But there is a film where Tony Randall showed just how great a character actor he could be. That film was 1964's 7 Faces of Dr. Lao. Now Warner Archive Collection have restored this film and have released it on Blu-ray for the first time ever.
Synopsis: An elderly Chinese man routs evil in a Western frontier town by setting up his circus for the townspeople. The performers affect each of the circus' visitors in a different way, and in the end the unscrupulous citizens who dominate the town repent.
The great George Pal take over the direction of this fantasy classic. In an interesting note before Tony Randall won the role, Peter Sellers and Dick Van Dyke were thought of to play the lead of Dr. Lao. But Tony Randall was so committed to the role that he even shaved his head so that he could play these roles. Talk about commitment.
What results is a fun story with a message. Even if in this generation there may be some things that is considered insensitive in this generation. I personally am not offended by these things so I can appreciate the film for what it is. An entertaining cinematic experience that inspires the viewer to seize the day.
Warner Archive Collection have transferred this film to Blu-ray in 1080p and is presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The audio track is an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. There is also the option for English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
This isn't just any transfer this is sourced from a new 4k scan of the original camera negative. What results is a beautiful-looking picture that is crisp and clean with no signs of damage, that I witnessed. The audio is clear with no hiss or pops. Warner Archive did another wonderful job.
Now, in addition to a great restoration Warner Archive Collection added some vintage bonus features to make this release even more of a must-own than it already is. Take a look at what is included on this Blu-ray.
Special features
* "King of the Duplicators" featurette
* The Cat Above the Mouse Below (1964) Opera singing cat Tom, is disturbing Jerry the mouse's sleep as he lives under the stage. Something must be done.
* Original Theatrical Trailer
In all honesty I would have liked to see a bit more bonuses from 1964. But the featurette and the Tom and Jerry cartoon is a nice little bonus. Plus this film is so good all on it's own I can not recommend the Blu-ray enough for the restoration of this film.
If you would like to add this new Blu-ray release of 7 Faces of Dr. Lao to your home video library head over to Movie Zyng or Amazon and order your copy of the film today.
Out of 4 film reels (4 being the best), the Blu-ray of 7 Faces of Dr. Lao receives....
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