Paramount Home Entertainment has officially announced that Cecil B. Demille’s classic film The Ten Commandments will be available to own on 4K UHD Blu-Ray on March 30, 2021. To commemorate the film’s 65th anniversary in 2021, DeMille’s groundbreaking cinematic triumph will be available to watch at home in time for Easter in sparkling 4K Ultra HD with High Dynamic Range. The 4K film presentation contains an introduction by DeMille, an intermission, an overture/exit music card, and an entr’acte card, along with a DTS-HD 5.1 lossless soundtrack.
As part of the restoration done in 2010, the film was scanned in 6K and those files were the basis for this brand-new Dolby Vision version, which shows off the full beauty of the original VistaVision negative. The VistaVision format used special cameras to feed 35mm film into the camera horizontally in order to capture a wider image spread over two 35mm film frames, giving VistaVision twice the resolution of regular 35mm film. In addition, Paramount spent well over 150 hours doing new color work and clean-up on the scan. The move to Dolby Vision created the opportunity to further improve the look of the film: blacks are enhanced and improvements were made to smooth out special effects mattes to create the most vibrant and pristine image possible.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOa64YH8-8I]
Synopsis: For sheer pageantry and spectacle, few motion pictures can claim to equal the splendor of THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. DeMille’s last motion picture made Charlton Heston a superstar and remains an unprecedented achievement and perennial fan favorite. Filmed in Egypt and the Sinai with one of the biggest sets ever constructed for a motion picture, THE TEN COMMANDMENTS tells the story of the life of Moses (Heston). Once favored in the Pharaoh’s (Yul Brynner) household, Moses turned his back on a privileged life to lead his people to freedom.
The new set includes a 4K Ultra HD disc, two Blu-ray discs, and access to a Digital copy of the film. Following is a breakdown of the disc contents:
4K Ultra HD Disc
- 1956 feature film in 4K Ultra HD
- Commentary by Katherine Orrison, author of “Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille’s Epic The Ten Commandments”
Blu-ray Disc™ #1
- 1956 feature film in high definition (Part 1)
- Commentary by Katherine Orrison, author of “Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille’s Epic The Ten Commandments”
Blu-ray Disc™ #2
- 1956 feature film in high definition (Part 2)
- Commentary by Katherine Orrison, author of “Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille’s Epic The Ten Commandments”
- Newsreel footage of the film’s New York premiere
- Theatrical trailers, including at 10-minute “making of” trailer
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
