One thing that can be said about Warner Bros.' DVD library is that it's consistent; their discs rarely contain more than filmographies and a theatrical trailer or two. Fortunately, there are exceptions to that rule, and apparently someone within the studio saw fit to make John Boorman's epic retelling of the Arthurian legend one of those exceptions. The major addition here comes in the form of a commentary track by director Boorman, whose monologue is refreshingly insightful at a time when many commentaries are used up with friendly yet ultimately meaningless banter. Also featured are, as usual, the theatrical trailer, scene selections, and a cast and crew section that curiously contains only information on Boorman himself. Fans of the film who have until now only seen it on VHS will be amazed at the clarity of the audio mix. The soundtrack has been remixed into a digital 5.1 presentation that makes the best of its limited source material and manages to separate nicely. There is a prominent bass track which was certainly not present in previous incarnations of the film and which adds a great deal of weight and authenticity to the many elaborate battle scenes. The film has never looked so good; almost every instance of film grain has been removed and the colors, particularly the flesh tones, are well balanced. The picture is presented in a non-anamorphic letterboxed format at 1.85:1. Overall, Boorman's insightful commentary alone, not to mention the outstanding audio and video quality, makes this disc well worth owning.

The sexy 1978 film production of Dracula hits DVD for the second time with this release from Universal Home Video. Controversy has surrounded the picture ever since the original laserdisc release, when director John Badham desaturated the original vibrant photography to try and finally realize his original stark vision for the film. This disc finds the helmer tweaking away once again, though the results are actually quite startling. While the theatrical film struck a chord right at the height of the garish disco era, this new version's look and feel evokes the classic mythos far more effectively than the released print (though the colorful psychedelic love scene is still intact). The good news for the black-and-white detractors is that at least this time, the film is presented in its original 2.35:1 widescreen format, (updated from Image's previously cropped 2.15:1 disc) and its anamorphic face-lift is impressive to say the least. The disc has the benefit of a few new bonus features that prove Universal's dedication when it comes to their reissues, starting with the inclusion of Badham's audio commentary. The newly recorded track finds the director a few years older and wiser as he looks back at a film from his early career. Coming straight off of Saturday Night Fever, Badham was shocked to find himself directing a quite frail Sir Laurence Olivier and a stern leading man (Frank Langella) whose battles with the producers are now legendary. The 40-minute "Revamping of Dracula" featurette delves even more into the production and contains interviews with Langella, John Williams, and others, while the photo gallery is packed with incredible production designs as well as behind-the-scenes photos and promotional advertising. This release might scream of the same kind of questionable revisionism that rocked the Star Wars set, but it does right in giving the film much more love than what was there before, and that is certainly a good thing.

Michael Hoffman's adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream comes to DVD with a widescreen transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. Closed-captioned English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital Surround. English and Spanish subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include the original theatrical trailer. This is a fine release from 20th Century Fox that does a great job presenting the film, but offers little else. Fans of the all-star cast (Kevin Kline, Calista Flockhart, Michelle Pfeiffer, and a half dozen other notables) will enjoy this disc, although bios of all those stars would have been a nice touch.