Customer Reviews

Buddy Holly Story, the / La Bamba - Set

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love La Bamba and the Buddy Holly Story is okay. This is a less expensive way to get them both. Both titles are listed as Widescreen on Amazon, as well as on the box and the slipcases for each DVD. The Buddy Holly Story, however, is a fullscreen DVD. La Bamba IS widescreen. I'm not sure if The Buddy Holly Story that is sold individually is labeled incorrectly or if it is just the one in this set.

I have quite a large dvd collection (for a college student) that is somewhere between 300 and 400 movies and I've grown quite tired of picking up a double or triple feature set that purports all the movies to be in anamorphic widescreen and then when I put the movie in am disappointed that only one movie is and the other movies have "been formatted to fit this screen"

I'm sure the companies that put these films out don't stalk me to find out what my TV setup is like so I'll put this out there for them to read: I try to buy movies that are formatted for my screen - they say so on the back, it's called "anamorphic widescreen". If I wanted a horrendously cropped piece of crap I'd watch a laserdisc of "Let It Be".

As an avid movie watcher it tends to frustrate me when companies think they can do this to consumers - essentially a very backhanded bait and switch where they don't even tell you they've switched... Don't get me wrong, I love deals like this (2 movies for 6 bucks!) but I already owned La Bamba and wanted to get this for the Buddy Holly Story... Now I'm stuck with a cropped Holly DVD and 2 identical copies of La Bamba!

Do your research before you decide to buy a double feature from any of the major companies - sadly this is hard to do when (like me) you're always finding yourself at the store with the last copy of something like this on the shelf and can't go home to check online... On a good note, not all of the double/triple features are like this. Paramount tends to go a good job as well as MGM (and they put each movie on its own disc!)

This collection of 2 of the best movies ever made on rock n' roll, showcases the lives of 2 of the most memorable stars of the late 50's, Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens. Gary Bussey was nominated for his role as Buddy Holly and Lou Diamond Phillips shines as Ritchie Valens. These are 2 very nostalgic movies that will move everyone.

I found this double-disc set this afternoon and bought it JUST FOR the WS copy of "The Buddy Holly Story" to replace my old FS VHS copy. Although the slipcase, the DVD case and Amazon's website all clearly state "Buddy Holly" is 1.85 anamorphic widescreen it ISN'T-- it's 1.33:1. And in case you are thinking maybe I don't have my DVD player's aspect ratio correctly selected, there is a title card at the end of the movie which says the movie has been "modified . . .formatted to fit your TV". This pisses me off bad!!!

I found this two disc edition with "The Buddy Holly Story" and "La Bamba" for $ 9.99. They are both good movies,but "La Bamba" is a much better movie than "The Buddy Holly Story". "La Bamba" has a lot more character development and by the time the doomed young Valens meets his fate,it hits home just how sad and tragic this infamous plane crash was! Introducing Lou Diamond Phillips as Ritchie, he takes the role seriously and plays the part well. It is a tale about two brothers as much as it is a story about the young rock star's quick climb to stardom and tragic fall from the sky. Esai Morales plays Ritchie's half brother with gusto and it is this relationship that makes the film really shine. Ritchie's half brother is the opposite of the goodie two shoes Valens,but he is not really evil. It is a very interesting and touching story. "The Buddy Holly Story" is good,but the story never really goes anywhere,but lead us to the inevitable end. Busey does get brownie points for doing his own singing. It's a good film,but watching it back to back with "La Bamba" it pales in comparison. The Two DVD's are presented in widescreen,but "Holly" movie had a "this has been formatted to fit you TV screen" warning before the movie?? The transfers look very good and the soundtrack was rocking!

The Buddy Holly Story was outstanding with Gary Busey as the main actor and performed all songs live as he was a former professional musican. He was up for a grammy for this movie and rightfully should have received that honor. He performed Buddy Holly so well that I wouldn't be able to pick the real Buddy Holly from Gary's music- they sound so much alike. La Bamba was also a great movie and this set is a great tribute to the pioneers of rock music. Richie Valens was the first hispanic rock singer in America. It also shows his family and how they interact with each other- a great movie.

A GREAT FILM. I AM A SUCKER FOR HONEST TO GOODNESS TEAR JERKERS.
AND THESE TWO STORIES HAVE DONE THAT FOR ME JUST THAT. THEY ARE TRUELY UPLIFTING AND INSPIRATIONAL.

I had been wanting to get these two movies on dvd for a long time and when I saw that I could purchase them together, I couldn't pass it up.
I thought the acting was excellent in both films and even though I had read that not everything was accurate in them, I still found them to be entertaining and enjoyable to watch.

Highly inaccurate portrayal of Buddy Holly, did not even get the name of the members of the Crickets correct.

Totally ignored Norman Petty Studios in Clovis, New Mexico, where the best of the music was recorded.

Two great tributes for the price of one. Makes no sense to buy them separately, if you like one, you will enjoy both. Both movies are great tributes that do a good job of capturing the tragedy of losing these two stars, whose lights were extinguished too soon. Though both movies play Hollywood with the truth, you have to appreciate the work and talent that Gary Busey put into recreating Buddy's songs, while Lou Dimaond Phillips' acting and Los Lobos' music were a great combination for capturing the essence of Richie Valens' stage persona. Plus, the "La Bamba" DVD has some great interviews with Richie's family members, well worth watching, in the special features section. Wish the same were true for the Buddy Holly DVD, but you just have to buy the "Real Buddy Holly Story" to get that.