Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating Computer Animated Visuals !, January 4, 2006
The Mind's Eye is my favorite and most prized CG animated videotape of all time---it was my first of it's kind.There were other computer artists and animators who jumped on the bandwagon with their releases at the time of this new emerging video trend.Quite often the results were rather crude and archaic looking with bad visual and audio editing techniques. Many used a cheap Casio keyboard production for soundtrack music. They released poor imitations that were absolutely nothing like this collection.The competition just couldn't hold a candle to the Mind's Eye...
I also purchased the rest of the Mind's Eye series years later on dvd format( still, the original is a marvel in it's own right despite being VHS with hi-fi 2-track stereo only channels).Why this amazing collection of computer animated visuals hasn't been re-mastered onto the dvd format with a full blown digital surround/THX/DTS audio presentation puzzles me!I purchased my VHS copy back in 1990--- one of the first copies and not a later re-issue.
The Mind's Eye sort of represents a second generation of computer artists (as the medium was still evolving). As an artist myself,The Mind's Eye served as an inspiration for some of my early drawings with color pencils ! True, computer animation has made many leaps and bounds and is more advanced and sophisticated with the new technology and software available.However, The Mind's Eye represents cutting edge computer graphics of the time. What also matters is the imagination, ingenuity, and artistry of each animator's talents used for this 1990 computer generated collection that takes you through a journey of the history of man's civilization and various life forms in their eco systems; it does this in a simplified and surrealistic manner.It's an awesome video journey worth taking despite it's VHS picture quality. There is no IMAX or widescreen presentation. So what?!The great visuals with their rich colors and shapes made me feel like a kid again the first time I saw this video.It will bring the child out in you! Each short story is mesmerizing and thought provoking in a relaxing sense. There is much awe and wonderment to behold !
The soundtrack provided by James Reynolds is also a superb tapestry of adult contemporary pop-like instrumentals and a modest and non-overwhelming dose of new age music that was created perfectly for each video segment. A hint of other various musical genres were used such as a touch of classical and a dash of funky jazz.A lot of it is strongly in the vein of an adult easy listening radio format.Yet, other songs possess a made-for-t.v.-ad jingle quality since portions of The Mind's Eye have appeared in television product commercials of the past here in the U.S., Japan, and abroad; They have a naturally playful and lighthearted whimsical feel that simply conveys fun (especially the jazzy-like video segment with the robots).There is nothing brooding or heavy here.It can be quite atmospheric at times, but not in a pseudo-ambient way. It may not be Vangelis or Enigma(a couple of videos on The Mind's Eye could have used actual Enigma music or been used as Enigma music videos) but it's an excellent soundtrack to purchase on cd. See what kind of visuals your mind will be stimulated to conjure without viewing the actual videos just with the soundtrack music alone!
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Three Thumbs Up!, November 22, 1999
This title is psychedelic. (sp?) From the beginning, with stylized atoms exploding into space, to the incomprehensible middle, with imagery of scale-less toys, liquid chrome dinosaurs, a beautiful sequence with a love affair between a bird and fish in an enormous domed ship, compu-circuitry...view this with an open mind, and the memories will linger... One example: As interesting mechanical gear patterns unfold among blueprints, enormous Atlas-like figures lift the gigantic constructions, to triumphic fanfares. The movie is beyond words- I would pay nearly any price for this. Better imagery than The Phantom Movie/Menace, by far...and with such vistas, material, and a beautiful finale...joined to each other without pause. The credits list the enormous talent bank, their titles for some of the skits...and the music is as impressive as the graphics, blending seamlessly into a mind-blowing experience. And no LSD needed!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
reply, where did they go?, September 24, 2002
This is the video that got me hooked on computer animation years ago. It was released in two versions, 1 in general video stores released by BMG video and another in Radio Shack stores, they are about 70% the same but the rest is very different. Some clips share the music and titles but the images were totally different. The R.S. version was custom made for them, and yes 8th track (the temple) was replaced with (Q factor) (Tingri) (The way I feel). Yes 3 for 1! The seperate music CD features the original 8 tracks by James Renolds. By the way - the next 2 videos in the series also had sepererate R. S. versions, although not as drastic a difference as this first one.
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