Customer Reviews

The Group [VHS]

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This version of Lumet's THE GROUP is presented in the original 1:66 to 1 aspect ratio - however the DVD is letterboxed instead of anamorphiccally enhanced for 16:9 television screens. Fox/MGM on demand DVDs would do well to follow suit with the WARNER BROS. archive collection and present their widescreen films progressively scanned, and with anamorphic enhancement. I would expect that scope films in their catalogue (like TRAPEZE and TWO FOR THE SEESAW) are anamorphic, or there will be further customer complaints at their price point. That said, the print used is acceptable and true to the theatrical look of the picture.

As for the film, it's a superb soap opera, thanks to Sidney Buchman's excellent adaptation of the Mary McCarthy novel. The character vignettes are energetic, and combine for a telling mosaic of the decade preceding World War II. The performances are perceptive ones, and by the time the picture is over, you're convinced that these characters have honestly evolved. Photographed by Boris Kaufmann with a handsome clarity. Sharp and smart.

Sidney Lumet gives this movie a glossy sheen, and it is certainly dated with a sense of pretension. However, the story, about a group of lberal-educated women in the 30s/40s, is fascinating in its truly bold depiction of issues rarely raised in the movies of the 50s and 60s. The issues these women confront as they weave themselves into ordinary life play like a prequel to Valley Of The Dolls -- with some camp intact. Jessica Walter plays her frigid society girl to the hilt, while Shirley Knight has a gorgeous glow as perhaps the most humane member of the group. The costumes and art direction are much more 50s/60s than 30s chic -- and this detracts from the story, which is infinitely more compelling and even shocking knowing that these women -- who speak freely of communism and lesbianism -- are essentially products of a Depression-era college. Still, what fun to peek into the living quarters of these Manhattanites, and watch the soap suds rise.

When viewing the DVD, I was mystified and appalled to see that the film, which was not made originally in widescreen due to director Sidney Lumet's general dislike for that process, has been visually mutilated to make it appear to have been "letterboxed". What kind of perverse thinking is this? How disrespectful to this brilliant film's legendary director!I love this film so much, I'm keeping it anyway, however I am extremely disappointed...

This movie is a character study of a privileged group of women graduating from a tony woman's college in the early 1930's. Some on them have felt the hard times of the depression others are living off the interest of their interest, so even though they are all friends there are many different sides to them. Based on the novel by Mary McCarthy it tries to cover all the aspects that she wrote about. The basic story lines are there but much of McCarthy's nuance cannot be transferred to film. Nevertheless, it is worth seeing even if only for all the new faces of the day including Candace Bergen's movie debut as Elinor Eastlake, the token lesbian as well as Larry Hagman's jerky alcoholic Harald. Sounds soap operatic? It is, but with some style. Not as trashy as films like the Valley of the Dolls or the Best of Everything, it is still a good watch. I gave it five stars because I really like the film, but you judge for yourself.

Very mediocre quality. "Made from best available sources" doesn't excuse the poor audio, which suffers from periodic compression and unmonitored levels, occasional hum and whining which disappears as different camera angles are intercut, overmodulation and distortion in the funeral parlor scene, and a front cover that looks like a 20th generation photocopy of the original theater poster. The quality is that of an early 80s VHS. At least it's not pan and scan. If this is the kind of quality I can expect from these "to order" releases, I won't be buying any more. Too bad.

I have been waiting for "The Group" to finally be released on DVD. Much to my disappointment, the title is not widescreened. I am returning the product to Amazon. I was also going to order "Two For The Seesaw," but assume it will also
not be widescreened. Will not be ordering any other MGM dvd's distributed by CreatSpace. Wonder if they also did not widescreen "Trapeze." If you have a region free DVD player, get "Trapeze" widescreened from Amazon.UK. It is an excellent print distributed by MGM in UK.

It is my view that some types of novel do better when adapted for Tv rather than the movies and The Group by Mary McCarthy is one example .While not a long novel -like Dickens or the great Victorians wrote ( whose books also cry out for TV rather than cinema simply because they are so long)-it is one with a great many characters and even at 150 minutes the movie simply cannot do justice to them all
The Group was one of the earliest movies to show women's emotional development as individuals ,not simply lost souls awaiting salvation from the penis owning half of the world .
It is based on a book that is hard on the adapter having a focus on 8 graduates from Vassar in 1933 and tracing their lives over a 20 year period .It tries as does the book to give equal time to them all but in trying to cram so much into the movie the result is that it feels unweildy and some of the characters emerge as sketches not fully rounded portraits .Much of the author's social and political views have been eliminated and the movie is the poorer for it

The women are Lakey (Candice Bergen -on debut)as the Sapphic "Lakey" Dottie( Joan Hackett);Priss ( Elizabeth Hartman)'Polly (Shirley Knight);Kay (Joanna Pettet) Pokey ( Mary-Robin Redd) 'Helena (Kathleen Widdoes) and Libby (Jessica Walter )The men in their lives are mostly weak and disposable

Director Sidney Lumet seems unsure if the material should be treated as satire or soap and it is the soap operish elements that fare better /And there are several of them -there are such soap staples as lesbianism ,alcoholism ,frigidity ,death and war . It seems appropriate given the "soapish proceedings that Larry Hagman crops up as one of the men involved
The best episode for me was the lightest as Polly wryly copes with her eccentric father who is allegedly crazy and shrewdly exploits this "fact"
The period detail in the De Luxe photography of Boris Kaufman is impeccable and the all NY female cast do well .The basic problems are the uncertainty of directorial tone and a movie too full of characters to give us a coherent and wholly focussed narrative

This is still a work that should be seen and its reltively unknown status is sad

I just received this DVD; it is NOT widescreen. Why produce a new DVD of a film in the old "pan-an-scan"? And at $18.!! Amazon does its customers a disservice when it does not specifiy that the film is only available in a modified format. Now I have to go to the trouble of returning it.

The Group Was a favorite book and then mvie of mine of the early sisties. The DVD was obviously copied from an old VHS and the Quality was very bad. Most of the problems came early on in the DVD but I kept hold my breath when the next annoying incident was going to occurr. In fact I think a chunck of the movie at the very beginning when the problem occured was missing all together.

I first saw "The Group" in 1966 when I was in high school. Seeing it now, it's still a wonderful movie. After first seeing the movie, I've read the book a number of times. The movie does a good job of translating the book to the screen. The cast is superior, filled with great actors at the start of their careers. Candice Bergen was 19! Too bad we've lost so many of the cast. The only thing I can fault is the make-up and hair styles-typical of Sixties' movies, some of the actresses look out-of-period (especially Joanne Pettet with that teasted hair and thick eye liner). The costuming was fairly accurate.