Just Imagine?

[ffutures]

The news of the original Metropolis cut being found reminded me that I've been trying to get a copy of the 1930 film "Just Imagine" for some time - it's an SF musical set in 1980, allegedly not terribly good but I want to see what their version of the future is like.

I've seen several reviews which give me the impression that it may have been available in the USA comparatively recently, possibly on tape or DVD. Anyone know anything about this?

Comments

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

They play it pretty frequently on the cable Fox Movie Channel: http://www.foxmoviechannel.com

The set design and F/X are interesting, and huge amounts of it were recycled in other films and serials... you've probably seen half of it without knowing it ;-)

I've never seen it for sale... I've only seen it on FMC.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

I wonder if I know anyone with that service who could get it onto DVD for me..?

[parakkum.livejournal.com]

A place in Oregon has it on VHS for $20 American:

http://www.hollywoodsattic.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=3860

...and this is a link from a "movie search" company:

http://www.wings.to/rarevid/ji.htm?gclid=CO7kk7X2pJQCFScuagodAl5KuA

Not a price and an item for sale, as such, but they at least want you to think they can acquire it.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Can't play NTSC tapes, unfortunately, but I have no problem with American DVDs.

[murphys-lawyer.livejournal.com]

If you can get hold of an NTSC tape, I can convert it to DVD - as I'm sure others closer to you than Leeds can, but it's a thought.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Looks like a US DVD is available, I'd imagine it's copyright expired so it'll be an off-air recording but for my purposes probably good enough.

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

froogle.google.com searching "Just Imagine 1930" gives you:

http://cgi.ebay.com/DVD-Just-Imagine-science-fiction-musical-1930_W0QQitemZ310012323436QQcmdZViewItem

I don't know nuthin' about the seller or quality of the vid.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

He's not selling outside the USA anyway.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Although if I was to order it and ask him to send it to you, could you post it on to me?


Or maybe someone from the US will be travelling to Britain for the Continuum games con next month. I'll check on the usual mailing lists.

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

"Just Imagine" hasn't been released commercially, although it is, on occasion, aired on television. We showed it at Windycon on the in-hotel closed circuit television about three years ago. It is not terribly good. I actually have an article about it/review of it appearing in the next issue of Some Fantastic.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

I'm mainly interested for the "look and feel" of the setting.

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

Youtube:
Opening Credits (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_psmcq6BWs)

Drinking Song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WL7JJ4rsLR8&feature=related)

Never Swat a Fly (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE3-KcDzGDA&feature=related)

El Brendel Sings (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W9HOxA8m4U&feature=related)

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

And my Article (http://somefantastic.us/Issue_Archive/Issue_No_15.pdf) is now on-line.

[webbob.livejournal.com]

If this is the movie in which the Futurians suggest that liquidating the newly-awakened sleeper was a just and merciful response to his not fitting in, then I think I saw at least part of it a couple of decades ago. I think some time in the 1980s, either on the US PBS network or one of the Canadian government-supported television stations.

At that point it would have been on a commercial-grade analog video tape, I think. "Good" in the sense of funny only in ways that I believe were not originally intended to be funny. Somewhat interesting, but their version of the future was probably a parodic response to films like Metropolis and The Shape of Things to Come.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's the impression I have too, but my next RPG will be based on books written in the 1930s and set towards the end of the 20th century so it might give me some insights for "look and feel" for the setting.

[webbob.livejournal.com]

If you haven't found any other source, I now own a DVD (recorded from Fox Movie Network) and would be happy to forward it to you. I'd offer to set it up to stream or download to you, but the MPEG blocks as recorded on the disc have odd errors which makes all the software I've tried so far barf when trying to recode it as a stream or transcode it at a lower bit rate to make it easy to download.

Just copying the DVD seems to work quite well enough for DVD players, however, so I have nothing to lose by passing along this copy.

My regular e-mail address is webber AT panix and that's in the US commercial top level domain.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Someone in the USA was selling it on ebay, and a friend there has ordered a copy for me, I'm waiting to hear from him when he receives it. But if that falls through I'll get back to you.

[webbob.livejournal.com]

Most likely the same vendor I bought mine from: your request reminded me of the movie, and of the fact that I'd not seen it through to the end.

Please do let me know if you need a copy after all, I'd be happy to send it along.