The Abyss Special Edition
Alien Collector's Edition
Amadeus Pioneer Special Edition
And Now for Something Completely Different
The Beatles: Anthology
Babe
Walt Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Big Business / Liberty The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy, Vol I
Blue Planet
Braveheart
Amy Grant: Building the House of Love
Walt Disney's Cinderella
Looney Tunes: Curtain Calls
The Dark Crystal
Dragonslayer
The Dream is Alive
Excalibur
Fantasia
Fiddler on the Roof
Field of Dreams
The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit
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I refer to the Special Edition of this movie, the letterboxed one at that. It still irks me that James Cameron shoots in Super35 which allows him to show the movie one way in the theaters and then to almost improve it for home video. This is more evident in Terminator 2 than here though. A comparison of the broadcast version shows more on the bottom and top, but the letterboxed version has consistently more on the right side. The greatest advantage over the broadcast version is the inclusion of deleted scenes which restore subplots and flesh out character relationships. As has been said many times before, the ending is improved as well. The picture and sound are great; the CAV supplements boast still frame looks at the screenplay and some impressive artwork done by Cameron himself, but of even more interest is an exclusive hourlong CLV documentary with plenty of great production clips and new interviews.
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One thing which is sure to start an argument with me is the assertion that Aliens is better than the original. In my opinion, Aliens is simply Alien overinflated. The best parts of Aliens are lifted directly from the original, so that it is less a sequel than a remake. I feel somewhat justified now in that Fox's Alien box is superior in its supplements to the other. This special edition, CAV and letterboxed, is plagued with a brownish and grainy picture, though not inconsistent with its look in the theaters. The sound is great, and unlike the recent THX reissue, there are no problems with audio looping or music tracking. The film still packs a wallop. And the supplemental material is excellent, featuring detailed examinations of the various story treatments and screenplay drafts, production artwork and footage, a helpful guide to the decks of the Nostromo, new interviews with Ridley Scott, trailers and TV commercials, publicity posters, and, best of all, recently recovered deleted scenes developed from the camera negatives for this edition. A friend says these clips, some of them substantial scenes, look better than the feature. The most notorious scene is included, involving Ripley's discovery of the decomposing (or marinating) Dallas, removed from the film's ending.
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A very recent addition to my collection and an exceedingly lovely one at that. I'm surprised that when I used to watch this on VHS I didn't even know it had been shot in widescreen. Now, after seeing the beautiful Pioneer Special Edition I can't watch it any other way. Colors are much fuller and stronger, and the sound is..."perfection". The letterboxing obviously provides much more picture information on the sides; it also allows a tiny bit more on the top, but cuts off a bit on the bottom. The movie is on three sides CLV, with a very interesting hourlong documentary on side four, featuring new interviews and several substantial deleted scenes (also letterboxed). The commentary from the director and playwright (Milos Forman and Peter Shaffer, respectively) is somewhat sparse but still informative and entertaining. I bought this box around the time I also got the Jaws box -- back when I had money -- and the supplements here should put the off-the-rack additions from MCA to shame: an exclusive printing of the play (revised), two full-length CDs of the musical soundtrack remixed for this edition in superior sound, and a colorful and informative oversized booklet on the movie's history and the history which it examines; together in a beautiful box resembling a hardbound book. Truly impressive.
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The colors are improved, and the sound is almost improved too much (trucks can be heard rumbling in the streets outside the dairy plant where this was filmed). The letterboxing cuts off the top and bottom slightly. This doesn't affect the image too much, since it covers mostly dead space. This is not true during the animations however. I read a recent interview of Terry Gilliam (from Cinefantastique) in which he describes reanimating his cartoons for this movie in a theatrical aspect ratio; it seems odd then that these cartoons look better framed on the full-screen (VHS and broadcast) release.
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Over two years in the making, Beatles fans finally have the long-awaited video autobiography in their hands. The package is a handsome piece of work, with sturdy slip box and colorful artwork. Liner notes are scant however. The documentary comes in eight chapters, one per disc. Originally Antholoy was shown on three nights on ABC-TV, in truncated form. This full-length edition allows a more comfortable viewing at a more leisurely pace, able to concentrate on events in more detail and to include longer performance clips. The timing however leads to some abrupt side changes. Only a couple sides end with a fade-to-black "commercial break". The volumes each run around seventy-five minutes and each disc is CLV. It would've been nice, however, if at least the final side, with the stunning "Free as a Bird" video, was in CAV (the second new Beatles video "Real Love" is not included). Video quality runs the gamut from scratchy home movies, archival news footage, kinescope, old videotape, and film. Some (but not all of the) footage has never looked better. The high-point is the eye-opening clarity of the Shea Stadium concert and a few filmed "music videos" on Volume 5. It's surprising though that clips from A Hard Day's Night and Help! look worn and poor. (Laserphile purists will groan at the clip from The Girl Can't Help It, horribly squashed [instead of letterboxed] to preserve its widescreen image.) The sound quality is in some ways disappointing; faithful to the source, it still contains plenty of digital clicks and crackles in many places and on many discs. A thoughtful addition is the use of the Apple label on the discs, making them look like silver LPs, ready to add to your collection.
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I moved into dangerous territory with this disc, buying it before having seen the movie. Fortunately with something this charming, well-crafted, and enjoyable I couldn't go wrong. The movie tells a delightful tale of a pig's adventures finding a life for himself on a sheep farm. It is bright and colorful with a spritely, energetic score; and the disc can handle it all. The image is masked a bit tightly on top and bottom. The disc's clarity is such that it is even spoils a few of the computerized animal mouth effects (showing a slight haziness where the images are added in), but is a benefit in all other areas. It also boasts a nicely chosen side break.
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The letterboxing provides slightly more picture on all four sides. The colors are sharp and bright and the sound is clear. (The Disney audio people rely a bit too much on electronic echoes for ambience.) The movie is in CAV on three sides (with a slightly awkward break at the end of side one), with a Making Of documentary, as seen on the Disney Channel, filling out side four, in CAV as well. My sister-in-law's favorite, and one of mine too. I didn't care for The Little Mermaid, which was supposed to exemplify the revitalization of the Disney animation company; those rumors were more justified with this one.
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It's a bittersweet treat to see my two favorite comedians in these two silent shorts. It was a pleasure to see the complete presentations for what I'd only seen clips of -- but I still miss hearing their delightful voices. The images are beautifully crisp and at a proper speed, but the one-sided CLV disc is not without its problems. The video operator has a heavy hand in covering up splices with freeze frames; one closeup insert in Big Business is reversed; and, also in the former, the music is poorly synchronized. Of course the music was written for when the film was projected at today's speeds, but more effort should've been made in making it fit. Liberty on the other hand boasts its original Vitaphone audio. It's worst problem is an inexplicably overly long title card near the end which would seem to be covering up some action.
To review of Volume III
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An IMAX documentary, presented in full-screen and boasting beautiful images and stellar sound. This movie takes you all over -- underwater, in space, through storms -- in its examination of life on the planet. Be warned: the absence of narration is probably because you forgot to play the analog tracks. The music and sound effects, for people who like to hypnotize themselves, are provided (slightly out of synch) on the digital tracks. Lumivision recently remastered this title; my review refers to the original release, which looks and sounds mighty fine as it is.
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It takes a while to get going, but the movie offers many rewards; and it looks great on disc. Colors are delicately subdued and the letterboxing is a must to best see the impressive battle scenes, offering substantially more on the sides and slightly more on top and bottom. Great sound and a lush James Horner score, which nevertheless sounds a bit wavery late in the movie.
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There's not much to this: Amy makes breakfast, Amy records some vocal tracks, Amy eats potato chips, Amy gets interviewed on TV, Amy performs a Christmas concert live (though the disc's audio is lifted from her second [and inferior to her powerful first] Christmas album); plus interviews with her producers, her husband, and some guest appearances by country stars and some of the performers from the movie Maverick. But it's still enjoyable. The image is nice though grainy. The sound is mainly monaural. A few music videos round out side two.
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Another laudable release from Disney. Not quite as staggering as the Snow White or The Lion King box sets, but still with plenty of interesting supplements. The mice are delightful but the movie also contains one of my least favorite of all scenes (involving the King and the Duke bouncing on a bed). The analog tracks contain monaural audio (preferable to the fake-stereo digital track), and a music and effects track. Supplements include (scratchy and skipping) songs which did not make it into the film, an early Laff-O-Grams rendition Disney did of the story, and a hardbound book. The image is quite clean.
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The colors are bright and strong, the sound is full, and there are no commercials in between cartoons -- and no editing. This collection boasts some of the best, and obviously some of my favorites, in the Warners vaults: "Long-Haired Hare" in which Bugs battles opera star Giovanni Jones, "The Rabbit of Seville", and "What's Opera, Doc?" to name a few. The disc is not without a few "dogs"; it's probably in the contract that no collection at all can be great from beginning to end. And "Curtain Razor" and "Show Biz Bugs" share jokes.
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A rather disappointing remaster. The sound is good but the colors seemed punched up and blurry. The film quality is not the best either. Letterboxed for widescreen: lots of room on the bottom, but confined at the top. Evidently, the original release, approved by Jim Henson, letterboxed and with a documentary, is superior; which makes one wonder why they attempted this remaster and didn't just rerelease that edition.
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I've heard the Japanese letterboxed version is superior, but this one is certainly more affordable. The colors are rather pale, but the image is nice. It's great to see this one in widescreen again, reminding me of how good it was in the theater. The movie may be slow going for some, but where else can one see a dragon terrorizing a town. The medieval look of the movie is great. The sound is very impressive too.
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It's hard to watch this IMAX movie, narrated by Walter Cronkite, and not be fooled you're watching one of those documentaries which scientific companies provide to schools. Still, once one gets past all the talk of building spacecraft and training astronauts, the shuttle launch footage and the space footage make it all worth while. The colors are strong, the fullscreen image is sharp, and the sound is incredible. Turn your speakers up if you dare.
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A matted letterboxed edition, roughly 1.85:1. The image is somewhat grainy but the colors are strong. I've seen word the audio has been mixed to stereo for home video. There's not much stereo to the soundtrack, mainly forest sounds and the classical (non-orginal) score. Side three is in CAV, although my favorite scenes occur earlier. A truly impressive retelling of the Matter of Britain, directed by John Boorman, with memorable imagery, cinematography, and performances.
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One of the best things about this big box set of Fantasia is the wealth of chapters. One can skip the unnecessary spoken word introductions, or filler like the Orchestral Jam, and concentrate on the stunning artwork of the Disney company at their pinnacle. The sound is rather too busily trying to waltz all over the room, but the colors are beautiful and the fullscreen image sharp. The analog track is monaural for some reason (since, unlike other Disney releases, the original release was not mono). The movie's segments are broken up, wisely, so that it runs to five sides in CAV. This means some sides are longer than others, but also maintains that no segment is broken up by a side change. Side six, in CLV, contains an interesting trailer and a Disney Channel documentary hosted by Michael Tucker. The set contains an obligatory lithograph and a thick brochure on the movie's creation. One small complaint is about the awkwardly large size of the set's box.
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The movie is showing its age with rather faded colors, but the widescreen laserdisc release is still appealing, and with little wear showing. The MGM release might be due for a remaster however. Like almost every widescreen movie musical, letterboxing is a necessity. I still wish Zero Mostel might have made the transition from stage to screen, but through the years I've softened to Topol's enjoyable performance. A beautifully shot movie, with a wonderful score.
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It seems everyone who buys letterboxed discs has one eye-opening moment when he or she realizes sometimes letterboxing does not provide more picture but takes some away. For many, apparently, it was Jurassic Park, but for me it was this movie. This had been a favorite of mine since I first saw it. I was won over by its light and fanciful touch and knew I had to have it in my collection. But then I realized, when it was shown on cable, the horrible truth: the top and bottom of the disc are matted, and, unlike what I'd been told, I was gaining nothing on the sides. It's hard to hold this against the movie though. The image is sharp but the sound, although strong, exhibits digital crackles on several occasions. The disc also features a nice side break. I've seen rumors MCA will be releasing a special edition someday.
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This almost looks like outtakes from A Hard Day's Night, except this is all real, following the Beatles during the week of their first U.S. visit. It features their first two appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show, which bookend the disc, as well as a crudely filmed but still enjoyable concert in Washington D.C.. The film is rough in many places, shot in an appropriately frenzied handheld style, but it contains many priceless moments. Their Ed Sullivan appearances have never looked better. It's short, but nevertheless in CLV on two sides. Incidentally, the back cover incorrectly lists Richard Rodgers (whom Sullivan mentions as being a fan of the boys) as the author of "Till There Was You" instead of Meredith Wilson.
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Updated December 26 1997.
Corrected August 14 1999.