Rob Marshall's Chicago gets the treatment one might expect for a Best Picture Oscar winner in the age of DVD on this release. The film is presented in a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Closed-captioned English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1, while a French soundtrack has been recorded in Dolby Digital Stereo. Spanish subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include a commentary track recorded by Marshall and screenwriter Bill Condon. They do offer insights into the making of the film, but mostly they heap praise onto the actors, the people who worked on the film, and each other. A deleted duet between Queen Latifah and Catherine Zeta-Jones, titled "Class," is a treat. Commentary is available for that sequence as well. A making-of documentary offers lots of rehearsal footage and interviews with the cast. This is a strong release from Disney/Buena Vista.
Customer Rating
1
Should Have Been Titled 'Awful Musical'
on May 8, 2008
Posted by: kevman79
'Chicago' is not a proper title for this waste of time musical. 'Awful Musical' might have been a little more proper I think. Skip it.
Robert Altman's 1980 live-action adaptation of the classic cartoon Popeye gets its first DVD release with this entry in Paramount's Widescreen Collection. The essentially bare-bones disc features a widescreen transfer that preserves the film's original aspect ratio, English soundtracks in Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Surround, a monaural French-dubbed soundtrack, English subtitles, and no bonus features.
Customer Rating
4
Robin Williams Is Brilliant
on May 8, 2008
Posted by: kevman79
This live action version of 'Popeye,' based off the famous childrens cartoon, is recommended mainly due to the exceptional casting of the film, and even more importantly, Robin Williams performance as the title character, which is nothing shy of perfect. Recommended!
Director Sam Raimi brings his trademark comic book-influenced visual panache to this post-modern Western. Sharon Stone stars as Ellen, a mysterious female gunslinger who arrives in the frontier hamlet of Redemption for a contest pitting quick-draw artists against each other. The event is the brainchild of Redemption's evil, corrupt mayor, Herod (Gene Hackman), a criminal who has taken over the town and charges a 50% tax on local businesses. The pot for Herod's deadly game has swollen, attracting numerous colorful gunfighters from around the territory. As each battle thins the ranks of players, the pasts of several participants are revealed. Ellen is seeking revenge on Herod for a heinous past injustice. The fast-talking braggart known as "The Kid" (Leonardo DiCaprio) may in fact be Herod's son. The pacifist Reverend Cort (Russell Crowe), who refuses to participate in the bloodshed, is the fastest draw in the West and a former colleague of Herod's. After several spectacular slayings, Ellen and Herod stage a final showdown, but not before he has made her an unexpected proposal. The Quick and the Dead (1995) is dedicated to veteran Western actor Woody Strode, who appears in a cameo as Redemption's coffin maker, his final performance.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
'The Quick and The Dead' is a cool concept for a movie, and the cast is almost completely perfect (except for Sharon Stone) in the lead part. Unfortunately, the movie gets a little hoaky at times, and hurts the overall presentation. Still, not bad. This Superbit version offers DTS sound, not available on the regular dvd version.
Sam Raimi's stylish Western The Quick and the Dead comes to DVD with a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. A closed-captioned English soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1, while a French soundtrack has been recorded in Dolby Digital Mono. Subtitles are available in both of these languages as well. Supplemental materials are limited to a theatrical trailer. The widescreen image captures Raimi's distinctive visuals, making this a disc worthy of attention from his fans as well as from DVD collectors.
Customer Rating
3
A Little Hoaky at Times
on May 8, 2008
Posted by: kevman79
'The Quick and The Dead' is a cool concept for a movie, and the cast is almost completely perfect, except for Sharon Stone in the lead role. Unfortunately, the movie gets a little hoaky at times, and hurts the overall presentation. Still, not bad. Anamorphic widescreen.
This classic film is one of the best movies ever made in my opinion. Excellent cast and performances. However, I would recommend that fans purchase the collector's edition, as it has several bonus features not available on this dvd.
This classic film is one of the best movies ever made in my opinion. Excellent cast and performances. Great collector's edition dvd here. Highest Recommendation!
One of the 1980s' classic cult comedies comes to DVD in a surprisingly sparse package. So sparse, in fact, that the only bonus feature present is a theatrical trailer. Visually the disc fares little better -- the picture is a little better than a new VHS copy and appears to have been prepared hastily at best. At least it's not pan and scan -- the original theatrical ratio of 1.85:1 has been maintained. The disc's soundtrack is presented in a lackluster Dolby Pro-logic mix which has a mediocre bass presence but makes almost no use of the surround speakers. Overall, this disc reeks of being a victim of hasty production. The film was never a wild success but subsequent word of mouth has garnered it a cult following over the years, and it's a pity that more effort didn't go into the disc's production.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
'I'm Gonna Git You Sucka!' is almost the exact same type of movie as 'Top Secret' starring Val Kilmer, only not as good. Still, fans are sure to delight in this enhanced widescreen dvd release, even though it's completely void of extras.
A pair of hapless garbage collectors gets tied up in a lethal political conspiracy in this hilarious MGM/UA release. Viewable in either 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen or 1.33:1 full frame, this disc also offers a closed captioned English Dolby Digital Surround soundtrack. Optional subtitles are offered in English, Spanish and French, with extra features including a theatrical trailer.
Customer Rating
3
Has Its Moments
on May 8, 2008
Posted by: kevman79
'Men at Work' is by no means an excellent movie, but it wasn't intended to be. It does have some really funny moments, but will probably only be enjoyed by fans of Sheen and Estevez. Anamorphic Widescreen.
'Poltergeist' isn't the kind of movie you sit down and watch every other day, but its quite a spectacle though, with some impressive special effects. This is NOT a horror movie, for those who are curious. Recommended. Widescreen with a few choice extras.
The third and final film in the Wachowski brothers' epic science fiction trilogy The Matrix picks up where the second film, The Matrix Reloaded, left off. As the film begins, Neo attempts to navigate through a space somewhere between the machine world and the real world, Trinity and Morpheus pay a visit to The Merovingian, the citizens of Zion prepare for imminent war with the sentinels, and Agent Smith continues to gain power. As Matrix fans have come to expect, the closing chapter is presented in a superb DVD package. The two-disc set features top-notch visual and audio quality alongside a seemingly endless wealth of bonuses. The first disc bears a full-screen transfer of the feature presentation with the soundtrack available in both Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby Digital Stereo. A French-dubbed Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track is also included, along with subtitles in English, French, and Spanish. Standing out from the Matrix DVDs that preceded it, disc one of Revolutions is the first to feature trailers from all three trilogy entries and The Animatrix animation series. Over on the second disc, viewers are treated to several behind-the-scenes featurettes. "Revolutions Recalibrated" takes a general look at the making of the film, while "CG Revolution" specifically examines the dazzling visual effects, and "Super Burly Brawl" offers the ins and outs of the climactic final fight between Neo and Agent Smith. Meanwhile, there are four more short making-of segments in the Operator feature. Beyond that, there is an exceptionally concise text-and image-based history of the Matrix called "Before the Revolution," a look at the upcoming online Matrix game, a gallery with storyboards and conceptual images, and several DVD-ROM features. A widescreen version with the same features was also released.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
this full-screen dvd version alters the original theatrical aspect ratio of the movie from 2.35:1 to 1.33:1, giving a picture in which you lose almost 50% of the image on each side of every frame.