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| Dvdivas
was founded by John Gabbard in 2000. It's purpose has been and
remains to be to provide you, the entertainment community with
the latest dvds and movie reviews. It will continue to be your
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“Laverne
& Shirley: The Complete First Season”
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Reviewed
by: |
Wayne A. Klein |
| Genre: |
Comedy |
| Video: |
1.33:1 Full
screen |
| Audio: |
Dolby Digital
Surround 2.0 (mono) |
| Languages |
English |
| Subtitles |
English |
| Length |
373 minutes
|
| Rating |
NR |
| Release Date |
8/17/04 |
| Studio |
Paramount
Home Video |
| Commentary:
|
None |
| Documentaries:
|
None |
| Featurettes:
|
None |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
None |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
None |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
None |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
None |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Penny Marshall,
Cindy Williams, David L. Lander, Michael McKean, Eddie Mekka,
Phil Foster, Betty Garrett, Henry Winkler |
| Written
By: |
Garrry Marshall,
Babaloo Mandel, Holly Mascott, Judy Pioli Ervin |
| Produced
By: |
Garry Marshall,
Jeff Melman |
| Directed
By: |
Garry Marshall,
Dennis Klein, Jay Sandrich, Alan Rafkin |
| Music:
|
Charles Fox,
John Beal |
| The
Review: |
The first successful spin off from
“Happy Days”, “Laverne & Shirley” essentially was “The Odd
Couple” set in the 1950’s with young women instead of middle
aged guys. Set in Wisconsin the two young women work at a
beer bottling factory and dream of meeting the perfect guys.
The characters were first introduced in an episode of “Happy
Days” where they double dated with Richie (Ron Howard) and
Fonzie (Henry Winkler). Marshall cleaned the characters up
a bit for a regular series. Both were portrayed as drunken
floozies to great comedic effect in that episode. With the
addition of the brilliant Michael McKean (“Spinal Tap”) and
David L. Lander as the perpetually clueless Lenny and Squiggy,
“Laverne & Shirley” earned a berth next to “Happy Days” on
ABC’s schedule. The show became a hit as a result. Like “Happy
Days” the show has a wholesomeness that may make it seem quaint
now, but it’s the perfect family comedy; it’s funny without
offending anyone. Marshall’s days on “The Dick Van Dyke Show”
and “The Odd Couple” certainly paid off as the character driven
comedy here made the show very popular. ---
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| Image
and Sound: |
Unlike “Happy
Days-The Complete First Season”, “Laverne & Shirley” looks fairly
solid on DVD. The colors are richer and the images a bit brighter
and sharper with richer blacks and fine detail missing from
its parent series. The transfer here has also been kinder and
gentler than with “Happy Days”; the grain so apparent on “Happy
Days” isn’t so pronounced here. There are both analog blemishes
related to age and also some minor digital problems as well
but, on the whole, “Laverne & Shirley” looks very good and is
a refreshing contrast to “Happy Days”. The mono sound comes
across fairly well considering the age of the series. --- |
| The
Extras: |
Once again
Paramount has elected to keep it simple. We get the 15 episode
first season (“Laverne & Shirley” was a mid-season replacement
which is which there are less than the usual 23 episodes)
intact and that’s all. Again, I imagine Marshall could have
been called in for a brief interview about the show as well
as some of the cast. ---
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| Commentary:
|
Nothing here
at all. It’s a pity as I’m sure there are some very funny stories
related to the stand out episodes. --- |
| Final
Words: |
Unlike “Happy
Days: The Complete First Season”, “Laverne & Shirley: The Complete
First Season” looks very good in this DVD transfer. Although
it isn’t pristine, the transfer manages to minimize analog and
digital blemishes. It’s a marked step up from “Happy Days”.
It’s a pity that Paramount chose not to spring for extras as
I’m sure a retrospective documentary/featurette and one or two
commentary tracks might have inspired more fans to pick this
up on DVD. |
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