By digitally remastering a film, one brings new life into something that is already great. This could be a good thing, but it also could be a bad thing. On the good side, a film is cleaned up and thus visually enhanced. Voice tracks are perfected, and the quality of the film is improved.

        But also by remastering a film, the essence of what the director had originally wanted could disappear. By adding scenes or re-cutting the film, the storyline is changed. Also in some remastered works, colorization is used. In all cases, this is bad. It distracts the viewer and never looks right.

        If a film is remastered correctly, it can be great, and I think that one film that would look wonderful remastered is Pygmalion, directed in 1938 by Anthony Asquith and Leslie Howard and based on George Bernard Shaw’s 1913 play. Pygmalion is already a beautifully filmed movie; it is entertaining and fun to watch.

        Another film that would be beautiful if digitally remastered is A Doll’s House, adapted to film in 1973 by Joseph Losey and based on Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 play. Though the film is not as entertaining as Pygmalion, the scenery and costumes are gorgeous and are worth a more vivid presentation. If one chooses films and techniques carefully, digital remastering can be a real boon to older movies and the audience.