I’ve seen this classic numerous times, often in the rather tired or colourised prints which tend to be shown. Decided to watch it this year for its 70th anniversary (on-demand via AMC) and was delighted to see it in glorious, seemingly restored black and white! I’ve never seen it looking better! :-)
shareI wonder if AMC actually aired it this year or only offered it on demand. I haven't seen the movie on TV in many years. It definitely doesn't get the high-profile and frequent airings that films like It's A Wonderful Life or Elf get.
If you still buy films on physical media--I recommend doing so--then you may want to look into VCI's Diamond edition of the film on Blu-Ray. They did a good job restoring it and also put some pretty good special features on the disc, especially for an older film.
PrimeMinisterX, I certainly will. Thanks so much!
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I grew up watching this film with my dad on Channel 11 New York who would run it every Christmas Eve at midnight, but it was always a grungy copy.
Years ago I bought a copy on DVD, and it was the same VHS type quality as I remember on TV. Later, I bought the colorized version (horrors) and watched that because the colorization process brought out a lot of detail that simply disappeared in the shadows. For instance, Scrooge entering his house at night pretty much only showed him and the stairs, but in the colorized version, the entrance hall had detail.
Later, I bought a blu-ray version (B&W) and was stunned to find that this version was clearly transferred from film - possibly even restored film or a British archive copy at least. Yes, it was a tiny bit grainy but the contrast and detail were restored. Shadows now showed detail and the sharpness was amazing. That is now my favorite copy and that's the one I watch now.