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http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/direct-chair/hitchcock.htm
USA 1955

One of the most lightweight (and not even particularly deceptively so) of Hitchcock's comedy-thrillers; a retreat from the implications of Rear Window into the realm of private jokes and sunny innuendo, with a Cτte d'Azur romance that hinges on Kelly's testing of retired high-line thief Grant, to find whether 'The Cat' has indeed been neutered or is still able to prowl the Riviera rooftops. Even determined analysts Rohmer and Chabrol had to take comfort in celebrating Hitch's 'flowers of rhetoric': the famous image of the cigarette stubbed out in an egg, and the cheeky clichι of cross-cutting foreplay and fireworks.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

Posters

 

Theatrical Release Date: August 5, 1955

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Comparison:

Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount (Centennial Collection 2-disc) - Region 1,4 - NTSC vs. Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray

 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC LEFT

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT

 

Box Cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

DistributionParamount Home Video Region 1 - NTSCParamount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSCParamount (Centennial Collection) Region 1, 4 - NTSCParamount  Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime1:46:20 1:46:201:46:201:46:31.927
Video1.78:1 - Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 6.48 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
1.78:1 - Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 6.66 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
1.78:1 - Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 8.23 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

1080P / 23.976 fps Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 43,962,173,600 bytes

Feature: 36,002,881,536 bytes

Video Bitrate: 38.00 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate:

Paramount Original

 

Bitrate:

Paramount Special Collector's Edition

 

Bitrate:

Paramount Centennial Edition

 

Bitrate:

Paramount Blu-ray

 

AudioEnglish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), Dub- French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), DUB: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital  Mono), DUBs: French and Spanish (Dolby Digital Mono) Dolby TrueHD Audio English 1129 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1129 kbps / 24-bit (AC3 Embedded: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / DN -4dB / Dolby Surround)
Dolby TrueHD Audio English 745 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 745 kbps / 16-bit (AC3 Embedded: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / DN -4dB)
Dolby Digital Audio English 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps
Dolby Digital Audio French 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / DN -4dB
Dolby Digital Audio Portuguese 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / DN -4dB
Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / DN -4dB
SubtitlesEnglish, NoneEnglish, NoneEnglish, French, Spanish, None English, English (SDH) French, Portuguese, Spanish, None
FeaturesRelease Information:
Studio: Paramount Home Video

Aspect Ratio(s):
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1

Edition Details:
• 4 new featurettes: "Writing and Casting" ( 9 minutes ), 

• "The Making of To Catch a Thief" ( 17 minutes ), 

• "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" ( 7 minutes )
• "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette ( 14 minutes )

•  Photo gallery slideshow format with music  ( 50 + images and posters )

•  4:3 Trailer ( 2:08 )

 

DVD Release Date: November 5th, 2002
Keep Case
Chapters: 18

Release Information:
Studio: Paramount Home Video

Aspect Ratio(s):
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1

Edition Details:
•  Commentary by: Peter Bognanovich and Laurent Bouzereau
• 4 new featurettes: "Writing and Casting" ( 9 minutes ), 

• "The Making of To Catch a Thief" ( 17 minutes ), 

• "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" ( 7 minutes )
• "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette ( 14 minutes )

•  4:3 Trailer ( 2:08 )

 

DVD Release Date: May 8th, 2007
Keep Case
Chapters: 18

Release Information:
Studio: Paramount Home Video

Aspect Ratio(s):
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1

Edition Details:
•  Commentary by Dr. Drew Casper
Disc 2

• A Night With the Hitchcocks (23;20) 

• Unacceptable Under Code: Film Censorship in America (11:47), 

• "Writing and Casting of To Catch a Thief ( 9:04)

• "The Making of To Catch a Thief" (16:59)
• Behind the Gates: Cary Grant and Grace Kelly (6:12)

• "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" (7 :31)

• "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette (13:42)

• If You Love To Catch a Thief You'll Love this Interactive Travelogue

• Galleries

•  4:3 Trailer ( 2:08 )

• 8-page liner notes with photos

 

DVD Release Date: March 24th, 2009
Keep Case inside cardboard box
Chapters: 18

Release Information:
Studio: Paramount Home Video

1080P / 23.976 fps Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 43,962,173,600 bytes

Feature: 36,002,881,536 bytes

Video Bitrate: 38.00 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Edition Details:
•  Commentary by Dr. Drew Casper
• A Night With the Hitchcocks (23:22 in 480i) 

• Unacceptable Under Code: Film Censorship in America (11:49 in 480i), 

• "Writing and Casting of To Catch a Thief ( 9:03 in 480i)

• "The Making of To Catch a Thief" (16:54 in 480i)
• Behind the Gates: Cary Grant and Grace Kelly (6:12 in 480i)

• "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" (7 :32 in 480i)

• "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette (13:44 in 480i)

• If You Love To Catch a Thief You'll Love this Interactive Travelogue

• Galleries (Movie, Publicity, Procution, Visitors on Set)

•  ( 2:13 in 1080P )

 

Blu-ray Release Date: March 6th, 2012
 Blu-ray Case inside cardboard box
Chapters: 18

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were ripped directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Paramount - Region FREE Blu-ray - February 12': Beautiful. To Catch a Thief looks marvelous on dual-layered Blu-ray from Paramount. Everything tightens-up impressively and the contrast takes notable strides in the 1080P resolution. Unfortunately, it is still in the 1.78:1 frame. There is some depth to the widescreen adding a scope-factor to the visuals. Colors also appear to improve with better balance in the presentation that has more than 4X the bitrate of the last SD transfer. There is a fair dusting of grain and no disturbing noise. I see no signs of digital manipulation. This is a very positive representation. By far the best viewing I have ever had of this film.

The Blu-ray offers both a stereo 2.0 channel and an original mono track via, the less used, Dolby TrueHD. The music, scored by Lyn Murray, sounds super through the lossless rendering. Creeping footsteps on the rooftops produce subtle taps and clicks and there is some perceived depth. This track sounds improved to me - certainly different with a more pronounced high-end. There are optional subtitles and the disc is region FREE, playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

Extras are duplicated from the Centennial Edition with hour's worth of video supplements and Dr. Drew Casper's excellent commentary. These are all in 480i (SD) but a trailer is provided in 1080P - and, of course, the galleries. We get all the extra features on one disc now but lose the 8-page liner notes leaflet.

Easy recommendation - true fans should notice the a/v bump and be very pleased. This is the best presentation I have ever seen or heard To Catch a Thief - a film fondly remembered for its romantic and colorful visuals. Those who love Hitchcock can buy with confidence.   

***

ADDITION: 2-disc Centennial Edition - Region 1- March 09': Third time's a charm right? This is a significant improvement over the 2007 edition with a higher bitrate and the rendering of colors is far superior with no hint of boosting as we saw in the SE. Wow - aside from seeing this in Blu-ray - this is fabulous news. By placing the film on one disc without any extras (aside from the new commentary) the compression has improved and even detail has advanced a notch. The softer palette suits the film very well and it has a warmth that was devoid in the previous editions.

Audio offers the same mono and 2.0 channel options with DUBs in French and now Spanish and both foreign languages are added to the subtitle choices. The disc is region coded for 1 and 4 so is set to sell in South America as well now.

Extras also improve. We have a new commentary by Dr. Drew Casper. He goes into some solid detail about points of the film that I was previously unaware withy his occasional flashes of exuberance. He has a great manner for commentary and I enjoyed him as I have done in the past. He has a wealth of knowledge to impart - especially on Hitch. On a 2nd disc the 4 previous featurettes are still there - "Writing and Casting" (9 minutes), "The Making of To Catch a Thief" (17 minutes), "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" (7 minutes) and "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette (14 minutes). Added are A Night With the Hitchcocks (23:20) from USC, Nov 2008 - we some scholar and other getting together to discuss the Master. Unacceptable Under Code: Film Censorship in America seems familiar to me but has some amusement running about 10 minutes. There is a brief 6 minutes on Behind the Gates: Cary Grant and Grace Kelly and a superfluous If You Love To Catch a Thief You'll Love this Interactive Travelogue and Galleries section. So, nothing new/worthy there outside the Casper commentary although some may enjoy the Night With the Hitchcocks.

I can understand being upset about the triple-dipping but Paramount are improving each edition - in every regard! the good news - at the time of this writing the disc is on Pre-order for a 48% discount. At the price offered it's an excellent bargain for what this package entails. For the 3rd time, yes - we recommend!  

***

ADDITION: Collector's Edition - Region 1- April 07': An improvement... in every area. The restored image is far smoother, less artifacts, less damage marks and colors are dramatically different - a strong improvement especially noted in skin tones... but still looks a bit boosted to me and too green. There is also some movement in the frame with many scenes showing less on top but more on the bottom of the frame. Unlike the original release the news Collector's edition is tight to the frame edges. In regards to image I think the screen captures give a good representation of the differences. It is an improvement.

Menus are the same but the supplements have added a Peter Bognanovich and Laurent Bouzereau commentary. I always like listening to Bognanovich and he casually relates some good information. The old featurettes are still there and this is definitely the definitive edition to date and the price is a steal.

***

On the original release: This release has been much anticipated by the Home Theater crowd and initial reviews showed disappointment. It may possibly have been because many of us have been spoiled by technically superior transfers such as 'Vertigo' and 'North by Northwest'.  The elements of 'To Catch a Thief' were not in very good condition to start with and it is obvious that a full restoration at this point was not totally cost effective for Paramount. The image quality is quite poor indeed... not tight to the frame edges (losing horizontal resolution), many scratches and rife with artifacts, colors at times look awful - Ughhhh. The Trailer in the extras is in Full Screen format, which I was not particularly happy with, but the featurettes are a nice touch.  out of

Gary Tooze


Menus

(Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC LEFT vs. Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT)

 

Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC

 

Disc 2

Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray


CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

Screen Capture

 

 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

Subtitle Sample - NOTE: Not exact frame

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 


 

1) Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC SECOND

3) Paramount (Centennial Collection) - Region 1, 4 - NTSC THIRD

4) Paramount - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

More Blu-ray Captures

 

 

Box Cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

DistributionParamount Home Video Region 1 - NTSCParamount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSCParamount (Centennial Collection) Region 1, 4 - NTSCParamount  Region FREE - Blu-ray

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Gary Tooze

Many Thanks...