Perhaps the low rating is due to the atrocious print shown on TCM of this ten minute short produced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and narrated by Cecil B. DeMille, who took no credit for his services.
The murky print barely has time to dwell on any of the film footage it uses from various films. The screen actually turns white during a segment from Laurence Olivier's HAMLET, the blotchiest of all the film clips used. Equally murky footage from famous films like MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY and other historical epics makes the short almost unwatchable.
DeMille's commentary is obvious, not enlightening, and the whole short subject looks like it hasn't been restored since it was made more than half a century ago. It's hard to believe the Academy hasn't bothered to restore it by now or that a better print wasn't available to TCM.
Not worth commenting on, really.
The murky print barely has time to dwell on any of the film footage it uses from various films. The screen actually turns white during a segment from Laurence Olivier's HAMLET, the blotchiest of all the film clips used. Equally murky footage from famous films like MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY and other historical epics makes the short almost unwatchable.
DeMille's commentary is obvious, not enlightening, and the whole short subject looks like it hasn't been restored since it was made more than half a century ago. It's hard to believe the Academy hasn't bothered to restore it by now or that a better print wasn't available to TCM.
Not worth commenting on, really.