# DVD Recommendation **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 12, 2000, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740 "2000-02-12T21:40:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2000, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/1 "2000-02-12T21:40:00Z")
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](http://www.disneyshorts.org) [The Eutychus Papers](http://members.aol.com/eutychus55) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2000, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/2 "2000-02-12T22:32:00Z")
_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. ---
**Author:** ![Jo3sh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a587f6/32.png) [@Jo3sh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jo3sh)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/3 "2000-02-13T02:18:00Z")
Matrix. ---
**Author:** ![OJSimpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b487fb/32.png) [@OJSimpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OJSimpson)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/4 "2000-02-13T02:19:00Z")
anything that shows tits ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/5 "2000-02-13T02:28:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![TheUnforgiven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TheUnforgiven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheUnforgiven)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/6 "2000-02-13T04:13:00Z")
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” ---
**Author:** ![hightechburrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@hightechburrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hightechburrito)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/7 "2000-02-13T04:17:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/8 "2000-02-13T04:22:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![HeadlessCow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/db5fbb/32.png) [@HeadlessCow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeadlessCow)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/9 "2000-02-13T04:40:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Mojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mojo)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/10 "2000-02-13T05:34:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![meara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@meara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meara)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2000, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/11 "2000-02-13T06:39:00Z")
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! ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2000, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/12 "2000-02-14T06:29:00Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![seriousart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@seriousart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seriousart)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2000, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-recommendation/13740/13 "2000-02-14T07:29:00Z")
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.