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The Making of an American (1920)
The Making of an American (1920) poster
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The Making of an American (1920)

14m

Director: Guy Hedlund

Cast: Emil De Varney

Letterboxd
IMDbThe Movie Database (TMDB)

Library of Congress official HD Streaming https://www.loc.gov/item/2023600540/

Video format

HD Streaming

Best English-friendly & video release · updated 4 months ago

Video notes:

Library of Congress official HD Streaming https://www.loc.gov/item/2023600540/ is a superior copy to the  NFPF copy

Overview

Docudrama encouraging immigrants to master English and become successful, assimilated Americans.

Release details

Featured Lists
National Film Registry

Year of Induction: 2005

Length
14 mins
Type
Movie

Featured in National Film Registry

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Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the WB release without the filtering, 1.85 ratio restored for US Cut; both US and International Cuts are 4K.

Best Audio:

1999 WB DVD

Additional Info:

No Blu-ray or DVD release until the Criterion 4K Blu-ray has presented the US in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The International Cut has never been presented in it's OAR of 1.66:1 in any home video releases.

The packaging on the back of the WB 4K Blu-ray incorrectly states it as 1.85:1 when the movie is actually 1.78:1 as is the original Blu-ray. 

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray 

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the Sony release without the filtering; Comparison between Sony and Criterion.

Best Audio:

Mono: 1994 LaserDisc (marginally, unfiltered) or Criterion 4K Blu-ray (filtered)
5.1 Remix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the WB release without the filtering Comparison between the Criterion and WB.

Best Audio:

5.1: WB 4K Blu-ray, a remix but has higher fidelity

Mono: Criterion 4K Blu-ray (restored for the box set)

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the WB release without the filtering; WB 4K early pressing has errors of a shot, later pressings fixed. Comparison between Criterion and WB.

Best Audio:

6-Track 70mm mix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray (restored for the box set), 1997 MGM LaserDisc, 1998 MGM DVD
35mm Mono Mix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Matrixed Stereo Remix: MGM Japan LaserDisc (1985) [G158F5509]
5.1 Remix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Steve James

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion Blu-ray and UK Dogwoof Blu-ray probably similar

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Victor Fleming

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2D: Warner Bros 4K Blu-ray

3D: Warner Bros 3D Blu-ray or Apple Vision Pro

Best Audio:

1989 MGM LaserDisc

Audio Notes:

(caveat: "there's" in first "there's no place like home" utterance in final Kansas scene truncated)

Director: Vincente Minnelli

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1991 MGM LaserDisc

Director: Morton DaCosta

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Bros Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Warner Archive 4K Blu-ray Nov 24th

Director: Tony Scott

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Paramount 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

70mm 6-track mix in 5.1: Paramount THX LaserDisc

Dolby Stereo mix in 2.0: Paramount THX LaserDisc

Additional Info:

The 70mm 6-track mix has a higher bitrate on the Paramount 1998 DVD, but is more limited than on the THX LaserDisc The Paramount 1998 DVD also has open matte versions in fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 instead of the theatrical aspect ratio of 2.39:1, but the 2.00:1 widescreen presentation is non-anamorphic. The THX LaserDisc is available in both fullscreen 1.33:1 and widescreen 2.00:1 variants.

Director: Terrence Malick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Lovely underlying remaster by Criterion and Resillion but encode is sadly low-pass filtered by Pixelogic, and even then, the encode is still less than ideal. Still easily obliterates any prior disc release, but certainly wouldn't hurt to have a UK or German label take a crack at this same master.

Best Audio:

1999 Paramount DVD

More from Library of Congress

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Director: Frank Tuttle

Video format: Only Unofficial Sources

Best Video:

Unofficial Streaming

Complete copies survive in Library of Congress

Director: William A. Seiter

Video format: Only Unofficial Sources

Best Video:

Unofficial sources ripped from TCM

Library of Congress has completed a digital restoration around 2018 but no release yet

Director: Frank Borzage

Video format: Only Unofficial Sources

Sources: moma.org (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

Only has really bad public domain copies

New restoration done by Library of Congress with DCP has no release yet 

Director: A.C. Abadie

Video format: HD Streaming

Director: Billy Bitzer

Video format: HD Streaming

Directors: William Heise & William K.L. Dickson

Video format: HD Streaming

Director: Enoch J. Rector

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

3min excerpt available on HD Streaming by Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/item/2023602024/

Sources: loc.gov (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

No full copy available

Directors: William K.L. Dickson & William Heise

Video format: HD Streaming

Director: Edward Bland

Video format: HD Streaming

Edit history

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Researched and maintained by

vanshady

· last reviewed 4 months ago

Every recommendation follows the same method — how these calls are made.