"Dude, you are a warrior poet."
Hello everyone. Here are a few BDs I've caught lately:
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut. Go read the linked review if you're curious, but in a nutshell, this is a reworking of the movie using a lot of unused footage. Why did this need to be done? Richard Donner, who did the first Superman movie in 1978, was fired during production and replaced with Richard Lester (who directed A Hard Day's Night). Director's Guild rules said that Lester couldn't take credit unless he shot more than 50% of the movie. By that time, Donner had shot ca. 70% of the film, so they redid a lot of stuff with the cast (the ones who would work with Lester--Gene Hackman, among others, refused) and changed a bunch of things in the film. Let's just say that I don't think either version is all that great, but it's a very interesting look at how a film can be rejiggered with a different director taking over. The two cuts have a number of real differences, including the ending. I suspect that Donner would have done a better film had he been allowed to complete it. I also give him the benefit of the doubt since the first film was good (I've always found it a lot of fun). Besides the different shots/character stuff in the Donner version, we get to see a bunch of Marlon Brando footage. They took all the Brando stuff out of the Lester version so they wouldn't have to pay Brando. The movie is better with him there and introduces a fun father-son dynamic that wasn't there before. Fun stuff.
Wall*E I really enjoyed this one. It may not be the all-out best Pixar, but it's one of my favorites. The BD, as you'd expect is fantastic. The picture is amazing and the soundtrack really has incredible detail. No shock there. One of the BD bonuses I really had fun with was the Geek Talk, Trash Talk & Trivia This is a visual commentary (ala' MST3K) with character team supervisor Bill Wise, co-producer Lindsay Wallace, story artist Derek Thompson and lead animator and story consultant Angus McClain. The track is full of amusing geeky/inside joke stuff that's fun and informal. Needless to say, there are a *lot* of sci fi and pop culture jokes/references in this movie. If you get the chance, check this one out.
The Queen A good movie with very compelling performances, 'nuff said. This BD didn't have anything that interesting feature-wise, but the image has really quite natural and film-like. There was real grain in the image, but it remained sharp and clear. A very "organic" looking video presentation. I like to see this sometimes with HD when they resist the temptation to over-sharpen images to make them look more "eye-popping." This one reminded me of a good film presentation and that's as good in its own way as the CG sharpness of Wall*E.
Okay, on to this week's new stuff
The Dark Knight (2008) Available in 1 or 2 disc DVD and BD.
Europa (1991)
Horton Hears a Who! (2008) More CG-animated celebrity voice fun! Also on BD.
I Am Legend: Ultimate Collectors Edition Wow, that didn't take long. The deal here is that there's a bonus disc with an alternate version of the film that, if you believe DVD Savant, improves the movie, particularly the last section which is what I had the most trouble with. Check out his review here. Also on BD.
Lost: Season 4 Also on BD.
Man on Wire (2008)
Murnau, Borzage and Fox Box Set Fox releases some of its earlier films, including some new-to-DVD silients.