Customer Reviews

Super Bowl XXXVI - New England Patriots Championship Video [VHS]

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

If you are familiar with NFL films, you will be pleased with a whole season leading up to the Superbowl of all the highlights and ups and downs of the season. The special features show two songs done live at the Superbowl by U2 with a tribute to the victims of 9-11, and another short documentary of a Tribute to America, where it shows the players uniting together to remember and honor the lost lives of the 9-11 tragedy as well as uniting as one country. I would even like to say, you will get the best snapshot on still frames of the referee blunder that kept Oakland from winning the game at Foxboro in the snow. The footage is very picturesque as the snow causes havoc and perserverance from the players. Interesting enough, they film also has a short feature on the 1976 PAtriots. Another seasoned highlight of the past where the opposite circumstance happened. A bad call from the referee keeps the Patriots from going on in the playoffs during 76, and who do you think got lucky from that bad call? Thats right --- Oakland! Well balanced features and tributes, makes this DVD a good buy for football fans.

Okay, so I'm not COMPLETELY neutral...there were enough Michigan alums on the Patriots (especially Tom "Heart Attack" Brady) so that I was hoping they'd pull out the win. And in the most exciting Super Bowl ever played, they did.

This is a terrific season highlights collection from a really improbable championship run. NFL Films has always been the greatest ambassador the game has; as they have consistently managed to present the game in a way that somehow makes it seem more relevant than it truly is; the film techniques, the epic music accompanying the slow-motion sequences, the on-field microphones...really, there is no other sport that can come remotely close to American football for being as "made for film" as it is.

The 2001 season for the New England Patriots seemed even more epic than most...from starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe getting hurt early in the year to the interruption of play due to 9-11 (tastefully covered in a bonus feature unto itself) and Patriots guard and New York City native Joe Andruzzi's relief after finding out that his brothers in the FDNY made it out of the World Trade Center before it went down to the regular season meeting with the St. Louis Rams indicating that just MAYBE the Rams could be had to the emergence of Tom Brady as the star and eventual starting quarterback to the "tucking" of former Michigan teammate Charles Woodson and the Oakland Raiders in the last-ever game played at Foxboro Stadium to Brady's injury in the AFC Championship in Picksburgh with Drew Bledsoe stepping in to steer the team to New Orleans for the Super Bowl...and then of course the Super Bowl itself.

I honestly can't think of one NFL season within recent memory that has had that much excitement (once you take Michael Vick's highlights out, at any rate)...this was an incredible journey, accessorized with some choice bonus features including U2's halftime set, the 9-11 tribute, and some old skool Patriots highlights from the 1970's that are sure to bring back some memories (as well as the question as to why a team calling itself "Patriots" was doing wearing red tops instead of the Colonial blue). All-in-all, a superb production from NFL Films of a season that was truly a stand-out in all aspects of the word.

I will deduct a star from this rating because the Super Bowl game itself was not shown either in its entirety or in the full-length NFL Films production of that game from start-to-finish; games like that just don't come along every year; a second disc could have been included dedicated entirely to that one game (Glasgow Celtic Football Club did something similar to this regarding their 2003 UEFA Cup run; a 2nd disc was included showing their quarterfinal match at Anfield with Liverpool in its entirety...a nice touch, so we know it can be done).

The NFL shows & tells us beautifully in only 65 minutes the amazing year of the New England PATRIOTS! From pre-season to Super Bowl XXXVI the NFL captures the essence of "TEAM" work & the desire to overcome the impossible, "TOGETHER!!"

This Official NFL Enhanced DVD Edition explodes off the Screen (especially on HDTV)!!! NOTE: this is presented in FULL SCREEN / Aspect ratio 1.33:1, w/Dolby Digital Stereo. The picture quality (outstanding detail & color), game highlights (Slow motion & multiple angle replays) & editing (quick and electrifying)are fantastic!!! This DVD & the Patriots year plays like a HOLLYWOOD staged film.

Outstanding job NFL for capturing the best high-lights of the best plays on film. The editing is perfect, keeping us on the edge of our seats the entire time.

Obviuosly a "PATRIOT FAN" DVD but avid football enthusists will be taken by the ability of a "TEAM" becoming a unified unbeatable force. The perfect Cinderella story. Enjoy.

I had to laugh when I read some of the reviews here. When has the NFL ever released a video of the entire Super Bowl in any given year?? NEVER!! Neither the league nor the networks would ever allow it. The advertising on the cover is NOT misleading!! It says "Super Bowl XXXVI Champions Patriots", not just "Super Bowl XXXVI". And if you're literate enough to read the description on the back, it says such things as "It's all here, from training camp through the Super Bowl..." I have no sympathy for anyone who was misled.

Has anyone here ever purchased a previous NFL team video? I have two previous ones of the Patriots (on VHS). I have one for the 1993 team that went 5-11--a team that was in its first year under Bill Parcells and showed promise by winning it's last four games. That video is about 30 minutes. I also have one for the exciting 1997 team that won the division and beat Miami in the first round of the playoffs before losing a very tough game in the second round to Pittsburgh. That video is a paltry 25 minutes (although I of course enjoyed it). This DVD here--besides the fact that it has glorious Patriots championship footage--is the best thing I have seen yet from NFL films. The main feature is a bit over an hour long--plus there is the 30 minutes of extra features.

Now I agree that the unstoppable commercials at the beginning are annoying, and of course a few more things about the season could have been included. But overall, this was VERY well done! It truly ran like a great "beating the odds" sports movie; I still have to pinch myself to realize this is not fiction! From the classic narration by the legendary Harry Kalas to the use of the Pats' great radio voices to the footage both on the field and off, the season was very well covered. For sure, I know the outcome; but I still get chills every time I see it. The dramatic way it was presented here only enhances the beauty of what was the Patriots' 2001-02 season.

I also LOVE the extra features on legends Steve Grogan and Gino Cappelletti as well as the 1976 team. The NFL Tribute to America feature I actually wish was a bit longer, but it brings goosebumps almost as much as watching the Super Bowl highlights does. I am a rock music fan who actually isn't that fond of U2, but I enjoyed their halftime performance at the Super Bowl and enjoyed reliving it on this DVD as well.

So in summary, is this worth your money? ABSOLUTELY!! If you have a clue about what NFL Films is allowed to present, and certainly if you are a long-suffering New England Patriots fan, then this DVD is DEFINITELY for you. I cannot recommend it enough.

The 2001-02 New England Patriots were--and continue to be--the Rodney Dangerfields of football: "No respect at all." Before their season even began, many so-called "experts" picked them to finish LAST in their division. When starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe was injured in the second game of the season and a young understudy named Tom Brady was thrust into the starter role, these same "experts" started digging the Patriots' graves. Throughout the regular season, the "experts" called every win a fluke, while every loss was the stagecoach turning back into a pumpkin, just as they had predicted. When the Patriots made the playoffs, the "experts" said "They'll never beat Oakland." Then, they said "They'll never beat Pittsburgh." The Pittsburgh franchise went ahead and printed up their Super Bowl tickets and made hotel reservations in New Orleans BEFORE their playoff game against the Patriots. When the Patriots made it to Super Bowl XXXVI, the "experts" called them 14-point underdogs. Their chance of winning? None. Nada. Zilch. Well, the Patriots pulled off the biggest upset in Super Bowl history, beating the much-favored St. Louis Rams. So, who do these "experts" pick to win the Super Bowl in '03? The Rams!

In the same manner as the Patriots' season, this DVD starts out slowly, before catching fire. The introduction, which intercuts game footage with footage of men dressed as medieval knights, engaged in mock battle, had me rolling my eyes and thinking, "I sure hope this DVD gets better in a hurry!" Fortunately, it does. Those who were hoping to get Super Bowl XXXVI in its entirety may still be disappointed, since the program on this video/DVD is basically a "highlight reel" of the Patriots' season, culminating in their appearance in the Super Bowl. The producers of this release wisely chose to use radio announcer Gil Santos's call of Adam Vinatieri's Super Bowl-winning field goal. I watched the Super Bowl with the TV volume turned down, while listening to the game on the radio, and Santos's near-hysterical "...and it is...GOOOOD!!! IT'S GOOOOD!!! IT'S GOOOOD!!!" call perfectly captured the excitement of the moment. By comparison, the television announcers sound like they just lost a lot of money, betting on the Rams. Following the season highlights, there is a moving, on-field tribute to the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks. The DVD edition adds U2's Super Bowl halftime performance, plus feature segments about Gino Cappelletti, Steve Grogan and the 1976 Patriots team.

Football fans will enjoy this DVD; not only does it contain stunning NFL Films footage, but it truly captures the drama and emotion of a remarkable season for the New England Patriots. As a Patriots fan who watched the season unfold, I still got knots in my stomach watching the playoff games when things got tense, and remained incredulous and euphoric when things came together (the non-fumble in the Raiders game, Bledsoe entering Lazarus-like in the Steelers game, and the whole Superbowl). You will not be disappointed.

However, big-time Patriots fans may be somewhat perturbed. Since this DVD features only "highlights" of the season (I can understand why this would be the case in VHS format because of time constraints, but why not tack on the whole Superbowl as "bonus footage" on the DVD, which could easily hold 4 more hours of one of the greatest games ever played), several CRUCIAL moments from the season are omitted: the biggest oversights in my mind are no footage (or even mention) of the David Patten head-out-of-bounds reception in the Buffalo game that preserved their win streak, and no footage of long snapper Lonie Paxton ebulliently doing snow angels in the end zone after the winning FG in the Steelers game.

My other major criticism -- aside from the incredibly cheesy opening commercials noted by several reviewers -- is the lack of bonus features that could have made this DVD one of the greatest items ever. Making a section with interactive player bios and game summaries (with infomation already available on the NFL web site) would have rocked my world.

However, NFL Films did a great job of placing footage of cocky opposing fans and players disrespecting the Pats at the beginning of almost every game. The gloating Jets fan is priceless for any true Pats fan.

In summary, I recommend this DVD to any NFL or Patriots fan... you will probably wish there was more on it, but you won't be disappointed with what you get.

A great highlight DVD of the entire Patriots 2001-2002 season. WELL worth the... bucks! A couple of raspberries in the DVD though: two are minor while the other is a doozie. First, you get stuck watching an NFL promo at the start and you CAN'T get to the main menu or pass by this. Ridiculous for a DVD to keep you stuck in one area. There was also an error in flashing the final score of the Patriots-Carolina final regular season game. But the big doozie is they DID NOT show the great way the Patriots entered the Super Bowl as a team and did not go by the usual name by name callout of the starters. This was truly one of the main highlights of the Super Bowl, and something to show the kids when they look back, however it is disappointingly not on here at all.

Of course, that is the opinion of a New England Patriots fan. The video is a nice recap of the season, though one wishes it could be a bit longer. Some crucial bits of the season are not shown in the video, such as David Patten's leg touching the ball while his head is out of bounds because he was knocked unconscious play in the second Buffalo game. This is the largest selling sports video of all time. NFL Films released a second video for Patriots fans entitled "Three games to Glory" which shows nearly every play from the 3 playoffs games the Patriots won to get to and win the Super Bowl.

I love this DVD. NFL Films does an absolutely terrific job in capturing the season...as well as the best Super Bowl ever.

For those of you who wanted the whole game...NFL Films is coming out with something that will get pretty close. Head to [the website] and preorder Three Games to Glory. They say it really will capture almost every play in a condensed format...kind of like the video presentations Major League Baseball is now doing, if you are familiar with those. Looks like a good deal to me...almost every play of all three postseason games!

The Super Bowl XXXVI champions video is exactly what I ordered. It is highlights of the great season the patriots had. The video or Dvd is great for someone who is a fan of the team, and someone like me who got stuck watching the pathetic Minnesota Vikings instead of the Patriots during the regular season.