Customer Reviews

Paul Newman: The Tribute Collection

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

 

 

This 17 disc set will include:

1. The Long, Hot Summer (1958) - directed by Martin Ritt costarring Joanne Woodward
2. Rally 'round the Flag, Boys! (1958) - comedy directed by Leo McCarey costarring Joanne Woodward
3. From the Terrace (1960) - directed by Mark Robson and costarring Joanne Woodward. Rather complex story of the disintegration of a marriage.
4. Exodus (1960) - directed by Otto Preminger costarring Eva Marie Saint. Story of the birth of the modern nation of Israel.
5. The Hustler (1961) - directed by Robert Rossen costarring Piper Laurie. One of Newman's most famous roles as a pool hustler who wants to beat Minnesota Fats. The current two disc edition of this film is quite good, it will be interesting to see if it is improved upon.
6. Adventures of a Young Man (1962) - directed by Martin Ritt costarring Diane Baker. Paul Newman is tenth billed and thus plays a very small part.
7. What a Way to Go! (1964) - directed by J. Lee Thompson. Stars Shirley MacLaine as a woman who brings fortune, fame, and death to all of her husbands. Paul Newman plays one of them, so this really is not his film.
8. Hombre (1967) - directed by Martin Ritt and costarring Frederic March. This is a very good western with the focus back on Newman in the lead.
9.Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) - directed by George Roy Hill and costarring Robert Redford. A delightful western with comic and tragic touches.
10. Towering Inferno (1974) - costarring Steve McQueen. Newman plays an architect who returns from a long vacation to find that the skyscraper he designed has been constructed in a substandard fashion. A fire breaks out the night that the building owner is hosting a party on the roof celebrating the building's opening.
11. Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976) - directed by Robert Altman and costarring Joel Grey. A bit too long, and somewhat controversial tale with Newman as Buffalo Bill.
12. Quintet (1979) - directed by Robert Altman and costarring Vittorio Gassman. Futuristic film in which bored humanity has invented a game - "Quintet" - to pass the time. However, dying is the penalty for the human game pieces.
13. The Verdict (1982) - Sidney Lumet directs and James Mason costars in a courtroom drama involving medical malpractice in which Newman's character lands a case where all parties wish to settle out of court. However, Newman's character wants to pursue the case to trial.

Thirteen films in all, although I'm not sure why "Adventures of a Young Man" is included since Newman's role here is very small, and this is not even a major film. A booklet is also supposed to be included with this set.

This is in no way a review of the movies included in the collection, but entirely based on the packaging faults.

When I received this, six of the DVDs had come loose from their pockets and had been terribly scratched. The DVDs are not kept in cases, and are not in any way locked in. They are instead slid into pockets on a fold-out DVD case. There is nothing to prevent the DVDs from coming loose, and the pockets do not secure them tightly to start with. Needless to say, I had to return the product.

If you really want this, I suggest buying it somewhere you can be sure that the discs are not loose from travel.

I've never felt the need to write a review for anything I've purchased from Amazon before, but I had to in this case.

Well, like most tributes and memorial services I've ever been to, they end up reflecting just a pale shadow of the loved one and inevitably leave you missing the real person all the more. Many of this magnificent artist's by far not greatest films just sort of all thrown together (mostly just two or three stars at best) as well as a few of the truly great ones -- The Hustler and The Verdict. Buy those two to watch over and over and rent the others to watch once, but sheesh. This collection sure is hardly definitive. Just some big quick bucks for some big corporation. Yawn.

I'm getting kind of tired of marketing creative "geniuses" who sacrifice function for "design" when they create DVD packaging. You wouldn't throw a Waterford crystal vase into a shoebox -- with no protection -- and then mail it off to a distant relative, would you? I ordered this Paul Newman set and when unpacked from its outer shipping box, there was an ominous rattling -- I should say MULTIPLE rattlings -- coming from within the actual boxed set. When I opened the case, half of the discs had come out of their holders, which are simply "slits" diecut into two cardboard slipcases that the discs slide into -- slits that do NOT hold the discs securely in place. So I had a handful of DVDs that had bounced around loose inside of the box all during its shipping journey. Some of the other DVDs that managed to stay in their slots were scratched as well, since you have a delicate, recordable surface of the DVD rubbing against a hard cardboard "holder" as you slide it in and out of its slot. Can't rate the quality of the actual movies because I sent the set back as damaged goods. The packaging, however, gets an F-. The set was designed by someone who obviously lacks any comprehension whatsoever of what function packaging is supposed to provide -- the protection of the contents it holds or contains. I'm only hoping Fox Home Entertainment docks the designer's paycheck for each and every set that's returned as damaged. Poetic justice -- because there will be a lot of them coming back. AVOID.

This is a review of the packaging, not the movies. This set was a great idea, but those responsible for the packaging need to know that they did a very poor job and obviously are not consumers of DVDs. Every single DVD in my set is scuffed and some of the DVDs are unplayable. Here's a word of advise to the marketing people who approved the design for this set: Common sense should have told you not put DVD discs in open cardboard slots because they will come loose. DVD discs have a very useful center hole which when used is helpful in securing the DVD. The only other alternative is to package each individule DVD in it's own cardboard envelope.

The movie selection is very good and show a range of Newman's acting abilities from comedy to drama; the packaging however is so bad the product overall only rates a two star review.

Several of the DVD's were loose on arrival and two so badly scratched they didn't play properly; one can be watched but one is trash. The sleeves the DVD's are in are nothing more than slits in cardboard; not only do the slits not hold the DVD's securly but the cardboard is abrasive and scratches the DVD's when they work loose.

Even if the packagaing/storage box didn't damage the DVD's it would have lost a star for its shape and size. It is oblong and doesn't fit on a standard book shelf or DVD rack. Just where does the designer think a person would store this box.

I will not return the set but replace the damaged DVDs with individual purchases; they are both reasons for this purchase. Exodus and The Towering Inferno were the most damaged though all DVD's do have some scratches even the ones that didn't come loose have scuffs. The cardboard is abrasive and just the vibrations of moving it put scuffs on the DVD's where they made contact with the sleeves. The DVD's will be put in a DVD wallet.

The quality of the DVD's is suspect. I experienced a lot of skipping on some of the movies.

I just received this yesterday as a Christmas gift and I have to say I think it is a wonderful tribute to my favorite actor of all time. I've read a couple of negative reviews on here but I found this collection fantastic. I like all the movies and I had seen them all except "Rally Round The Flag Boys" and although it is a little silly Paul and Joanne are so young and beautiful in the film~you still gotta love it. "Quintet," which I hadn't seen in many years, I found to be a somewhat fascinating puzzle of a film and "Buffalo Bill and The Indians", another oddity, I enjoyed more now than I remembered. Of course the clasics here are "The Verdict", "The Hustler", and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" all having 2 disc editions as does "The Towering Inferno" which is one of the first films I remember seeing as a kid. It is indeed a popcorn eating delight! The book that comes with it is very pretty and has some wonderful photos and movie poster reproductions. The only fault is that the discs are in like a photo album type thing so they are not in their own boxes. But 40 dollars for 13 fantastic movies is, in my opinion, a great deal. Thanks Mom for the wonderful gift!

I'm personally not a big fan of Paul Newman, but my mother-in-law is. I bought this for her for her birthday, and she LOVED it! Scored me big points with her. This is recommended for all mother-in-laws!

It was such a great gift, it made my sister cry when she opened it. We liked the selections of movies, although some of Paul's better films weren't included in this set. The two movies we watched together Christmas evening both had places on CDs that stopped the film. We cleaned the disks and it was better, but a new set shouldn't do this. I hope her other films are better.