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(More customer reviews)I received advance copies of the Region 1 release and just had to gush about these incredible DVDs.
In October of 1999 the first wave of James Bond 007 Special Editions was released. It was in fact the second time that the series had seen a release on those shiny silver discs having first appeared in the much-maligned "snapper" cases two years earlier. But these special feature laden releases were immediately hailed as setting a new benchmark for back catalog releases of movies on DVD.
Times however have since changed. And the single disc editions that appeared in a set of three waves in 1999 and 2000 now look, at best merely serviceable and at worst wholly inadequate when compared to the bumper releases that have been afforded to the likes of other favorites from the last 40-plus years.
So on Tuesday Fox will release the first two of four volumes that are touted as the Ultimate Edition's of all 20 of the movies in the storied franchise. The collection of special features this time around are a virtual embarrassment of riches and each movie has been remastered by the team that oversaw the work on the original Star Wars trilogy - Lowry Digital. The result is so impressive that movies the likes of 1964's "Goldfinger" now look they were made last year instead of over 42 years ago.
John Lowry, who started his career with NASA, spent two and a half years restoring the picture and sound quality on all 20 Bond films, which in total consisted of 42 miles of film. According to information released by the studio the combination of automated computer processing and digital retouching led to the removal of 25 million pieces of dirt and 74,000 "hairs in the gate" in addition to restoring more than 30,000 frames of scratched or torn images.
The difference is most evident in the older movies and when I watched "The Spy Who Loved Me" (for example) I seriously felt like I was watching a new movie - particularly during the demise of the Liparus super tanker.
There has also been an improvement in the audio department has a brand new 5.1 DTS mix.
The special features will impress even the most ardent and knowledgeable James Bond fan. Take for example the DVD for the 1985 adventure "A View to a Kill." In the 2000 release fans were amazed to see the inclusion of a hitherto unknown deleted scene set in a Paris Police Station. In the release Tuesday the Paris scene is still there, but several more deleted scenes join it. These ranges from the scene where fishermen (along with Bond) demonstrate outside of the main villains San Francisco operations to a more minor scene that shows said villain and his henchman and henchwoman carrying cans of gasoline into City Hall. Director John Glen who explains why they were eventually cut from the movie introduces each.
This all-inclusive approach to special features pervades these releases with everything from the inclusion of archival reports from the set for British television to a home movie from the Egyptian set of "The Spy Who Loved Me."
Of course the real jewel in the crown of the releases are the newly recorded audio commentaries by James Bond actor Sir Roger Moore for his seven movies. Last year Moore recorded the commentaries over a period of five days starting with the last of his movies (A View to a Kill) and working backwards. He prefaces each of his commentaries by claiming not to remember much about the production history of the movies and urges the listener to merely approach them as a one-way conversation. However, despite his claim Moore does seem to recollect quite a bit about the movies and his light breezy tone and dry wit make the commentaries a real draw. He does have a habit of getting sidetracked on occasion and discusses other projects other than James Bond, but each of the commentaries is well worth a listen.
My particular favorite commentary in Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 is the one that accompanies "A View to a Kill." For many years fans questionned where Maud Adams' cameo was in this movie (she had famously visited the set during the San Franciso shoot), with not even Maud Adams knowing where she was. Well, there's a big clue to where she appears when Roger Moore remarks that the man walking out of shot is Maud Adams boyfriend. Watch the couple in the background shortly after this remark on the commentary.
The only real quibble I have is regarding the "007 Mission Control" section of the DVDs. These are merely a collection of clips from the movie and as such seems a tremendous waste of valuable disc space. For example say you click on "Girls" from the Mission Control main menu. A menu appears listing the girls in that particular movie and if you click on their name you are provided with a menu listing a series of clips including that character. Not only is this highly redundant for those who have watched the movie (which one would presume people who own the DVD have done) but its also very selective. Take for example the character of Anya Amasova in "The Spy Who Loved Me." The first clip offered is her meeting with James Bond at the Kalba club. Surely the first should have been her famous introduction (where audiences expentations are turned on their head) and the scene where she learns of her lovers death.
Another minor gripe is the treatment of "Die Another Day" in this set. Whereas all the previous content from the other movies Special Editions are included in these Ultimate releases, the same cannot be said for the "Die Another Day" discs. Released already as a 2-disc set on its initial DVD release in 2003, this edition seems to have dropped the extensive documentary on the making of the movie. I was not a big fan of said documentary as I found it to be largely fluff, but its strange that it was not included here, especially since they probably used up space that could have accomodated it with the afore-mentioned "Mission Control" section. There are some interesting tidbits on the "Die Another Day" discs including the "From Script to Screen" doco (that had appeared previously only in Region 2) and a fascinating coverage of the parachite jump over Buckingham Palace, but the omission of the lengthy "Making of..." documantary from the previous release is puzzling.
The movies are in slim cases. The big fear among Bond fans when images of the cover packages were released was that it would be a gatefold design. The slim cases are 2-disc sets with disc 1 facing disc 2.
For those fans and collectors who like to place the DVDs in chronological order when displaying them on the shelf, there is a solution. The inner casingo for the DVDs are in the familiar shape common to storing magazines. This allows the collector to place this casing back in the box backwards so that the spines of the DVDs (with their titles on them) are facing out.
Recommended for everyone from the casual viewer to the most fervent Bond fan.
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James Bond Ultimate Edition - Vol. 2 (A View to a Kill / Thunderball / Die Another Day / The Spy Who Loved Me / Licence to Kill) (1965)Disc 1: *Thunderball (1965) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Terence Young and OthersDisc 2: **Thunderball Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT The Incredible World of James Bond - Original 1965 NBC Television SpecialA Child's Guide to Blowing Up a Motor Car - 1965 Ford Promotional Film On Location With Ken AdamBill Suitor: The Rocket Man MoviesThunderball Boat Show ReelSelling Bonds - Original 1965 Television Advertisements007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of ThunderballAudio Commentary Featuring Peter Hunt, John Hopkins and OthersThe Making of ThunderballThe Thunderball PhenomenonThe Secret History of ThunderballMINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications Disc 3: *Die Another Day (2002) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director Lee Tamahori and Producer Michael G. Wilson & Pierce BrosnanDisc 4: **Die Another Day Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT From Script to ScreenShaken and Stirred on IceJust Another DayThe British Touch: Bond Arrives in LondonOn Location With Peter Lamont007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of Die Another DayAudio Commentary Featuring Pierce Brosnan and Rosamund PikeMI6 DataStreamAdditional DVD-ROM Features Available!Madonna 'Die Another Day' Music VideoMINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Photo gallery Disc 5: *The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) **The Spy Who Loved Me Bonus Disc Newly Recorded Audio Commentary Featuring Sir Roger MooreTHE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director Lewis Gilbert, Production Designer Ken Adam, Co-Writer Christopher Wood and Michael G Wilson Disc 6: DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT 007 in EgyptRoger Moore: My Word Is My BondOn Location With Ken Adam007 Stage DedicationOriginal 1977 Featurette Escape From Atlantis: Storyboard Sequence007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of The Spy Who Loved MeInside The Spy Who Loved MeKen Adam: Designing BondMINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots, Photo Gallery & Radio Communications Disc 7: *A View To A Kill (1985) **A View To A Kill Bonus Disc Newly Recorded Audio Commentary Featuring Sir Roger MooreTHE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director John Glen and Members of the Cast and Crew Disc 8: DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Film '85 BBC ReportFloat Like A Butterfly Test FootageDeleted Scenes & Expanded Angles with Introductions by Director John Glen007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of A View to a KillInside A View to a KillThe Music of James BondDuran Duran 'A View to a Kill' Music VideoMINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers, TV Spots & Photo Gallery Disc 9: *License To Kill (1989) THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES LIBRARY: MISSION DOSSIER Audio Commentary Featuring Director John Glen and Members of the CastAudio Commentary Featuring Michael G Wilson and Members of the CrewDisc 10: **License To Kill Bonus Disc DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT Deleted Scenes With Director John Glen IntroductionsBond '89On the Set With John GlenOn Location With Peter LamontGround Check With Corkey Fornof007 MISSION CONTROL Interactive Guide Into the World of Licence to Kill Inside Licence to KillProduction Featurette "Behind the Scenes"Kenworth Trucks FeaturetteGladys Knight 'Licence to Kill' Music VideoPatti LaBelle 'If You Asked Me To' Music VideoMINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA Original Trailers & Photo Gallery
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