100 of 109 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great movie finally gets the Special Edition treatment, February 25, 2003
This great movie was previously only available on DVD as a "bare-bones" edition -- a non-anamorphic presentation of the movie, with only a trailer and no real extras. But with this release, the film finally gets the Special Edition treatment!
The special features for this disc will reportedly include a new anamorphic transfer, both a Dolby Digital 5.1 sound track AND a DTS 5.1 sound track, an audio commentary by director John McTiernan, a "Beneath the Surface" featurette (new interviews with Alec Baldwin, James Earl Jones, screenwriter Larry Ferguson and producer Mace Neufeld) and the theatrical trailer. Not TONS in the way of extras, but certainly a lot more than what was on the previous edition.
And for you Tom Clancy fans, Paramount has also announced "The Jack Ryan Special Edition DVD Collection" for release on the same day this disc is released, May 6th. The box set will include the new Special Editions of "The Hunt for Red October", "Patriot Games", "Clear and Present Danger", and "The Sum Of All Fears"... each with new bonus material, new anamorphic transfers and both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 sound. (The movies will be available separately as well as in the 4-disc box set.)
As for my review of "Hunt For Red October":
Personally... and I'm sure that Harrison Ford fans will lambast me for this... I think that Alec Baldwin made the best Jack Ryan in the series. At least, he fit my own personalized vision of the character as I was reading the book better than Ford did. "The Hunt For Red October" is also far and away the best movie based on a Tom Clancy book and follows the SPIRIT of the book more closely than any of the others. Sure, they took some liberties with the details of the story, but they got the broad strokes absolutely dead-on correct. What movie based on a thick, highly technical, politically complex book could possibly match it exactly scene for scene???
One of the thrilling things for me when I watch this film is seeing INTELLIGENT characters actually THINKING their way through problems. There are political, personal and technical issues that many of the characters are forced to deal with, and it is a joy to watch -- for example -- Alec Baldwin's Jack Ryan using his MIND and not his fists to get into and out of situations. This movie is defenitely a thinking man's action film.
But that is not to say that this isn't an exciting movie with lots of plot twists, and some of the best submarine battles ever put into a movie. And to top all that off, you get Sean Connery AND the underrated Sam Neil as the "villains", and James Earl Jones in a superb supporting role. This is also directed by one of the best action-film directors working today, John "Die Hard" McTiernan (although I don't know WHAT he was thinking with the "Rollerball" remake). What more could you want in an action film?
SOME TRIVIA: Star Trek fans take note, that is Gates (Dr. Beverly Crusher) McFadden in a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo role as Jack Ryan's wife at the beginning of the movie. ... People in and around Portland, Oregon may be interested to know that the "Russian" submarine that breaches the water towards the end of the film is actually an American submarine called the USS Blueback which is retired and on permanent display for public tours at OMSI, the Portland science building.
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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
After 18 years, my favorite movie on BD., July 29, 2008
The Hunt for Red October is my favorite movie of all time, bar none. It's the kind of movie you can watch over and over.. I've probably watched it a couple of dozen times over the years, first on VHS, then DVD, now on BD. Mind you, I'm not in the habit of re-purchasing titles, but in this case, I made an exception.
The picture is the best I've seen for a film of this vintage. It's not up to the quality of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, but it is a film that's nearly 20 years old. All that said, there is a noticeable improvement over my copy on DVD.
The audio was remastered in Dolby TrueHD 5.1, and is utterly stunning. Good thing my wife & kids are out of town tonight, because I'd be in trouble if they were here -- the sound's so good, I've got the shades drawn and the sound turned up, we're going movie-theater style here.
Don't expect a gaggle of extras here, just expect a great copy of the film with fantastic audio.
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27 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great movie equals poor DVD, November 10, 2000
By A Customer
I really enjoyed this movie when I saw it in the theater, and it still holds up well after all these years. A cold war thriller. What happens when a state of the art russian submarine goes streaking for the United States with the entire russian fleet trailing it? I thought the movie was very true to the book. Alec Baldwin's performance was excellent. He fits the character of Jack RYan much better than Harrison Ford does in the later films.
As for the DVD, this is a strictly second rate production. Other reviews mention the flaws: there is an annoying pause as the DVD changes layers; the print is clearly second rate and is more of VCR type quality, you can see dust and flaws on the original; there are no real extras except for the trailer. In terms of DVD quality, this one was a real disappointment. However, the sound quality is excellent.
Bottom line: if you enjoyed this movie then the DVD may be worth adding to your collection. If you're not totally in love with the film then the second rate production on this DVD are enough that you will want to pass. I'd give the movie 4 stars but the DVD 2 stars for an overall rating of 3. Hopefully they will remaster it in a special edition with more features and higher quality production.
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