Product Details

• Actors: Troy Hartman, Stephen C. Sillett, Jimmy Smits, Susan Campbell, Jeff Clark
• Directors: Greg MacGillivray
• Writers: Mark Krenzien
• Producers: Greg MacGillivray, Alec Lorimore, Jan Baird, Mark Krenzien, Robert Kresser
• Format: Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Image Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: November 20, 2001
• Run Time: 41 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005OCLB
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #40,944 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Documentary > IMAX

• For more information about "Adventures in Wild California (IMAX)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Whoa! Dude, this is so rad you won't believe it! It's a 42-minute IMAX movie made by MacGillivray Freeman Films, the same guys who made that Everest film, and it is awesome. They filmed all kinds of cool stuff that people do in California--you know, like skysurfing, extreme surfing (dude, wait till you check out the size of these waves!), climbing monster sequoia trees, and walking up to the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. There's a piece about Walt Disney and the first Mickey Mouse cartoon, too. And even if you don't have an IMAX theater in your house, you can still see how amazing the film techniques they used to shoot this stuff are (in fact, there's a 24-minute documentary explaining how they did it). And to top it off, the narration is read by Jimmy Smits, and there are a few tunes by Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac. Man, this is sweet. --Sam Graham

Product Description
Adventures in Wild California will send you careening down an icy, steep mountain face with snowboarders; twirling on thermals above the clouds with sky surfers; swimming through the oceans with otters and their surrogate human mother; excavating the very heart of a thirty-story-tall Giant Sequoia with botanists and emerging from under the spray of one of the world's biggest surfable waves. The heart-pounding imagery recreates an experience of California's farthest edges that few will ever know first-hand. Narrated by Jimmy Smits (NYPD Blue, L.A. Law); featuring music by Lindsey Buckingham. Ever wonder, "how did they do that?" The Making of 'Adventures in Wild California, shot on High-Definition Video, takes you behind the scenes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good film, DVD not as good as theatrical version, December 11, 2001

By	William E. Gaines (Charlotte, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I saw the theatrical version of this movie about 3 months ago and just got the DVD release. I thought the film was great when I saw it in the IMAX theater at the Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. However, the DVD just didn't look right to me. The vibrant colors that I saw in the theater were not there and the soundtrack was not transfered very well to either DD 5.1 or DTS 5.1. The DVD was a disappointment. The video quality of the "Making of" feature was not worthy of DVD release.

I own about a dozen IMAX films on DVD. This and another one that I bought at the same time could have been better. Both were released by Image Entertainment. I have gotten some real low quality DVD releases from Image Entertainment and this continues the trend for me.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Adventures in Wild California - Awesome!, November 15, 2001

By	RIchard J Coleman Jr (Orange County, CA United States) - See all my reviews

The first Imax movie I ever saw was Everest and I loved it- each and every one of my several viewings. I never imagined that another Imax movie could surpass the enthusiasm I felt for Everest. Seeing Adventures In Wild California changed all that. I was thoroughly entertained, absorbed, and amazed from beginning to end. The movie opens with incredible sky surfing footage accompanied with a perfect choice of music. The opening put a smile on my face and sent a sense of awe through my system that didn't diminish until well past the closing credits. The good news is - the rest of the film really rocks also. Another highlight for example is the footage of the big waves at Mavericks. The waves themselves are unbelievable, but so is the footage of the surfers surfing and "attempting" to surf them. I loved it and I don't even surf! I believe "awe" is the best word used to describe how I felt throughout much of the film, I found myself in awe again when the Imax cameras moved to the groves of Giant Sequoias that were referred to as "sacred". The movie inspired me to search out the Sequoias and I was amazed to learn that as an Orange County resident they were only 4 hours from my house - including the biggest tree in the world - General Sherman. A short hike from General Sherman is the Washington Tree - the tree featured in the movie! A weekend trip to the giant Sequoias gave confirmation to the word "sacred." If I had not seen "Adventures" I'm sure I never would have visited such a remarkable place. I'm thankful to "Adventures" for inspiring my trip. There's a lot more great stuff in the movie that I haven`t mentioned and I would highly recommend checking it out. Unfortunately, I imagine the DVD won't have the same impact as the BIG screen, but I will still be first in line on the 20th to eagerly add this DVD to my collection.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart Pounding Look Into Wild California, May 31, 2001

By A Customer

This was an excellent look into the adrenaline pumping thrills that some Californians do, as well as looking at the wondrous sights. The filming was excellent, it allowed you to feel like you were there falling in the sky as a skydiver, or riding a wave as a surfer. My heart pounded as I watched. Since I am too chicken to try it myself, I got as close as possible to the real thing watching the IMAX film.