MovieChat Forums > Doctor X (1932) Discussion > First colour sound film (not musical)

First colour sound film (not musical)


Is this the oldest color film with sound available? I know there's The Viking but they don't talk, there are talkies with some color scenes and then there's Mamba but it isn't generally available and then there are some musicals (very hard to get). Becky Sharp came 1935. Do you have better information?

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Really? i had no idea.

ill try to find more info on this.



When there's no more room in hell, The dead will walk the earth...

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and then there's Mamba but it isn't generally available

How does that exclude it? Are you asking because you have a collection going?

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Sad story. You got a smoke?

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I asked "Is this the oldest color film with sound available?". As far as I know, Mamba is not available anywhere, neirher legally nor illegally. I am interested in these "firsts", "oldest" etc films and would like to see them myself. I don't collect films seriously, I'm just interested.

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Ah, well, that's fair enough. At least Mamba isn't a lost film anymore, so one day it might be available!

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Sad story. You got a smoke?

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So, the answer is "yes"?

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I have no idea, but I have to admit that the color in this film isn't making any sort of impression on me. I've watched about five minutes of this film and I'm just wishing that it could have been shot in black and white.

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💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

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The only other Two-Strip Technicolor film that answers all of your questions, i.e:
1: It is not a musical.
2: It is available to buy on DVD.
3: Its older than "Doctor X".
4: And it is a "Talkie".

It is the action war drama "Hells Angels" (1930). It's not however an ALL Technicolor feature. It only has one sequence in Two-Strip Technicolor; but it's a beautiful scene, (the party scene), and of course it has the lovely Jean Harlow in it. It was her only colour picture. It's readily available from Amazon.com.

The only other drama available in Two-Strip Technicolor on DVD is of course "The Mystery Of The Wax Museum", which was made in the same year as "Doctor X", (1932), with basically the same cast as "Doctor X", i.e Fay Wray and Lionel Atwill. Sadly the colours have not been duplicated very well on "Wax Museum". For some reason (?) they have added blue to the DVD release, instead of green? 2-Strip was always only red and green; (not red and blue). So I have no idea why they added blue for the DVD release?

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Thanks very much for that information! 

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

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Cool.

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One minor correction worth noting: Hells Angels did not use the two strip Technicolor process but rather a competing process called Multicolor. The technology and resulting effect is similar, however.

A lot of strange things happen in this world. Things you don't know about in Grand Rapids.

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