Reviews (22)

Sherlock Holmes as You've Never Seen Him Before
The late, great George C. Scott does a fine turn as a widower judge who thinks he's Sherlock Holmes in "They Might Be Giants," a film that proves Scott easily could have played the fictional detective in a straight adaptation of Conan Doyle's mysteries, too. The film takes great delight in lampooning the establishment of the day--no surprise, as it debuted in 1971--with particular attention on cutting down to size the burgeoning mental health industry. Joanne Woodward is charming as a psychiatrist and social misfit, appropriately named Dr. Watson, who teams up with Scott to track the nefarious Moriarity, only to discover love and destiny instead. Along the way, they are joined by a battalion of New York City's cataways, including laconic Jack Gilford, a young M. Emmet Walsh, F. Murray Abraham with an afro, and even Paul Benedict, the fellow who would go on to fame as "Mr. Bentley" of television's "The Jeffersons" fame. Though it has an atypical but beguiling score by John Barry and some very tender moments courtesy of screenwriter James Goldman (Gilford's affinity for swashbuckling and Watson's doomed attempt at a romantic dinner among them), "They Might Be Giants" sometimes suffers from a lack of thematic focus that rivals the mania of its main characters. A slapstick scene in a grocery store seems tonally wrong in a film that otherwise takes the high road of satire rather than the low road of farce. (Apparently, it was originally excised from the film, only to return in a later version, though I recall seeing the film on TV as a child in the 70s, and the grocery store scene was intact.) Commentary by the film's director, Anthony Harvey, is worth noting, though the man interviewing him dodges the most obvious question burning in the mind's of viewers--exactly what is one to make of the film's ending?

Hm...
Okay, I gave this movie 3 stars, mostly because I didn't know if it deserved 2 or 4 stars. It's kind of a weird flick, and I bought it soley because I'm a They Might Be Giants fan; and TMBG, to my understanding, plucked their band name from this film.

The premise is interesting enough: a once-respected judge has decided he's THE Sherlock Holmes. His brother is trying to get him declared an official nut-ball. His seemingly fate-selected Dr. Watson is a female psychiatrist who has taken his case to heart. A slice or romance rises between them, but that's not quite the thrust of the movie. I've yet to identify that "thrust" by the way.

I was bored in spots, and I mention this because I think many of you might feel the same. But, considering when the film debued (1971, the year of my birth), it was pretty unique. I cut it lots of slack. It was just . . . strange.

The ending made me squirm with embarassment that I was enjoying myself; at the same time, I squinted my eyes wondering why.

As with all of my Amazon reviews, I don't like to give away too much. I just like to give my reactions. I haven't watched this movie twice, though I do own it. I will probably put it my DVD player again soon and perhaps come up with a second opinion.

I'm curious to know what you all think of it. All I can tell you is it wasn't bad. It was probably a 4-star movie, maybe a 2, and I finally acquiesced and ratee it with a 3 while scratching my head and smirking smirkingly.

They Might Be Giants
I write lots of lists. Lists like, 100 Geatest Movies and 100 Greatest Westerns and so on and so on. This movie is near the very top of my 100 Greatest Sleepers(a very cherished list)and near the very top of my Movie Charm list. It is the top, though, of my Greatest Movie endings list, contrary to a lot of Amazon reviewers. That means I think it has a better ending than 2001 or Some Like It Hot or A Clockwork Orange or Ball of Fire or All Quiet on the Western Front or Blow-Up. It breaks me every time.
It's one of the sweetest movies ever made and I'm going to purchase the DVD this weekend. I found it on VHS some time ago and was dismayed to find that it had the late night supermarket scene removed and I'm dying to have a copy with it restored. After many repeated viewings I went from finding the supermarket sequence, originally, a silly outta place slapstick moment to later it being an integral part of the resolution and essential to the impact of the ending.
I'm not the biggest fan of George C Scott. I often find he's chewing the scenery. That's not to say that I don't think he's a great actor and that I don't like many of his films. This is my favorite of his performances and I think the role is perfectly suited for his style. He also seems to be enjoying himself tremendously. He was so rarely given a chance to play lighter or comic roles. An unfortunate fact considering how well he did with this role and with General Buck in Dr Strangelove.
Joanne Woodard is the perfect counterpoint and has all the needed skill to be able to play off such a powerhouse as Scott, keeping everything in balance.
Both play their part with great vunerablity while hiding behind their facades. There some great acting going on here.
Add an seemingly endless ensemble supporting cast of great character actors like Jack Gilford and Al Lewis and Severn Darden
and many others. Plus a teriffic script, full of wit and heart and room to let everybody to spread their wings and you have one of the most charming undiscovered gems in the world. Mind you, this isn't for everyone. It has to be watched with a little sensitivity and patience and it's quirky to say the least. When they go to the phone company, well, there aren't too many scenes like that in anywhere(Most directors are too afraid something like that just won't work). Films of the late sixties and seventies were just a little more courageous and less worried with the bottom line. So, during that time we get some of our greatest flops and some of our sweetest sucesses.
If you liked The Owl and the Pussycat or Little Fugitive or Little Murders, you'll like this movie. A real little gem.

A Waste of Good Plastic
George C. Scott and Joanne Woodward were/are great actors. What is a great mystery is what they are doing in this piece of junk. The derainged one had to be the director. At the ending(?)I felt totally robbed! But I'm being too kind. The only reason I gave it one star is there was no option to give it less. This movie SUCKS! and if you buy it don't say I didn't warn you!

George C Scott and Joanne Woodward shine!
This is a GREAT film that was unnoticed upon it's original release because of its quirkiness.
It concerns a judge (played by Scott) who believes he is Sherlock Holmes. He lives in a complete fantasy world, which he created right after his beloved wife died, to provided shelter from a cold world. However, he finds the fantasy world a bit lonely, for no one believes he is Holmes. A psychiatrist played by Woodward (also excellent) tries to cure him, much to the disdain of his brother, who would like Scott to be declared incompetent so he can control Scott's money.
It turns out that Woodward is also lonely, and you can see where the movie will go, but it doesn't detract from a sweet, funny and touching movie.
The film gained popularity on TV's Late Show. It isn't shown much on cable, so this DVD is invaluable. It also contains commentary by the director.
Much thanks to Anchor Bay for releasing this film, and so many others that deserve to be seen but are not that well known. ... Read more

Description

As this landmark series demonstrates, the cataclysmic effects of World War I last to this day. "The war to end all wars" has influenced the Atomic Age and the Cold War, and is now shaping the conflicts in Bosnia and the Middle East. Period film footage and eyewitness accounts powerfully dramatize the horrors of trench warfare and the chaos of political revolution. History comes alive as The Great War reveals how World War I influenced the rise of communism, witnessed the first use of weapons of mass destruction, and provided a fertile aftermath for the rise of Nazism. Through perspectives from all sides of the war, the series shows how violent events early in this century still cast a dark shadow on life today. Titles include: "Explosion & Stalemate," "Total War & Slaughter," "Mutiny & Collapse," and "Hatred and Hunger & War Without End." ... Read more

Reviews (14)

A Great Disappointment
I am a big Great War buff. It's hardly uncommon to find books and documentaries about the Great War, but they're rare enough --especially in the US, where I live-- that I eagerly look foward to every new book, video, or work of fiction about this subject. I'm so happy to find videos about the Great War, instead of just books, that I often cut them extra slack. Given the calibre of the people who produced it and who lent a hand to the production, "Great War" SHOULD be the Documentary to End all Documentaries, but it's not. Fortunately, I was able to watch this video series at no cost from my local library. I would have probably demanded my money back if I had purchased it.

It's done in the "Ken Burns" style of documentary, with voice actors reading from period correspondence, poems, etc. to give a sense of "living history" and illustrate key themes. However, unlike in Ken Burns' documentary about the American Civil War, we rarely if ever learn the IDENTITIES of these letter writers, what have you. So you'll hear a soldier commenting on the war, or an editorial in the Times commenting on the war, but apart from contextual clues, who exactly the voice actors are trying to portray can be very unclear. (This is more frustrating than it sounds.) Not to mention Ralph Fiennes practically ruined the poetry of Wilfred Owen for me with his snooty, disaffected whine.

As other reviewers have remarked, the treatment of how the war broke out, the battles, the Armstice, and everything is between is very cursory. That would be understandable if this documentary was only 2 hours long, but on four video cassette tapes, it just comes across as sloppy and full of broad generalizations. It does indeed concentrate on "politically correct" events like socialism and feminism that are currently fashionable. It's nice to give voice to neglected facets of the war effort, like the female munitions workers or the African-American soldiers who served alongside the French, but I also would have liked some more standard commentary on weapons and battles. For a documentary of such length, it has a very rushed, incomplete feel.

By far the best thing about this series isn't the pastiche of voice actors and images, it's the interviews with famous (and infamous) Great War historians like Paul Fussell and Niall Ferguson. Hearing Fussell et alibi talk with real passion about their interest in the First World War was great, but it hardly justifies buying "Great War."

An extraordinary documentary at all levels
I'll not presume to bore you with too much detail, but as one man's opinion I thought this documentary was extraordinary. It breaks into chapters that both stand on their own and also intertwine into a comprehensive storyline. It offers an excellent beginning to explain in simple terms how the entire conflict began, and never loses the sight that the war is a series of human casualties as well as tactical gains and losses. With a musical score by Mason Daring which can vary from narrative to heroic to absolutely chilling, and many texts readily available for the more serious devotee of the subject, I give this documentary my highest rating. No longer satisfied with checking it out from my local library, I bought it to own, and consider it one of my best intellectual investments. Enjoy!!

Personal suffering not history
This tape series covers the personal suffering of people in the war. What it does not cover is the history of the war, why it happened,or why it unfolded as it did.

A description of endured suffering and false triumph
While we number them, there was really only one world war in the twentieth century consisting, of two outbreaks of intense fighting separated by twenty years of relative peace. Although when you consider the millions who died in the Soviet Union and China in those years, it is difficult to refer to it as peace. As is mentioned in this tape, the horrors of mass extermination started in the first round of fighting, with the first extermination being the Turkish slaughter of Kurdish civilians on their border with Russia.
This is not an easy tape series to watch, not because it shows so much death, but due to the human face it puts on the dirty, muddy men killing each other. The description is split up into sections, some of which examine the attempts of people to cope with something that it was impossible to cope with for long. The most poignant moment is the description of the mutiny in the French army in 1917. After yet another pointless battle where hundreds of thousands died, most of the army simply refused orders to attack. Coming amidst incredible brutality, it was a rather polite revolt. In general, officers were not killed and no one went on a rampage. They simply refused to attack when they understood (correctly) that it would accomplish nothing more than more death.
The fact of the revolt is not what is surprising, the astonishing part is that it took three years before it happened. As you can see from the images on these tapes, the soldiers lived for years in mud, surrounded by danger, dead bodies and excrement. The best that can be said is that it is a tribute to the resilience of the human body that even that can be tolerated for years.
As difficult as it is to face, the true horrors of war must be examined by all of us. There is no magic solution to the end of wars between humans. However, it is true that understanding the consequences is the first step towards deciding that it is a poor alternative to everything else.

Best Documentary I've ever seen
I watch perhaps more documentaries than is healthy, but I do tend to learn a lot. In my many years of watching I've never found a documentary as well done as this. It's entertaining and disturbing at the same time. The use of photographs and voices in this production are put together quite well and by far surpass any other production I've ever seen. I would definately recommend this to even new students of the war, although this is done well enough to impress even historians who have spent many years in study. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Of all the wars waged in the name of God, none has ever matched the arrogance and conceit of the Christian Crusades.For nearly two centuries (1095-1291), this medieval "holy war" variously raged, sometimes so spiritually misshapen by rapaciousness, murder, and political greed that to think it all had to do with Christian faith is absurd. And really, there is no one better to dramatize such a theater of holy war than Wales-born Terry Jones, host of The Discovery Channel's Ancient Inventions and an accomplished medievalist. Best known for his absurdist contributions to all things Monty Python--he was a founding member of Monty Python's Flying Circus and cowriter of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian, and Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, among others--Jones wields an uncanny ability to explain the methodologies and madness of the Crusades while not failing us his sense of humor.

Jones wrote the scripts for each 50-minute presentation in the four volumes of The Crusades, which originally aired on The History Channel. His narration is not without an occasional sardonic air, almost of the roll-your-eyes type, which not only lends a skeptical perspective to a frequently misunderstood era in Western Europe, but also quite frequently editorializes the events that occurred between Pope Urban II's call for liberation of Jerusalem from the "infidels" of Islam and the embarrassing moment when officers of the fourth Crusade are conned out of its divine calling by the Venetians. While Jones's reconnaissance is sometimes oversimplified by casually not mentioning several Crusade sorties after the fourth (there were several, but by the 13th century they had become redolent of ennui and misguided commercial adventure), the technical ingenuity of the production and Jones's use of anecdote backed by academicians and preserved eyewitness accounts cinches a viewer's interest. Medieval "siege machines" are re-created to test their mettle against legends of famous battles, Jones dons real 11th- and 12th-century armor to demonstrate the outlandish appearance of Crusaders in the lands of Mohammed, mosaics come to life with body-painted characters of medieval fable, and computer graphics are deployed to re-create the interior of the great cathedral at Cluny.

All these elements are contrasted with intermezzos of contemporary European and Middle Eastern society and a moving original soundtrack to make The Crusades a thoroughly engaging documentary of the bloodletting of medieval Christian conquests and the ultimate result of Islamic fanaticism born from its crimson tide. In Jones's own words at the end of Volume IV: "It took 200 years for the Crusaders to create [this] Muslim fanaticism. It was the exact imitation of Christian intolerance." To understand the effects of the Crusades is to understand much of today's religious geography, and Mr. Jones and company can fairly lay claim to having helped set the record straight. --Jamie Friddle ... Read more

Reviews (34)

Entertaining and accurate for the most part
Being a scholar of history and Medieval Europe in particular, I found this documentary rather accurate on most points, despite what a few of the previous reviewers have said. Also, it was very entertaining. You can't beat that combination.

The only real problemswith it, is that it is only 4 hours long, and therefore, takes some short-cuts, oversimplifies a few things and is not as in-depth as I would have liked it to have been.

That said, it is still mostly true to the sense of the Crusades that is conveyed in many historical accounts, while at the same time cutting away the Pro-European bias that is present in many texts.

Some of the "facts" that the previous reviewers have mentioned (such as: the Crusades being a response to the Muslim takeover of the Balkans, which in actuality did not occur until well in the 14th century. another is the statement that the Muslims who eventually took over the Balkans were motivated by Mohammed's original fervor, which is also not true as these Muslims were Turks who only recently converted to Islam), are not really facts, and are clearly motivated by unfounded Anti-Muslim sentiments. I suggest ignoring them.

All in all, this is a very informative and enjoyable DVD set.

Propaganda? Make no mistake about it?
Readers and viewers of this work should realize that history contains ugly realities to anyone's perspectives. Certainly, the Moorish hordes relegated Christians and Jews to Dimi status (mostly as a sort of tax strategy), looted, enslaved, and killed masses just like the crusaders, but THIS ISN'T A BOOK ABOUT THE ARABS!!!

This same sort of 'prejuidcial history' is leveled against Noam Chomsky for his history of the Arab Israeli conflict and his focus on Israel and the U.S. As with critics of Chomsky, you should note that the author of the previous review makes no mention of the facts presented in the book. Why? Because he cannot refute them. Instead he accuses the authors of apologetic propaganda; exactly the exercise in which he is involved.

The humor of history triumphs in all the wrong places
This set of two disks takes a very modern look at about two hundred years of history, but I am not going to remember which two hundred. It was so long ago that people no longer seem to be concerned about how everyone involved managed to absorb all of the financial costs involved. Warfare often upsets some apple carts, and this presentation of the Crusades is openly aware of aristocratic ambition that could be condemned as a desire for conquest while it remains mired in the inversion of spiritual values which prompted the institutional churches at that time to consider each pathetic episode a great thing for one reason or another.

My intellectual bias in this area is that no college professor could have made a better version of a history for our times. Back in 1995, the nature of the Order of Assassins with its suicide squads high from hashish was hardly as important as it is in the world since September 11, 2001, but on the other side, the financial suicide involved in trying to change the nature of the Middle East by military invasion was as clear then as more recent expeditions threatening to last another two hundred years boggle the mind today. I might be taking a stand that is too political for 2004, which might be a year in which people in America try to impose their own interest in intelligence, competence, and living within the limits of our ability to absorb losses. This series of television shows puts a lot of emphasis on the extraordinary wealth of Constantinople and Egypt in those times, when military equipment also had a high price. What really gets your goat the first time through this series, though, is the treachery: cities plundered, caravans attacked, truces violated, and hostages held for ransom.

People with pride might feel that this DVD set is trying to chip away at it by using ridicule as the ultimate weapon against everything that used to consider itself great, and well they might. They should, too. Why am I giving this stars? Why can't I give it ARFs?

ARF, ARF, ARF, ARF, ARF!

As balanced as Humpty-Dumpty
Call this history? Try Monty Python and the Holy Grail for deeper insight, historical content and accuracy.

Giggle and Learn!
Who better than Terry Jones (Say no more, say no more, nudge nudge wink wink) to host a fresh look at warfare - in the name of Religion mind you - during the Middles Ages?

Rather conceited, in the name of reclaiming the Holy Lands (excuse for adventure and to loot!) - The Church not only encouraged the Crusades but sponsored them! It was a way a Knight could pay dispensation for sins of life and earn his way to heaven - by lopping of the heads of the Infidel (and stealing everything they had). For Centuries, involving the royal heads of France, Britain and Europe, the seemingly endless Crusades raged on and on. So who better to explain the unexplainable madness, but the head jester himself!

Terry Jones wrote each episode and starred as the host, trying to muddle through the mounds of nonsense involved everything connected to the religious sponsored mayhem. With his brilliantly incisive humour that made Monty Python was it was, he dons chain mail and pointy toe armour and has it.

It is great fun for the whole family and a painless way to have a good introduction to the Crusades. ... Read more

Reviews (30)

A True Classic in International Cinema
Filmed in the style of the screwball comedies of the 1950's, Pedro Almodovar's classic, "Women on the Verge of the Nervous Breakdown," is widely seen as the Spanish director's greatest directorial effort ever, due to his witty script, wonderful use of colors and schemes, and his ability to capture the range of emotions women possess.

The story, which revolves around a jilted woman (Carmen Maura in her final film collaboration with Almodovar) in search of her lover (Fernando Guillen) might sound like a melodrama at first, however if you mix in a bit of zany subplot and an array of classic characters, and you got yourself a comedy classic.

Pepa (Maura) finds out that her longtime lover Ivan has left her for another woman. Pepa, who works with Ivan dubbing foreign films into Spanish, discovers that she is expecting a child, and must convey this important message to Ivan in hopes of convincing him to return.

In her search for Ivan, she discovers that Ivan's ex-wife Lucia (Julieta Serrano) has been released from the asylum that has taken care of her since her breakup with Ivan. She also discovers that Ivan has a son (Antonio Banderas) she never was told about, and due to a series of coincidental encounters, they encounter each other.

Pepa doesn't seem to be the only person having love problems. Her best friend Candela (Maria Barranco) has discovered that her Arab boyfriend and his friends are actually Shiite terrorists planning to hijack the next flight to Stockholm. Scared, confused, and out of her mind, Candela finds refuge in Pepa's penthouse, and along with Pepa, Carlos (Banderas), and Carlos' fiance (Rossie de Palma), the madcap hysteria that will overtake the later half of the film takes place.

Using a wide selection of colors that benefit from the film's use of Technicolor, Almodovar has definitely creating a visual feats of patterns, objects (notice the clocks at the beginning), cityscapes (Madrid's famous skyline), and especially colors (as the main character, Pepa is identified by reds, which probably is Almodovar's tribute to American director Nicholas Ray and his famous use of Technicolor red in the classic "Rebel Without a Cause"). Other eye-catching objects that make this film truly wonderful include Candela's coffeepot earrings (they became a major fashion accessory in Spain and Latin America in the early 1990's) and the campy cab decor that the driver of the Mambo Taxi (Guillermo Montesinos) has adopted for his cab.

Almodovar also adopted a wide selection of beautiful and popular music and songs to tell his story. "Soy Infeliz," by Lola Beltran and "Puro Teatro," by La Lupe are eternal classics thanks to this film. His selection of the rarely heard, yet beautiful compositions by Russian composer Rimsky-Korsakov ("The Story of the Kalandar Prince" from Scheherezade-Symphonic Suite, Op. 35 AND the "Fandango Asturiano," from Capriccio Espagnol. Op. 34) gives the film both a feeling of relaxation and fiery anger.

"Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown," marks a totally new direction in Spanish cinema. The end of the censorship that was widely well known during the Franco regime of the past allowed Almodovar and many new Spanish directors to explore filmmaking without any restrictions. This film, which was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards in 1989, went on to win many awards including several Goya awards (Spain's highest film awards) and Maura went on to win Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival. Truly, this was her greatest role, and Almodovar knew that he wanted to give his audience a major overdose of Maura that the audience will likely beg for more. He was right, and Maura's performance is considered to be one of the greatest performances by non-English speaking actress in recent years.

If you're looking for an amazing, funny, and visual film, then "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" is the best choice to fulfill your search. I have seen this movie over 30 times, and I can't get tired of it. It is a true cult classic, and it only illustrates the genius that Almodovar is. The DVD edition contains English, French, and Spanish subtitles and the film's promotional trailers.

Watch it and tell your friends about it!
Hollywood sure doesn't make movies like it used to. For instance, screwball comedies that immortalized the likes of Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and Katherine Hepburn in the 30s and 40s were abandoned after Jack Lemmon and Billy Wilder stopped making them in the 60s. But no matter. That grand old wacky tradition continues; it just moved across the Atlantic to get updated with a European facelift at the hands of Pedro Almodovar.

So hop on your motorcycle with your granny or catch a cab, run to the grocery store, grab yourself a glass of gazpacho (hold the sleeping pills!) and watch this hilarious movie. Subtitles be damned, you'll love this no matter what! If you can watch this without huge belly laughs, you're simply not human!

Universal Shennanigans
In 'Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown', Pedro Almodovar subtley overturns traditional gender stereotypes. Outside of the shennanigans she encounters from place to place, Pepa takes stock of her situation in the taxi that carries her between buildings. Its here she recognizes that the mechanics of motorcycles are much easier to fathom than those of male psychology. Ivan's first wife Lucia, remains in the 60's fashion she was wearing when he left her. It's almost as if time stopped for her the moment he left. The array of colours seem to be used as a metaphor for the full and intense emotions of the women involved, compared to the grey and black of Carlos and Ivan.

Apparently Almodovar had to film the balcony scenes in a studio because the downtown skyline of Madrid is now just a sea of office and apartment buildings. Almodovar has never made any secret of the fact that a director should "never borrow, but steal if it is justified" from another director. Witness his homage to Hitchcock's 'Rear Window' when Pepa looks across the street into Lucia's apartment building.

It's ironic that in his native Spain, Pedro Almodovar finally broke free from being described as a 'cult' director to being appreciated by a wider audience with the massive success of this film. Meanwhile in the U.S., the film was specifically marketed by Orion as a 'minority' picture aimed at an Hispanic and female audience. They must have been pleasantly surprised when the audiences for this film crossed racial and gender barriers.

From an Almodovar fan, "like a child with his new toy"
casually, while shopping, i found this DVD in a store... i remember i saw this movie once, a long time ago...the price was fine, a whole new movie for my eyes, i took it home... what happened next, i can't explain by words: just put the disc on the player, turn on the tv and begin laughing, just from the overture to the end!!! The music is excellent, the ideal song for every moment on the movie... the caracters, from the main to the most secondary, has its whole story inside the movie... the camera shows everything important, even smallest details... and the story, classic from Almodovar: a lot of people, that appears to be distant and different from each other, join at the end, to make one of the funniest movies ever!! Only from Almodovar's mind can come a story so complicated to explain by words, so insane and desperating, but that makes you get into it, understand it, and love it. Well, that's my appreciation from "Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios", in its original language, so i hope the translated version makes you feel the same

We can't help but stare
We cannot help but stare in awe as this movie unfolds in all its technicolor glory and darkly twisted wit.
Ms Maura's performance ranks up there with some of the best.
Cinematography and Art Direction are spectacular.

Perhaps not understood by all, Aldomovar's films borrow from those mundane moments of life and gives us all the range of human emotions that many films strive for but fall short. ... Read more

Description

A young coffee salesman rises to the top, only to fall and rise again. ... Read more

Reviews (21)

watch this movie
I can't really describe how I feel about this movie. I would love to just make you watch it. I am writing this because I felt a need to write a review for the soundtrack, now on cd. I found myself constantly talking about how much I love this movie. The music is incorporated into the film directly. So much so that McDowell(Travis) and Price(Price) actually exchange words at one point(and in the middle of one of Price's songs). Price's personality is felt everywhere. At a middle point, Price's band rescues Travis from a mad doctor(see Brittania Hospital)and appear proper in the film. The film itself was based partly on the character from "If.." and partly on McDowell's own experience as a coffee salesman. It is the middle part of Travis's trilogy. In my review of the soundtrack, you will see how I feel that Price's soundtrack adds to the tone and personality of the film. As serendipitous as Travis's adventures are, you can see layers of humanity peel away. To say something definite about it would just ruin the plot and theme. There are alot of scenes that are mockingly anti-authoritarian. And some creepy "things to be" scenes. Also, there are cold political reality scenes that still resonate. All that said, it is really Travis' story. Just watch it. The talents are huge and the movie is bleak. You will never see another movie like this again.

Inspirational! Cynical! Wonderful!
My all-round favorite film. Favorite because of its scope, Brit humor and enduring power to pick me up when I am down. Malcom McDowell's expressions throughout are bildungsroman in action. Music is amazing, and heralded a life-long love affair (sadly from a distance) with Alan Price, a sort of music hall Randy Newman. Band/party sequences are fabulous! Movie endures beyond intellectual collegiate urge to deconstruct symbolism. I like it even better than Shirley Temple's The Little Princess, another fave. Better than Robert Altman. 'Course, I'm one of the few who like Ishtar (at least parts)....But then I also adored Bullworth.

lucky to say the least
I recently watched O Lucky Man again with a friend who was watching it for the first time, and I became accutely aware of the feelings I had when I first watched it. It was an exhilarating and inspirational experience. I envied my friend for a moment and then I got back to the picture...and I realized how much better this movie gets after repeated viewings. Wow!

But as so many have said here in these reviews, a DVD release (Criterion are YOU listening??) packed with extras is sooooo overdue. I've only ever seen this film on vhs and I'm salivating at the thought of seeing it on DVD...

It'll be like watching it for the first time...

O Lucky Viewers
Everytime I see pictures of the flemish painter Heironymous Bosch and then see Lindsey Anderson in this movie I think, gee he looks just like Bosch; kinda makes movies like Bosch paints as well. His loosely connected Mick Travis trilogy: if.., O' Lucky Man and Britannia Hospital often look like the typical Bosch tryptich, in which the left panel shows man's expulsion from a distorted forboding man's view of "heaven"; in if..'s case a British authoritarian boarding school, while the right side of Bosch's tryptichs show the twisted tortuous hell that man merits from his sins on earth; in Britannia Hospital's case, an insane asylum diguised as a government run hospital where death is certain from the most disgustingly violent experiments and sponsered by bureaucratic sadists. In the middle of these moralty paintings is the incendiary display of sins man commits. And it is here that we often find the most engaging bits of Bosch's work where so much happens in an instant as viewing a painting, which, actually takes years to see it all. O' Lucky Man is very much designed in this fashion even if it wasn't intentional. We get elements from this movie that may never be fully realized again in film; a dismal prospect indeed. Innovations actually abound with this revolutionary film. We have it's soundrack and score composer not only effectively weigh commentary on the movie's long suffering but affably earnest protagonist Travis (played with astonishing exuberence and charm by Malcolm McDowell), but that the singer (Alan Price, formerly of the Animals) even interacts with him in the film. As innovative and amusing as that technique was, the soundrack can still stand on it's own as one of the greatest and most relevant to a film plot ever written. Tell anyone who goes on a job interview or for that matter, hates their job to listen to the world weary idiosyncratic bliss in the song Poor People, a song that sticks forever in the souls of those who loved this movie like honey melting on hot toast crumpets. All in all, a very touching ode to smiling down disaster.
Many may twitch at the seemingly overindulgent symbolism going on and the lengthy running time and disjointed feel of this epic. They may also get confused by the hilarious running gag of the actors playing repeated roles. I found it fun beyond a roll in the hay to catch when each player shows up again and again several times over then bust out in laughter when Travis actually recognizes the lusciously charming Helen Mirren groupie character Patricia who showed up in episodes before his stint in jail, then looking at her talent agency clerk character with puzzling bewilderment a few moments later as if he had no clue. As Mick, Malcolm McDowell can come off as enthusiastic and gullible then believably struggle with frustration, cynicism, and finally dogged determination to be "good" then giving up only to be thwacked back into his trademark grin. The writing is all over his vastly expressive face and makes this one of his most unforgettable portrayals, completly abscent is the casual sadism that has garnered him praise but unfortunate typecasting down the road. This is a must see movie for fans of his villian work who want to see his range; simply brilliant work.
It is also a film that is astonishingly relevant to how capitalist societies still function. We're often amazed at how we havn't changed much from our need to divest in our homeland to rape another for the needs of the selfish. Granted the film is long and bitingly sardonic and perhaps that idealism causes a slower decay then Anderson might have imagined. Still, many of the films relevant lines about dying like dogs, radio commentary on Zen and revolution being the opium of intellectuals ring strong in the hearts of anyone who questions their existence and worth in the world. This seems to be the one true everyman type of film as surreal as it may be. There is just something so satisfying in just hearing the characters walking, which sounds strikingly like marching. And it happens almost everytime before our poor boy Travis gets a beating. It is a movie that has to be seen and heard repeatedly. Defintely buy this film. For anyone who cares, if you managed to tape the uncut British version of the film when it ran on some obscure cable stations back in the early 90s, you may have gold in your hands; the deleted 'My Home Town' suicide sequence is there. Yes, like a Boscsh picture, there is so much to see in this gem and we are all the luckier for having it in our lives.

YEAH
I give this movie 5 stars because they just don't make 'em like this anymore. Also, when I read comments where folks bash the 70's, I simply wonder,I mean WONDER-what are they comparing the 1970's to??? Today? WHAT? You have got to be kidding? O Lucky Man is a journeyman movie built with the rambling sober style so popular at the time. The soundtrack I found irritating BUT it's still classic and really the movie wouldn't be the same without it. Some of the images and scenes in this movie are simply in the very top of movie ideas, the very top. See this movie. And as far as dated, it is dated compared to Survivor, The Apprentice, Friends, The Reality Show, ad nauseum and all the rest of the Nothing Zone we call today's digital media culture offerings. Blah! Give me the ole rusty 70's any day of the week! ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Manhattan, Woody Allen's follow-up to Oscar-winning Annie Hall, is a film of many distinctions: its glorious all-Gershwin score, its breathtakingly elegant black-and-white, widescreen cinematography by Gordon Willis (best-known for shooting the Godfather movies); its deeply shaded performances; its witty screenplay that marked a new level in Allen's artistic maturity; and its catalog of Things that Make Life Worth Living. But Manhattan is also distinguished in the realm of home video as the first motion picture to be released only in a widescreen version. You wouldn't want to see it any other way. Allen's "Rhapsody in Gray" concerns, as his own character puts it, "people in Manhattan who are constantly creating these real, unnecessary, neurotic problems for themselves, because it keeps them from dealing with more unsolvable, terrifying problems about the universe." It's a romantic comedy about infidelity and betrayal, the rules of love and friendship, young girls (a radiant and sweet Mariel Hemingway) and older men (Allen), innocence, and sophistication. (a favorite phrase is used to describe a piece of sculpture at the Guggenheim: "It has a marvelous kind of negative capability.") The movie's themes can be summed up in two key lines: "I can't believe you met somebody you like better than me," and "It's very important to have some kind of personal integrity." OK, so they may not sound like such sparkling snatches of brilliant dialogue, but Manhattan puts those ideas across with such emotion that you feel an ache in your heart. --Jim Emerson ... Read more

Reviews (74)

One of Allen's best
While I would have to say that Allen's "Crimes and Misdemeanors" is better than this, "Manhattan" is still an amazing movie. Even if the script was terrible (it isn't), the characters flat (they aren't) and the great moral undertone not present (it is) the cinematography and soundtrack alone would make this movie stand out. "Manhattan" was Woody Allen's love letter to New York, filled with sweeping images of the city accompanied by terrific Gershwin music. It's a good thing he wouldn't let anybody release it unletterboxed.
But, of course, there is more to a movie than cinematography. "Manhattan" is funny (it's a Woody Allen movie, for goodness sakes), poignant, uplifting, and wonderfully intelligent. The scene near the end of the film that depicts the confrontation between Allen and his friend Yale (Michael Murphy) is one of the best scenes I've ever had the pleasure to see. The single shot of Allen, putting his face in the same frame with a vaguely Allenesque skeleton's face, is one of those things that you don't notice the first time around but on repeated viewings recognize as one of the best things about the movie.
The only people I have ever seen give bad reviews to this movie are those who point out that Allen's character is committing statuatory rape. This is true, but it's not necessarily glorified - if anything, it fits into the movie's strongest point about morality. In a world where most people who make accepted points about morality say that it's relative and accuse others of trying to be God, it's wonderful to see a film in which somebody answers to that very argument, "I gotta model myself after someone!"

I'll Take Manhattan
Easily of of the best American films of all time, Allen examines relationships and life in this funny/bittersweet story set with NYC as the backdrop. Beautiful CinemaScope photography, Woody's typical neurotic cast of characters, Gershwin score, excellent acting, all come together despite Sandy Morse's non-editing talents. This was the Woody I loved... Mr. Annie Hall, now unfortunately, a man that has literally become a characature of himself. Too bad for us... What happened to you Woody?

Diane Keaton, Michael Murphy, Meryl Streep, Wally Shawn, and (especially) Mariel Hemmingway seemlessly float around Allen's chatracter flawlessly, as the film surges towards a realistic but sad end as Allen and 17 year old Hemmingway part. Funny how life imitates art (as Woody is now married literally to Rosemary's Baby).

Despite my hostility (as Allen would say), don't miss this film. It's everything that Manhattan is, and more.

PS - if you ever have a chance to see it on a big screen, do so...!

Better Than Annie Hall
This is how a black and white should be filmed. And in the perfect location. I'm not a Woody Allen fan but this is just simply an excellent film. Funny, smart, insightful and emminently watchable.

A timeless christmas gift for New York!
Woody Allen made a pictoric statement ; an artistic gift of countless carats ; an etarnal portrait for the next generations who will watch this picture with the same devotion we have in front a masterpiece in the Metropolitan , Louvre or any other prestigious museum in the world.
The story turns as a leit motive in many films of this clever film maker , about the disturbing relationship between two lovers , the loneliness , the no sense living who seems work out for many people in a city as NY that owns the sublime virtue of being capable of renovating to itself from time to time . This is the clue why we love so much this unique city .
The opening shots shows Allen who is left by his wife (Meryl Streep) for another woman ; this bitter sight is linked with the fact Woody falls in love with a teenager that it might be well his own daughter (Mariel Hemingway) ; notice this relationship is built for the Pygmalion effect. She admires him and eventually falls in love with him when she compares his rich gaze about the world with the routiny of her friends ; flat and deepless.
In the middle of this emotional chaos the rendezvous to NYC emerges from time to time with unforgettable images . Gordon Willis stole the show with this arresting landscapes. He caught the mythical essence of this caleidoscopic city: irreverent , creative , seductive , challenging but fascinating . However Allen knew show the viewer the underestimated wonderful treasures that by one or several reasons some proportion of the people who lives there it doesn't seem to realize . Once more the sight of an artist is to make open the eyes and alterate the usual perspectives of the reality , creating a new one.
And Allen made it . Bravo!

all-white stuttering misanthrope in black and white
Does it bother anyone else that in what the director himself cals an "idealized New York" there are never any people of color? I'm talking about all of Woody Allen's films, not just this smug, prettily photographed, over-rated film. Wait, I've just been told that there is a black extra standing silently in the background of a party scene in Hannah and Her Sisters. I guess I'm wrong.

Why are people so crazy for this nasty, self-absorbed hack? ... Read more

Reviews (212)

Comedy For All Eternity
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World is a comedy for all eternity. This is one of those big box, big budget, long-running-time, cameo-loaded, expensive, broad-canvas farces of the 60's that I love so much. Released in 1962, this was one of Stanley Kramer's greatest and last movies. This award-winning movie is a timeless masterpiece for the whole family.

After a bouncy, splashy Saul Bass animated title sequence, the story begins with a brief car chase in the California desert. Bank robber Smiler Grogan (Jimmy Durante) wrecks his car, and with his dying words reveals a secret about buried treasure to the seven strangers who stopped on the roadside. 'Look for the big W' in Santa Rosita, he says, and then he kicks the bucket.

After a brief attempt at cooperation, the treasure hunt is on and it's every man for himself, in four teams. Mickey Rooney and Buddy Hackett decide to take to the air but their pilot, Jim Backus, gets hammered on Old Fashioneds. Husband-and-wife Sid Caesar and Edie Adams can only find a biplane cropduster. The lone truck driver, Jonathan Winters, can't get gas. And his mother-in-law Ethel Merman fatally hampers Milton Berle, with his wife Dorothy Provine.

So all four teams scamper across the landscape, across the broad canvas of this movie, wound tight by desperate greed and calmly monitored by a Sergeant Culpepper, Spencer Tracy. This is the framing story for an amazing string of billed appearances and unbilled cameos so many that at last your senses are sort of dulled. Oh, it's Carl Reiner in the control tower. Oh, look, it's Stan Freberg, yeah. The best cameo, hands down, is Jerry Lewis, who comes barreling down Long Beach Boulevard in a moment of exuberant stupidity and runs over Spencer Tracy's hat.

Probably my favorite, I have so many, co-star was Terry Thomas who plays a vacationing Englishman in a rattling station wagon, who picks up Milton Berle. He's talkative. He prattles away (accurately) about why it is that the American male is positively preoccupied with booo-sums, and says things like, "I'll wager you anything you like, if American women stopped wearing brassieres, your whole national economy would collapse overnight!" This sequence, within the context of the movie so far, has a single funny moment when this whole vast farce might come alive, find its voice, and this circus might make sense - Terry-Thomas finds the tone for the rest of the movie. I find it compelling that the aesthetic success of all this footage, all these appearances, all this thoroughly American spectacle, suddenly pivots around a few fussy syllables about breasts. But once the moment passes, Terry-Thomas is efficiently neutralized and dismissed by Ethel Merman, and on we go.

The array of challengers eventually reach Santa Rosita, and several unexplainably humorous events occur. These I will not reveal to you and allow you to view the movie on your own time. I must add though, that if you do see this movie, reserve several hours. Like most from its decade its LONG... VERY LONG... But allow me to assure you, you wont be disappointed.

Madness is Genius
Eight traveling vacationers witness the sudden car-crash and slow final death of con-man Smiler Grogan in the hills above Palm Desert, Cal.. Grogan's dying words reveal the secret location of $350,000 hidden in Santa Rosita Park, near San Diego. This sparks a wild, hectic race for the dough. Pure greed,buried treasure, and car crashes. It's all here. "It's a Mad,Mad,Mad, Mad World" was the most successful movie directed by ace Stanley Kramer. All of the famous television and film comics from 1963 appear in this wild comedy. Only Bob Hope is missing. The cast includes Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Phil Silvers, Jerry Lewis, Joe E. Brown, The Three Stooges, Buster Keaton, Jimmy Durante, Jack Benny, Jonathan Winters, and Spencer Tracy. Ernest Gold composed an original booming, wonderful soundtrack you'll be humming for days. At two hours and 41 minutes, "Mad World" is too long, but an incredible cast and mad-cap action propel the story along. This new MGM DVD is presented in widescreen anamorphic 2.35:1 aspect. The colors are crisp and vibrant. The "Mad World" DVD includes an excellent 1991 documentary with all the major surviving cast members. There's also 1 hour of "out-takes", faded and damaged, from the original Cinerama 70mm release. And there's two trailers. The year 2001 produced an obvious remake of "Mad World" called "Rat Race", a modest hit. Stanley Kramer and Spencer Tracy made 4 classic films together. The last was the inspiring "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" in 1967. In ill health, sadly, Tracy died just days after shooting ended. Stanley Kramer himself died in Feb. 2001. His genius is now gone. His legacy lies before you.

It's a Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad DVD
I would give this DVD 5 stars if all the movie was here, but it isn't, hence 3 stars. There's no excuse for this considering that no major restoration has been attempted here, the storage capabilities of DVDs are huge, and MGM has already released the full-length movie on VHS. The deleted scene feature is a mess. Watching the scenes seperately is tedious and not much fun. The least they could do would be to put the deleted scenes in the order that they appeared in the original film. The third and fourth scenes appear to be exactly the same as do others later on. Sometimes the scene appears the same only zoomed in. Others scenes have no sound. Some of the last scenes go on and on up to 10 minutes and contains everything that is included in the feature except for very minor snippets of dialogue. Sometimes you can't detect anything new, like in the money dividing proposal scene.

I can see why MGM would want to keep their pristine 35mm print whole and transfer that to DVD but perhaps they should have included a 2nd disc and a 2nd version that patched together all the missing scenes, no matter what condition, and reconstructed the film as best as they could to the longest originally released version.

MGM, when you finally "Special Edition" this movie offer a rebate with the proof of purchase from this inferior edition!

Best, Most Memorable Comedy Ever Made !!
I originally saw the movie in '63. I was 8. Dad started my Birthday party with it. After the movie, Dad drove the route of the Santa Monica portion of the car chase(yes, there really was a "Big W").
Just finished watching the movie on Turner TV. The narrator came on after the movie and said that THE ORIGINAL WAS 5 HOURS long(Just too much "good stuff"). The movie studio had it edited to the shortened current version of three hours.
Back in '63 it was a terrific movie-In '04 it is still a terrific movie.

An all star cast of comics, great comedy

Director: Stanley Kramer
Format: Color
Studio: Mgm/Ua Studios
Video Release Date: September 26, 1995

Cast:

Spencer Tracy ... Capt. T.G. Culpeper
Milton Berle ... J. Russell Finch
Sid Caesar ... Melville Crump, DDS
Buddy Hackett ... Benjy Benjamin
Ethel Merman ... Mrs. Marcus
Mickey Rooney ... Ding 'Dingy' Bell
Dick Shawn ... Sylvester Marcus
Phil Silvers ... Otto Meyer
Terry-Thomas ... Lt.Col. J. Algernon Hawthorne
Jonathan Winters ... Lennie Pike
Edie Adams ... Monica Crump
Dorothy Provine ... Emeline Marcus-Finch
Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson ... Second cab driver
Jim Backus ... Tyler Fitzgerald
Ben Blue ... Biplane pilot
Joe E. Brown ... Union official
Alan Carney ... Police sergeant
Chick Chandler ... Detective outside Chinese laundromat
Barrie Chase ... Sylvester's girlfriend
Lloyd Corrigan ... The Mayor
William Demarest ... Police Chief Aloysius
Andy Devine ... Sheriff of Crockett County
Selma Diamond ... Ginger Culpeper
Peter Falk ... Third cab driver
Norman Fell ... Detective at Grogan's crash site
Paul Ford ... Col. Wilberforce
Stan Freberg ... Deputy sheriff
Louise Glenn ... Billie Sue Culpeper
Leo Gorcey ... First cab driver
Sterling Holloway ... Fire Chief
Edward Everett Horton ... Mr. Dinckler
Marvin Kaplan ... Irwin
Buster Keaton ... Jimmy the boatman
Don Knotts ... Nervous man
Charles Lane ... Airport manager
Mike Mazurki ... Miner
Charles McGraw ... Lt. Matthews
Cliff Norton ... Reporter
Zasu Pitts ... Switchboard operator Gertie
Carl Reiner ... Tower controller at Rancho Conejo
Madlyn Rhue ... Secretary Schwartz
Roy Roberts ... Policeman outside Irwin & Ray's Garage
Arnold Stang ... Ray
Nick Stewart ... Migrant truck driver
Joe DeRita ... Fireman
Larry Fine ... Fireman
Moe Howard ... Fireman
Sammee Tong ... Chinese laundryman
Jesse White ... Radio tower operator at Rancho Conejo
Jimmy Durante ... Smiler Grogan
Roy Engel ... Patrolman/Police radio voice unit F-14
Nicholas Georgiade ... Detective at Grogan's crash site
Stacy Harris ... Police radio voice unit F-7
Don C. Harvey ... Policeman in helicopter
Allen Jenkins ... Police officer
Tom Kennedy ... Traffic cop
Harry Lauter ... Police dispatcher
Ben Lessy ... George the steward
Jerry Lewis ... Man who runs over hat
Bob Mazurki ... Eddie (miner's son)
Jack Benny ... Man in car in desert
Eddie Ryder ... Air traffic control tower staffer
Paul Birch ... Policeman
Doodles Weaver ... Dinckler's Hardware Store clerk
Stanley Clements ... Detective in squad room
Bobo Lewis ... Pilot's wife
Minta Durfee ... Bit Part

Intended to be the comedy to end all comedies, with a cast including virtually all the name comedians at the time.

Jimmy Durante plays a guy who is in a fatal auto accident, but before he dies, tells 5 bystanders where there is $350,000 hidden under a "W", whuch leads to a chase to find the money.

Meanwhile, Capt. T.G. Culpeper (Spencer Tracy) is aware of the stolen money and he and his policemen observe the chase with interest through the desert, mountains, and along the California coast, with the contestants using aircraft, cars, trucks, a bicycle and every method of transportation in their attempt to be first to reach the money.

Tracy was ill when the film was shot, and so only worked four hours per day. The long shots and physical stuff was performed by stand-ins.

This is a fun movie. If there is a criticism, it is that the comedy is perhaps overdone. With so many top comedians, there is certainly no dearth of funny lines, pratfalls, and laughs--that's for sure.

Joseph (Joe) Pierre

author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books

... Read more

Amazon.com

Triumph of the Nerds won legions of computer-skeptical and computer-naive viewers with its mix of minutiae and hip techniques. Going one step further into the digital maze, Nerds 2.0.1: A Brief History of the Internet operates as a sequel of sorts to the surprise docu-hit. Just as its precursor chronicled the rise of empires built on computer software, Nerds 2.0.1 collects interviews from key players in the development of the Internet. Fashionably hip in its visual feel, the film begins by amassing data on the net's crowning, collaborative irony: conceived in the Pentagon during the counterculture's smokiest high point by members--dare it be said--of the military industrial complex, the Net developed on the axis of university research networks and Deadhead (as in the Grateful Dead) electronic bulletin boards. Much of the rest has become history, but Internet and computer industry pundit Robert X. Cringley makes the narrative a jumping, attractive embrace of being a nerd. Interviews with Bill Gates, Mark Andreesen, and Steve Case make these three hours (three tapes slipcased in a nice box) fly by. --Andrew Bartlett ... Read more

Reviews (13)

High motivation and Detail
This is a very exciting video about the origin, history, developments, success and failures of the Internet. It has good detail in the topics and companies that refers, but it does not touch every important(historical level) company in the net. Perhaps less time for "excite" and jokes, and more time to relevant companies and phenomena.

Great Video revealing the history of networking, internet.
I belive this is one of the greatest video on the subject of internet and world wide web. It gives a clear picture of the internet and world wide web. It commends the work of great research scientists who were not recognised for their initial achievements. It gives an idea how the internet emerged and how big companies like 3com, Cisco came into existence. This is great story of all the nerds who worked hard (not for money) to achieve good things in their research. Finally I believe money is nothing and it all comes because of hardwork and luck.

Where's the DVD???
This is an excellent historical overview of the Internet and the World Wide Web! NERDS 2.0.1 picks up right where TRIUMPH OF THE NERDS left off. Both documentaies are very interesting, informative and somewhat comical...from beginning to end!

Hopefully NERDS 2.0.1 will be released on DVD soon! I already own TRIUMPH OF THE NERDS on DVD and these two programs really go great together. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Great Entertainment and Education
Fantastic view of a topic that has changed all of our lives. The video is very entertainig and a good source of information. Would recommend this to anyone wanting to learn more about the roots of the internet.

Vintage Internet
Parts of these tapes already look like the old Volkswagen in the Woody Allen movie "Sleeper." For instance, the students who started Excite are all caught in their gloriously self-centered success, which didn't last long, it turns out, but did stoke them each with millions.

Cringely is eloquent, in words and in deeds. The shot of him driving in a convertible along a freeway, while holding forth about the internet as a big pipeline, is a great way to cast an image. His patient tracing of how the internet emerged from simple attempts to hook one computer to another, and get them to communicate meaningful information is also very well done, and penetrates to the level of the PhD thesis written in 1959 that laid out the binary math basis for it all in the first place.\

The tension between the hippie beginnings of the communitarian internet, and the later proprietary commercialization of the medium is also profiled, with subthemes like how to lose control of your company, played out in interviews with 3Com's Metcalfe, who also articulated "Metcalfe's law."

These videos stand on their own feet, but also on the shoulders of the book, written by Stephen Segaller, who wrote it, amazingly, for PBS. So look, some good things can come out of PBS after all(!). Segaller's book is, as you might suspect, much more detailed, but only the video takes you to Microsoft's campus, or shows you the inventor of an early wireless internet, Norm Abramson, years later standing on a beach holding a surfboard with his current corporate logo plastered in dead-center. Perhaps another symbol of hippie-goes-Ferrari. The book and the video also touch on the fascinating history of Cisco, and the bitterness of former husband and wife Sandy Lerner and Len Bosack, toward their first V.C., Don Valentine. The video has Sandy sitting in front of her English country mansion, and also Len, speculating on the existence of sentient beings elsewhere in the universe.

So most of these people were and still are complete nerds, and but for their work, we too would have to be nerds to use our computers. So thanks, nerds, for being nerds, so I don't have to be. ... Read more

Reviews (47)

It's the Cheese!
Note: This movie is about Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. And for those of you who already know this, I've read that Thompson was not happy with the outcome of this production. Based on other things I've read, it is my interpretation that he was unhappy with the storyline and not the acting. What you must keep in mind is that this movie was made in 1980. It was meant as a comedy and starred a cast member of SNL. But then again, Blues Brothers was a huge hit. The movie met with crappy reviews and had a short lived theater run-time. I happen to be a huge Hunter Thompson fan and love everything Thompson. I know all of Thompsons books and as much as he doesn't want to admit it, this movie is pretty much the man. This is not for everyone. Many would find it silly. In fact it is silly. I suppose the question would be: Do you Fear you might Loath this film? If that question exists in you, you simply MUST find out for yourself. If you don't understand the question, you're too late. Me? I loved it.

"It never got weird enough for me"
Supposedly Hunter Thompson said he didn't like this movie although he said he thought Bill Murray did a great job of portraying him. Something like that. I loved this movie. I barely knew who Thompson was when I saw it the first time and now I have all of his books. I couldn't believe this was on The Book of Lists 10 worst movies of all times. Screw The Book of Lists! They have the 10 worst movie reviewers of all times. Thompson has had two movies made about him already and he's still going strong. That must be some kind of record. I liked this one better than "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" although Johnny Depp did a great job in that one. And it's really interesting to me how few people even know who Hunter Thompson is. If you're a biker (motorcyle variation) you got to read "The Song of the Sausage Creation" article that he wrote for Cycle World Magazine back around 1995. Bad Craziness! They should make a movie from that article.

the funniest movie i have seen in a long time
I am a hard critic when it comes to comedy movies. This movie was one of the best comedy movies i have seen in 6 months. You will want to c this movie over and over again

I agree. DO NOT Buy the Anchor Bay release of this film!
Anchor Bay bought the rights to this film and for some reason only included a couple of the original songs. And they still advertise on the package that there is music from Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix. This music was taken out! Curse their flagrant lies! The music they added is some horrible studio band. The original music is a key part to this film. Why would any respectable video release company change an origianl film, and on top of it boast an advertisement for something that is not there? Find an original version of this film and
BOYCOTT ANCHOR BAY!

Sorry, but this was a baaaaddddd movie...
First of all, I don't like Bill Murray, so the rating will automatically be dropped to three stars because of that factor. And second of all, it was just so boring! I was forced to watch this as a 'family time' event and I'll admit that I felt like poking out my eyes! Poor Hunter S. Thompson ~ I feel so bad for him for being portrayed by Murray. Had I been him, I wouldn't have been happy one bit. While it wasn't the WORST movie I'd ever seen, it was certainly on the bottom of my list. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Anglophiles and Britcom aficionados will welcome the video of this delightful 1974 series based on the books by Charlotte Bingham. Happily, the sparkling dialogue and engaging characters wear much better than the actors' horribly dated '70s wardrobes. John Alderton and his real-life wife, Pauline Collins, star as C.D. and Clara, the George Burns and Gracie Allen of Hampstead, right down to the "Say goodnight, Clara" that closes each episode.

This boxed set contains the first seven episodes of the series. Episode 1 sets the stage as C.D. and Clara, who have been married, Clara notes, "nearly 10 years next Thursday a week on Monday," recall how they met at "Freddie's awful party." Framed by the couple's light banter, each of these episodes flashback chronologically to their often comically confused courtship and marriage.Oddly enough, we do not see them joined in (again, Clara's words) "holy deadlock," but instead join C.D. and Clara as they embark on their honeymoon and endeavor to keep their newly married status a secret (why they keep it a secret is a bit unclear) by pretending to be a boring, frustrated long-married couple.

"Life with Clara," C.D. observes at one point, "is not a bowl of cherries, it's a dish of blouse buttons." And in less expert hands, Clara could get tiresome quickly ("I tend to get things rather muddled," she confesses early on), but Pauline Collins (perhaps best known for her signature role as Shirley Valentine) plays her with a mischievous twinkle that make her leaps of illogic endearing. She particularly shines in episode 4, in which she resists C.D.'s efforts to make her dress more fashionably than like "the remnant of a disbanded folk group." --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Very Cute
I saw these shows on public TV several years ago, and I fell in love with this couple. The girlfriend is extremely daffy, and her beau is a laid back kind of guy. I am pleased to find that they are on video.

fantastic video series finally on video!
I remember watching No, Honestly in the 70s and I have been looking for these videos for years! It is great that they have finally been released. Pauline Collins is terrific! These videos are highly recommended!

Oh, Honestly!
This show is very seventies and in my opinion, very good! The characters, CD and Clara recount the events leading up to their marriage. Clara is as cute as a whip and a bit scatterbrained and CD is most understanding and usually the recipient of all the disasters that befall them. A most entertaing show that really is funny in a nice clean sort of way. I give this show two wrench's up!

Wonderful, delightful, witty -- British humor at its best!
No, Honestly is a wonderfully funny British comedy showcasing the comedic talents of Pauline Collins and John Alderton as two young people who meet, fall in love, and eventually marry. The viewer is presented with a tour-de-force of wit and hilarity, as we see Charles (John Alderton), a struggling young actor and Clara (Pauline Collins) a kind of British Gracie Allen, look back fondly on their early days together through comical flashbacks that include football teams, parties, parents, friends, and the sometimes bewildering process of falling truly, madly, unexpectedly in love. No, Honestly will prove a delightful and very popular addition to any community library video entertainment collection.

A real treat from two comedic superstars
Since Mr. Liebenson's in-house review says much of what Iplanned to say, I thought I might expand on some of the details. Thereference to Burns and Allen is very apt but with a difference. Burns' timing to Gracie's inanities is slow, letting the audience have their laugh at her line before laughing at his reaction. With this Alderton and Collins, the delivery is rapid-fire; and indeed there are times when I had to ask my wife, "Did you catch that last remark?" because some of the zingers went by too quickly. And of course, those based on British idioms need footnotes for us Colonials.

As with Hyacinth Bucket's family relations, Clara's loopiness is obviously inherited from her parents, who will insist on misinterpreting everything they are told. Into this menage, Royal the super-Jeeves butler fits in perfectly.

The concept of chronological plots in these seven episodes is a good one from their first chance meeting to their (well, it was only 1974!) off-camera wedding night. And, by the way, their reason for not wanting to be known as newlyweds is explained--and fairly logically too, for Clara!--at the start of the episode.

The funniest two of the seven are those based on mistaken identity, that hoary device that goes back to Terence. The 3rd episode has C.D. arrive at his future in-laws just in time to be mistaken for the plumber with predictable results. The 5th episode is more elaborate, when an orphaned C.D. asks two fellow actors to appear as his parents at a dinner given at Clara's, just when her family has to hire temporary help to serve it. Once we accept the silliness of his not wanting to be known as parentless and the premise that no one in these scripts ever really tries to explain a thing in a normal manner, the results are not predictable at all; and this single episode alone is, I think, worth the price of the set.

Now if Acorn Media will only reissue these two wonderful comedians in the "Wodehouse Playhouse" series of "Mulliner" stories, life would be that much more perfect. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Beauty of Ireland
Excellent video. It brought back wonderful memories of my past trip to Ireland. It also gave me new ideas for my next trip. The video has a wonderful blend of lanscape, culture, and history. Unfortunately the video only covers four counties (Donegal, Dublin, Cork, and Kerry), but it covers them very well. ... Read more

Reviews (115)

Life's A Banquet--and Auntie Mame Invites You To It
The Patrick Dennis novel was a runaway bestseller--and it was soon followed by a stage version starring Rosalind Russell, who was born to play the madcap Mame in this story of an eccentric, fast-living society woman of the 1920s who "inherits" her nephew when her brother died. Determined to "open doors" for her adoring nephew, Mame exposes to him everything from bootleg gin to oddball characters--all the while doing battle with her nephew's ultra-conservative trustee, who is equally determined that the boy's life remain free of "certain influences."

This is a knockout show, and Rosalind Russell delivers a knockout performance in it--easily her finest comedy performance since 1939's THE WOMEN. She is extremely well supported by the sadly under-acknowledged Coral Brown in the role of Vera Charles, an actress who passes out in Mame's apartment with considerable regularity, and Forrest Tucker as the Southern gentleman who becomes her knight in shining honor; the supporting cast, which includes Fred Clark, Peggy Cass (particularly memorable as Agnes Gooch, Jan Handzlik, Roger Smith, and Joanna Barnes is equally flawless.

The infamous "production code" was still somewhat in force when AUNTIE MAME was filmed, and consequently several of the play's most famous lines had to be re-written--but this scarcely gets in the way of Russell and company, and director DaCosta offers a brilliant compromise between the art of cinema and the "set piece" nature of the stage show. The production values are rich, the score is memorable, and everything about the show is a tremendous amount of fun; by the time it ends, you'll wish that Auntie Mame was yours.

Although there were a few minutes when I felt the film had been slightly cropped, the DVD version offers a visually stunning print of the film in its original ratio, and the sound is quite good as well. The few extras are nothing to speak of--but frankly, it hardly matters: this is one film you'll be glad to have on DVD, for you're likely to wear out a VHS in short order. If you need a good laugh, especially one with a slightly satricial edge, you'll adore AUNTIE MAME from start to finish. One of my favorite films, and strongly recommended.

Hysterical, warm, REALLY TOP-DRAWER!
I'm a big fan of this movie after only seeing it 3 times. It's filled with great scenes and one-liners that'll have you laughing for days on end. I won't spoil them; you'll have to watch the movie to find them. Rosalind Russell gives the performance of a lifetime. She's got great dialogue and great costumes! Not only that, she's a very warm person and shows true love for her nepwhew. I really wish I had an Auntie Mame, or a Rosalind Russell in the person of Auntie Mame! there are plenty of other great performances, too, such as Peggy Cass, who's an absolute riot as mame's hopelessly out-of-it secretery, Agnes Gooch, and coral browne, who's good as Mame's friend, the first lady of the American theatre, Vera Charles. A wonderful movei, one that I definitly recommend. However, I DO NOT RECOMMEND THE MUSICAL REMAKE, MAME, WITH LUCLILLE BALL! That's not nearly as god as this one.

One of my favorite DVDs
I bought this as soon as it came out on DVD. I just got around to reviewing it.

The sound is not as great as I'd like but it is a must have.
Image quality is stunning. This movie makes me wish I had a huge tv and not just a 36".

This is one of the best written films. You will watch again and again. My fiancee doesn't normally watc older films. He has seen this one over and over. He will start reading or playing on the pc and always sets it aside to watch one more time with me. You can't help yourself. That is the best praise I can think of.

Buy this dvd. I can't think of anyone who would dislike it. Seriously. It was a hit play and a hit movie.

If you like old movies and this one try "the Women" on DVD. Not as broad of an appeal. But the same quick wit and same sort of humour. And Rosalind Russell, Norma Shearer, and Joan Crawford too.

Life is a banquet........
And most poor fans of Lucille Ball will be starving to death. I still have this and it's counterpart on tape. May buy it on disc soon, as it is one of my favorites (Rosalind Russell Rules). But who was the nutcase who included the trailer for the musical from 1974, without releasing a DVD of the musical? Oh well, I guess we buy this one now, and will get the musical next year. Wait, it IS next year. Come on Warner release the other one too.:-)

Mame was better
The Lucille Ball version was sooooo much better. If you want to see a good version of this movie, get "Mame" with Lucille Ball, not "Auntie Mame!" ... Read more

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