Finally, after unfulfilled rumor after rumor, it appears that the much-anticipated 6K remaster is finally near:
After all the care reputedly given the restoration, it's hard to imagine this won't be reference material.
http://digitalbits.com/#mytwocents Emphases mine.I guess we have one MORE MAJOR update for you. Warner has just informed us that they'll be releasing their long-awaited Ben-Hur: 50th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition on Blu-ray and DVD this fall! (You may recall, we first teased this release back in November of last year.) The "limited and numbered" edition will be available in stores in time for the holiday shopping season - specific street date and SRP TBA. Included will be a reproduction of the personal diary that Charlton Heston kept during the production, complete with personal photos and his own sketches. There will also be a new HD documentary on Heston's experiences during the making of the film, entitled Charlton Heston & Ben-Hur: A Personal Journey, which includes home movie footage shot by his wife Lydia inside the Colosseum set. That's in addition to all of the previous DVD special features, which include audio commentary, Ben-Hur: The 1925 Silent Version, the 2005 Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema documentary, the 1994 Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic documentary, the Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures A/V presentation (featuring photos, storyboards, sketches, music and dialogue from the film), screen tests, vintage newsreels, highlights from the 1960 Academy Awards ceremony, trailers and more. You'll also get an exclusive book filled with production photos, production art and a reproduction of the original theatrical press book. The Blu-ray version will feature 2 BD-50s, while the DVD version will be a 5-disc set. And let me tell you, I've now had the chance to see before and after images of the new 6K HD restoration for Blu-ray, taken from the original 65mm camera elements, and the difference is stunning.
After all the care reputedly given the restoration, it's hard to imagine this won't be reference material.