(ANSA) - ROME, 13 JAN - "I am very proud of The Godfather, which has certainly defined the first part of my creative life" said Francis Ford Coppola, director of the masterpiece produced by Paramount Pictures that celebrates the 50th anniversary of the cult film , loved for decades by different generations up to today's young people, with a film restoration.
Coppola's masterful film adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel, which tells, as everyone knows, the rise and fall of the Corleone family, is a cinematographic trilogy, considered one of the greatest in the history of cinema. In preparation for the 50th anniversary of the first film's original release on March 24, 1972, Paramount and Coppola's production company AmericanZoetrope undertook a painstaking restoration of all three films. A restoration that lasted three years. Every effort has been made to create the best possible presentation for today's audience, who can watch movies using technology that has progressed tremendously since 2007, when the latest restoration was completed by eminent film historian and conservator Robert Harris. Using that work as a model,the team spent thousands of hours making sure that every frame stayed true to the original look of the movies. "We felt privileged to be restoring these films and a little in awe every day we worked," said AndreaKalas, senior vice president of Paramount Archives.
And now some details of the restoration.
Over 300 film cartons were scanned to find the best resolution for each frame of the three films.
More than 4,000 hours were spent on repairing film smudges, tears and other damage to negatives.
Over 1,000 hours were spent on rigorous color correction to ensure that the high dynamic range tools were respectful of the original vision by Coppola and cinematographer Gordon Willis.
In addition to the 5.1 audio approved by Walter Murch in 2007, the original mono tracks of The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II have been restored.
All work was supervised by Coppola.
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