Gorgeous but empty would-be epic
Added 10/27/2009
The Bottom Line:
This version of Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans looks great (it was directed by Michael Mann after all) but the central romance never really clicks and, despite being a great actor, Day-Lewis can't breathe much life into lead character Hawkeye at all; say what you will about middlebrow epics like Braveheart and Gladiator, but they at least succeed in getting the audience invested in the leads, something this movie is unable to do.
2.5/4
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Still A Great Movie, Very Poor Quality DVD
Added 10/22/2009
This movie remains a great movie to pull out and watch from time to time as did I last evening and it is a shame that the DVD dishonors the real movie.Consequently, I still consider the theatrical version of the movie 5 star entertainment and I would undoubtedly give a properly remastered, theatrical release version DVD a 5 plus star rating, but my 1 star rating is intended to help further amplify how poor the quality of this DVD is and believe me I am not watching my DVDs on low end A/V equipment. So, I am joining the others who have posted regarding the quality issues of this DVD and who are spot on WRT "certain parts of the image appear to be `swimming' and `ghosting' where the computer has tried to restore missing picture information and where heavy noise reduction had been applied" and I cannot over emphasize how bad the soundtrack is. Both the Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtracks sound as if they were "DEMASTERED", not remastered, by first year film school undergraduates. The center channel volume is way too low and when adjusted to a reasonable listening level one is then overpowered when the other channels erupt with cannons, gunfire, etc., I'm talking window rattling here.
I am signed up to be notified when, if ever, the Blu-Ray version will become available and let's hope for the price gouging commanded by Blu-Ray that all of these issues are corrected, e.g.: The true theatrical release, high quality video image restoration and even higher quality audio restoration. What a disappointment it would be if the Blu-Ray is just a copy of the current product as has been the case with other so-called Blu-Ray releases. If a Blu-Ray version is released I would encourage Amazon to be as explicit as possible as to the quality level their customers will be getting from the Blu-Ray version.
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Adventure to the max!
Added 9/28/2009
This is a startlingly brutal film with abundant graphic violence, but don't let that dissuade you from watching it. The cinematography is gorgeous and the storyline worthy of repeated viewings.
From start to finish this is a thrilling look at life on the early American frontier. Adventure at it's finest! Heartily recommended, but not for the faint of heart.
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great historical drama
Added 9/28/2009
Saw this many years ago when it came on TV, and debated whether to get VHS or DVD. The reviews for DVD said that certain things were different or were missing so I bought the VHS. Very happy with the VHS that was brand new and unopened until the last 45 minutes when it became jumpy. The color was brilliant, the picture was clear, just that last 45 minutes I couldn't get it to track consistantly even though I was trying manually to do it. It was really wonderful to see the movie again and from about a decade later with older children. We all love history and how our country came to be, and this story seems to bring out the drama of it and the lives of the not so ordinary but every day people that were called to play the parts they did at that time in history. Great scenery, great plot, great actors and actresses, and some very tender moments on top of it all. One of our favorites!!
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BUY in UK, $12 US -SHIPPED, Use Slysoft AnyDVD to remove the region. Burn. Done
Added 9/16/2009
I purchased the THEATRICAL Vers. on Amazon UK. Shipped to the US was $12 US. I plan to use Slysoft AnyDVD or DVD-Decryptor (free) to remove the region and burn to a DVD+DL. That should take all of 30 mins and it is still cheaper than the US directors cut.
There is a lot of talk about how superior the theatrical version is. Having only seen the directors cut, I am eager to watch the theatrical cut. BTW I really enjoyed the directors cut but it seems that most of the criticism is accurate, I am just not easily bothered by extra footage.
Peace.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Gorgeous but empty would-be epic
Added 10/27/2009
The Bottom Line:
This version of Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans looks great (it was directed by Michael Mann after all) but the central romance never really clicks and, despite being a great actor, Day-Lewis can't breathe much life into lead character Hawkeye at all; say what you will about middlebrow epics like Braveheart and Gladiator, but they at least succeed in getting the audience invested in the leads, something this movie is unable to do.
2.5/4
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Still A Great Movie, Very Poor Quality DVD
Added 10/22/2009
This movie remains a great movie to pull out and watch from time to time as did I last evening and it is a shame that the DVD dishonors the real movie.Consequently, I still consider the theatrical version of the movie 5 star entertainment and I would undoubtedly give a properly remastered, theatrical release version DVD a 5 plus star rating, but my 1 star rating is intended to help further amplify how poor the quality of this DVD is and believe me I am not watching my DVDs on low end A/V equipment. So, I am joining the others who have posted regarding the quality issues of this DVD and who are spot on WRT "certain parts of the image appear to be `swimming' and `ghosting' where the computer has tried to restore missing picture information and where heavy noise reduction had been applied" and I cannot over emphasize how bad the soundtrack is. Both the Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtracks sound as if they were "DEMASTERED", not remastered, by first year film school undergraduates. The center channel volume is way too low and when adjusted to a reasonable listening level one is then overpowered when the other channels erupt with cannons, gunfire, etc., I'm talking window rattling here.
I am signed up to be notified when, if ever, the Blu-Ray version will become available and let's hope for the price gouging commanded by Blu-Ray that all of these issues are corrected, e.g.: The true theatrical release, high quality video image restoration and even higher quality audio restoration. What a disappointment it would be if the Blu-Ray is just a copy of the current product as has been the case with other so-called Blu-Ray releases. If a Blu-Ray version is released I would encourage Amazon to be as explicit as possible as to the quality level their customers will be getting from the Blu-Ray version.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Adventure to the max!
Added 9/28/2009
This is a startlingly brutal film with abundant graphic violence, but don't let that dissuade you from watching it. The cinematography is gorgeous and the storyline worthy of repeated viewings.
From start to finish this is a thrilling look at life on the early American frontier. Adventure at it's finest! Heartily recommended, but not for the faint of heart.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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