Product Details

• Actors: Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Catlin Adams, Mabel King, Richard Ward
• Directors: Carl Reiner
• Writers: Steve Martin, Carl Gottlieb
• Producers: David V. Picker, William E. McEuen
• Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed: French, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Universal Studios
• DVD Release Date: July 26, 2005
• Run Time: 94 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (212 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0009IOR5M
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,085 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "The Jerk (26th Anniversary Edition)" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Carl Reiner (Where's Poppa?) brought comic Steve Martin to the screen in this mostly funny 1979 movie about a relentlessly stupid but innocent man, whom we get to know from childhood (where it never occurred to him that he was white as he was raised by a family of black sharecroppers) to romance (where he doesn't quite know what to do with Bernadette Peters). Martin is game as the moron, and this is the kind of film with funny moments people still talk about. --Tom Keogh

Product Description

That wild and crazy guy, Steve Martin, makes his film-starring debut in the wacky comedy hit The Jerk. Steve portrays Navin Johnson, adopted son of a poor black sharecropper family, whose crazy inventions lead him from rags to riches and right back to rags. Along the way, he's smitten with a lady motorcycle racer, survives a series of screwball attacks by a deranged killer, becomes a millionaire by inventing the "Opti-grab" handle for glasses - and shows why he's one of the hottest comic performers in the world.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 104 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Great movie...VERY disappointing DVD release... October 1, 2006

By Comic Online

Format:DVD

This is one of my favorite comedies. It's not for everyone, as you must understand Martin's unique style of humor. That having been said, the DVD is awful.

The transfer is decent, although could have been cleaned up more. Luckily, it's at least anamorphic widescreen. The sound, while hardly sounding like 5.1, still sounds decent, as i doubt surround sound was on the mind of film makers in 1979. Seriously, it's not Star Wars.

Extras? Fugetaboudit! NO commentary. NO making-of. NO interviews. Just one delected scene, trailer, and a dumb ukelele lesson.

The WORST part! There are scenes missing! Perhaps this version of the film is exactly as it was released in the theaters, but i'm too young to know. However, every time i've seen it on television, there were scenes not present in this release...such as the several different people requesting donations from the rich Navin Johnson. In this, you only get the Mexican priest. Where's the guy who needs new seat covers on his plane? That scene was classic!

You know, this is the SECOND release of this film on DVD, and they call it an "Anniversary Edition." If they're going to give it a name like that, they could at least include the cut of the movie with extra scenes added back in. Maybe the commentary and a simple 15-minute making-of is asking too much, but at least give us the material that's already in the can.

58 of 60 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars MY Favorate Movie Ruined! May 15, 2003

By A Customer

Format:DVD

I Love Steve Martin and The Jerk Remains one of my favorate Flicks, HOWEVER, I also own the VHS Tape Version of this Film and there are SEVERAL FUNNY Quotes and Lines that were cut from the DVD. Why on Earth would they do that. The DVD is supposed to be packed with extras, or at the very least, THE COMPLETE MOVIE VERSION. I am very disapointed with the DVD becasue parts of the Movie were actually removed. What a SHAME to bastardize a CLASSIC. Right from the begining of the Movie when Steve Martin goes to the Gas station to use the bathroom, Jacky Mason and Steve's lines were cut. I was so upset that I didnt watch the rest of the movie and who knows what else was cut. I want the DVD in it's origonal form. There was no reason to cut those lines.. They were not offensive in any way and really added character and laughs to the movie..Where they asleep when they edited this DVD. HEADLINE: "WHAT A SHAME, CLASIC MOVIE RUNIED"
-Gery-

52 of 56 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Movie deserves 5 stars while "Anniversary" edition 2 August 4, 2005

By Wayne Klein HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

Surreal to the point of silliness, "The Jerk" captured the atmosphere of comedy perfectly in the 70's. Before Robin Williams broke through to a larger audience on the big and little screen, Steve Martin was THE JERK. As dense as a brick, Martin doesn't so much as act like a jerk as become one. Opening like a variation on all those Hollywood tales where the hero of our story is down on his luck but soon to be redeemed (of course, this IS a comedy so it's unlikely he'll get the redemption we expect because, well, that wouldn't be funny), Navin Johnson (Martin) mentions at the beginning that he was "born a poor black child". Adopted by a poor African-American family living in poverty, Navin is horrified to discover that not only is he adopted but he's always going to be Caucasian and have absolutely no rhythm. Navin discovers he does have rhythm after all ("praise the Lord!") when he listens to a radio playing dance music from the time. Navin eats his Twinkies, learns the difference between sh-t and Shinola and hits the road hoping to be rich. Armed with the advice his family gives him ("God bless the working man...and remember never trust whitey!"). He hitchhikes getting his first ride which takes him to the end of a fence getting about twenty feet away from home. Needless to say, life is more than an adventure for Nathan and his dog Shithead; it's a vocation.

Receiving a very nice transfer, "The Jerk" looks typical of a film from the late 70's with noticeable film grain and while the colors aren't quite as vivid as I would have thought, they're acceptable. This is the first widescreen presentation for the film so that's something to be thankful for. There's quite a bit of analog debris in the form of dirt (in fact it looks as if this is exactly the same transfer as the previous edition). The 5.1 remastered Dolby Digital Surround Sound mix has nice presence but (not surprisingly) it doesn't use the format particularly well.

In addition to the original production notes from the previous edition and theatrical trailer we also get 1 extra and 1 featuring footage cut from the film. "The Lost Filmstrips of Father Carlos Las Vegas De Cordova" is a "continuation" of the film within a film where we see Martin play various characters doing things like verbally abusing a plant, dressing a bulldog in a clown suit as the audience cheers and takes pets in a bizarre parody of cock fighting. It's really footage that was cut from that sequence. "Learn to Play `Tonight You Belong to Me'" includes sections where you can learn to tune a ukulele (something I've been dying to learn), play it, play along with the Ukulele Gal and, finally, play along with the jerk himself. It's bizarre to say the least. The last bit is just a scene from "The Jerk" where Navin serenades his sweetheart at the beach.

No commentary track from Martin or Reiner. Honestly, you'd think they were embarrassed by this film! Or, maybe they weren't asked to do it or wanted too much money. While an improvement on the original edition of the film, that improved is slight at best. The featurettes are pleasant diversions but the real reason to get "The Jerk" is that this is the first time it's been presented in widescreen. The image quality could have been cleaned up quite a bitas there's quite a bit of analog debris that appears early on in the film. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this unless you're dying to have the widescreen version of this classic comedy.