Tag: DVD
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Some suggestions for Special Edition DVDs
Every week, much to the delight of my children, several packages arrive at my door containing DVDs, movies that are not yet released in the home market that I am expected to review. Tough work, ain’t it? Seriously, I would do what I do just for the free movies.That said, I have followed the history of DVD very closely and the manner in which several studios double dip with their releases. Most recently we have “The Godfather Restoration,” which is superb, but represents the third such DVD release for these films. The first came in 2001, The Godfather Trilogy, and then each film was released on its own so folks not wanting Part III could pass (sorry Kris).
Another film that went through many incarnations before the Ultimate Collector’s Edition was “Blade Runner,” though last year’s final release should be the final release. Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” went through several variations before coming to us in the ultimate edition, minus, of course, “Hearts of Darkness,” the splendid doc about the film’s making. What might have been cool is to see some footage of Harvey Keitel as Willard (if it exists).
But it all leads me to wonder which films out there deserve a double disc/special edition release.
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Newman at his best, ‘Luke’ gets a deluxe edition
With the news some weeks back that Paul Newman had left the hospital to go home to be with his family as he approached the end, I have found myself watching more and more of his films, perhaps stunned that the world will soon be deprived of his talent.Newman, who I had the pleasure of interviewing in 1999, has been able to balance stardom with talent in such films as “The Hustler” and “The Towering Inferno” over and over again in his career.
There is little doubt he owned the 1960s with a string of performances that should have earned him award after award, and one such portrayal is getting a special edition DVD treatment from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment: “Cool Hand Luke.”
All I can say is thank you, thank you, thank you. The chance to see this great film again, with Newman at his very best, was a welcome respite from the barrage of terrible DVDs that have been arriving recently. Cleaned up digitally, the film looks terrific, and Newman is so extraordinary as a petty crook, sent to a hard labor southern prison where he locks horns with the warden. The “failure to communicate” line became important in the 1960s, as the youth of America felt that way towards the establishment
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‘L.A. Confidential’ gets a deluxe DVD release
One of the greatest experiences I have ever had at a Toronto festival was the North American premiere of Curtis Hanson’s “L.A. Confidential,” which was instantly declared a masterpiece and one of the great film noirs in movie history.Dark and entertaining with a twisting and turning narrative that keep viewers guessing throughout, the film was embraced by the critical community in a huge way, topping most of the 10-best lists that year and winning best-of-the-year prizes from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the National Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle.
The film is receiving a shiny new DVD release this year and I couldn’t be more excited. The package offers a slew of special features: commentaries from film critic Andrew Sarries, author James Ellroy , nearly the entire cast, director of photography Dante Spinotti and production designer Jeannine Oppewall; a new making-of documentary with updated interviews with the players; detailed examination of the look of the film; “From Book to Screen” with Hansen, Brian Helgeland and Ellroy; and a focus on the film’s ensemble.
As always the star of any re-issue is the film itself, and “L.A. Confidential” remains one of the great films of the 1990s — a sublime work of art.
Superbly acted by Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, Kevin Spacey, Danny Devito, David Strathairn, Kim Basinger and Russell Crowe (in a star-making turn), the picture was a tight ensemble piece. It fired on all cylinders: direction, cinematography, design elements, and a film score that effortlessly zapped us back to 1950s Los Angeles.
Kevin Spacey, two years after winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for “The Usual Suspects,” portrayed Jack Vincennes with a Dean Martin sort of cool, an honest cop who had sold his soul to television where he worked as an adviser on a popular series. Spacey was the anchor for the film, giving a marvelous performance that the other actors bounced off of nicely. His swift and shocking end remains one of the most startling moments I have witnessed in a film. I remember gasping out loud when the tables turned so quickly.
