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'Blade Runner' is one of my favourite films ever since I got the 'Director's Cut' VHS in 1992 (I think it might have been the first "widescreen" film I owned?). But I just can't bring myself to watch it anymore because the colours on 'The Final Cut' are so messed up that it's unbearable for me and knowing it's available in HD means I can't enjoy it in any resolution below that from the older "correct" releases. Also I primarily want to watch the superior FC version with all the subtle fixes, not the various older cuts.
So for the past year or more I've been experimenting with 'Regrading' the FC. At first I thought it might be impossible to fix as the colours are just so crazy. But I kept going back to it every few days and trying new things, sometimes getting closer, sometimes getting further away. I bought a copy of the 'Director's Cut' on DVD, the original DVD, not the current DVD that also has the FC colours. I used that to compare and also brought in the workprint as a comparison.
Finally last week I think I hit on a preset that fixes all the problems for most of the film. Of course it will need adjust scene-by-scene and then shot-by-shot but for most shots it's pretty close. Here is a few minutes from the start of 'Blade Runner' with the new grade...
(Password: fanedit.org)
I'll post some comparison screenshots soon. In the meantime here is a teaser poster (With a nod to the source novel)...
(^Click image to see fullres version)
Right now I'm intending to release this as a high-quality Blu-Ray compatible MKV, including all the audio tracks from the official disc. But I may also try to sync up the other commentaries and audio tracks including the voiceover to make an ultimate package.
(Mega thanks to Captain Khajiit for helping me get a lossless source file together from the annoying VC-1 encoded Blu-Ray).