Product Details

• Actors: Jason Ensler, Martin Sheen, Stockard Channing, Allison Janney, Moira Kelly
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 4
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
• Run Time: 956 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (199 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005JLF3
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,477 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Drama > Television > The West Wing

• For more information about "The West Wing: The Complete First Season" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

• This is item 1 in The West Wing Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Conventional wisdom prior to season one of The West Wing was that the only successful television shows were half hour sitcoms and hour long police, legal, or medical dramas. Building on surplus ideas from his film The American President and the walk-and-talk style of comedy and drama from his critically acclaimed television show Sports Night, Aaron Sorkin bucked the trend and created his masterpiece, one of the most memorable American political depictions to reach the big or small screen. Season one introduces viewers to a Nobel Prize-winning economist and unabashed intellectual president Jed Bartlet (Martin Sheen) and his key staff members, a newly elected Democratic administration trying to find its footing amidst the corridors of the White House's west wing. To the credit of its cast and their brilliant ensemble acting, The West Wing manages to immediately conjure nearly a dozen distinct and memorable characters. Perhaps the greatest star of all is Sorkin's rapid-fire dialogue, especially as delivered by Press Secretary C.J. Craig (Alison Janney), Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford), Deputy Communications Director Sam Seaborn (Rob Lowe), and Chief of Staff Leo McGarry (John Spencer). They carry on conversations while stalking purposefully and unhaltingly down corridors, around corners, and through doorways, and all of it unfurls with the choreographic precision of a classical ballet and the pace of an Olympic ping-pong rally.

What emerges is more than a collective liberal dream of an impassioned administration battling back ultra-conservative bogeymen ranging from the religious right to bigots to gun-toting militants. Wonderful episodes like "The Pilot" and "In Excelsis Deo" portray a government led by heroic, intelligent, and decent men and women. Whether or not one regards that as a political fantasy, it's a remarkably refreshing and appealing vision of politics and its practitioners, one that the public embraced with consistently strong television ratings. In a country whose citizens are used to viewing their elected leaders with mistrust and cynicism, that might be The West Wing's greatest accomplishment. --Eugene Wei

Product Description

Go behind the scenes and experience the inner workings of the White House in this innovative drama series with humorous overtones from Emmy winner John Wells, Emmy nominee Aaron Sorkin and Emmy winner Thomas Schlamme. Winner of 24 Emmy Awards and 3 Golden Globe Awards!

DVD Features:
Deleted Scenes
Documentaries
Gag Reel
Other

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Series I've Seen in Years, September 1, 2002

By	Cynthia Yeung (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews

This review refers to the Region 2 (PAL) versions of the DVD. The UK market gets a headstart in seeing the release of Season 1 of The West Wing in 2 DVD box sets (Set 1-Episodes 1-11 & Set 2-Episodes 12-22). The show itself is fast paced and brimming with intelligent dialogue. Once you put it in your DVD player, you wouldn't want to stop until you get to the end of it. Special features for Set 1 include TV spot & short interviews with major cast members and Aaron Sorkin, the creator of the show & DVD-ROM enhanced features. Set 2 extras include several TV spots and 'Making of' featurette for all TWW fans & DVD-ROM features. Extremely satisfying TV viewing. Can't wait for the new seasons to come out on DVD.

47 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An American in Europe, March 13, 2003

By A Customer

Season one of my favorite TV series is a 5 star hit on Region 2 DVD. The best show imaginable without the commercials! The first part of season two is due out in April. The reason WHY The West Wing is not available on DVD in the US is because the producers have sold syndication rights to the Bravo cable channel for a reputed 1 million an episode. Bravo only broadcasts in the US and will begin the series at the beginning. Once Bravo feels they've got their moneys worth, THEN a region one West Wing will appear. This will probably take several years. It's all about money! Code free DVD players are available through several sources on the net, but most require a world system tv. Get one with a built in video convertor that will let you play DVD's from anywhere on your American NTSC tv and then buy the DVDs from amazon.uk.co. Why wait for the best? Of course you could always get a DVD recorder and edit out the commercials, but the quality just isn't the same.

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The West Wing Series 1, October 9, 2003

By	Ian Heath (Newport, Monmouthshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

As a UK resident you would think that I would not be interested in American politics. You would have been right, that was until I began whatching The West Wing on UK TV. A soon as the DVD was avaialble I had to have it, I now have Season One and Two. In Season One we get to meet the characters that form a close community who strive to provide us with an insight to the everyday goings-on in the White House. You immediately begin to warm to people whom you have never met before yet feel you could hold a conversation with if you met them. Season 1 leaves you with needing to know more, Season Two will not be issued quick enough for you. Season One starts well and finishes even better, well worth buying even if you are not a political fan but someone who enjoys strong story lines about people, places and events that surround one of the most talked about residences in the world.