This is an interesting but pretty worshipful account of the company and some of the films made in the process. It mostly ignores the competition, especially that of the 1920s when Technicolor wasn't really all that good. It also slights the hand-painted features of the Silent era, which were often far more beautiful (and far more expensive) than the early color films. It's also hard on Natalie Kalmus, the meddling company "consultant". But for better or worse, Kalmus had something to do with what people like about some of these films.
The best parts are the backstage bits some of which I've never seen anywhere else. There's a stunning wardrobe test of Vivien Leigh and some color snippets of the Marx Brothers. They give time to "La Cucaracha", an early feature, which many accounts of color skip right past to "Becky Sharp". Also good are the excerpts of interviews with cinematographers. It would be nice if we got to hear more from these under-appreciated guys, especially since so many of the clips and trailers that get shown instead are in lousy shape. Many of these faded clips frankly seem like a bad way to celebrate Technicolor films, especially since the films themselves have often been restored to mint condition ("The Adventures of Robin Hood" is a fine example of this).
There's a brief section on the use of Technicolor in England. They ignore the 1940 "Thief of Bagdad" (maybe the best-looking English color production) and spend a lot of time on the somewhat overrated "The Red Shoes", which has only one good sequence. I think they also fail to mention that Huston's "Moulin Rouge", which for my money is still the most beautiful use of color in a film to date, was made in England. (The "Moulin Rouge" DVD looks a lot better than the trailer they include here.) The show covers a lot of ground, especially Vincent Minnelli for some reason, so some innovative uses of Technicolor are ignored, like "Nothing Sacred" and "Leave Her to Heaven" and Lubitsch's "Heaven Can Wait". The show also more or less stops with the films of the 1950s. Technicolor continued to be used into the 1960s and 1970s, usually with a less saturated look, as in "The Godfather".
The best parts are the backstage bits some of which I've never seen anywhere else. There's a stunning wardrobe test of Vivien Leigh and some color snippets of the Marx Brothers. They give time to "La Cucaracha", an early feature, which many accounts of color skip right past to "Becky Sharp". Also good are the excerpts of interviews with cinematographers. It would be nice if we got to hear more from these under-appreciated guys, especially since so many of the clips and trailers that get shown instead are in lousy shape. Many of these faded clips frankly seem like a bad way to celebrate Technicolor films, especially since the films themselves have often been restored to mint condition ("The Adventures of Robin Hood" is a fine example of this).
There's a brief section on the use of Technicolor in England. They ignore the 1940 "Thief of Bagdad" (maybe the best-looking English color production) and spend a lot of time on the somewhat overrated "The Red Shoes", which has only one good sequence. I think they also fail to mention that Huston's "Moulin Rouge", which for my money is still the most beautiful use of color in a film to date, was made in England. (The "Moulin Rouge" DVD looks a lot better than the trailer they include here.) The show covers a lot of ground, especially Vincent Minnelli for some reason, so some innovative uses of Technicolor are ignored, like "Nothing Sacred" and "Leave Her to Heaven" and Lubitsch's "Heaven Can Wait". The show also more or less stops with the films of the 1950s. Technicolor continued to be used into the 1960s and 1970s, usually with a less saturated look, as in "The Godfather".