Product Details

• Actors: Maximilian Schell, Diane Baker, Brian Keith, Barbara Werle, Sal Mineo
• Directors: Bernard L. Kowalski
• Writers: Bernard Gordon, Cliff Gould
• Producers: Lester A. Sansom, Philip Yordan, William R. Forman
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: Cinerama Releasing Corporation
• VHS Release Date: September 8, 1998
• Run Time: 131 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305004218
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #385,135 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Let's leave aside the small problem of Krakatoa actually being west of Java. This 1969 epic adventure about treasure hunters who encounter the volcanic island just as it blows apart and who then get bounced around in the ensuing tidal wave is technically impressive if narratively lame. An interesting cast of familiar actors portray the mixed group of adventurers, but the script and dialogue are so weak one just wants to get past all their drama on the high seas (the group is seeking sunken fortunes on the ocean floor) and watch the geological fireworks. Fortunately, they make for quite a show. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Krakatoa ruined by DVD release, May 2, 1999

By 

G. Curtis (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Krakatoa East of Java (DVD)

For some reason I've always enjoyed Krakatoa having originally seen it in Cinerama.

This DVD is frankly a disaster; many years ago Benny Hill did a sketch of a movie set on a boat that kept jumping. This is what the print on this DVD does all the time. Whereas Benny Hill was funny, this is not.

The picture is weird to say the least; it is billed as Widescreen on the box but even when playing it in Widescreen on a Widescreen TV the picture is too squashed.

The sound is not AC3 stereo although I thought it was clear.

The film has been cut terribly and runs far short of the time billed on the DVD case.

Don't bother with this awful print; let's hope the movie gets restored properly.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Guilty pleasure, great spectacle, lousy DVD transfer, April 24, 1999

By 

Joe NY - See all my reviews

This review is from: Krakatoa East of Java (DVD)

This movie is a guilty pleasure, best enjoyed in its original uncut, big screen Cinerama format.The story is corny, but the special effects make up for any deficencies. The Simitar DVD release is taken from a cut TV print running 102 min. The original theatrical roadshow Cinerama release ran aprox 136 min including intermission. The Simitar DVD is widescreen and muted stereo, but it is worn and terribly cut. Wait for a new transfer of the complete film from better source materials. Don't waste your money on Simitar junk.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The volcano blows, and so does this transfer, May 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Krakatoa East of Java (DVD)

Okay, so it's not a work of art. But "Krakatoa" is very much a guilty pleasure. Max Schell and Sal Mineo pretty much phone in their performances. Diane Baker is trying so hard she seems like she's in a different movie. But where else are you going to see Brian Keith trying to rape a Polynesian pearl diver? The effects are clearly the star, with the tsunami tidal wave being fairly impressive, even by today's standards. It's a shame that we cannot get a better transfer of the complete 136 minute film. There are way too many obvious splices in this transfer to be acceptable. Also, this was released originally with a flaw that prevented it from being viewed unsqueezed. The flaw is corrected on the new pressing, but it has the same catalog number as the old pressing! The only way to tell them apart is that the new pressing has a white circle in the center, and the old one is clear.