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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
I have to be honest..., August 24, 2000
This review is from: Roger Corman Retrospective, Vol. 1 DVD (DVD)
I have to get this review right to the heart of the matter...the image quality on this DVD is what some would call "okay", others "atrocious" and most simply "bad." But that still doesn't mean I regret ordering a copy. The three movies presented on this disc are entertaining - no aspirations of great cinematic art here - and can always make for fun viewing, especially with friends. ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES is the dumbest; the word "sleazy" fits perfectly. And I love it; swampland monsters, jealous husbands and all. THE WASP WOMAN is a somewhat better film with an intriguing premise but not much production value. It happens to be my favorite of the bunch. Finally, A BUCKET OF BLOOD is the true "cult classic" on the disc, and hits the high end of the scale for grade-B movies. No, it's not the content that disappoints. It's the quality. The transfers are obviously made from inferior 16mm prints despite the label's claim of them being "archival" material. THE WASP WOMAN is the worst, gaining a yellow tint to make its own poor transfer that much worse. A BUCKET OF BLOOD "isn't terrible" is about the best one can say, and GIANT LEECHES falls somewhere between. And that isn't much praise, is it? Sound quality is muddy throughout, too. The disc packaging is a clear hard plastic jewel case, like for a compact disc, only DVD-sized. At least the price is good, especially when you consider you're getting three movies. Tough decision... to buy or not to buy. As I said, I don't regret buying it, but it sure is hard to recommend to others. If you just want the movies on DVD and image quality isn't an overriding concern for you, it's probably worth it. But don't say I didn't warn you. :) For the future, here's hoping for Roger Corman productions on DVD mastered from nice, clean 35mm film prints.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
You probably won't be stung if you're careful..., December 17, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Roger Corman Retrospective, Vol. 1 DVD (DVD)
I should preface this review by stating I was very leary of this DVD after I read all of the reviews. I debated over buying it, for fear of what I would find on the technical level. I ordered it, received it, watched it and I can honestly say I am glad I bought it. The material here with the exception of BUCKET OF BLOOD is not avaialable on any other DVD at the time of this writing. BUCKET is presented, I'm sure, much better on the MGM DVD. My reason for even ordering this DVD is primarily to watch my favorite THE WASP WOMAN. When I got the disc, I knew full well that this movie would have the most technical problems and I was proven correct. The shoddy print presented here looks to be an old television 16mm print to these eyes. It has many splices and unusual fadeouts. The print identifies itself as ALLIED ARTISTS TELEVISION DIST. at the opening credits, obviously added for television viewing. The picture does have a yellowish tint and the images are very soft and indistinct, rather like watching an old television program. At the beginning of the movie, there are some really annoying video noises that distort the picture horizontally. Luckily, these are brief. For the most part, this movie's image is very watchable, rahter like watching late night television (where I discovered this little classic over 20 years ago). As for the other 2 films on this DVD, they are by leaps much better in image quality, with the best being ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES and following with BUCKET OF BLOOD. The soundtracks on these films all have their distorted flaws, but are certainly distinguishable. Another wonderful attribute of this collection are its clear menus. Each film has a detailed menu that far surpasses my expectation. The DVD itself is very attractively packaged in a heavy clear platic jewel case. Do I recommend this to others? I would suggest reading the other reviews as well. I bought this DVD knowing what I was getting myself into and came out satisfied, for the most part. The mediocre quality was what I expected, but the wonderful value this DVD offers makes it worth the price. At almost 6 bucks a movie, you can't go wrong. You have to sacrifice quality image here. Sure the films have their technical problems, but I think you will find that this will suffice for now. I'll certainly be waiting for another, better quality presentation of THE WASP WOMAN in the future. Are you listening, MGM DVD?
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Let's hope better quality for the second issue., July 28, 2000
This review is from: Roger Corman Retrospective, Vol. 1 DVD (DVD)
Very interesting DVD with three of earlier Roger Corman movies. It is the first disk of a series that we do not know yet where it would end, and as a first one it is presented with a very nifty menu, but when it comes to the movies it reveals its weaknesses. The video quality of the movies is barely sufficient, starting from the best one, "Bucket of Blood", going through "Attack of the giant leeches", touching the peak of the worst quality in the third film, Wasp Woman, in wich there are video noises coming in waves as if you had to tune the tv-station better. Negative point about the format: I couldn't find indication about the original aspect ratio, but surely all the movies were originally at least 1.85:1, and are here presented in a full screen 4:3 Pan&scan format, wich could let scare purists, but however please most lesser-asking people. A serious weak-point is the lack of subtitles, that cut out the hard of hearing ones and obstacles foreign persons that are not so well acquainted to english language to an easy understanding. Anyway, when you consider the price of the edition, you will agree that there is still a margin that justifies the buying, especially for the very interesting and charming "Bucket of blood" movie.
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