Fan Brightens & Recolors Godzilla 2014

[BlankAccount]

Thought it'd be interesting to share.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDlYl6EF2B0

The blu-ray print of Godzilla 2014 hides a lot of details and coloring of godzilla. It seems dimmer than the theatrical release. You can't really see the artist's amazing work on godzilla. Just did a recolor & brightened favourite parts of godzilla.

Obviously it's not prefect, it's a big grainy and I can't remember if that was always on the film and was intentional or if it's the Blu-ray transfers, but if a fan can do this then there really is no excuse for poor quality transfers we've been given.

[Moogabunga]

Yeah, this has already made its way around. But it is damn good work and I really hope a 4k release of G14 happens eventually and it is of this quality. Now what some fan should do next is go through KOTM's horrendous color grading and try to make it not look like a hideous piece of ship.

[Terasawa]

Now what some fan should do next is go through KOTM's horrendous color grading and try to make it not look like a hideous piece of ship.

You mean there are other colors beyond teal and orange?

[Italian G-Fan]

Yeah, this has already made its way around. But it is damn good work and I really hope a 4k release of G14 happens eventually and it is of this quality. Now what some fan should do next is go through KOTM's horrendous color grading and try to make it not look like a hideous piece of ship.

Nah KOTMis good as it is. Because at least you can see what is happening unlike ya know... G2014

[UltramanGoji]

Now what some fan should do next is go through KOTM's horrendous color grading and try to make it not look like a hideous piece of ship.

That'd be next-to-impossible due to how much visual noise, dust, and particle effects litter the screen.

[Thegarbagemonster]

Another problem is that KotM doesn't just have grading, it's got a lot of teal/blue lights because it's made with colour focus in mind. It's a a film that loves colour.

[Chrispy_G]

I love the way KOTM looks, especially in 4K.

G14 unfortunately has a very trash transfer to Blu Ray. I read a great article that went into interesting detail about exactly WHAT happened during the transfer(something about crushing or screwing up the black/brightness levels and etc)....and it is basically a botched transfer.

Clips from the film in the special features on the disc look much better than the film itself.

So yeah....If G14 were put on 4K....given a PROPER transfer and an HDR pass....the visual improvement would be amazing.

[BlankAccount]

Yeah, this has already made its way around. But it is damn good work and I really hope a 4k release of G14 happens eventually and it is of this quality. Now what some fan should do next is go through KOTM's horrendous color grading and try to make it not look like a hideous piece of ship.

Nah KOTMis good as it is. Because at least you can see what is happening unlike ya know... G2014

If there's something I would change visually with KOTM, I think they put one or two or even three too many layers of filters on Godzilla's underwater temple. The behind the scene videos online show there was a lot of detail put into those ancient ruins that are hard to make out in the final product.

[Chris55]

I love the way KOTM looks, especially in 4K.

G14 unfortunately has a very trash transfer to Blu Ray. I read a great article that went into interesting detail about exactly WHAT happened during the transfer(something about crushing or screwing up the black/brightness levels and etc)....and it is basically a botched transfer.

Clips from the film in the special features on the disc look much better than the film itself.

So yeah....If G14 were put on 4K....given a PROPER transfer and an HDR pass....the visual improvement would be amazing.

Send me a link to that

[Chrispy_G]

I love the way KOTM looks, especially in 4K.

G14 unfortunately has a very trash transfer to Blu Ray. I read a great article that went into interesting detail about exactly WHAT happened during the transfer(something about crushing or screwing up the black/brightness levels and etc)....and it is basically a botched transfer.

Clips from the film in the special features on the disc look much better than the film itself.

So yeah....If G14 were put on 4K....given a PROPER transfer and an HDR pass....the visual improvement would be amazing.

Send me a link to that

This was at least 2 years ago(I did a MonsterVerse double feature of Kong and G14 and got very agitated at the G14 look, and tried to find out if it was my TV or the disc)...after searching around I can't find the one with the particular blurb I remember and it was a review of the Blu Ray, not an actual 'article'....but considering it was from a site that did a lot of Blu Ray reviews that always included a lot of technical mumbo jumbo.....they talked about how it was a transfer where the [insert term here] was too high...or too low, resulting in an image that was just too dark.

And then they basically said to check any of the bonus materials on the Blu Ray, and notice how every time they cut to footage from the film(particularly footage of the climax) that it was much brighter/clearer than the film as it is presented on the disc. They certainly ARE right about that.

I'm not sure which is more likely, that the brightness was cranked up to make the inserts in the bonus material look better, or if the film itself has too dark of a transfer.

The only way we'll find out, I suppose....would be if we DID get a new release of the film on 4K. If a new transfer with HDR applied STILL looks at dark...then at least we'll finally know if it is intentional or not.

I've seen far too many tecchies across the internet lob far too many complaints about it for me to think that it is a "perfect transfer exactly as it was intended to be".

[Chris55]

I love the way KOTM looks, especially in 4K.

G14 unfortunately has a very trash transfer to Blu Ray. I read a great article that went into interesting detail about exactly WHAT happened during the transfer(something about crushing or screwing up the black/brightness levels and etc)....and it is basically a botched transfer.

Clips from the film in the special features on the disc look much better than the film itself.

So yeah....If G14 were put on 4K....given a PROPER transfer and an HDR pass....the visual improvement would be amazing.

Send me a link to that

This was at least 2 years ago(I did a MonsterVerse double feature of Kong and G14 and got very agitated at the G14 look, and tried to find out if it was my TV or the disc)...after searching around I can't find the one with the particular blurb I remember and it was a review of the Blu Ray, not an actual 'article'....but considering it was from a site that did a lot of Blu Ray reviews that always included a lot of technical mumbo jumbo.....they talked about how it was a transfer where the [insert term here] was too high...or too low, resulting in an image that was just too dark.

And then they basically said to check any of the bonus materials on the Blu Ray, and notice how every time they cut to footage from the film(particularly footage of the climax) that it was much brighter/clearer than the film as it is presented on the disc. They certainly ARE right about that.

I'm not sure which is more likely, that the brightness was cranked up to make the inserts in the bonus material look better, or if the film itself has too dark of a transfer.

The only way we'll find out, I suppose....would be if we DID get a new release of the film on 4K. If a new transfer with HDR applied STILL looks at dark...then at least we'll finally know if it is intentional or not.

I've seen far too many tecchies across the internet lob far too many complaints about it for me to think that it is a "perfect transfer exactly as it was intended to be".

Yeah, I pointed out a lot of that in my review of the Blu-ray. What people miss though is that the darkness complaints started with the digital release weeks earlier (look on Amazon's reviews for August 2014 when it was released). It was the first sign of trouble for the home release. I do remember it looking a tad dim in the 2D theater showings but I thought it was something on the theater's end. I really hope we get a corrected 4K version with the promised Takarada scene put in.

[Chrispy_G]

Indeed....I know it WON'T happen, but I think the entire film is ripe for a bit of a re-edit. I think anyone who watches the film with an honest appraisal would admit that it is not a tightly edited film at all, and that the film's pace is INCREDIBLY deliberate to put it lightly.

A lot of that is inherent to the design of the film from the ground up....but frankly, I think a solid 10 minutes of the movie could be easily removed without really cutting out any scenes entirely.

Don Seigel: "If you shake a movie, 10 minutes will fall out"

This would also make room to include the Takarada scene, and they could even throw in a few extra shots and moments of monster action. You could literally take 2-3 minutes of Godzilla screen-time and monster battles, and sprinkle it throughout the 2nd half or final act of the film, and the improvement felt from that would be huge.

So yeah....shake 10-15 minutes out, add about 5 minutes back in. You'd have a new cut about 5-10 minutes shorter, but much more effectively paced and structured.

BUT that's just my off-topic opinion.

[Chris55]

.but frankly, I think a solid 10 minutes of the movie could be easily removed without really cutting out any scenes entirely.

What would you remove?

[Chrispy_G]

What would you remove?

Usually I think most about this when I watch the movie, and I haven't in about a year.

I read an interview where a Director was talking about getting the runtime of his movie down to where everyone was happy(I think it was Cameron talking about Titanic but I'm not sure) and he talked about how he was happy with the film and didn't have any more scenes or lines he wanted to remove....but he went through the entire thing and was literally shaving frames off of the beginning and ending of shots. 1 second here, half a second there, 3 seconds here. That was how he squeezed the last few drops out of the film.

I think first and foremost, someone could have a field day doing that with G14.

I am not someone who is a stickler for the 'editing pace' of a film. I'm not usually taking in the pace of the shot-to-shot proceedings, or finding grievance with it. However, every time I watch Godzilla I cannot help but notice how absolutely 'breathey' the editing is, as in every single inch of that movie is given time to breathe...too much time to breathe.

It feels like the movie is LOADED with shots and moments that go just a LITTLE too long. Just, moment after moment, close-up after close-up, panning shot after panning shot....that just routinely feel like they are given that extra 1-5 seconds that they honestly don't need. As if Edwards is just so enamored with his actors faces, his camera movements and long, drawn out pans, or showing off the set design and scenery that he just HAS to linger on for those extra few moments that aren't needed.

I honestly think that is where a LOT of the complaints about the movie being slow and boring subconsciously come from. I feel like the average shot of ANYTHING in G14 just is slower and lingers longer than the average corresponding shot of just about any other film. It isn't the film itself that is terribly paced, but individual scenes and shots, within themselves, seem like they are always taking their sweet time.

One micro-example(I pulled the scene up on YouTube to confirm the timing) - When it cuts from Godzilla's big 'reveal roar', his roar carries over/echos into the next shot, across the cut, to Sammy sleeping. SEVEN SECONDS LATER, Sammy wakes up/his eyes open. Why is the cut not happening ON his eyes opening? That's a transition that would be a little fun, almost as if the echo of his roar is 'waking up' Sammy(it isn't literally, but it would be a fun editorial transition).

There is no function in lingering on Sammy being asleep for 7 seconds before he wakes up. That's one small example, but 7 seconds saved is 7 seconds earned. How many moments throughout the entire movie are like that? I feel like there are many.

So that would be what I would do right off the bat....just run through the entire film snipping and trimming little moments off of the front and back of shots where appropriate. Just do a pass where everything just gets tightened up, and see where that leaves it.

After that I would look at trimming dialogue scenes down of a line or two here and there. For example, there is a scene early on between Joe and his wife where it feels like Joe is realizing the same thing twice. His wife tells him Ford made a Birthday sign and Joe sort of sighs sadly about it....then he has this goofy realization a few seconds later of "Oh is it my Birthday?"

I'd probably take out the back end of that scene or re-work it. You go through a 2 hour movie tightening up who knows how many moments and scenes like that....and you could end up with a pretty good chunk of the movie being excised out without really "cutting" anything.

"Shaking" the movie, so to speak.

So yeah...hard to identify right off the top of my head entire scenes that I would remove, I would more-so just tighten up and trim a lot of shots and scenes down....but I actually am planning to watch the film in the next few days, so maybe I'll come back with some bigger ideas then.

[GigaBowserG]

Someone uploaded footage with "original theatrical MPC brightness" shared through some kind of convention. Basically, this is how the movie appeared in theaters, or is the closest thing we'll probably get.

[Moogabunga]

What would you remove?

Usually I think most about this when I watch the movie, and I haven't in about a year.

I read an interview where a Director was talking about getting the runtime of his movie down to where everyone was happy(I think it was Cameron talking about Titanic but I'm not sure) and he talked about how he was happy with the film and didn't have any more scenes or lines he wanted to remove....but he went through the entire thing and was literally shaving frames off of the beginning and ending of shots. 1 second here, half a second there, 3 seconds here. That was how he squeezed the last few drops out of the film.

I think first and foremost, someone could have a field day doing that with G14.

I am not someone who is a stickler for the 'editing pace' of a film. I'm not usually taking in the pace of the shot-to-shot proceedings, or finding grievance with it. However, every time I watch Godzilla I cannot help but notice how absolutely 'breathey' the editing is, as in every single inch of that movie is given time to breathe...too much time to breathe.

It feels like the movie is LOADED with shots and moments that go just a LITTLE too long. Just, moment after moment, close-up after close-up, panning shot after panning shot....that just routinely feel like they are given that extra 1-5 seconds that they honestly don't need. As if Edwards is just so enamored with his actors faces, his camera movements and long, drawn out pans, or showing off the set design and scenery that he just HAS to linger on for those extra few moments that aren't needed.

I honestly think that is where a LOT of the complaints about the movie being slow and boring subconsciously come from. I feel like the average shot of ANYTHING in G14 just is slower and lingers longer than the average corresponding shot of just about any other film. It isn't the film itself that is terribly paced, but individual scenes and shots, within themselves, seem like they are always taking their sweet time.

One micro-example(I pulled the scene up on YouTube to confirm the timing) - When it cuts from Godzilla's big 'reveal roar', his roar carries over/echos into the next shot, across the cut, to Sammy sleeping. SEVEN SECONDS LATER, Sammy wakes up/his eyes open. Why is the cut not happening ON his eyes opening? That's a transition that would be a little fun, almost as if the echo of his roar is 'waking up' Sammy(it isn't literally, but it would be a fun editorial transition).

There is no function in lingering on Sammy being asleep for 7 seconds before he wakes up. That's one small example, but 7 seconds saved is 7 seconds earned. How many moments throughout the entire movie are like that? I feel like there are many.

So that would be what I would do right off the bat....just run through the entire film snipping and trimming little moments off of the front and back of shots where appropriate. Just do a pass where everything just gets tightened up, and see where that leaves it.

After that I would look at trimming dialogue scenes down of a line or two here and there. For example, there is a scene early on between Joe and his wife where it feels like Joe is realizing the same thing twice. His wife tells him Ford made a Birthday sign and Joe sort of sighs sadly about it....then he has this goofy realization a few seconds later of "Oh is it my Birthday?"

I'd probably take out the back end of that scene or re-work it. You go through a 2 hour movie tightening up who knows how many moments and scenes like that....and you could end up with a pretty good chunk of the movie being excised out without really "cutting" anything.

"Shaking" the movie, so to speak.

So yeah...hard to identify right off the top of my head entire scenes that I would remove, I would more-so just tighten up and trim a lot of shots and scenes down....but I actually am planning to watch the film in the next few days, so maybe I'll come back with some bigger ideas then.

Eh, I don't think it's nearly as prevalent as you're making it out to be...but I do see where you're coming from. Funnily enough, KOTM has the exact opposite problem (among many others )

Added in 3 minutes 46 seconds:

Someone uploaded footage with "original theatrical MPC brightness" shared through some kind of convention. Basically, this is how the movie appeared in theaters, or is the closest thing we'll probably get.

Beautiful. Still bums me out that one of the biggest things people complain about with G14 is "it's too dark"...and that's not even the film's fault.

[Chrispy_G]

Eh, I don't think it's nearly as prevalent as you're making it out to be...but I do see where you're coming from. Funnily enough, KOTM has the exact opposite problem (among many others )

Added in 3 minutes 46 seconds:

Someone uploaded footage with "original theatrical MPC brightness" shared through some kind of convention. Basically, this is how the movie appeared in theaters, or is the closest thing we'll probably get.

Beautiful. Still bums me out that one of the biggest things people complain about with G14 is "it's too dark"...and that's not even the film's fault.

Yes, and it is a trade-off. I certainly think I prefer a movie being a LITTLE too fast as opposed to being a little too slow. I think KOTM is much more effectively paced and structured than G14.

Even if there were only about 5 minutes to 'shave off' from G14, I still think it would do the film some good. Hell, even if they came out and said 'we trimmed 3 minutes out of the movie and added 3 more minutes of Godzilla screen-time and monster battles' I think that would tip the scales dramatically in a positive direction as far as the "balance" of the film.

Like I said, I'm not some ADHD viewer who needs lightning fast editing(I generally can't stand the way Michael Bay chops his films to ribbons)....but almost every time I watch G14 I find myself actively feeling that "deliberate" dilly-dally kind of pace.

Edwards knows how to build to a big cinematic moment, but he also seems to lack the precision to know when something needs to play out a little tighter. He squeezes the lemon a bit too much.

And yes....LORD WILLING they will eventually give G14 the 4K HDR upgrade...and that new transfer will have a lot of the brightness/color issues corrected.

Hell, maybe when the movie doesn't feel aggressively dampened and darkened, the heightened visual appeal will help the flow of the film a bit more and it won't feel quite so dragged out.

[Italian G-Fan]

Someone uploaded footage with "original theatrical MPC brightness" shared through some kind of convention. Basically, this is how the movie appeared in theaters, or is the closest thing we'll probably get.

Jesus it was really this bright in other theaters? In mine it was just as dark as the home video release.

[Godzilla165]

I never noticed how the female bites the hell out of Godzilla's fingers at the beginning, and he rips them away in pain. Pretty cool detail that wouldn't have been seen otherwise because of how obnoxiously dark the Bluray version was.

[G1985]

Someone uploaded footage with "original theatrical MPC brightness" shared through some kind of convention. Basically, this is how the movie appeared in theaters, or is the closest thing we'll probably get.

Jesus it was really this bright in other theaters? In mine it was just as dark as the home video release.

Saw it twice in the theater (both times in 3D), and yes it was that bright. It's also about that bright (or at least it's that clear) on the Blu-ray 3D disk.

Added in 2 minutes 18 seconds:

And yes....LORD WILLING they will eventually give G14 the 4K HDR upgrade...and that new transfer will have a lot of the brightness/color issues corrected.

Amen to that! I'm looking forward to a 4K release with a corrected transfer even more than I am to GVK!