Okay, so I got my tax refund back and finally broke down and bought a DVD player. My first two tiyles were “The Blair Witch project” and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” (although I already have “2001 : A Space Odyssey” and “Brazil” on order.) Does anyone have any recommendations of movies that look especially good on DVD?
Saint Eutychus H.M.S.H.
“Vanity of vanities” says the preacher, “all is vanity and a chasing after the wind …”
Disney Shorts
The Eutychus Papers
Blade looks and sounds great, plus has excellent added features (like the original ending, interviews, a commentary track, trailer, and descriptions of the 12 vampire tribes).
A Bug’s Life. Transferred straight from the original computer images to DVD, there’s not a spot of grain or dust to be seen anywhere. Pristine and beautiful, plus a damn funny film.
It’s A Wonderful Life. For years, people have had to watch the grainy third-hand prints on TV stations or the eighth-generation dubs available cheap on VHS. The DVD is crystalline; it looks better than anything that’s come before.
Contact. Great film with great visuals. There’s tons of extras, including discussions of computer-drawn scenes and three separate commentary tracks.
The Alien Legacy. Might as well get them all; it’s not much more expensive than getting just the first two, which are the real prizes. The Alien disc has so much extra stuff…a Ridley Scott commentary track, about a dozen deleted scenes, artwork, storyboards, a soundtrack, trailers, promo materials…it’s one of the best discs out there. Aliens is the director’s cut, with about 15 minutes of added footage.
The Wizard of Oz. The most recent release is packed full of extras, behind-the-scenes info, promo materials, and a very sharp and colorful picture. Ever wanted to see the extended Scarecrow dance sequence? A sneak-peek at the Jitterbug sequence that was cut from the film? Buddy Ebsen in Tin Man makeup before the makeup hospitalized him and he was replaced? See it all here…
Other suggestions: Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal (it’s great to finally see them in widescreen), Starship Troopers (really shows off the video sharpness), the recent special edition James Bond movies (GoldenEye and Tomorrow Never Dies are particular favorites).
And, I don’t know if you’re into this kinda thing, but The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a great package, with deleted scenes, promo materials, outtakes, and a carefully-produced transfer that makes the film look better than it ever has.
Matrix.
anything that shows tits
If you get ‘A Bug’s Life’, get the special edition that was just released. It’s got something like an hour and a half worth of extra material.
I know you probably won’t go for this, but Metallica’s Cunning Stunts is the best music DVD there is. It’s a DVD of a single concert they did in '97, I beleive. The cinematography and editing kicks ass and the options are very sweet. You can follow a band member individually throughout entire songs!
Oh, and the music is excellent!
“The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents.”
-H.P. Lovecraft, “The Call of Cthulhu”
I just got Clerks and Mallrats, they were a little expensive, but both great movies with tons of extras.
South Park is also good.
I second The Matrix.
Saving Private Ryan is also astonishing.
Pretty much any action movie will sound thousands of times better when it is run through stereo speakers, so make sure that you have a decent sound system also.
The facts, although interesting, are irrelevent.
I liked Amadeus a lot. Along with its other features, it has an optional audio track that has just the music.
Also, the recent re-release of Yellow Submarine looks great.
A lot of video rental places are renting DVDs now, and I find that its a good way to check them out before purchasing one.
The Matrix looks really great on DVD with enough extras to keep you busy for a while. I’d also have to say that Lolita, the Adriane Lyne version, is really great. The movie is very well done, the picture is crisp and the extras are pretty cool.
The Iron Giant. Amazing.
If you liked Mallrats, its got lots of extras (including the intro to the storyline that was cut out) but otherwise doesn’t really improve on DVD.
If you’ve got surround sound, The Matrix, The Rock, and any James Bond movie are all great choices. Turn the volume way up and enjoy!
The Matrix, Iron Giant, Casablanca, Silence of the Lambs, L.A. Confidential, The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Big Hit, Casablanca, The Prince of Egypt, Most any Anime looks great also.
You always use violence. I should’ve ordered glutinous rice chicken.
Ghostbusters, Clerks.
Both have great running commentary tracks detailing why certain scenes were shot the way they were,inside info,etc.
Ghostbusters’ commentary can also be seen ala MSTK3000 with silhouettes of the writer, director and producer at the bottom of the screen. Also cool interactive menu.
Iron Giant is amazing but rumored to be coming out in a special addition this April. Wait for that.