A Zed and Two Noughts - Peter Greenaway

(aka "A Zoo: A Zed & Two Noughts")

directed by Peter Greenaway
UK 1985

While visiting Groombridge in Kent my attention kept returning to the moated manor house in the beautifully maintained gardens. As I was wondering why it looked so familiar I noticed a plaque with the heading ‘The Draughtsman’s View’. Of course! Looking around I could hear Michael Nyman’s score in my head and almost imagine Anthony Higgins walking along the path wearing that fabulous wig of long dark curls.

It’s about time that Mr Greenaway’s films received a DVD release. His visuals, even those of decaying carcasses as in ‘A Zed and Two Noughts’, are some of the most stunning I have seen. They are reminiscent of rich oil paintings inviting you to reach out and caress the textures on the screen.

‘The Draughtsman’s Contract’ utilizes my favourite recurring theme in Greenaway’s films, which involves women doing away with the men in their lives. His stories are definitely unique and can be somewhat unsettling but once viewed they are seldom forgotten.

Wendy Carey

(Aka Cissie Colpitts )

Posters

Theatrical Release: April 9th, 1985 - UK

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DVD Comparison:

Fox / Lorber - Region 0 - NTSC vs. BFI - Region 2 - PAL

Big thanks to Bill McApline for Fox/lorber captures!

(Fox/Lorber - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. BFI - Region 2 - PAL - RIGHT)

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Fox - Lorber Region 0 - NTSC	BFI Region 2 - PAL
Runtime	1:56:36	1:51:48 (4% PAL speedup)
Video	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 4.92 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 7.29 PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Fox Lorber
Bitrate: BFI
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Subtitles	None	French, Dutch and none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Fox Lorber Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterbox - 1.66:1 Edition Details: • All Regions • Color, Widescreen • Production notes • Widescreen letterbox format DVD Release Date: June 10, 2003 Keep Case Chapters 9	Release Information: Studio: BFI Video Publishing Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.66:1 Edition Details: • Director Commentary by Peter Greenaway • Selected Scenes from "?0, zoo!" - The making of a fiction film (6:54) • Introduction to the Film by Peter Greenaway (6:39) • Trailer for "The Draughtsman's Contract" and "A Zed and Two Noughts" DVD Release Date: February 23rd, 2004 Transparent Keep Case Chapters 26

Comments:

ADDITION: Zeitgeist - coming soon!

The BFI release is much brighter than the Fox Lorber. The colors are definitely different and my guess is the anamorphic BFI is more accurate. The Fox seems to have a sepia/greenish tinge to it. Unfortunately because the native resolution of the BFI is so much higher than the Fox (1024 -> 720)- the screen captures must be parsed down not giving a totally accurate representation of superior image quality in this case. If you have a projection system or widescreen TV you will definitely want the BFI version. Likewise if you are a big fan or Greenaway and the film - you will want the BFI version for the commentary, Greenaway's intro etc. The BFI image is slightly cropped - looks to be around 4% - the same as if you anamorphized a 1.85 film to 1.78. The BFI version has wonderful animated menus with sound. Our choice is the BFI version.

Gary W. Tooze

DVD Menus

(Fox/Lorber - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. BFI - Region 2 - PAL - RIGHT)