5 comments about Kon Tiki.

1. I saw the second of his movies "Ra" and Ra2" in the theaters when I was just a small boy. then I got to go to Norway and visit the Kon tiki museum. So for me this was a treat to see. but my kids 7 & 10 where glued to this movie. afterwards we pull out the world map and looked up everything on the Net. You have to like Documentaries though!
   
   I hope the other movies will be released soon.



2. Kon-Tiki won an Academy Award for Best Documentary in the early 1950s. This one-hour feature documents Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl's voyage across the Pacific Ocean in a balsa-wood raft, to simulate how South American natives might possibly have voyaged west and settled in the islands of Polynesia.
   
   Crude, black-and-white grainy 16mm film, simple English narration. The production is bare-bones. But I've seen this film two or three times. Instead of "reality TV" which is far from reality, this is reality. Five guys who set out in a boat they did not know would be able to survive the distance, finding out by hard experience what it might have been like for any ancient mariner who tried to do the same.
   
   Many days were calm, and the crew could lash the steering paddle down, letting the wind and the current carry them toward their Polynesian goal. They could get in a basket below the water line and watch the ocean life, or float lazily away from the main raft in a rubber lifeboat.
   
   Every morning they got up and picked up the flying fish that had landed on the raft and been stranded. Breakfast! At other times they speared and clubbed dolphin fish (not dolphins) for a change of meat. They caught many sharks, mainly to discourage them from following the raft. They worried about whales and other large fish, but were never troubled by them.
   
   In about three month's time, they arrived in Polynesia and were driven toward the coast of a small island. They very nearly were wrecked on the reef. It was by no means certain that they would make it safely to shore, but finally the raft came to rest and they were able to unload the important equipment, set up on shore, and radio their successful landing and their position. They met natives (wearing Western clothing) and eventually a boat was sent to retrieve them.
   
   It is a simple story, told in a straightforward way. It doesn't seem especially dramatic, but it is authentic. Five men in a raft, surviving the elements, testing themselves, reaching their goal and a place in the history books.



3. I was surprised to find that this is a DVD-R. I believe this sort of information should be revealed somewhere in the product description. Also, most sources say KON TIKI runs 73 minutes; the main feature on this disc has a running time of less than an hour. There are additional features on the disc, but that is somewhat beside the point.
   There is an out-of-print Image entertainment DVD of this title available for about the same money. I'd recommend it, as I'm betting its a legitimate pressed (rather than burned) DVD.



4. I received a scratched DVD, and am unable to contact the company (moviemars) to return it. Amazon can't help because they didn't "sell it". I am disappointed - this is the second time I have tried to get this DVD. The first time it was "lost" in the mail with no refund. Now it's scratched. Don't order from this company!
   
   Also, I wish Amazon would take some responsibility for this kind of situation - at least to intercede somehow when materials are not delivered, lost, or damaged. Makes me not want to order through Amazon!



5. I hadn't seen this movie since my early teens, when my uncle took me to see it in La Jolla, California in 1953 or 1954. It was a special evening and we completely enjoyed seeing it, especially since I had read Heyerdahl's book in Life Magazine. Seeing it again just recently, brought back fond memories of my youth and excited me again for the adventure the Heyerdahl crew must have had.
   
   I'll watch the film again,
   
   Ron Lange,
   North Tustin, California

5 comments about Basic Sailing Skills, with Chesapeake Sailing School, Show Me Videos, Learn to Sail.

1. This is a very good Sailing video for beginners. The theory is well explained in a classroom setting and then in practice. It was very helpful for me.



2. I don't understand why people are complaining about production value. The production value is on par for an educational video. The lessons are great. He goes over all the important methods very thoroughly.



3. This was a good basic sailing DVD. It covered most everthing. Only complaint was that it could've been a little longer.



4. I bough this for a friend of mine and we watched it together. I didn't have to answer any questions. Great movie for a beginner sailer.



5. My Dad had just bought a sailboat, so I got this for his birthday. He loved it. He had been trying to learn on YouTube but wasn't getting anywhere. He learned alot from this video. I wasn't happy with Amazons shipping, though. It was late.

2 comments about The Splish Splash Big Red Boat/Sailing Around the World.

1. very entertaining. captivates toddlers for hours and aids as a learning tool for speech and vocabulary.



2. I purchased this for my grand-daughter for Christmas because she loves to watch the Wiggles. She loved this one as well!

5 comments about Deep Water.

1. This is not a dvd but a document for all sailor who interest in our own history and images.
   Real images of the 1st alone around the world "racing" made by the sailors. Including lots of real videos and images from Moitessier and Knox.
   I recommend (A+++++).



2. The Bottom Line:
   
   A fascinating and exciting documentary that starts out like Touching the Void and finishes like Apocalypse Now, Deep Water makes occasional errors in the telling of Donald Crowhurst's story (the narration sometimes gives misleading impressions, for example) but you're unlikely to come away from the film unmoved.



3. I've now watched the DVD no less than 15 times and the story still intrigues me. It was produced with much attention to detail and effort. Many of the principals of the story are interviewed and tell their parts of the story with interesting perspectives . It is not only a story for sailors, but for anyone who is interested in isolation and the hell it can play with the human physche. My sincere sympathy and gratitude to the Crowhurst family for having the courage to share this emotional story with such honesty.



4. This is a very interesting documentary about this half crazed man
   who had no skills as a navigator and yet he chose to take this
   incredible trip.
   
   Anyway though it seems he was a complete failure and fraud
   I tend to disagree, in his final hours Mr Crowhurst found truth
   in his desperate moment of dealing with final oblivion
   he wrote some very interesting entries in his Log
   for example he said,
   "there is no good and evil only truth"
   and
   "Man will one day posses technology so advance that he will control the space time continuum and will vanish from the physical universe"
   
   I am trying to see if i can find those log in some Book or something.



5. 1968. In the pre-GPS era, Briton Francis Chichester becomes the first person to sail single-handedly around the world, after a brief stop in Australia for repairs. His achievement inspires the London `Times' newspaper to sponsor a round-the-world yacht race which will challenge the world's best yachtsmen to go one better; to sail single-handedly around the world without stopping, and without assistance from any third party. Total Solitude for anything up to a year.
   
   Using Chichester's achievement as a preface, this outstanding documentary chronicles the pre-race excitement and preparations, profiles the nine men who accept the challenge, then tells the story of the race itself, all the way to the haunting conclusion and its inspiring legacy. Although its principal focus is on Donald Crowhurst, the `dark horse' among a field of experienced and famous yachtsmen, the whole 90-minute story is one of risk, adventure, solitude, shipwreck, survival, deception, triumph, failure, eccentricity, descent into madness, and - tragically - crushing bereavement. To say any more would spoil the suspense; suffice it only to add that not all of the nine men finished, and not all survived.
   
   Interviews with surviving personalities (including family members) combined with clips of archived footage and a well-timed and articulate narrative make this a very well-coordinated documentary, in fact, now the best I have ever seen. I've watched it four times in the last year, and find it's one of those rare tales that reveals something new each time. Only this last time, for instance, it struck me that - surprisingly - not a single American entered the race; all the contestants were Europeans (actually British and French), almost as though they were the last in that great line of continental adventurers in the tradition of Columbus, DaGama, Drake, Magellan, Tasman, Cook, and others. Then a poetic irony about the timing of this race struck me; in 1968-69, these last great adventurers from the Old World were setting out one last time to sail around it, just as the first adventurers from the New World were setting out away from it, toward the moon. With each viewing, though, I found myself haunted by man's inner heart of darkness, about which so much is disturbingly revealed in this gripping tale. And I found the last ten minutes to be heartbreaking. Don't make the mistake of watching this before you go to bed, as I did the first time around.
   
   I'm just over 50, but I still wonder that in my lifetime we have seen the transition from self-dependence (using a sextant and knowing the stars), to the global inter-connectivity of GPS, weather radar, and advanced communications which now make such voyages almost unadventurous. I couldn't help feeling that these men had more in common with those heroes of centuries ago, than with the more recent mariners of today, who are their actual contemporaries.
   
   Among the bonus features are logs and videos recovered from one sad, derelict vessel of a sailor who didn't make it, and recent short interviews with a real-life cast of characters from what will soon be a forgotten world, including post-scripts to those no longer with us, references to that old classic Anglo-French rivalry, and some of the eccentricities of a very special group of larger-than-life heroes and villains (look for the swashbuckling Scotsman who later became the first person to sail solo around the world in the wrong direction, not to mention the gallant Frenchman who abandoned fame and fortune to achieve self-fulfillment - right out of Saint-Exupery!).
   
   Never mind if you're not a sailor - I'm not; this is about so much more than life on the high seas and the wild oceans. There's something in this for everyone, but especially those who want their heroes not to be country-men, or company-men, or men of any kind of institution, but men's men; individualists in the classic sense, whose strengths derive from something deep within.
   
   This story continues to grow on me, and - significantly - on all those to whom I have recommended it. To explain in full why this documentary is so compelling and so good would spoil the show. So trust me far enough to spend $4 (used) for what in my humble opinion is the best documentary ever made. I am certain you will not regret it.

5 comments about Morning Light.

1. A bit dissappointed by lack of any real tactics or technical discussions by the crew and schipper, but beautifully filmed...In short a bit "LITE".



2. I have to disagree with the reviews that state this movie gets boring for non-sailors. I have a very little bit of sailing experience (none of it off-shore) and I thought it was great move. I enjoy sports in general and like watching the America's Cup, etc. but this is a film that, while it takes place on a sailboat, is not about sailing.
   
   This movie is about the struggle of a group of young people to take on a challenge of enormous size. While the movie left no doubt the people would succeed, at least to some degree, they didn't know if they would succeed while they were undertaking the challenge. The consequences of failure in the middle of the Pacific Ocean could easily be fatal.
   
   This film could be used as a study in leadership - in particular peer leadership. It is also very inspiring. I highly recommend the film.



3. This movie was insirational. It made it here on time and my Dad who enjoys sailing really liked it.



4. ***1/2
   
   Since 1906, boaters from all corners of the globe have gathered to compete in the Transpacific Yacht Race, a two-week-long sailing competition that extends across more than 2,000 miles of open ocean, starting in Los Angeles and ending in Honolulu. In 2007, Roy Disney and a team of expert trainers sponsored a hand-picked crew of young sailors - ages 18 to 23 - to compete in the event (indeed, it was the youngest team in the history of the race). Named after the 52-foot boat on which they sailed, "Morning Light" is a documentary account of both the preparation for that race and the race itself.
   
   The movie spends much of the first half focusing on the grueling training the youngsters underwent as part of the process of whittling down the group of 15 hopefuls to a final crew of just 11.
   
   Directed by Mark Monroe, "Morning Light" is a wholesome, upbeat, fast-paced documentary with razor-sharp editing (by Monroe and Paul Crowder) that really gets the adrenaline pumping, and cinematography (by Josef Nalevansky) that truly makes you feel like you're a part of the action. Through interviews, we get to know a little about the youngsters themselves, what motivates them, what excites them about sailing, and what it means to them personally to make - and, indeed in some cases, to not make - the final cut.
   
   With its inspirational, shoot-for-the-stars pop-rock soundtrack, MTV-style editing techniques and "Real World" communal setup (albeit a squeaky-clean one), the movie is clearly aimed at a younger audience. And there are times when the movie does feel a little too "Disneyfied" for its own good (did none of these young adults ever once swear?). But folks of any age will be able to thrill to this film, provided they have a spirit of adventure - armchair variety or not.



5. I love sailing and am fascinated by long-distance sailing and I think that sailing races have spun some of the most coveted sailor's yarn out there, like the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race and, of course, the TransPac. The concept of the Morning Light "documentary", thus, sounded intriguing to me - put together a crew of kids in their early twenties, give them a powerhouse of a boat and let them compete in this classic open water race against all the old sea salts.
   Of course, the fact that this is a Disney movie waters down the expectations of "documentary" elements, and, true to Disney's reputation, the worst you will see (or much rather: hear) is somebody getting seasick off camera. No cursing, no fights, no frustration, no egos competing. Just a bunch of happy twens in a friendly competition. To distract from the voids of this obviously edited-out content, Disney uses high-def cameras and high-tech editing to create those "stunning visuals" that everybody appears to seek in a sailing movie. However, Disney pushed too hard for my taste - more often than not the result looks overedited at best and some scenes look outright cheap. The pinnacle of fake-ness are the night sailing scenes "under the stars", that, of course, include the mandatory shooting star across the sky. If I want to see "canned atmosphere" like that I watch a cartoon - there at least I don't have to wonder about the degree of "reality" in all the other scenes.
   For some reason, Disney also decided to take out pretty much everything that would have made this kind of venture interesting for me: The crew selection process is depicted like a happy pool party. The training process appears to be a couple of days of jolly sailing with some of the world's best sailors, but we don't hear anything about the instructions they give. The skills needed to compete in the TransPac are not mentioned anywhere. Different crew members are caled "highly talented sailors" all the time, but we don't get to find out what actually makes a good sailor other than winching a sheet, looking at a screen with weather and maps and turning the boat's wheel.
   Long distance races are won and lost by the tactical decisions made in the process and this race is no exception. The crew for some odd reason decided to go north instead of south around a high pressure area. Unfortunately, we hear nothing baout why they made this, or any, tactical decision. LAter during the race, an almost identical boat was able to overtake them. What was the mistake they made? What did they learn from that? All these questions go unanswered as well as the question of how the crew reflected on the race afterwards other than in empty buzzwords. There would obviously have been a lot to explore here, especially since from the beginning there were more kids on board than were finally selected to crew and the skipper was only "elected" at the end of the training period. All of these elements are so heavily glossed over, though, that it led me to regret having spent the time watching it.
   On another note: the soundtrack is just ridiculous. Disney apparently thought it highly original to underlay a softened pop-rock that sounds like a leftover from the early nineties being recycled, and, as subtle as a tank, to modulate the beat with the wind or boat speed. This might have been cutting edge twenty years ago, but these days it just adds to the feeling of cheapness in this movie.
   In the end you will have seen some highly polished visuals of high tech sailboats in fair weather conditions, you will have seen someone winching a sheet about a hundred times, which apparently metaphorizes "sailing" for Disney, and you will be sick of hearing some of the more spoiled crew members about having to spend ten days without gourmet food, video games, and movies, instead of realizing and taking advantage of the fantastic opportunity and privilege they have been given. You will also have heard Walt Disney tell you a felt 2000 times about how this race changed his life, but you will be left to wonder about the "how" and "in which way". To me this movie was a great disappointment: what could have been a great documentary about a fantastic sailing experience ended up being an empty shell, the vaccum of which the images and the soundtrack were not able to fill.
   If you're looking for more "reality" in a documentary about long-distance sail racing, maybe something like "Deep Water" might be the better choice. If you're looking for a very "light" movie, where everything is "fairy-tale harmonious" and sailing is "fun", where you can leave for 30 minutes or turn off the volume without missing anything, then you might enjoy this one.

5 comments about Baby Einstein - On the Go - Riding, Sailing and Soaring.

1. Your child would love watching this video, but she'd also love eating cotton candy and drinking grape soda. Many pediatric and psychological studies have shown that young children know FEWER words for every hour they spend watching videos like this one. Why? Because they aren't spending time with YOU, practicing their language and social skills. There's also evidence that young children who watch TV have a greater risk of developing ADHD. Last, toddlers who grow up in homes with the TV always on in the background literally seem to have more trouble hearing themselves think. This hurts their developing linguistic abilities and consequently their abilities to engage silent reasoning.
   
   Please protect your child -- don't let her watch any TV during her early, crucial, developmental years. We only watch TV when our little girl is asleep.



2. My daughter is two and a half and still completely zones out on baby einstein. I would highly recommend this DVD.



3. I didn't like this video. It seems geared more toward boys. I like the puppets and the kids playing with gender neutral stuff like in the other videos. Not to say girls don't like trains and boats and stuff but I like baby Noah or Doolittle where the puppets are hugging and waving and interacting or singing songs I can dance to.



4. Just like all the Baby Einstein videos, my kids love it. They don't even know they're learning anything because it's so entertaining.



5. Baby Einstein is like crack to babies, without the loss of brain cells :)
   My 15-month-old boy can't get enough of this video. We actually have to ration his time because it makes us feel guilty that we're not paying enough attention to him. I'm pulling my childhood cars and truck out of storage as part of a 12-step program to bring him back.
   
   The Baby Einstein DVDs are all fantastic, but this one will be a real winner with a boy (or any child) that's starting to appreciate things that GO!!

5 comments about Longitude.

1. What a great and informative movie about the creation of a static ocean clock which allowed true navigation at sea - something that was not a constant in the late 1600's and early 1700's. If any of you have an interest in nautical history and general nautical navigation, get this DVD. We take for granted, since most ships are guided by GPS, how simple we can go from NY to Spain but a mere 300 to 350 years ago, that voyage was very risky and often led to disaster. If a navigator didn't know what they were doing, the ship could be out in the middle of nowhere, run out of fresh water or food and it was curtains. The DVD runs a parallel story between the inventor of the clock set to GMT that could survive on a ship and a man who in the 1950's sought out to refresh the minds of the British Government, it is well done.



2. I was first introduced to the story of John Harrison via Dava Sobel's pocket dynamo paperback 'Longitude' which I thoroughly enjoyed. Next to fall into my possession was Sobel's 'The Illustrated Longitude' which was just superb and added so much to the story with all the amazing images. Subsequently when I came across the DVD 'Longitude' a few years back I quickly grabbed it.
   
   This film is wonderful and a delightful complement to Sobel's books. Michael Gambon and Jeremy Irons shine in their respective roles of John Harrison and Rupert Gould. The movie quickly draws you in and you soon find yourself sharing Harrison's challenge in his quest to solve the problem of finding longitude at sea, and feeling his frustration in the claiming of his prize by the consistently big-headed politicking of the Board of Longitude.
   
   The story of Gould is interwoven with that of Harrison throughout the film and it works exceedingly well. Jeremy Irons excels in his portrayal of Gould and you share the man's passion for the timepieces as he discovers them in 1920 to gently take them under his wing and painstakingly restore them to their former glory, breathing life back into their little mechanical hearts. If it hadn't been for Gould then these ticking treasures could very well still be stashed away collecting dust and rust, or worse still they could have been destroyed during the war. Some folk seriously underestimate the importance of Gould's role in the history of the Harrison timekeepers. For the producers to include Gould's story in the movie was a no-brainer.
   
   The supporting cast is excellent as is the detail to historical accuracy and setting. The film has a nice blend of intrigue, science, heartache, triumph, humour, passion and politics. Compelling, informative and entertaining, this is film is a winner and a definite keeper. The acting by all involved is stellar.
   
   A marvellous film that will be enjoyed by children and adults alike. Chances are you won't look at clocks the same way ever again.



3. A brilliant drama about a man's passion! Both Michael Gambon and Jeremy Irons bring powerful performances. Although in two parts I was with these characters all the way and captured by the powerful messages of their life stories.



4. The first three customer reviews really say it all!
   So why am I writing here?
   Because you just gotta see this!
   Truly a great movie.



5. Longitude is 2 documentaries woven together to tell the story of the first sea-going time piece. It is the story of two obsessions. It is a fascinating story that is well done. Think of it as the first contractor competing against the government; the same government agency deciding who is to get the prize for this multi-decade pursuit. Well told, well acted and extremely interesting if you are into historical non-fiction.

5 comments about Wind.

1. Being an old sailor I have enjoyed the movie "Wind" for years. It was one of the very few movies I bought on VHS. The love story is mildly dorky but the sailing scenes are wonderful and Jennifer Gray is cuter than a bug's ear. That said, I hoped the new DVD of "Wind" would knock my socks off on my 46" Sony LED flat screen. It didn't, until..oops..I sprung for the Sony BluRay player. I reckon my hope for something that would fill the medium screen crisply were dashed upon the rocks of reality for 13 bucks shipped. Don't buy it hoping it's crisp when filling the screen on your big screen TV....UNLESS you spring for a BluRay player. Then it's HD good. I've learned my lesson on this. Now I have the "set" of toys, it's a good movie, clean and crisp, and better than ever at that size.



2. This is the most incredible filming of 12-Metre racing and the one on one racing for THE CUP. I crewed on an 8-Metre ("Thisbe") on Lake Ontario in the early '60's. This flick brought back the chills of a win and the tears of a loss. Anyone with the slightest background in sailing would love "Wind", too.



3. I don't know any sailor worth their salt that hasn't watched this. Yes, it's a chick-flick and it's got a lot of inaccuracies and it's quote hokey at times. But with so few sailing movies out there, this is a must-see....if for nothing else, so you can quote it. Everyone loves the whomper!



4. I could almost smell the ocean and feel the sun and wind on my face. I love this movie. It arrived in great condition and quickly as well.



5. Great movie! Good and fantasic scenery along with good acting! Energtic, filled with passion to see something through in life that is your dream. Very realistic in the realationships, that although one might have to leave to pursure one's dream this person never forgot his love and desire to share his dream with the person who encouarged the dream!

2 comments about Dillinger Is Dead (Criterion Collection).

1. This is one of the laziest, sloppiest, most pretentiously precious "art" films to emerge from the decade of the sixties (and that's saying something). The acting is terrible, the dialog couldn't be more banal, the camera work is inept, the story telling non-existent... The projector scene alone made me cringe for about twenty minutes (seemed like twenty hours). At first I was embarassed for everyone involved in this picture but eventually I just got angry that so many critics have praised this kind of film for fear of not being considered "hip". Supposedly there's a "statement" being made about bourgeois values and the emptiness of modern life and (fill in the blank). Either that or it's just some idiots making a lousy movie. This is straight from the Godardian school, with an overshadowing sheen of "cool" that supposedly renders such slapped-together junk immune to criticism. I don't care. Not even Godard at his worst is this bad.



2. "I make a film that will be seen and appreciated by the thousand of people I probably hate the most. I want to make a film in truly bad taste!" - Marco Ferreri
   
   Marco Ferreri, the Italian filmmaker who many looked at as a rebellious director that some looked at as innovative, non-compromising, intelligent but also controversial, provocative and a man who could care less of what people thought about his film.
   
   Never a shy man, Ferreri was to the point of how he felt. Arthouse fans may have loved his films but he could care less about those people who watch art house films. In fact, he hated those types of audiences. He was not a big fan of the popularity of the Cinemateque Francais of the '60s (which he called the films "incoherent") and nearly interview that revolved around his work, you can easily tell Ferreri was agitated, especially when it seemed the interviewer wanted to praise his style of filmmaking or a film.
   
   And if there was one film that people loved, it was Ferreri's 1968 Italian art house film "Dillinger e morto" (aka "Dillinger is Dead). Looked at as one of Ferreri's true masterpiece and a film that was well-received, this irked Ferreri. In fact, because of the positive attention he received from the film, Ferreri could not wait to get back to the films that he was known for...films that were provocative and, in his own words, "bad taste".
   
   "Dillinger is Dead" is a dark film that borders between fantasy and reality. A film that has hardly any dialogue, but its the actions of this man of the bourgeois lifestyle coming home from work and like a voyeur, we take a peak of how he is inside the home. Is what we are watching completely real or is this a film about dreams manufactured from a man with desires?
   
   VIDEO & AUDIO:
   
   "Dillinger is Dead" looks very good for a film that is over 40-years-old. The film is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1:66:1 and was approved by director of photography Mario Vulpiani. According to Criterion, the HD digital transfer was created on a Cintel C-Reality with Oliver electronic wet-gate processing from the original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter and flicker were manually removed from using MTI's DRS system and Pixel Farm's PFClean system, while Digital vision's DVNR system was used for a small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.
   
   AUDIO & SUBTITLES:
   
   "Dillinger is Dead" is presented in monaural Italian with English subtitles.
   
   It's important to note that "Dillinger is Dead" is a film that does not have that much dialogue at all. But it does utilize music from the radio and whatever is showing on television. But for the most part, audio is clear and understandable. According to Criterion, the monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the original optical soundtrack negative. Clicks, thumps, hiss and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crack was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated audio workstation.
   
   SPECIAL FEATURES:
   
   "Dillinger is Dead - THE CRITERION COLLECTION #506" comes with the following special features:
   
   * Michel Piccoli - (12:51) Featuring an interview from 2009 with Michel Piccoli, the actor who plays the role of Glauco talks about working with Marco Ferreri, shooting "Dillinger is Dead" and praising the director and his style of filmmaking.
   * Adriano Apra - (20:52) Featuring an interview from 2009 with film historian Adriano Apra about "Dillinger is Dead" and Marco Ferreri.
   * Le Cercle de Minuit - (13:12) In May 1997, days after the death of Marco Ferreri, filmmakers Francesco Rossi, Bernardo Bertolucci and film historian Aldo Tassone took part in a roundtable discussion at the Cannes Film Festival for the French TV show "Le cercle de minuit". Featuring video footage of Marco Ferreri during an interview shot two months earlier.
   * Trailer - (2:33) The original theatrical trailer for "Dillinger is Dead".
   * 34-Page Booklet - Featuring the following essay "Apocalypse Now" by Michael Joshua Rowin and a variety of Interviews with Ferreri.
   
   JUDGMENT CALL:
   
   Marco Ferreri is known for his provocative films. Known for co-writing the film "Mafioso" in 1962 (available on the Criterion Collection #424) and directing controversial films such as the 1973 "La Grande Bouffe" (a film where four friends eat themselves to death) and La Dernière femme (a film about love and self-mutilation), Ferreri is a director who has built his career on counter-culture films. He could care less if people watch and despise his films, it's what he does.
   
   But in 1968, he created "Dillinger e Morto" (Dillinger is Dead). A film that was enjoyed by many and even with its controversial ending, the fact that people enjoyed the film so much made Ferreri want to go further by creating films that were way more provocative than any of his previous films.
   
   "Dillinger is Dead" is a film that can seem quite boring if one was to describe it to others. A man who lives a bourgeois lifestyle, coming home from work and has a beautiful wife who had cooked for him and goes to bed early because she has a headache. The man cooks dinner, finds a gun in his closet while looking for ingredients, has a sexy maid that he accidentally spies on while she's adoring her body in the mirror and he eats what he cooks, watches TV, watches home videos and by descriptions of the actions does not give the movie any justice.
   
   Michel Piccoli, the actor who plays the main character Glauco, just shines as a man who seems isolated and obviously a man who doesn't sleep so much. It's the voyeuristic filmmaking that makes "Dillinger is Dead" so appealing. Afterall, in today's day and age, people are entranced by reality TV shows to online streaming videos of watching people do nothing. May they read a book, sleeping, cooking and this voyeurism is what catches the attention of the viewer.
   
   We see this man as a regular working man but once he discovers this gun, you think to yourself, "why is he so fixated on taking it apart, painting it, carrying it". We don't know what happened yesterday, the week before or let alone what is on the mindset of Glauco but it's that look into his life until he does the unthinkable. This is Ferreri's middle finger to the viewer who has watched and has been enjoying the movie up to that scene. And one must ask themselves, it's a Marco Ferreri film, how can you not see something like this coming?
   
   But we don't. It's because for the most part of the film, we watch this man enjoying food and his life. The ending is like entering a dream state. Are watching reality? Or somehow are we watching a man who shifts from reality to a dreamstate and that is what we are seeing? A man who wants to escape from his life of monotony of work and life and wants to have fun?
   
   I suppose "Dillinger is Dead" is one of those films that one can watch and come up with a different interpretation. But for a film that is pretty much a silent film in terms of lack of dialogue, Ferreri manages to create a film so unique and so different that it is a true masterpiece.
   
   Once again, The Criterion Collection manages to rescue a film from obscurity and bring it to the masses with a presentation that looks beautiful on DVD (how I wish Criterion considered this film for a Blu-ray release) and a good number of special features especially a booklet that features one of the best tete a tete between a filmmaker and his interviewers. It's something you rarely read from a Criterion booklet but I suppose that is what makes Marco Ferreri the man he was and why so many people respect him. He is a man who creates films the way he wants to without any compromises.
   
   "Dillinger is Dead" is a fantastic film and another Criterion Collection DVD worth owning!

5 comments about Jason and the Argonauts.

1. Back in the days of drive in movies, when we were kids, we watched this film and it was thrilling. We also ordered the Clash of the Titans. Both were good entertainment and a step back to our younger days and still a bit thrilling. We were able to share some of those memeories with the kids as they watched the movies. All of us enjoyed it. It made for a great weekend movie.
   Amazons delivery was very efficient.



2. Rarely have I been inspired by a terrible film to go to the computer to write a review, but JATA features a leaden script, amateur acting, and the most horrible special effects I've ever seen in a major motion picture. I would have thought that technology was far enough along in 1963 to make FX that seem as technologically advanced as all the other technology at the time. The Wizard of Oz, which came a quarter century earlier, is lightyears ahead of this film. The FX are downright embarassing, not much more than Davy and Goliath or Gumby.
   
   The story is just a literal interpretation of the Greek stories, including heavy borrowing from Homer and the playrights, with the ethical, moral and religious lessons largely extracted.
   
   I had to turn it off about 45 minutes through. It might be scary enough to impress young children, and the myths carry some primeval power to get inside your head, but the real power of the myths is due to Homer, Aeschylus and Euripides' great literary power, which is completely lacking in this hollywood claptrap version.



3. this movie might be a little old but it still captivates. My grandkids sat in silence while watching this movie. Love It!!!



4. Excellent movie! While 6th grade students enjoyed the mythology lesson they were completely spellbound by the Sci-fi effects--laughing and clapping at the skeleton battle...cheering for the winner! This from a generation that has grown up with Harry Potter and Transformers. I highly recommend this movie. It is pure entertainment and has created a new interest in my students for movies that were filmed in the 60's. Special effects are excellent!



5. The Argonauts were very early explorers, most likely the first Greek voyagers to the Black Sea. They sailed from Thessaly, where their leader, JASON, was the rightful king of Iolcus. According to the myth, Jason's father, Aeson, was deposed by his half-brother Pelias, who was warned at the time how he would in turn be overthrown by a man wearing only one sandal. This mythical story is well told in this the original film version of JASON and the ARGONAUTS. The DVD being Remastered in High Definition brings to the screen a great as new look to the film together with the early effects of the master Ray Harryhausen makes this DVD a must for the home library.