The Wizard of Oz: 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition
(Blu-ray)
WARNER
MOVIE A
SPECIAL FEATURES 9
DVD GEEK FACTOR 8.75
(OUT OF 10)
It had been a little while since I sat down to watch this one, and
seeing it on Blu-Ray provided the best Oz viewing experience
I’ve had to date.
While Judy Garland’s colorful visit to the Wonderful Land of Oz is
enchanting, I’ve always been most impressed by the black-and-white
prologue. That twister scene is remarkable, a sterling example of early
movie magic that’s as scary today as it was the first time I saw it.
Dorothy opening the door and revealing the Technicolor wonder of
Munchkin Land is one of the all-time-great cinematic transitions.
Ray Bolger, Jack Haley and Bert Lahr are permanently endearing as
the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion. And no movie canine
has ever topped Toto. I still love how the little Cairn terrier kept
presenting her paw during the close of Garland’s “Somewhere Over the
Rainbow” like she was expecting a treat. (Toto was played by a female
dog named Terry.)
If there’s one drawback to the increasing picture clarity, it’s that
the indoor soundstages in Oz have become more and more obvious.
Watching the film through the dull haze of a crappy VHS tape or on
broadcast TV blurred the background a bit, which actually made things
more surreal. Now, it’s quite obvious the settings are manmade and
indoor. You can see the seams in some of the background paintings.
That’s a minor quibble … Oz is still one of the
all-time-great film fantasies.
SPECIAL FEATURES: The edition comes in an emerald-green box,
complete with a 52-page picture book, a collector’s watch and
reproductions of the original 1939 campaign book and budget sheet.
There are more than 16 hours of supplements, including features from
past editions. The three-disc set includes an excellent commentary
featuring archive interviews with Ray Bolger and Jack Haley, early
screen adaptations of Oz, the TV movie special The Dreamer of Oz starring John Ritter, and an entire disc dedicated to MGM: When the
Lion Roars, a six-hour documentary about the legendary studio.
The Hannibal Lecter Collection (Blu-Ray)
20TH CENTURY FOX
MOVIES SEE REVIEW
SPECIAL FEATURES B+ FOR LAMBS; F FOR OTHER FILMS
DVD GEEK FACTOR 7
(OUT OF 10)
This three-disc set contains Michael Mann’s Manhunter, on
Blu-Ray for the first time. It also includes the already-released
The Silence of the Lambs Blu-Ray, and its so-so sequel,
Hannibal, also on American Blu-Ray for the first time. It does
not contain Red Dragon, which was essentially a remake of
Manhunter, or the terrible Hannibal Rising.
The best of the trio is, of course, Lambs, but
Manhunter certainly has its virtues. Brian Cox has a small role
as Hannibal the Cannibal, only hinting at the deranged menace Anthony
Hopkins would later portray in the role. Thomas Harris’ novel
Hannibal, his follow-up to Lambs, was terrible, but
director Ridley Scott almost made a decent movie out of it.
Lambs was grounded in reality, but Hannibal, while
good-looking, was a little too outrageous.
Movie grades: Manhunter (B), Silence of the
Lambs (A), Hannibal (C+).
SPECIAL FEATURES: Lambs is just a repackaging of a
prior Blu-Ray edition, containing a decent trivia track and archive
documentaries. Manhunter and Hannibal come to Blu-Ray
with nothing as far as special features are concerned. I would’ve liked
to see a better effort for those films.
Shaun of the Dead (Blu-Ray)
UNIVERSAL
MOVIE A
SPECIAL FEATURES A-
DVD GEEK FACTOR 9
(OUT OF 10)
The already-classic Simon Pegg horror comedy comes to Blu-Ray just
in time for the release of Zombieland. Good luck to anyone who
wants to try to top this gem’s blend of classic horror gore and British
comedy. With George Romero stuck making pale imitations of his classic
zombie films, this obvious homage to Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead stands as the best zombie film since
Romero’s Dawn.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Blu-Ray exclusive features include the
U-Control Zomb-O-Meter, which features pop-up trivia and storyboards
while you watch the film. There are four commentaries, video diaries,
deleted scenes, outtakes and more.
Requiem for a Dream (Blu-Ray)
WARNER
MOVIE A
SPECIAL FEATURES B+
DVD GEEK FACTOR 8
(OUT OF 10)
Nothing says, “Don’t do drugs, kids!” like this nightmarish offering
from director Darren Aronofsky. Ellen Burstyn deserved an Oscar for her
portrayal of a long-suffering mother who gets strung out on diet pills.
(She lost to Julia Roberts in Erin Brockovich.) Jared Leto,
Marlon Wayans and Jennifer Connelly are all top-notch as heroin
junkies, each of them getting equal treatment in Aronofsky’s film. The
climax of the movie stands as one of the more horrific film sequences
of the 21st century.
SPECIAL FEATURES: An Aronofsky commentary (and a separate
commentary from cinematographer Matthew Libatique), a making-of doc,
deleted scenes and more.
This article appears in Sep 24-30, 2009.