This week, my ordered Blu-ray of A Lady Takes A Chance (1943) arrived in the mail.
The movie, a romantic comedy, stars Jean Arthur, John Wayne, Charles Winninger and a young (with hair, probably a toupee) Phil Silvers.
From Blu-ray.com:
A city girl on a bus tour of the West encounters a handsome rodeo cowboy who helps her forget her simpy city suitors.
It had been a long while (likely since the 1970s) since I've seen this movie. I decided to order it and it was as I remembered it.
The Blu-ray is quite good as the transfer is from a 4k scan of a black & white nitrate negative from the Paramount Pictures film archives (even though the movie was produced by RKO Radio Pictures). The distributor of the Blu-ray is Kino Lorber.
According to a review in Home Theater Forum:
According to the package’s liner notes, this scan was taken from a combination of elements including the original negative as well as nitrate fine grains. Perhaps as a result of being sourced from multiple elements, the presentation here is inconsistent. At its best, the film can appear incredibly sharp, with excellent detail, great contrast, and a nearly pristine image showing almost no evidence of age or wear. At its worst, sections can appear indistinct, lacking sharpness and clarity, and showing some speckling and other age-related wear and tear.
Although the movie was made four years after Stagecoach, Wayne carried off well his comedic end of the movie.
