Customer Reviews

Chronos-With Ultimate DVD Promo Unit [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

Originally released as an IMAX film in the mid-80s, Chronos on DVD unfortunately can not match the power of the IMAX experience. But really; what TV can compete with a 5-story-high screen? I saw the film three times in IMAX and each time I saw something new and amazing. I couldn't wait to get this film on DVD. Any shortcomings the Chronos DVD has are related to the size and clarity of the image as displayed on a television, not the film's content. The images of earthly constructions both natural and man-made are drop-dead-gorgeous, and the music -- a nonstop electronic instrumental score -- is mesmerizing. At roughly 45 minutes in length, you'll not want it to end. The disc has a spare and clunky interface and no special features, but who cares? Chronos is a wonder that I find myself watching again and again.

For those who loved the Qatsi Trilogy and Baraka, this is a welcome addition to your collection. It's completely time-elapse cinematography which features some compelling locations, particularly the interior of the Vatican and the Pyramids at Giza. It's a little shorter in length than the other films I mentioned above, and in my opinion the music, with its eerie synthesized tones dates the film (circa 1984), but it's worth the very affordable price the disc is retailing for now. This special collector's edition DVD also includes some interesting interviews with the crew about their experiences during the making of the film, and the groundbreaking camera that was invented specifically for this project.
All in all, if you're a fan of Baraka and the Qatsi Trilogy or just time-elapse photography then you will certainly appreciate this early contribution to it's genre.

Released in 1985, "Chronos" is a forty-minute long "visual-music journey". It is a Presentation of the Reuben H. Fleet Space Theater of San Diego, California and S.E.M. Lagode, Paris, France.

"Chronos" was filmed on location at over sixty sites around the globe. Images of significant natural beauty, architectural complexity, iconic historical sculpture and various panoramic cityscapes were captured on 70mm film using mostly slow motion and time lapse cinematography.

The wordless narrative structure of the work primarily attempts to convey feelings of reverence and appreciation for the breath-taking subject matter. In addition, it also suggests states of significant anxiety experienced as a consequence of the pace and complexity of modern urban life.

Electronic music, composed and performed by Michael Stearns, is thoroughly integrated with the considered, slowly paced editing of Alton Walpole and Ron Fricke. Image and sound interpenetrate one another to suggest and convey the eloquent wordless scenario, which was conceived by both Constantine and Genevieve Nicholas.

Having begun as cinematographer for director Godfrey Reggio's film "Koyaanisqatsi", we see with "Chronos" that Ron Fricke helped to sow the visual and conceptual seeds of wordless narrative film. This medium finally bore satisfying fruit with 1992's feature length work "Baraka". "Chronos", however, remains as essential viewing.

By this passionate evidence of Mr. Fricke's ongoing struggle, we see that their is, at last, some sign of harmonious life beyond the scenario of Godfrey Reggio's dire trilogy.

I saw this when IMAX was brand new (last century) and was blown away by the scope and beauty of the piece. I was so happy to get it on DVD (I had VHS,too). But this Blu-Ray version is definatly the best! I'll admit, while it doesn't look as "perfect" as say, "Cars" on BD, it is very much VERY WATCHABLE and only the very pickiest of video geeks would be distracted by the PRACTICALLY NON-EXISTANT grain, outline or color uneveness. A much better transfer than I expected, near perfect, especially considering the age of the film. The DRS company did a fine job.
As far as the film itself, this is a "Bolero". Not intended for ADD viewers or fast food consumers. This is art, not product. It's Fricke's first major film (that I'm aware of). It's a beautiful exploration of the passing of time with unpresidented cinematography. Films like this are why I got my big screen hi-def TV and BD player. Other movies are fun, and look great, it's true, but Fricke's work a whole different world.

I remember seeing "Chronos" way back in 1987 at the IMAX theater in Los Angeles. I thought it was really great, especially the fantastic soundtrack by Michael Stearns and Constance Demby. This DVD is beautifully done, a better quality version of the IMAX experience. I do agree that the layout of scenes should have been more progressive from location to location instead of jumping from one location of the world to another. Even with this error in editing pace, the film stands as a wonderful tribute to the beauty of nature and chaotic life on Earth. I've always loved seeing time-lapse photography in action. It's amazing how a city at night, like Los Angeles in the film, appears as if it is a big circuit board with constant energy currents flowing through it where the freeways are located. This film has awakened my keen desire to get the soundtrack. It is wonderfully atmospheric with celestial tones that bring the listener into a realm of aural pleasure. The DVD also has an audio commentary track well worth listening too. Michael Stearns, Alton Walpole and Ron Fricke give a lot of interesting facts on a scene-by-scene perspective of the production. There are also some in-depth behind-the-scenes featurettes that give more info. on how the film was created as well, plus plenty of textual info on the locations, people and other movie-related things. For me, I loved the short featurette by Michael Steans on "The Beam" instrument used for soundtrack. Another excellent IMAX movie created by Ron Fricke and Michael Stearns at the same time as "Chronos" was "Sacred Site", which played as a double bill with "Chronos" in 1987. I really like this movie, more so the soundtrack. As mentioned before, the only thing that stands out as a slight negative point is the weird editing style of jumping around to different worldly locations so quickly instead of progressively moving from one place to another. One minute you are in Monument Valley, Arizona and the next you are viewing the Giza Pyramids in Eygpt, then you're on Lake Powell in Utah. I don't mind, but it is an odd way of editing.

It has come as a shock to learn that a truly, Special Edition of this pre-cursor to Baraka exists. I have owned the laserdisc to Chronos for a long time. Suffice to say, the IMAX picture featured on this dvd is STUNNING; it is a vast improvement over what I've seen before. This version contains a multitude of extras: commentary, a shot-list, and much more. WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN NOW: I am on my knees begging for the SAME treatment to be done to Ron Fricke's masterpiece - BARAKA. The current dvd edition of that film is woefully slight, featuring only as an extra an 8 minute "featurette" - nothing more. If only Baraka could be remastered, be given a commentary by Fricke, and DEFINITELY a subtitling option listing the name of each location (full shot-list) would serve humanity itself for the greater good. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!

Great film but very short compared to Baraka. Otherwise, an awesome film. It was a 4 star film but I deducted one star for brevity.

Playing my Chronos Blu-Ray I was literally shocked at the incredibly poor image quality that was possible in a transfer to Blu-Ray. As one reviewer stated - even some standard-def DVDs look better. The image resolution is not what I expected from a HD format. Excessive grain permeates even the brightly lit scenes. The constant brightness shifting or flickering was simply annoying and was present throughout the entire presentation. The shaky image in the first Grand Canyon scene looked amateurish. I thought Chronos in Blu-Ray would be an impressive feature to show off the capabilities of HD , unfortunately I would be embarrassed to show this to anyone.

The subject matter of Chronos was impressive in some locations but the harmonious blend from scene to scene that was displayed in Baraka was not present , simply a conglomeration of shots that seemed to be added together with no real theme. The dated music (even by 1980s standards) by Michael Stearns makes watching this poor quality Blu-Ray that much more unbearable.

Basically the worst image quality Blu-Ray I have ever watched.

I watch "Chronos" on a fairly regular basis. Purely a concept film (no dialogue, characters, plot, etc.), the deft editing, combined with one of Michael Stearns' most powerful musical efforts, results in an almost psychedelic experience. The film is an engaging experiment in the documentation of and toying with the passage of time, both in the historical sense (progression from "barbarism" to civilisation) and in the chronological sense, alternately slowing down and speeding up the sequences to varying degrees. The final "scene" (as it were) is magnificent, bringing the acceleration of time to its logical conclusion. Purely an audio-visual experience, it is best seen on as large a screen as one can afford and with an equally powerful sound system.

In a word, this film is stunning. In many ways, this film truly shows how incredible the IMAX format can be. Beautiful cinematography and a haunting and powerful score by Micheal Stearns make for a truly memorable film experience. This film was directed shot by Ron Frick, the cinematographer behind the legendary, Koyaanisqatsi. With a theme that more celebrates man's achievements rather than condems them (as was the the case in Koyaanisquatsi), Frick and Stearns take you for a real ride.

When I saw this was on DVD, I jumped! I rushed home, threw it into my brand new DVD player and component, Sony monitor and sat back in anticipation of being mesmerized all over again. Unfortunately, that did not happen. Why! Primarily because the DVD transfer is just awful. It was apparently taken from an old video tape telecine. The print is dirty and floats in the film gate, the video tape format was apparently composite - possibly an old 1" video transfer (dot crawl and all) and, the compression is poor - nasty blockies and "mosquitoes." Even the 16 bit, 48kHz audio is mediochre as it seems to have come off of the same old video master.

Considering the potential of DVD, it is a real shame such a great film received such poor treatment. To be fair, this appears to have been a "first generation" DVD release where such things as direct, digital transfers and 24p encoding may not have been available yet.

Hopefully, this as well as Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqatsi and Buraka will all be released on DVD using state-of-the-art transfer and encoding techniques. I am eagerly awaiting (probably foolishly).

Ah well...

--JK--