|
|
|
Search Movie Review
Archives
|
|
|
| |
| 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
link to the most popular dvd movies. |
|
|
"Zorba
the Greek"
|
 |
Reviewed
by: |
Wayne A. Klein |
| Genre: |
Drama |
| Video: |
1.85:1 Anamorphic
Widescreen |
| Audio: |
5.1 Surround
Sound (stereo) |
| Languages |
English,
Spanish, French |
| Subtitles |
English,
Spanish |
| Length |
142 minutes
|
| Rating |
NR |
| Release Date |
8/3/04 |
| Studio |
20th Century
Fox Home Video |
| Commentary:
|
Director
Michael Cacoyannis |
| Documentaries:
|
None |
| Featurettes:
|
None |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
"Anthony
Quinn: A Lust for Life" from A&E's Biography |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
Trailer |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
Alternate
beginning |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
Still gallery,
Fox Movietone News |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Anthony Quinn,
Alan Bates, Irene Papas, Lila Kedrova, Sotiris Moustakas, Anna
Kyriakou |
| Written
By: |
Michael Cacoyannis |
| Produced
By: |
Michael Cacoyannis |
| Directed
By: |
Michael Cacoyannis |
| Music:
|
Mikis Theodorakis
|
| The
Review: |
Winner of three Academy Awards,
"Zorba the Greek" comes to DVD in a deluxe dual sided disc
with more features than one could have asked for. Anthony
Quinn stars as Zorba who is hired by an English writer (Alan
Bates) to work the mine on a small island off the coast of
Greece. Zorba's lust for life awakens a dormant seed in the
English writer. The film is much more complex than the simple
description I've given it and the dark last third of the film
throws into doubt the some of our own conclusions about Zorba
and those around him as well. Fox has done a splendid job
bringing this classic film to DVD.
|
| Image
and Sound: |
Presented
in 1.85:1, the aspect ratio (the width by the length of the
screen) seems slightly off as the Fox logo is boxed in at the
sides as well. It could be that when they enhanced this film
for DVD, Fox might have altered the aspect ratio. I'm not really
sure about this as I never saw the film in theaters. Nevertheless,
the transfer looks terrific with none of the grain problems
tent to see in older black and white films transferred to DVD.
The blacks are solid and, although the image occasionally seemed
a bit blurry, that's to be expected given the age of the negative.
The stereo sound comes across with more vibrancy than the mono
soundtrack with a nice attention to details. Unfortunately,
I can't compare it to the original theatrical presentation and
can only assume that the clarity in the soundtrack heard here
wasn't in the original. There are certain portions where the
soundtrack is muffled a bit or indistinct but, on the whole,
Fox has taken care to transfer the sound. *** |
| The
Extras: |
"Zorba"
comes with a trunk load of extras. We get the A&E special
"Anthony Quinn: A Lust for Life" from "Biography". This 45
minute biography on Quinn is actually quite good and gives
a peak into the demons that drove Quinn's style and his sense
of perfectionism as an actor. The biography is filled with
clips and stills from many of Quinn's films and doesn't just
highlight one portion of his career. Instead, the program
looks at the different phases of Quinn's career and how his
willingness to work abroad brought him his first leading man
roles in Hollywood. We also get a Fox Movietone News program
that highlights the premiere of "Zorba the Greek" and discusses
many other events of the day. The "Behind-the-Scenes" stills
gallery provides a fascinating glimpse into the production
of "Zorba". Unfortunately, there's no narration that goes
with the stills. That could have improved this extra giving
it more of a contemporary "Behind-the-Scenes" featurette feel.
Incorporating interviews with the director, cast members drawn
over the years and key scenes/outtakes from the film would
only have enriched this feature. ***
|
| Commentary:
|
The commentary
track by director Michael Cacyannis (who was active who made
films until about 5 years ago with his last being "The Cherry
Orchid") provides interesting tidbits on the production of the
film. Luckily, Cacyannis' memory is better than some other film
director's from the same time frame (Robert Wise might be a
good example) providing detailed stories about the production
of the film. Again, the film could have used other points of
view and including clips from interviews with some of the actors
done over the years might have yielded addtional insight. It
also might have exceeded the generous budget used to bring "Zorba"
to D VD so it might have been impractical to do so. *** |
| Final
Words: |
A classic
movie gets classy treatment from Fox Home Entertainment in a
very sharp anamorphic widescreen transfer. The extras provide
insight into the making of this classic Academy Award winning
film. There's also a fascinating commentary track by the director
which makes up for the lack of other featurettes on this disc.
A terrific job on the part of Fox in bringing this classic film
to DVD. |
|
|
