameron looks back and tells you to move out of your mother's basement 🤦🤦🤦🤦🤦
Seriously underrated comment.
Lols. Have a regular non AI five digits hand thumb up. 🤣
😂😂
People should hang on to their old editions.
I always cringe when people declare that they're throwing away/trading in their old copies. You never know what might be altered/missing.
The fact that there’s people out there doing it right highlights the fact he’s doing it wrong.
All those that "think" Aliens and True Lies were stunning and remarkable on Hybrid 4K will be wetting their pants with The Terminator. I'm surprised by how many people never question or use critical thought to analyse what exactly is going on here with these films. All I seem to hear is how good the detail is and how clean the image looks on screen. When I watched both Aliens and True Lies, you could clearly see the alterations and issues pertaining to what Cameron had done with the films. The general consensus within the industry now with Aliens, The Abyss and True Lies will be the green light to use extensive A.I. technologies on further classic films. I do find it disconcerting and very frustrating that we now live in a world where an acceptance of A.I. in film is not a significant problem at all. The majority have spoken, and those that project a critical disdain are pushed to one side without a voice on the issue.
I screened The Terminator last night. The new 4K presentation. All grain is scrubbed and added digital grain throughout. Disappointing, but doesn’t look bad. Some detail is smoothed over (faces in some scenes, some Arnold shots). There are some sequences that have heavy edge enhancement… very noticeable and distracting.
😔 Cameron massacre his own film that is my favorite, Damn you !
Sounds weird. Especially for the poor quality blu-ray transfers of other movies from 2009 that had wax mannequin figures on screen, complete with the cleanup removing some fx smoke and other elements by accident. A bad cleanup is a bad cleanup and HD just means showing more detail. Just like in 2009 when the then-new blu-ray resolution came out.
I hope someone delays the 4K Blu-Ray release to undo some of the grain removal.
did they do any fixes or changes like they did for T2 4K?
@@SoulbentAnime Nope just remove the film grain by alot.
What's your opinion on the original theatrical cuts of Blade Runner not being released in 4K Blu-ray?
Really weird that he compares them to Avatar. That's the problem James...
Yea he's obsessed
What is it with these directors messing up transfers with DNR and AI? Is there any expert in charge of informing issues with the transfers before completing the final product? Nothing I see from Cameron’s decisions and statements seem professional.
12:50 Cameron making a movie about the dangers of AI, and then using AI technology to fundamentally destroy presentations of his own films is not "undoing wrongs", it's called him being a hypocrite and liar.
As an auteur, Cameron should understand and appreciate the feedback loop and its role in the creation and preservation of art. Breathtaking arrogance from a man determined to tarnish his legacy.
Cameron does not care about these releases, in fact he never did care about any of his films after they are released, he is a perfectionist who will push everyone and everything to the limit in order to create his vision, but the moment he finishes a movie, he loses his interest, to him its just a case of "Over and done with, next!"
His foul unprofessional comments about the "restoration" critique, although I would rather call it "butchering" shows his total disrespect to those who admire his work, but more importantly he himself betrays his own work by slaughtering them, which is remarkable for someone who is a perfectionist, “OCPD?”, and his cheap under the waist remarks are completely unnecessary.
To me Cameron has always been a brilliant director who created amazing work. On set he is absolutely brutal but at the same time its mesmerizing to have a director who has a clear vision of what he wants and elevates that to perfection, but when it comes to everything else that does not involve writing and directing he is an complete d*ck, everyone who ever worked on his projects knows this for fact.
That's fair logic to provide a restoration with and without AI, ideally on two separate discs, charged accordingly, though some would no doubt complain to pay a premium...
"Googly eyes are in. Get with it!" - J. Cameron.
They can't give people the choice by including both versions because they're too proud to expose how favored the original is and admit they are in the wrong to tamper with it.
James Cameron, being flippant and dismissive and insulting?! Noooo… say it ain’t so.
Cameron raved about how great the last few Terminator movies were so I now take anything he says with a giant pinch of salt.
Will you make a video on Chinatown in 4K? I think they changed the color grade and even cropped the image compared to the old bluray.
It's a tricky argument, I completely see your side, and the problem really goes away if they were to present 2 versions - a la Spielberg's Close Encounters, have the "Director's New 2024 Vision" version, and the original theatrical version side by side on one or 2 discs. Then, as you said people can choose. If you take my favourite movie 'The Shining' - imho the 4K remaster is simply stunning, film grain, depth of field, natural filmic presentation. Leon Vitali played a role in making sure this was done correctly. Wouldn't it be great if all films were treated so well, another example is 'Remains Of The Day.' However, I really don't think James Cameron sees his films in that way, in a historic, film preservation archival sort of a way. In my view he sees his films as constant works-in-progress, a bit like George Lucas does/did. I think he feels they are improvements, and perhaps due to his rather cocky attitude - he doesn't believe these films belong to the fans, but to him. He's got this really crappy attitude towards fans though, solidifying his rather mixed reputation.
This is exactly why I didn’t buy the 4K plus Blu-Ray titles of these films as he literally ruined his own films and just absolutely destroyed them. It’s like he doesn’t even care about his old films anymore.
Cameron has no team doing anything and I very much doubt he has ever looked at any of these upscales before signing off on them.
Found your channel few weeks ago. Thank you for doing such videos.
Well, when I got the 4K version of True Lies, there was a scene where Arnold finds out about his wife's affair, specifically the dining table scene, where the disc just stopped. I played it a few times, but the same scene kept freezing. Unfortunately, I discovered this issue a few months later, as I wasn't in a hurry to watch the movie when I bought it, so I couldn't get it replaced. Some comments suggested that it's due to the High DNR format used, which might have messed up the data writing on the disc. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that at least I still have the 1080p Blu-ray disc. The High DNR actually looks very waxy-it's acceptable but not really necessary. I think audiences prefer upgrades like Atmos sound, recoloring, and bonus features, which are more compelling reasons to buy a 4K version of Cameron's movies rather than the DNR.
It’s like taking a 1950’s racecar that runs on premium and trying to pit a catalytic converter in it so you can run it on premium unleaded. It’s never gonna run the way it was intended to because it wasn’t built to handle the fuel type or run at it’s best on it. To get it to really run perfectly you need to really spend time dismantling it carefully, re-organising and rebuilding the entire engine block to work on that kind of fuel to get anywhere near the same peak performance out of the same thing.
My 2 cents. As long as we waited for some of these, if he was as hands on and meticulous as he claimed during the process, the complaints wouldn't have been as loud and numerous as they are. As for his insults of his fandom, crap like that is why I didn't pay out almost $100 dollars for that making of doc of Aliens Expanded just to get it on a physical disc.
When a fan finally gets to release their own preferred restoration it should be titled 'The Mom's Basement Edition'.
Considering that the vast majority of his audience is in their 30s to 60s his lack of awareness proves he’s had far too much influence for far too long. His need to control the thinking and behavior of society is revolting.
Cameron sounds like a complete (insult of choice) to me, it's a good job I can separate the art from the artist as I do like a lot of his movies. I found the 4K of "The Abyss" watchable and a decent step up from my old non-anamorphic DVD but it did look a little artificial at times and I didn't appreciate the overly blue colour changes...it could (and should) have been better. "Aliens" I found unwatchable, I honestly felt stressed by it, as if my brain was having to work extra hard to try and resolve/make sense of what it was seeing on screen...I'm glad I never bought that 4K and am more than happy to stick with my Blu-ray. "True Lies" was strange, some of it looked good but some of it looked so unnatural that it was just weird to try and watch...glad I never bought that one either. Thanks for the video, your thoughts and your integrity !
Not sure how Cameron went from being such a champion of laserdisc to having this attitude. 🤷♂️
I love Terminator 2 and Aliens, but I won't be purchasing any more copies of these movies again until he's gone and someone who cares about preservation eventually (hopefully) restores the originals.
What doesn't make sense is WHY didn't 20th Century Fox actually do the 4k themselves. James Cameron doesn't own anything to Aliens. They could have contracted the rights for all 4 films to someone like Scream Factory who would have worked with the original negatives and put together some sort of set.
I get The Abyss, True Lies, Titanic, The Terminator he created those those are James Cameron films. Aliens was a 20th Century Fox property and Cameron was hired to make a sequel. Made zero sense that they did a 4k Remaster of Alien, but then waited on Cameron for Aliens and someone is still working on Alien 3 and Resurrection. So why make Cameron "special"
I thought Id always buy 4k everything cos it must be better. But Cameron's 4k releases have actually made me appreciate why standard blu-ray releases are still sought after.
He also seems to have a problem with accepting some his 4k releases look like ass...
I think we all owe George Lucas an apology at this point. Lol. What a terrifying time for film restoration. We thought T2 was bad, well, I cant wait to eat crow when that supposedly new restoration drops.
The idea of telling someone to 'get a life' because they care about the art you make is bizarre and egotistical on levels I can't even comprehend
My new favorite phrase: "Fidelity to the source." If James Cameron ever had an inkling of what that entails, he's unfortunately lost it along the way. What Cameron calls "technical limitations," in terms of filmstock, is in itself an historical document. By Cameron's notion, the Declaration of Independence could just as well be burned and put on a PDF. It absolutely amazes me that a filmmaker with Cameron's imagination can be so short-sighted when it comes to all things related to film preservation.
Its obvious to me that Cameron just hates the look of film grain. I'm sure if the technology was available tk eliminate it during film production he would've done that too. Sadly he has taken a position to antagonise rather than service the fan base over this.
When it comes to Universal 4K releases, only Jaws 3 got the AI treatment (and the HD TV cut of Duel). Jaws The Revenge, released alongside Jaws 3, is intact. Jaws 3 is a very specific case that shouldn't worry anyone about a general trend.
First off - look at that, almost 10 000 subscribers! That's wonderful! When I signed on I think it was about 1 500 or something like that.
As for the Aliens 4K, and other subpar restorations - I think at the end of the day it will be the true fans that will preserve the films they love. One just have to look at the amazing Star Wars projects 4K77, 4K80 and 4K83. So all in all I think there is hope :)
James Cameron has ironically became the terminator of his own movies! Going back in time to alter the past 🤦🏻♂️
I just finished watching the Spanish blu-ray of True Lies, and it was sooo much better than the 4k.
I have the Spanish Blu-Ray as well. It's pretty good.
I actually love a lot of these new Atmos mixes for older films, but they should ALWAYS include the original mix. There's no excuse not to.
I'm honestly impressed how you could make such a fact-focused non-rant video given the spiteful, derisive and downright hateful remarks this man has made towards movie fans. It really makes me wonder what is going on in his head. Does he hate his own art? Does he look down upon his earlier attempts at movie making, thinking the Avatar movies are him at his peak? (if that's what he thinks, he is wrong, they are both much too long pieces of digital crap)
I'm just glad there are so many other amazing and fascinating movies to discover that, even if it's sad, I will have enough great movies to watch even without Cameron movies. So screw him and his crap, and if he thinks that someone who cares about film preservation is a loser, well, maybe Mr. Cameron, you should stop making movies and go golfing instead - at least we won't have to suffer through any more Avatar movies any more...
It’s hard not to think less of Cameron and then he finds a way to be even more ungrateful for the career we’ve supported.
Took a cheque to promote the trash that is genesis so his word hasn’t meant much in awhile.
I still like Cameron's films (Avatar films, too), but I think he needs to think about what he's going to say before saying it. If he keeps this up, the fans will eventually step away. As I've said before, in terms of his 4K transfers, I have custom blu-rays of Abyss and True Lies that I got for my birthday a couple years ago, and they look far better than what I've seen from the "official" releases. If I ever do pick up those 4K releases, it will only be for the new extras, and when they're at a discount.
I like someones idea for two 4k releases; preserve film for one as is; then make another with all the tecno changes.
James cameron and even peter jackson have both become george lucas with their remasters of older films!!
Awesome channel name!
So cool you quoted camerons messgae from the t2 laserdisc!
Lets face it, most "casual viewers" are happy with the transfers. I remember the praise that Peter Jacksons WWI documentary THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD" received when it came out - the first time that I started noticing what certain people in the industry do older material. That doc looked horrible, you cant even see the facial expressions of the soldiers on most shots because of the processing but people still loved the project. And dont get me started on his treatment on GET BACK. I think Jacksons treatment of OTHER PEOPLES footage upsets me even more than Cameron destroying "his" films. Still, its a shame.
Shame Cameron went this route to remove grain and/or take short cuts. As Nerrel's video showed AI is unproven, inconsistent. As a result, unhappy fans and ruined film.
I think spending so much time looking at blue cat people has driven Cameron insane
Cameron's upset that people have standards and call him out on his substandard work, resorting to ad hominem attacks and a lame appeal to authority because he can't back up his position, because deep down he knows it's true.
Great find of Cameron's write up in the laserdisc. A good example of how values have changed from the director from one era to another.
I know people are upset at Cameron's action and I won't defend them, but this is kind of expected. Cameron is a director who does not really live in the past. He lives in the now, and he's a super alpha-type male. He doesn't give a damn what we think, and it shows in the type of films he makes and how he deflects criticism. He's obsessed with tech and does not want to be left behind on it, which explains how colour timing, grain structure and stuff might vanish in his old work. I just think like any director who is still relevant, they come to their work as something they made nearly half a century ago and do no really put themselves in that mind set.
While I agree that the new masters of Cameron's work and the poor use of AI manipulation of Jaws and other releases are well, junk, I'm not surprised that he'll double down on it. That's his style.
I feel like directors like Cameron, George Lucas, and even Michael Mann are all going to have pass on before people can touch their work from a more historical perspective. Mann maybe gets a bit more slack, because he makes thrillers and crime films, slightly less nerdy genres than science fiction so there's less of a film-nerd-outcry! ;)
Not really.
This kid claims you can poke holes in that letter because of Cameron’s comments on the 4:3 ratio and his later movie to frame his movies for that ratio for TV.
So was James Cameron not going to have a ready for TV version? This kid does realize that movies being shown on TV was a big deal and did generate money.
This person is an absurdist. He’s a disgrace to cinephiles. He exemplifies the most intolerable “collectors.”
This kid reminds me of Kathy Bates in Misery. That’s what modern fandom is. It’s disgusting and rife with disingenuous pretentious takes from absolute nobodies.
Yeah, James Cameron being the most successful creator in Hollywood history should listen to this kid…whose biggest accomplishment was categorizing DVDs known to rot.
Thank god I have restored 35mm scans of his movies. The 4K of T2 looks absolutely gorgeous, it's color timing is corrected with all of the home video audio tracks, including the English Laserdisc DTS. Only one I'm waiting on to be cleaned up is True Lies, and The Terminator is open matte I'd like the wide-screen version.
How and from where? Digital files or on discs?
I learned about the T-grain structure for Kodak's mid-80s emulsions from his audio commentary on ALIENS. This is the guy who now says "Fuck you grain structure nerds!"?
Here's the thing: if Criterion or Arrow or Vinegar Syndrome wanted to release their own restorations and tried to access the negatives, would JC step in and block them?
i think james cameron has been bambozzled by the success of his Avatar films, he’s trying to make all his films look like them.
"3:4" aspect ratio is inexcusable, and it makes me wonder who wrote the letter.
Too many errors indeed, in that letter.
'When people start reviewing YOUR grain struction'....it's OK JC, we all know it's YOUR grain structure
'they need to move out of mom's basement'...ah, the classy, high IQ, personal attack when someone who doesn't agree with you
'I've got a great team'...well, obviously NOT
'I do all the color and density work. I look at every shot, every frame'...go ahead, tell us you suck at film preservation without telling us you suck at film preservation
'All the Avatar films are done that way. Everything is done that way'...a child's argument
'Get a life, people, seriously'...we already have one and quite enjoy it. Thanks though!
Speaking of this topic have you seen project 4K77 and how do you think it compares to the other versions of the original Star Wars?
I blame the interviewer for deliberately asking a very negative question that’s targeted towards the fans and James, and I’m also not letting Cameron get away Scott free.
Depending on a very imperfect piece of software to restore your movies or to make them similar to his Avatar movies is honestly pathetic at best, and how he handled the criticism is awful. He needs to learn to take constructive criticism because how he handled it was very bad.
That's a good point. How else would Cameron, or anyone respond to something they are attached to as their job? "So this was released and it was called bad. Many people said so. What's up with that?"
I guess we can't win!
There's film preservation, and there's film revisionism.
Cameron and George Lucas are notorious for the later.
Unfortunately this attitude is nothing new from James Cameron. At this point it's best to separate the art from the artist....
As long as you can see the art in a way where the artist hasn't gone back and completely ruined it.
I was once proud to be canadian. I can no longer feel that way for so many reasons. 😂
Trudeau must be one of the reasons.
@@bassage13 That's one, James Cameron another now.
Cameron knows that 95% + of the public won't care. (Which is true.) We are a niche audience.
I wish they had both versions so people like yourself would be happy. I’m fine with all the new technology that is giving me a better sound mix & for me a better picture. Cameron could have replied more politely though.
What bothers me is the condescending tonality with a Hollywood elitist attitude. Instead of name-calling and attacking their character explain why you made the decisions you made and defend them. If you can't stand criticism then don't become an artist.
I finally saw the hideous American Graffiti 4k from Universal, it was hard to watch and I’ll stick with the dvd. I thought the Inglorious Bastards 4K looked bad as is, I can’t imagine if they used AI on it now.
What are your thoughts on the 1st Alien 4k transfer?
You're absolutely right. There is no reason not to offer original renditions alongside these new concoctions so that audiences have a choice. There's no valid excuse to alter anything without a preservation master, but it's always been, and still is, an industry practice, making it an exhaustive and/or expensive job to restore even fairly recent material. It's a disservice to the public and a major loss to the permanent historic record in many cases.
It is not so difficult, it is only requested that the films look as natural as possible, it is not necessary to do so much digital processing, most of the films of different studios are usually impeccable, only those of Cameron and his obsession to look so digital is that they ruin those restorations, his films look like pixar animations, a lot of plastic texture.
James Cameron is the new George Lucas.
I'd also like to ask you what you think of the 4K DNR Kurosawa transfers Toho did.
My way of taking a stand is not to buy this nonsense. Unfortunately with the Abyss the old DVD was not anamorphic so I had to buy the 4K to have a watchable picture but I am not upgrading anything else so it is lost sales for Cameron.
Maybe it's best preserved quietly for future streaming versions so more money is made that way down the line.
Good video they should not change the look of the films we love, but I really did enjoy the 5.1 mix on the terminator blu ray, of course the original mono track should be included, but that 5.1 really surprised me in a good way. I Hope your video Will be seen by mr. Cameron himself.
This is every bit an indictment on George Lucas as it is Jim Cameron and rightfully so.
You people absurdists. James Cameron is right about you.
Honestly, outside of abandoned audio mixes and/or edits of films and TV shows losing their copyrighted status and failing into the public domain (which will NEVER happen, of course), this race to the bottom will not stop.
The worst part is that we had to wait a decade for these crappy releases. And the justification for the wait was that he was supposedly a perfectionist and needed to find time in his busy schedule of making Smurf movies and cosplaying as Captain Nemo to personally do it so it was "right".
Jimmy's just reacting how petulant kids do when they're exposed in their b.s. I certainly can't imagine him speaking to Scorsese, Spielberg, or Anderson like that, despite those gentlemen standing for the same things that the audience is complaining about. Good luck with that revolutionary legacy, Jimmy.
Really nasty of Cameron to say such things. Lucas fans said so many cruel things but he never treated them like that
In fairness, the JC letter was likely merely concerning that version of the film, and even that particular physical version alone.
Albeit with in retrospect a seriously unrealistic expectation on the theoretical lifespan of a laserdisc.
Just a guess though, but it seem the most reasonable interpretation I think.
Maybe even to visionaries it can at times be hard to not go "Surely nothing will ever be better than this!".
I wish more people viewed films as art that must be protected and preserved before they are destroyed by age or outside forces (Cameron or any other ego-maniacal director). if this was a Monet or Picasso no one would allow it to be altered to an unrecognizable state but since it's moving art some people still see them only as entertainment and don't care. you're doing incredible work fighting for film preservation on this channel. thank you for always saying what needs to be said.
I thought Cameron's comments here were a pretty low blow.
Pretty rich for a man so obsessed with grain structure that he removed all traces of it from his films, and who once lived in his car. To complain about fans critiquing the grain structure of said films and potentially living in basements...
@@themaxshow100 i’m very tempted to go rent somebody’s basement to record a Cameron review in.😂
@ 😂
Finding Nemo animasyonunda köpekbalığının adının Bruce olmasının Jaws filminin yönetmeni Steven Spielberg'ün köpekbalığı maketlerine o zamanlarki avukatının adı olan Bruce adını vermesinden kaynaklanıyordu.
That crack about nerds living in their mom’s basement (an insult from 30 years ago) was a bit much. I get it that he hates nerds, but (besides five year olds) who does he think he’s going to see his Avatar movies?
He hates nerds but makes films that based in computer technology and science and aliens, Cammy boy losing his marbles 😂
James Cameron is a sellout. Never am I supporting him again. And I am someone who did like the first Avatars that he worked on. Never will I buy anymore of him upcoming films.
Give the transfer rights to arrow video.