Customer Reviews

Intolerance (Enhanced) 1916

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This DVD set is very impressive. Not only does it offer the masterpieces of D.W. Griffith's career (including, of course, Birth of a Nation) but it also has all the shorts from the two videos "Selected Biograph Shorts," additional shorts, a biography and news items, and memorabilia. I am very happy to finally be able to see "In the Border States" and "The House with Closed Shutters." They both star my favorite actor, Henry B. Walthall, and I was searching for these shorts for awhile. I believe this set represents the first time these shorts have been made widely available. Considering their age, they look great on this set. In addition, this collection offers a 6 minute discussion of Birth of a Nation between the director himself and Walter Huston (who played Lincoln in Griffith's 1930 talkie Abraham Lincoln), clips of Griffith's funeral, radio eulogy by Erich von Stroheim, and many other "special features." The memorabilia includes lobby cards and programs for Birth of a Nation, articles from Photoplay magazine which are copied well and easy to read, and photos, postcards and magazine covers of Griffith's leading ladies. I only wish the leading men received the same treatment, but one can't have everything. A silly short starring Griffith ("Rescued From the Eagle's Nest" from 1908) and a very fake looking bird is included. The presentation is very well-done with video clips and period music on the menu pages. The packaging is also handsome and displayable. I was hoping little booklets would be included with each disc, however, there are only slips of paper with the film listings and pictures. Still, the bonus shorts and tons of extras make this a must for any Griffith or silent film collection.

Of course, it needs to be noted that almost all of these are available in restored editions thatare much better than this one, but on the whole, this set isn't too bad -- although none of these is in really good condition, and aside from the (about 9" x 14") poster reproductions, there are no extras.

Here's the breakdown (IMHO, YMMV, you are the best judge of what you can tolerate):

Birth of a Nation -- 103 min., no tint, print is blurry and washed out

Intolerance -- 167 min,, tinted, scratching, some blurring, some popping and distortion in soundtrack

Orphans of the Storm -- 150 min., no tinting, good print

Cabinet of Dr. Caligari -- 70 min., no tinting, washed out, visible

Nosferatu -- 80 min., no tinting, dark, poor quality (this is probably the worst of the group)

Metropolis -- 89 min., tinted and toned, poor condition

Hunchback of Notre Dame -- 96 min., tinted, badly scratched print, poor definition -- but it's watchable

Phantom of the Opera -- 79 min., ball scene tinted, some parts dark and lack definition, but frequently good definition

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde -- 82 min., dark, some loss of definition, some scratching, nothing really bad

The Beloved Rogue -- 98 min., no tinting, some loss of detail, some scratching, not too bad

Battleship Potemkin -- 73 min., no tinting, washed out in spots, not too scratched (the cover has the wrong runtime, there is an additional 46 min. documentary on Eisenstein).

The General -- 107 min. no tinting, blurry, scratched, mostly not too bad.

With all that said, Nosferatu is the only one that's really poor quality (for an unrestored film of the silent era). If you've seen the restoration of Caligari, you probably won't be able to tolerate this one, and this is even more true of Metropolis -- this cut is related to the drastically cut version that was shown in the US (the tinting and toning of some of the scenes is interesting). This is probably the shortest cut I've seen of Birth of a Nation.

All the others I found adequate, but if you really love one of these movies, this version probably won't satisfy you.

Mack Sennett, Mary Pickford, Lillian Gish, Erich von Stroheim, Tod Browning, John Ford, Allan Dwan, Wallace Reid, and Lionel Barrymore were just a handful of the talents employed by D. W. Griffith before their future successes in the motion picture industry. D.W. Griffith filmed "Birth of a Nation"(without a screenplay) in 1915, a few miles north of Hollywood in the Chatsworth hills of San Fernando Valley. For 25 years, it's $50 million box office record was unmatched. Future movie mogul Louis B. Mayer secured the East Coast rights to "Birth" and walked away with $500,000 in profits. Fragile close-ups, deft cross-cutting, and the ultimate chase scene: "Birth of a Nation" became the genesis of modern film. But as Griffith himself said, he didn't direct movies, he promoted an "art form". He was right. In 2002, Kino Films released the 7-disc DVD "Griffith Masterworks". Thia digital transfer gives you more than 30 complete films, newsreels, documentaries, photos, commentaries by Orson Welles, and much more. You also get a 6-minute filmed interview with actor Walter Huston and D. W. Griffith himself. They smoke cigarettes and chew the scenery(very interesting). This DVD set has over 10 hours of material(much of it rare, uncensored, and never available before). In 1949, D. W. Griffith lived alone in the Knickerbocker Hotel, spending nights wandering local Los Angeles bars. It is said that he often gazed out his hotel window down onto the corner across the street; the intersection of Hollywood and Sunset boulevard. This corner was once the site of the Babylonian set used in his "Intolerance". A few months later he died. Today in Hollywood, there is no major plaque, no monument, no testimonial commemorating the man who transformed a sleepy, dusty L.A. suburb into today's trillion dollar capital of the motion picture industry. D. W. Griffith will never be forgotten. I only hope that he will be remembered.

Though i am only thirteen i have had a passion for movies ever since i was young and have been increasing my collection (upwards of 400 now) of fantastic movies, this is one of my finest additions. D W Griffiths work may have been racist or one sided but his work changed world film, one of these movies even made the American Film Institute's(AFI) Top One Hundred Films of the past 100 Years ( Birth of a Nation)! All of these movies (except Biograph shorts 1909-1913) made the their way into the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, and for me to find them all together was a dream come true. If you are a movie fan who is interested in the silent film era do yourself a favor and make this fantastic addition to your collection today.

-Movie Man 22

Kino did the legendary director right by this handsome set. The films are of a remarkable quality considering their age and every little detail is looked after. The menu pages, for example, are very creative. The Biograph Shorts have previews of each film set in an old fashioned background with typical silent movie music to give the viewer the feel of sitting in a old-time nickelodeon. The Orphans of the Storm menu page has a curtain that lifts up. The people at Kino really took the time to produce an excellent presentation, and it shows. In addition, with each DVD in this set, you get lots of rare shorts (some never before released), memorabilia, photos, and even contemporary articles. Incidentally, if you only wish to own a particular DVD from this set, each are also sold separately; however, if you think you may want all these DVDs eventually, don't hesitate to buy this set.

This is one of the best compilations of early cinema to date, and on DVD at that! I don't know how much you would care about the free posters, as they are repros, I'm not that big of a fan, but it is a nice bonus.

These are the films that defined cinema as it stands today. These are the films that began a long and wonderful history of entertainment. Everything from Eisenstein's montage theory ("Battleship Potempkin") to the shocking stark realities from D.W. Griffith ("Birth of a Nation") even to Weimar Cinema and culture (Fritz Lang's "Metropolis") and film noir ("Nosferatu"). These are the classics, the forefathers, the basis from which current techniques, themes, styles, and shots are drawn. What you have in this 12 DVD set is a slice of history, of the birth of cinema.

If you consider yourself a film fan, or if you enjoy a wide variety of classic movies, this truly is a must-own set. You simply cannot understand modern cinema without first viewing these classics. Enjoy!

Most of these movies, if not all are in the public domain and the prints that they've used here are to say the least, not the best in the world. As another reveiwer listed the quality of each I will not repeat it as I agree with their review. The collection is fine as the titles go, but I would use this as a list of movie to find and get a better copies and cuts and get the far better collection of the same titles. Many of these prints used here are the same as you get in those "Treeline Films 50 Movie Mega Packs" for around $15. Why pay nearly $63 when the same copies (prints) can be had for far less and get an extra 38 movies to boot?

I do reccommend for the movie fan that they see and understand the impact of these selected films at there time in history, but please do yourself a huge favor and find the better prints of these great classics! Here is a list of the same movies, but with far better prints of each so try these...

The Phantom of the Opera - The Ultimate Edition (1925 Original Version and 1929 Restored Version) (1925) ASIN: B0000AKY58

Nosferatu - Special Edition (1929) ASIN: B000055ZB8

The General (1927) ASIN: 6305609969

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (1920) ASIN: B00005O5CF

Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) ASIN: 6305269157 [This is OOP]

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1921) ASIN: 6305075492

Intolerance (1916) ASIN: B00007CVS8

Battleship Potemkin (1925) ASIN: 6305090033

Orphans of the Storm (1921) ASIN: 6305186618

Beloved Rogue (1927) ASIN: B00006674G

The Birth of a Nation (1915) ASIN: 6305130949

Metropolis (Restored Authorized Edition) (1927) ASIN: B00007L4MJ

OK, yes this collection I have put together will cost far more than the $63.00 they want for the one reviewed, something close to $400.00 give or take. But it's apples and oranges, you can not compair the collection reveiwed here and the lack of quality thereof to the the ones I have listed here. Just as you can put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig, you can put a bad print in a fancy box, it's still a bad print. I hope this helps the true collector.

Cinema History should be treated and presented better!

Hi, D.W. Griffith fans. I am not particularly a very big fan of D.W. Griffith, but my aunt knew I liked silents so she got it for me for getting good grades. I was pleased, but COME AWWN! D.W. GRIFFITH IS NOT VERY INTERESTING, EVEN FOR ME, A SILENT-LOVING KID! I woul've preffered IT, starring Clara Bow, but this collection is pretty good. BIRTH OF A NATION is extremely racist. I only reccomend buying this if you've seen some of his work before. It might shock you. I liked INTOLERANCE best. It is a lovely movie with a great story. ALL FILMS IN THIS COLLECTION ARE RESTORED BEAUTIFULLY AND LOOK GREAT! SOME OF THE BEST RESTORATION WORK I'VE EVER SEEN! There are some nice rare Biograph shorts that are work watching. I watch any of these movies on Jan. 22, becuase that is D.W. Griffith's birthday. Did you know that musical movie star June Knight shares his birthday? She is my fave actress, and I reccomend that you watch her movie Brodway Melody of 1936, MY FAVORITE MOVIE, if like musicals and you want to see Robert Taylor sing in a movie for his first and last time.

This is a near perfect collection of great films. What film buff could ask for anymore? Except for Collection II! I can't emphasize how enjoyable this collection is. The films, most of them I have seem before, have never been in a better condition or form. The extras are well worth a look and something to savor. The DVDs include a Biograph shorts collection, A Birth of a Nation, Intolerance, Broken Blossoms and Orphans of the Storm. A five part article from Photoplay from 1915 revealed to me new understandings and revelations. Griffith, from most viewers perceptions has a flaw in his films, his use of 19th century acting techniques. The article and interview with Griffith reveals that Griffith was seen as bringing a more naturalistic form of acting to the screen. Most probably stage acting was even more pronounced and Griffith actually lightened it. What probably happened was that the naturalistic acting style he started sped up and surpassed his ability to change. The author of the articles mentions that Griffith took a laughed at and ridiculed medium (cinema) and made it more than an novelty item. He introduced feeling and a solid story to the American film industry. Erich Von Stronheim in his eulogy states that Griffith realized the necessity of using music that fit with the movies and creating costumes that fit the actor and the part. This is just a wonderful collection and I'm very enthusiastic about it.

It is a real pleasure to have art at the reach of your hand. And even more when it's something accomplished, original and innovative. Such is the case. We get here all of Griffith's top works in a delightful box set, beautifully done, and besides that we get the films that began to revolutionize cinema. I can't believe how nice it is to have Birth of a Nation, a three-hour 1915 picture, all gorgeously looking; the greatest movie at that time, which portrayed the classical three-part structure of any drama film. And we also get an insightful view at the famous director, the starter of Hollywood, and the history surrounding his work.

Worth buying from amazon as always.