# Recommend me some good DVD audio commentaries. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 28, 2002, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957 "2002-08-28T17:29:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TheeGrumpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheeGrumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheeGrumpy)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/21 "2002-08-29T23:06:14Z")
Wasn’t there a McKenzie Bros. comedy album to accompany the movie, where they talk about how Shakespeare stole “Hamlet” from them? **Kingpengvin:** “The Best still is This Is SPINAL TAP.” “God I miss Ross McLochness!” LOL! Although **Spinal Tap** doesn’t really fit CyberPundit’s request for commentaries that illuminate the filmmaking process, like for **Ronin**. Steven Soderbergh’s track for **Out of Sight** actually detracts from the film, oddly enough. He keeps pointing out weird editing tricks, saying “I didn’t think that would work.” I found that the jump cuts bothered me, after he pointed them out. Still a good movie, though. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/22 "2002-08-29T23:20:15Z")
Haven’t seen (heard) many, but did really enjoy Cameron Crowe’s commentary on _Almost Famous_. ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/23 "2002-08-30T01:21:28Z")
I was going to use **Conan** as an example of a bad commentary track… 🙂 …though it was funny in places. Its just unfortunate that the commentary post-dates the movie so much that the Dir and Arnold spend a lot of time saying things like: “Well, I can’t remember why we did that…”, which rather defeats the purpose of commenting. :rolleyes: On the other hand, the commentary for **Highlander** (I think the one I have is the 10th Anniversay Ed) was great fun. The bits that most stick in my mind were the Director/Producers talking about how they hired Christopher Lambert and then realised that he couldn’t speak english… and how almost all of the movie (though set in New York) was filmed in London and the problems that entailed. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/24 "2002-08-30T06:12:06Z")
Along with _This is Spinal Tap_, also check out the commentary on _Best in Show_. Not quite as funny, but quite good. Especially on the deleted scenes, which are worth the price of the DVD alone. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/25 "2002-08-30T08:05:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Smeghead \* > \*\*Along with _This is Spinal Tap_, also check out the commentary on _Best in Show_. Not quite as funny, but quite good. Especially on the deleted scenes, which are worth the price of the DVD alone. \*\* Indeed they are! “Who’s on top and who’s on bottom now!” ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/26 "2002-08-30T12:42:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gallows fodder \* > \*\*The _Gosford Park_ commentary by screenwriter Julian Fellowes is excellent, though it’s all about the etiquette of the time period and the choices that were made for the movie (e.g., what kind of table settings they went with, who the still maid was, what kind of cocktails people drank at hunting parties in 1932) rather than strict film-making techniques. I found it fascinating and it greatly enhanced my enjoyment of the movie, but YM, of course, MV. \*\* Another vote for this one. I’ve recommended it to other people who have the CD; Fellowes’ background commentary on the era is fascinating, plus he’s very helpful in sorting out some of the relationships of the characters and pointing out little details I’d missed even after watching the movie 3-4 times. Other commentaries I’ve enjoyed: Terry Gilliam on the big boxed set of _Brazil_. Rod Steiger on _Dr. Zhivago_. Even after so many years, he still seemed intrigued, almost infatuated, with the character of Komarovsky. Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn on the 25th anniversary set for _Rocky Horror_. Funny in a dry, understated, matter-of-fact way. Stephen Fry and writer Julian Mitchell on _Wilde_. Maybe I’m biased, since I’m a big fan of both, but I loved listening to them talk about this movie, Oscar Wilde, and all the pretty boys in the cast who later became famous (Jude Law, Ioan Gruffudd, Orlando Bloom). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/27 "2002-08-30T15:45:16Z")
For those who liked the Spinal Tap DVD, I’d recommend seeing The Rutles. It’s a great movie whose humor has held up and Eric Idle gives a good commentary. The Rocky Horror Picture Show DVD has a great commentary by Richard O’Brian and Patricia Quinn. They’re obviously close friends and play off well together. My favorite part was when O’Brian is talking about the various characters’ accents in the movie and gives an impression of Meat Loaf’s Texas drawl. I recently listened to the commenary track for the movie _Leaving Scars_. This was perhaps the most unlikely movie I’ve ever seen with a commentary track; it’s a very low budget sex/crime thriller that was released stright to video. During the course of the commentary, the producer and directer get a pizza delivered, continue to record while they accept the pizza, have to borrow money to pay for it, and short-tip the delivery guy. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/28 "2002-08-30T18:08:48Z")
**Election** Alexander Payne is quickly becoming one of my favorite filmmakers. When I heard the commentary, it is an amazing contrast to the irreverent humor he uses in his film. He is a very thoughtful filmmaker and his commentary touches not only on the process but on sybolic aspects as well. By the time I got done listening to it, I wanted to learn more about filmmaking. As educated as he sounds in his commentary, he is also very humble and at times self-effacing. ---
**Author:** ![widdershins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f0a364/32.png) [@widdershins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/widdershins)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/29 "2002-08-30T22:09:30Z")
_The Stunt Man_ has a great audio commentary mixing the director explaining his technique with funny stories and memories from most of the principle cast. It one of the more entertaining commentaries I’ve heard so far, as added to my enjoyment of a neglected gem of a film. It’s worth seeking out. ---
**Author:** ![clayton\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@clayton\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clayton_e)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2002, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/30 "2002-08-31T05:29:09Z")
The simpsons for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2002, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/31 "2002-08-31T14:35:31Z")
I’ll say the commentary by “Weird Al” Yankovic for **UHF**. A running joke in it is how he gives the address of all the filming locations in Tulsa. Also, Michael Richards drops on by and at the end, Al calls Victoria Jackson. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2002, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/32 "2002-08-31T16:53:46Z")
Jeffrey Combs & Bruce Abbott MST’ie their masterwork BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR- I was in hysterics laughing! I haven’t yet gotten the DVD to RE-ANIMATOR yet. ---
**Author:** ![CyberPundit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@CyberPundit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CyberPundit)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/33 "2002-09-01T05:25:21Z")
Thanks for all the great suggestions. BTW several movies mentioned here: 7 samurai, This is Spinal Tap,Brazil etc. appear to be from the Criterion Collection. [http://www.criterionco.com/asp/browse.asp](http://www.criterionco.com/asp/browse.asp) I get the impression that these DVD’s are full of quality special features including audio-commentaries (unfortunately the links to the special features section of the individual films don’t seem to work so I can’t be sure). A lot of great older movies too. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/34 "2002-09-01T08:00:44Z")
My favorite DVD commentary is the one for _ **Blood Simple** _. But that’s not what you’re looking for, since it err, doesn’t really add to your understanding of the film. It’s brilliant, though. So I’ll just second _The Seven Samurai_. The guy can be a little dry, but there’s some really interesting stuff in there for the patient. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2002, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957/35 "2002-09-02T08:05:41Z")
Doh! I can’t believe I forgot this one! Some of the best commentary can be found on _ **For All Mankind** _. Al Reinhart’s (screenwriter for _ **Apollo 13** _, BTW) film of the Apollo missions. It features him, astronaut Eugene Cernan and Alan Bean talking about the Apollo program. Best commentary, ever! I’d also add the commentary for _Trinity and Beyond_, _Fight Club_ and _American Beauty_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-dvd-audio-commentaries/125957.md?page=1)