LOST HORIZON DVD goof and replacement disc!

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 8:38am

I've seen a few threads about the new release of the 1973 musical "Lost Horizon" on DVD.

I was thrilled with Sony's efforts on this (gorgeous remastered image, plenty of extras), with one exception. The advance press release and subsequently many retail websites reported it had a brand new 5.1 audio mix. When the disc was released, it turned out the soundtrack was merely a mono mix (sounding okay, but definitely not 5.1 or even stereo).

It turns out that was a big mistake. Sony has corrected the problem, and I recieved a replacement disc yesterday with a fantastic 5.1 audio mix. For any of you who bought the DVD, I strongly recommend you exchange it from your point of sale (mine was Amazon). Check it out first, but all discs prior to about a week ago shipped with the incorrect mono soundtrack.

Amazon has currently taken this DVD off sale while they investigate why it happened (It wasn't their fault,but Sony will likely have to reimburse them for all exchanged discs).

I just wanted to let people know, since there was some enthusiastic interest here before.
Amazon LINK

[Roscoe]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 9:19am

I bought mine from Warner Archive, and customer service there told me that they had no information about any replacement program.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 11:42am

Keep pursuing it, Roscoe. Amazon just put the title on hold and "under review" yesterday. I exchanged mine just prior to that (and I'm probably one of the reasons they are investigating it now). Here's the info on the Home Theatre Forum about the issue and how it's being resolved. It's a rather long thread that picks up in the middle. But you can see several others are waiting for exchanges from Warner Archives as well.

It's worth the trouble to exchange it if you have a good sound system. The difference is huge.
Home Theatre Forum

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 11/23/11 at 3:32am

Does he replacement disc still have the mono soundtrack as an option? I know there were a lot of issues with the film's theatrical release--but it was first meant to be a major release--was it done in stereo originally (obviously not 5.1) or just mono?

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 11/23/11 at 3:46am

(And I am ashamed that I've known and, yes, loved this film since I was a young teen, and only in the past month realized its screenwriter Larry Kramer was *that* Larry Kramer...)

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/23/11 at 6:19am

No audio option. It's either the 5.1 disc or the mono (mistake) disc.

As for the original release, the roadshow version before the wide release had a 6-track stereo soundtrack. It also had several of the songs and some dialogue cut out of it before it went into wide release.

The wide release of Lost Horizon was in mono. No Fertility Dance, If I Could Go Back, Where Knowledge Ends (Faith Begins), etc. All have been restored to the film for this DVD.

The 5.1 mix on the new DVD is a brand new mix, created from the original source elements. It sounds much better than the mono, particularly if you have a good home theatre sound system. If you don't, it will "mix down" (something all DVD and BD players do) to mono anyway. But there is no additional mono soundtrack.

And yes, the screenplay was written by *that* Larry Kramer.

Updated On: 11/23/11 at 06:19 AM

[nygrl232]

Posted: 11/24/11 at 1:32am

In an interview Olivia Hussey said she was preggers when she filmed this movie. She didn't tell anyone. They had to keep letting out her costumes and asking her if she gained weight, and she kept denying everything until filming was over.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 11/24/11 at 4:25am

Thanks, I knew about the edited stuff and can't wait to see it (surel the fertility dance, which I've seen some of, is Hermes Pan's finest hour )

I still don't have a decent sound system for movies/dvds, just plain stereo and I admit sometimes (but not often) I find the new surround mixes for movies don't mix down to sound all that good and I prefer to use the original stereo mix. But that's not usually a problem.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 11/30/11 at 4:50pm

Diana Ross & Marvin Gaye - The Things I Will Not Miss

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 11/30/11 at 6:01pm

Wow,I had NO idea that existed! I don't even remember it being mentioned in that fantastic book that lists virtually every recording of a Bacharch song chronologically.