Dr. Strangelove on Criterion LaserDisc
by Brian Siano
Voyager/Criterion issued a remastered laserdisc of Dr. Strangelove in
1992. This version was struck from Kubrick's personal print of the film (one
generation removed from the original negative). The disc jacket reads: "The
film was shot using in-camera mattes with alternating aspect ratios,
between 1.66:1 and 1.33:1. A new digital film-to-tape transfer was created
using a 35mm duplicate negative and 35mm 3 track magnetic master."
The different mattes for the film's different aspect ratios are
probably best noticeable at the top of the frame, in the shots where Major
Kong puts on his Stetson hat. Also, as Kong rides the bomb, the bomb can be
seen jumping "over" the background matte plate.
The Criterion disc also includes a wealth of materials outlining the
civil-defense plans of the early 1960s, including still frames of various
pamphlets, the fanous short Duck and Cover, and an early "video" of George
McCulvey's My Teenage Fallout Queen. There is also a British Film
Board-approved trailer advertising Strangelove, which -- unique for its day --
includes photos of Kubrick himself. Best of all is an account of the film's
laser remastering, as well as a frame-by-frame representation of an early
Strangelove script.
Also, the slipcover of the Criterion disk was designed by Stanley
Kubrick.