A Hard Day's Night I suppose you can look at "A Hard Day's Night" in a number of ways. A fun pseudo-documentary on The Beatles, an extended music video, a deft musical comedy or the beginning of a slew of similar movies based around the exploits of pop musicians. It doesn't matter because this film is an example of a magical meeting of disparate elements resulting in a modern era classic. Even the Beatles couldn't top this when they made the color film "Help". While we've all seen this before on TV or video (some of us even in the theatre!) we've never seen or heard it like this. A cleaned up print would be reason enough for kudos but this 2 disc set features Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, documentary interviews and comments from director Richard Lester and music producer George Martin. A very nice feature is a song analysis by Mr. Martin. Even if you have the Criterion laser disc you'll have to break down and buy this version. It's amazing how much natural charm and charisma they had and virtually all modern pop artists pale in comparison. TV: Absolutely Fabulous Box Sets This highly regarded and hilarious series was edited for most US TV broadcasts and could be called rude and crude in its humor. Now, however, fans of Patsy, Edina and darling Saffy can see what they've been missing and much more in these two box sets from BBC Video. Box One: Covers Ab Fab Seasons 1-3. There is a bonus 4th disc called "Gorgeous Little Things" which features some wonderful extras including:"How To Be Absolutely Fabulous"- a behind the scenes look at the series with great background stuff , funny outtakes and more. "Ab Fab Moments"-a sort of best moments tour. "Modern Mother And Daughter"-the original sketch which inspired the series. There are also interactive maps of places Patsy & Edina like and a guide to guest stars who've appeared on the show. The second Box Set features the complete 4th season with running commentary, more outtakes, a reunion special called "Mirrorball", more interactive maps, trailers etc. While some may feel British humor too weird or the cultural references too specific to Britain, don't worry about Ab Fab. It follows in the great tradition of "Monty Python" and "Fawlty Towers" with a lot of silliness and slapstick and quick wit. If you don't get one joke-don't fret, there are ten more right behind it that will have you laughing out loud. The image is TV sitcom quality 1:33 aspect for Box One but a nice surprise is the anamorphic enhancement for Box S et 2 covering season 4. This presents the episodes in 1:85 aspect ratio with higher resolution for those who have a widescreen TV. Very nice. Amadeus: The Director's Cut Now that we are getting used to re-purchasing movies we've previously had on VHS or laserdisc, some of us face the dilemma of buying a DVD of a movie we already have on DVD! Such a film is Amadeus. A remarkable film on any format, the previous edition DVD pales in comparison to this new "Director's Cut". The two disc set includes 20 minutes not in the original and commentary by director Milos Forman and writer Peter Shaffer. The picture has been digitally restored and the sound is 5.1 Dolby Digital. The second disc also features "The Making Of Amadeus" documentary which runs over 35 minutes. This is a modern intelligent epic with style and humor and great performances and let's not forget the amazing music brought to life by Sir Neville Marriner. A classic even if you don't listen to classical music. Cleopatra DVD Truth vs Fiction. Cleopatra was a critical and box office failure -- false. The public loved big movies and the background scandal of the Burton-Taylor romance fueled their interest in the film. Cleopatra has an intelligent epic quality to it and the combination of Joseph Mankiewicz' script and direction ensured a classy operation all the way. Much has been made of the huge budget. Well, a lot of money was spent but the money is certainly up there on the screen. Amazing locations, costumes, thousands of extras, gorgeous photography plus an amazing score by Alex North. We won't see filmmaking like this again. The sense of massive scale has not yet been duplicated by today's computer enhancements. The three disc set includes commentary by the director's sons plus surviving cast member Martin Landau although an Elizabeth Taylor commentary would be fascinating. There is an amazing high-definition transfer to help you appreciate the gorgeous colors, epic vistas and stunning costume details. Part of this credit must be given to Elizabeth Taylor for insisting that the film be shot in her husband's Todd-AO process. This format allowed for much greater detail in the original photography. The audio is multi-channel Dolby Digital. The video is anamorphically enhanced 2:35 aspect ratio. Disc Three holds some great behind the scenes newsreels from various premieres-one eye catching moment is the arrival of an elderly looking gentleman who turns out to be Strom Thurmond in 1963! Also included are storyboards and original costume sketches and concept art. A big bonus is the inclusion of the famous two hour documentary Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood. This was co-produced by cable's AMC channel and narrated by Robert Culp. Also in the package is a shorter featurette called The Fourth Star of Cleopatra which deals with the epic scale of the production. A great DVD. Glory 2-Disc Set This wonderful true story of the first black regiment to fight for the North in the U.S. Civil War was previously released on DVD. That bare bones presentation has been supplanted by this nice 2-disc set. Disc One features "Glory" in anamorphic widescreen and is greatly improved over the previous release although still somewhat soft. The audio is 5.1 Dolby Digital and is essential to the enjoyment of this film especially for the battle scenes and James Horner's orchestral score and choir. Also included is director Ed Zwick's audio commentary. Beyond that fairly standard extra is something very interesting, a picture-in-picture VIDEO commentary by Zwick and co-stars Matthew Broderick and Morgan Freeman. The three appear on the screen in silhouette much like the TV show Mystery Science Theatre and comment on the action as it unfolds. It's especially pleasurable to hear the wonderful voice of Freeman and his remarks. Disc Two features a reformatted full-screen version of the film, director's commentary, a documentary called "The True Story Of Glory Continues" narrated by Freeman and a featurette "Voices Of Glory". A very well done set from Columbia Tri-Star featuring beautiful photography, an intelligent script and an Oscar-winning performance from Denzel Washington. There are few more moving and powerful moments in film than the final attack on Fort Wagner. The fact that it was futile, costing many lives and really happened makes it even more heartbreaking. The Godfather DVD Collection What more can be said about The Godfather (and Godfather Part 2)? Acclaimed by critics and the public and a huge success financially, when else has a film and it's sequal won Best Picture Of The Year Oscars? An amazing script and a legendary cast. Fans of these films can quote entire scenes and many individual lines are now part of the common culture. The special box set includes all three Godfather films with a separate bonus disc produced especially for this package. The picture (while still murky or yellowish at times on One & Two) is better than ever. Sound is remasterd Dolby Digital and each film comes with an audio commentary by Francis Ford Coppola. The stories about casting problems and studio interference are legendary and are fascinating to hear. It's a wonder that The Godfather ever got made at all. The documentary on the making of the films is well done and we do get to see scenes which never made it to the theatre screen. There are storyboards, a feature on the unique cinematography, the music by Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola and even an interactive "family tree". Set yourself up for a Godfather weekend, prepare a meal, get the wine and lose yourself in true movie-making genius. While number three is certainly weaker (especially due to the loss of Robert Duvall) it still has much to recommend. Maybe watch One & Two and save Three for another day so it won't suffer by comparison. Make this your "desert island" package--you can watch this forever. Marilyn Monroe The Diamond Collection Vol. I Fans of the movie legend will enjoy these light hearted classics especially since they are restored to their original aspect ratios. 20th Century Fox utilized the CinemaScope process from the time of "The Robe" in 1953 to "In Like Flint" in the mid-Sixties. This widescreen process (now replaced by Panavision) produced an image 2 1/2 times wider than the image's height. Transferring these films to TV and video tape was a nightmare. Millions of TV watchers have no idea how much of a movie was chopped off on television. Since Marilyn's films were always popular on TV it's nice to know that they are now available to be rediscovered in clean wide images with rich Tecnicolor and multi-channel audio. The films in the Diamond collection are "Bus Stop", "How To Marry A Millionaire", "There's No Business Like Show Business", "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "The Seven Year Itch". The bonus is a DVD called "The Final Days' which is exclusive to this package and features a reconstruction of Monroe's last film "Something's Got To Give" with the famous nude scene in the pool- the first by a major star in a Hollywood film. North By Northwest It could be argued that "North By Northwest" is the film where all of Alfred Hichcock's talents came together. His legendary status as a filmmaker was well established but some times his films were not appreciated at the time of their release. Films regarded well today which were trashed by critics include "Psycho", "Marnie" and even the legendary "Vertigo" took some time before the critical tide turned. Some of the credit for this change of heart must be given to filmmakers like Truffaut who seemed to be ahead of the curve with regard to Sir Alfred. American critics just couldn't give praise to someone who made popular entertainment and appeared on his own TV show! "North By Northwest" is different. This film is dazzling in every respect. The final pairing of Hitchcock with Cary Grant, the great cinematography by Robert Burks using the VistaVision process, Ernest Lehman's witty script and to top it off the amazing music by Bernard Herrmann. Even other film composers were in awe of this composer's genius. Not many would have scored Saul Bass' credit sequence set against New York office buildings with a Fandango! Herrmann did and it's a classic. The DVD offers a stunning transfer of the Technicolor widescreen film - it's great to see the New York of the late 50's this way. The audio has been remixed in 5.1 and sounds very nice. There is a commentary track with screenwriter Lehman and a documentary hosted by leading lady Eva Marie Saint. The extra feature which really sets this apart is the isolated Bernard Herrmann score. Herrmann is regarded as one of the best composers ever to grace Hollywood films and this score is one of his best. To be able to enjoy the entire film score without dialog or sound effercts is a real treat. Not to mention an opportunity for those with a CD burner! A must have purchase! Pearl Harbor - The Vista Series The Vista Series version of "Pearl Harbor" is groundbreaking in many ways. A state-of-the-art picture in a director's cut with 60 new shots. A much more grim take on the battle scenes, DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mixes, a beautiful package which resembles a soldier's diary includes booklets, postcards and more. The extras include multiple audio commentaries, multiple documentaries, multi-angle action scenes and on and on. This is one of those "if you're going to buy only one dvd" type of discs. It's hard to imagine how anyone will top this presentation-if only the film was better! There is no doubt that the attack on Pearl Harbor sequence is a classic but there is just so much dreck around it. Some of the performances are so awful that it's hard to imagine how they could tell a good take from a bad one. Is this the same Ben Affleck who was in "Chasing Amy"? Well, when the human side lets you down we turn to the technical side and that's where this film lives. Stunning picture and sound on this reference quality presentation. In fact, its best to watch "Pearl Harbor" for its technical successes and check out the documentaries for the human story. Maybe this would have been better if produced like those Irwin Allen films. Let Michael Bay handle all the action stuff and get another director to hone the script and direct the actors. Who knows! By the way, check out "Tora, Tora, Tora - Special Edition". Amazing to see the same battle done without computers!