Oh good, I can finally get this and Mitchel on Blu-Ray.

WOW! It's Even More Crappy In HD!

Somehow... the older version seems better. I mean the poor lighting seems to suit the mood and ambiance better.

What I don't understand is why it was restored. It's a crap movie regardless of how good the image quality is. :P

Though it’s doubtful I will change anyone’s minds about Manos, I would like to send a message that every film, regardless of the place it holds in movie history, deserves a fair shot to be maintained and presented in the best way possible.

I don't buy that. You could remake the movie with a better budget and up-to-date special effects and it would still be a bad movie, so what is the point in restoring it? Manos makes for a good teaching aid on what not to do when you have a low budget for a movie, but it doesn't need any kind of restoration. Most movies really don't need it. At least nothing before the 50's or 60's anyway.
This reinforces the idea that a movie just has to look good to be worth watching. I enjoy a beautiful looking movie as much as anyone, but if everything else about it stinks then it's not really worth watching. It probably isn't financially sound either. I'm not sure how much it cost to restore a film, but I think the best that will happen is the guy breaking even on the restoration.
I think it would be a different argument if we were talking about a better film or a movie that can really benefit from a restoration (Wizard of OZ was a good example), but what more can we appreciate from this film with better coloring and lighting? In fact all it might do is highlight an even sadder experience than people got before. It could bring to light things you didn't see before that you don't want to or need to see like the shadow of the boom mic or a random soda can.
He's free to do what he wants, but I hardly see a point. If it was my creation, I'd leave it as is. It's in the past. Leave it there. :P

>so what is the point in restoring it?

The point, if you'd taken the time to read the blog entry about the restoration or even thought about the quote beyond the initial reading, is that Manos holds a place in film history -- not a great place, but a place nonetheless -- and it deserves to be restored for the simple fact that even the worst films deserve to be treated with respect. Hal Warren went through a lot of trouble to make Manos, and even if it's a shitty film, his efforts still deserve to be preserved in the highest quality possible so that we can see what Warren truly wanted us to see.

>This reinforces the idea that a movie just has to look good to be worth watching.

That's not true. Manos wasn't worth watching even back in its day; it's a piece of shit film with bad acting, bad special effects, and a bad plot. Watch that comparison again; the film's no better just because it's in high definition.

The point of the restoration isn't to say "this film's worth watching now that it's in hi-def" -- it's to say that "any film, regardless of whether it's good or bad, deserves a fair shot at being viewed in the best quality possible". The restoration is about giving Manos that fair shot.

>It probably isn't financially sound either. I'm not sure how much it cost to restore a film, but I think the best that will happen is the guy breaking even on the restoration.

According to the Kickstarter page for the restoration, 534 people have pledged $33,976 towards the restoration (the goal for the project was $10,000), and the guy doing the restoration plans to make it available on Blu-Ray (for a limited run) and potentially via digital download/DVD. As the restorer himself says:

While it remains to be seen if this film is for anything but a niche market, I also feel that if I don’t restore it no one else will.

>I think it would be a different argument if we were talking about a better film or a movie that can really benefit from a restoration (Wizard of OZ was a good example), but what more can we appreciate from this film with better coloring and lighting?

Manos is a nigh-unwatchable movie, I'll grant you that -- but for the first time, people will be able to see all of the mistakes Manos made in full clarity. Anyone can say that the film had horrible cinematography or lighting, but the only basis we've had to go on is the muddied, twentieth-generation print of the film.

I can understand why people would wonder why this restoration is happening, but I'm also taking the time to look at it from his perspective, which is why I both understand it and sympathize with it. I get why he's doing this, and I think it's a noble thing for him to do despite the quality of Manos.

You're free to feel however you wish, but think about his side of the situation for a moment: he found what is possibly the only surviving workprint of a movie widely considered to be one of the worst -- if not the worst -- ever made. Would you destroy that workprint had you found it, knowing full well what the workprint was and how significant a find it was?

Not everything deserves a chance at something like this. Fine, go ahead and put it in a museum, but I'll say it again, it is POINTLESS to make crap more presentable. There's nothing more to appreciate and a better quality image doesn't garner more respect for it.
It's pure crap. We've established this. It's a waste of time and money to do anything more with this film. It's a waste for us to even talk about it. I don't really need to see how much more flawed it really was than we've already seen.
Again there is nothing to gain from all this.
Furthermore, I'm tired of seeing all of these movies being restored, remade, revisited, special editioned, etc. It is what it is. Just leave it be. Get over it and move on.

>It's a waste of time and money to do anything more with this film.

You may feel that way, and that's a legitimate opinion to hold -- but the restorer, as well as myself and the people who ponied up donations via Kickstarter, feel differently.

>I'm tired of seeing all of these movies being restored, remade, revisited, special editioned, etc. It is what it is. Just leave it be.

Support original films and independent filmmakers/studios, then. Hollywood will keep going back to the well until it gets unprofitable, and the only way to do that is to shift the profits away from the major studios.

Fine, you win. You're right, I'm wrong. I'll just shut the fuck up now.

My intent is not to "win" an argument of any kind; it's to foster an open dialogue and discussion on the subject. You feel differently on the subject than I do, but that doesn't make you "wrong" or a "loser" -- it simply makes your opinion different. We may disagree, but there's no need to get hostile or aggressive about such a disagreement. I've kept an open mind to your opinion, and while I understand your opinion, I don't share it -- but that doesn't mean I think you're a bad person or somehow "wrong".

for some reason I feel my life has suddenly made a large divergence from its planned course after seeing this!

If only there was a LIKE button on here.

but why is the only question o.O Next are they going to restore keyboard cat?

Two versions of the same film and both are shit (although you CAN see the shit easier on one over the other).

its because of MST3K LOL

Restore the MST3K version

A-hem.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4q7YGegZRc

orginal sem ok some poorly lit but it ahs aatmosphere of the hard contrast, the tutched upp one im expecting any second the porn music to que in.

The the master will not be pleased with this

I don't know if Manos is watchable at all without riffing.

On a related note, here is a clip of one of the most uncomfortable fan/pro meetings I have ever seen as Torgo meets the Rifftrax gang at a past ComicCon. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5d2TOm7Tqs

All in fun of course.