LOS ANGELES, California : Classic Black & White comedies, film noirs and Westerns will be up for an age of
re-discovery as the latest Hi-Def cutting edge technologies can bring out the life, shading and subtle textures that haven’t been seen since they were first released in theatres.
Towards that end, Blue Ray Group has acquired libraries
totaling 1,000 film titles that are being culled for re-mastering and hi-def releaseon Blu-ray Disc (BD). Laurel & Hardy and Hopalong Cassidy
will be among the first B&W titles from new division BRG Classics, which is actively seeking other retro libraries to release in the new format.
“Blu-ray technologies designed for the latest hi-tech films and games will also revive our rich film heritage,” said DVD pioneer
Erick Hansen, currently head of Blue Ray Group. “We talking decades of great films before color became the norm, and it
just blew us away when we discovered what came out when the B&W masters were converted to Hi-Def.”Hansen is adamant
that the videotape and DVD eras didn’t do justice to the original verve of Black and White movies.
“Filmmakers then had a lot more going on than the moody lighting most people associate with film noir. Directors had to use texture and every shade of gray. There was depth,
shadowing and a feeling that just didn’t come through on VHS or DVD, maybe because they didn’t really try. It took all 1080 or so lines of resolution to capture it, but Blu-ray did it. We are very excited about this surprise blast from the past.”
