Amazon.com: Modern Family: Season 1, Episode 1 "Pilot": Amazon Instant Video

Modern Family Season 1, Ep. 1 "Pilot"

Jay has grown children, grandchildren and a gorgeous young wife, who has a preteen son of her own; all together they must bridge generational, cultural and social gaps.

Runtime: 23 minutes
Original air date: September 23, 2009
Network: ABC

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Episode 1, "Pilot"

Synopsis: Jay has grown children, grandchildren and a gorgeous young wife, who has a preteen son of her own; all together they must bridge generational, cultural and social gaps.

Original air date: September 23, 2009

Runtime: 23 minutes

Captions and Subtitles: English

ASIN: B002Q8Z8KG

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,690 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Modern Family Season 1

Synopsis: Modern Family is a comedy series that views three different families through the lens of a documentary filmmaker and his crew. Jay Pritchett (Ed O'Neill) is the patriarch of this complicated, messy and loving modern family.

Starring: Ed O'Neill, Sofía Vergara

Supporting actors: Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Sarah Hyland, Ariel Winter, Nolan Gould, Eddie Diaz, Marina Valle

Season year: 2010

Genre: Comedy

Executive producer: Paul Corrigan

Network: ABC

ASIN: B002NVTSGQ

Rights & Requirements

Purchase rights: Stream instantly and download to 2 locations. Details

Format: Amazon Instant Video (streaming online video and digital download)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Review Specifically of the Blu-Ray November 23, 2010

By elixxxer

Format:Blu-ray|Amazon Verified Purchase

If you're reading through reviews on the Amazon product page, you are probably familiar with the riotously funny sitcom Modern Family. The show has been discussed and lauded by more eloquent souls than I, but I would like to comment on the quality of the Blu-Ray, for those interested.

Modern Family was filmed using very high quality cameras in the 16:9 aspect ratio which lends intself perfectly to a Blu-Ray transfer. For a television show, the quality is simply stunning (for comparison's sake, it blows The Office: Season 5 out of the water). Colors are very realistic and buck the trend of over-saturation while still offering plenty of "pop." With few exceptions, detail is crisp and contrast is again excellent. Audio quality and clarity is equally as impressive, although being an ensemble comedy, don't expect much from the rear channels.

The extra features consist of roughly 20-30 minutes (per disc, three discs total) of additional family interviews not aired in the episodes as well as some deleted scenes. I would have liked one or more "making of" type interviews with the cast and crew, but the included extras will suffice. Unfortunately, the quality of the deleted scenes varies wildly between each cut. The video disparity is understandable and does not bother me, but the audio volume changes quite dramatically between one scene and the next, which is a bit annoying.

Despite any negative comments, what's most important about Blu-Ray is being able to enjoy great films and shows (like this one) in the highest quality possible and believe me when I say you will absolutely floored by the pristine picture offered by this transfer. If you enjoy Modern Family, Season 1 on Blu-Ray is a must-have.

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69 of 91 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Funniest show on ABC... wonder how quickly it will get canceled. November 4, 2009

By David Khaindrava VINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

Truly one of the funniest shows on TV right now. This "mockumentary" comedy series was created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, people behind Frasier and Just Shoot me and is just as funny as these two. Multinational, multisexual and exceedingly complicated (extended) family and their hilarious antics filmed by the Dutch TV crew.

Jay Pritchett (Ed O'Neill - he is back!!!) is the track-suit wearing oldest member of the family who is married to a Columbian goddess Gloria (Sofía Vergara), who brings her son Manny into the family.

Jay's Daughter Claire (Julie Bowen) a neurotic mother is married to Phil (Ty Burrell), a very awkward, know-it-all dad (he is not) and their 3 kids.

Jay's gay son Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and his partner Cameron (Eric Stonestreet), who just adopted a Vietnamese baby.

Show consists of great characters, excellent cast and expertly written scripts. This show is funniest on any network. Start with the pilot, you will love it.

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71 of 95 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best tv comedy out there today! January 23, 2010

By T. L. Krische

Format:DVD

I never have before bought or even wanted to buy a DVD series of a television show, but this show is so funny and each week, I can't wait to see what's in store for the next upcoming episode. Season 1 is not even through it's airing at this time, but each weekly episode is strong and not one has never left me not laughing into hysterics. What a great cast! I'm so glad ABC signed on for a 2nd season. I've been saving each show on my TiVo (and how long can that last before you need to free up space)and later just love to playback an episode to watch...I'm always guaranteed a good laugh, no matter how many times watched. When this becomes a DVD set, I'm going to be one of the first in line to purchase it! I can't wait for its release!

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22 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Emmys got it right November 3, 2010

By Monkdude

Format:Blu-ray

Modern Family is a winning combination of great casting, smart writing and it's actually funny. There are very few comedies worth watching on TV today, but this show delivers every single week. The whole cast is outstanding and there is real chemistry between everyone, but I think three actors really stand out. Ed O'Neill sheds his Al Bundy persona and turns in a very comfortable, laid back performance that does wonders. Most of the big laughs come from Ty Burrell, who finally found a role that lets his dorky humor shine through, and Eric Stonestreet who plays the most over-the-top character other than Gloria, but never falls into that too far it doesn't seem real anymore category. Julie Bowen, Sofia Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Rico Rodriguez, who acts like a grown man trapped in a child's body, all fill in the cracks and often deliver very memorable moments themselves.

I'm happy to report that there is no sophomore slump with Modern Family. The second season continues its trend of brilliance.

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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Unexaggerated Must-Get: Season One of Network TV's Best Sitcom October 16, 2010

By Ed Uyeshima HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

First things first, I think this is the funniest sitcom since Arrested Development, but it also dares to be heartwarming by the end of each episode. Thanks to the laser-piercing sharpness of the writing, it continually gets away with such a potentially fatal combination and has become that all-too-rare show that I schedule my otherwise hectic life around - even if the individual episodes are available on the ABC Web site hours after they air. Created by Christopher Lloyd (Frasier) and Steven Levitan (The Larry Sanders Show), the show offered two-dozen episodes during its premiere season, all of which are included along with several worthy extras in this four-disc set.

The premise is simple and the format quite familiar. It centers on the families of Jay Pritchett, his daughter Claire, and his son Mitchell, all of whom live close to each other in Los Angeles. The format is a sitcom under the guise of a mockumentary (much like Christopher Guest's best films, Waiting for Guffman and Best in Show), which allows all the characters to express their honest opinions about each other, primarily exposing their personal idiosyncrasies and irritants. It's a tried-and-true approach, and in the expert hands of the writers involved, it works beautifully. Jay is the aging patriarch happily married to a much-younger Columbian spitfire of a wife, Gloria.... He struggles to keep up with her energy and high-voltage temperament, while helping to raise her cherubic, pre-adolescent son, Manny, acting well beyond his tender years.

Meanwhile, Jay's high-strung daughter Claire is married with three kids of her own. Her realtor husband Phil is your typical one-step-behind dad who thinks he is much cooler than he is, while Claire's control-freak tendencies are a reflex to not only his affable, conflict-avoiding nature but to her hopeless inability to push her children (especially eldest daughter Haley) away from the apparent hellion she was as a teenager. But I have to admit my favorite dynamic on the show is between Jay's lawyer son Mitchell and his flamboyant life partner Cameron, a former music teacher. Instead of focusing entirely on their same-sex relationship, the creators wisely chose to focus on them as new, overcompensating parents to their adopted Vietnamese baby, Lily. It's really easy to endear yourself to this extended family who manage to generate genuine likability through their somewhat dysfunctional nature.

The fact that Claire and Phil represent the only traditional family structure of the three makes an emotionally resonant comment on the acceptance of diversity in contemporary relationships that cross cultures, generations, same-sex barriers and overseas adoptions. What's more, the point is not hammered in any moralistic manner but through shrewd characterizations, relatable personal crises, and genuinely funny, laugh-out-loud outcomes. The show is also blessed with an excellent regular cast that starts with Ed O'Neill who manages to bring curmudgeonly warmth to his Al Bundy-like bluster as Jay. At first, Sofia Vergara's Gloria bordered a bit too much on stereotype, but as her own foibles were exposed, e.g., her self-denial over her bad driving and her hypersensitivity to any misconstrued comment about her heritage, she became far more relatable. Julie Bowen could have been the show's inevitable wet-rag, but she makes Claire's often unpopular stances as the sensible mom hilarious case studies in the slow burn, the dead-eyed stare and the double-take.

As Mitchell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson superbly contrasts Mitchell's elitist attitude and discomfort with public displays of affection with a deeper need to squash his "mama's boy" reputation. Even with such keen competition, there are two standouts in this crack ensemble. In Steve Carell-like fashion, Ty Burrell makes Phil a hilarious doofus of a dad in classic TV style, while Eric Stonestreet's Cameron is one of comedy's ingeniously lovable creations, an emotionally naked, over-the-top character who stays true to his corn-belt sensibilities. All the kid actors are great without being grating, and guest stars have turned in some stellar work. Most notable have been Shelley Long as Jay's new-age ex-wife unforgivable for "The Incident"; Fred Wiilard as Phil's evasive, joke-alike dad in "Travels with Scout"; and Elizabeth Banks as Cameron and Mitchell's perpetually drunk gal-pal Sal in "Great Expectations".

Funny deleted and extended scenes and family interviews are included with most of the episodes on all four discs, but the fourth disc has the lion's share of extras including a gag reel. Also included is a ten-minute featurette, "Real Modern Family Moments", which amusingly shows that a lot of the situations depicted on the show are based on what really happened in the lives of the production team. There is also the looking-back "Before Modern Family", which showcases the principal actors before their casting on the show, and separately, there is a piece on Stonestreet's previous incarnation as "Fizbo the Clown". There is not one but two behind-the-scenes featurettes, "Making Modern Family: Family Portrait", which looks at the making of the first season finale, and "Modern Family Hawaii", which looks at the Hawaiian vacation episode. It's all well worth the purchase. Read more ›

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