The image above is a pair of screenshots from two sources of James Cameron's masterpiece, Aliens, from 1986. The one on the left is from the original Blu-Ray release, and the one on the right is from the most recent 4K remaster. If you look closely, you will notice a massive difference between the two: the 4K remaster is cleaner, as in there are no signs of grain, noise, or blemishes. Popular conjecture would have us believe that this is an enhancement of the classic film, an upgrade of sorts that makes the film "better" or "more visually appealing," and so on. While modern technology has come a long way in terms of restoration and remasters, I find this particular case to be an unfortunate one because, in an effort to "enhance" a classic, they have instead erased a fundamental aspect of the film, which made it so memorable and visually distinct; they have removed the film's tangible texture!
Regular readers of my blog will undoubtedly recall a previous entry wherein I discussed and argued for the cinematic merits of grain and noise. While aspects of that discussion will likely repeat themselves here, this particular case is less about defending an artistic style and more about attacking (for want of a better word) a modern practice in restoration and remastering that, in this filmmaker's opinion, is counterproductive, unsatisfying, and, ultimately, a massive disservice to the art of filmmaking as a whole!
Our journey began (arguably) in 1997 with the release of Star Wars: The Special Edition. Legendary filmmaker and technological pioneer George Lucas took it upon himself to utilize the rise in advancements in digital technology and remaster his original Star Wars films to fit into the vision he originally had but could not yet practically realize. This included restoring deleted scenes, inserting additional special effects, and cleaning up the original film negative for a sleeker and smoother presentation. Since then, the original Star Wars trilogy has undergone many further adjustments and "enhancements," as George or the rights holders have seen fit over the years.
Among the many changes and fixes that have been made, the one thing that many Star Wars fans, myself included, have been demanding is a new release of the original unaltered trilogy in a modern high-definition format. After years of technological advancements, an official release of the original unaltered trilogy still evades us today. The closest we have is the unofficial fan edit of the trilogy, The Despecialized Edition, which is available for download. To this day, it remains the best possible version of the original Star Wars trilogy many of us have come to love.
Much like George Lucas, the equally talented and visionary James Cameron has been fascinated with the changes and advancements in filmmaking technology. Look no further than his technologically fascinating (albeit narratively weak) Avatar series. However, just like George, James has an unhealthy desire to "fix" some of the things about his earlier films that, while likely bothersome to himself, became charming aspects of their works that rendered them timeless and endearing.
Here's a perfect example:
In James Cameron's most excellent film, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, there is a chase scene early in the film between the young John Connor, the T-1,000 out to kill him, and Arnold's protector character trying to catch up to the chase. At one point, the chase moves from the city streets to the Los Angeles River. After a few minutes of John riding away from the colossal semi-truck, Arnold's character literally jumps into the fray and makes his way to rescue young John.
This chase scene includes a few shots in which it is pretty apparent the person driving the Motorcycle is not Arnold himself, but rather his stunt double with a similar enough build and facial structure (no doubt enhanced with some practical make-up) that allows him to pass as Arnold for those brief seconds of screentime. This little happy accident remained in most releases of the film all the way up to the Blu-Ray copy.
However, for the film's most recent 4K restoration, James Cameron took it upon himself to fix that little happy accident by digitally replacing the stunt double's face with Arnold's, or at least the closest approximation to his younger face at the time. This may seem minor, and, for the most part, it is, but making that little change, even so many years after the fact, robs the film of an essential part of its charm.
One of the reasons we enjoy movies of this caliber is knowing full well that they're not real and enjoying the little slips here and there that remind us how much of a human endeavor it was to bring the story to life. A good movie with a fantastic story and occasional mishaps that reveal the artifice adds to the charm. But a bad movie with a terrible story will make its technological mishaps more noticeable and highly mockable.
Also, the 4K restoration only includes the original theatrical release of Terminator 2 and not the superior director's cut, which is still available on Blu-Ray; happy accidents and all, thank goodness!
This was the first sign that future remasters of James Cameron's films wouldn't be as faithfully recreated as they deserved to be. This brings us back to the main subject of this blog entry, Aliens.
This action-packed and dramatically weighted film has endured as one of the best entries in the Alien franchise. Much like Terminator 2, Aliens is considered one of the best examples of a proper sequel. It also sports its own superior director's cut, which is also available on Blu-Ray. But, just like the 4K remaster of Terminator 2, Aliens would not be immune to Jim's hubris and would suffer the indignity of what I consider to be James Cameron's equivalent to George Lucas' Han-Shot-First debacle.
Part of what gives Aliens its charming identity is its visuals. Not only in special effects and gripping action scenes but primarily in its overall visual presentation. Aliens was captured on Kodak Eastman 400T film stock with Canon K35 lenses. This combination, along with a lighting design that utilized heavy shadows and high contrast, created images that were not only painterly as described by previous users but also drenched in grain & noise, creating a tangible layer of texture that makes the images pop in a way that, to this day, is nearly impossible to recreate. Not because of technological limitations but because of popular pressure.
When James Cameron took on the task of supervising the 4K remaster of the film, the most prominent change he made was to run the film through a denoiser. This program cleans up and removes particles such as grain and other blemishes from the images, creating a brand-new print of a film that is, while perceivably cleaner and smoother, also possesses an uncomfortable effect akin to the uncanny valley.
No matter how advanced technology progresses or how much more "intelligence" you put into A.I., no amount of computer power can effectively remove an image's original texture without negatively impacting the human charm that image once possessed!
Technology has led to beautiful remasters of classic films for glorious preservation and redistribution. A great example was when I finally saw the masterpiece Lawrence of Arabia in a brand new 4K remaster of the original film negative, with no enhancements or digital adjustments aside from primary color recreation.
Despite what television manufacturers, camera designers, and especially famous conjectures would have you believe, not every movie in existence needs to be "fixed" or "adjusted" to look more like it was made yesterday rather than long ago.
Sometimes, revisiting a film you created can produce more fantastic depictions and presentations of your intended artistic vision. Look no further than The Final Cut of the science fiction masterpiece Blade Runner. But when you allow yourself to fall into the trap of thinking, nay believing, that you must "enhance" your classic film to better suit modern technological demands, you are not only doing your own work a terrible disservice, but you are also abandoning your own artistic integrity.
Films endure because of tender restoration and preservation, not to mention the love from audiences worldwide. We fall in love with our favorite movies for everything they are, faults and all. If you can't love something for what it is, how can you be expected to love it if you smear a coat of shiny paint over it? True acceptance applies to anything and everything in the tangential world! The sooner that becomes the norm, the better we will all be as creators and observers.
Let the grain stay!
Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.
