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71 of 78 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great new Collector's Edition, February 2, 2007
If you really love "The Silence of the Lambs", then this is the best edition you could find (though, nowadays it's also the only one you can find).
I have seen every DVD release of this film, though sadly I wasn't old enough to see it when it first came out. Nevertheless, MGM and 20th Century Fox have really outdone themselves:
1. Criterion
The Criterion Collection has always been a trusted source of films for me, and their initial release of this film was decent but lacking with special features, plus the video quality was somewhat scratchy. Still, couldn't beat that commentary track.
2. 2001 MGM
The MGM Speical Edition was pretty nice to promote the theatrical release of Hannibal, with a slew of documentaries and interviews that gave a lot of information of the Silence. No commentary track, but a nice new 5.1 surround mix and a much needed clean-up of the faded picture made the greens rich and the reds blood red.
3. 2007 MGM/20th Century Fox
This new 2-disc set offers the same anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer as was the 2001 release and it still has all of the same documentaries, but this release adds some more features that give even more information about how the film was made and the contoversy afterward. That, and the package art is absolutely delicious. Speaking of which, just behind the inside cover booklet is a tasty treat that invokes both sick humor and helpful tips about "cooking"
Bottom line, if you've never seen this film before then I highly recommend it...that is if you have a strong stomach. It's a brilliant story about good and evil and how dark some people can really be. If you already have all of the previous releases, check this one out too, it's worth the double-dipping into your wallet. The best reason to get this are the added bonus features, but if you really love this film like I do then you'll find it's a great addition to your DVD library.
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46 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Mediocre blu-ray for a five-star film... if you have this already on DVD, don't bother, March 17, 2009
Terrific movie is worth owning for any horror/suspense fan, and is a five-star film to be sure, but this Blu-Ray disc is sure to disappoint, as it looks strikingly similar to a finely upconverted DVD, albeit one with more film grain.
Some are attributing this to the MPEG-2 encoding, but really the problem lies with the film master source, which just isn't that great. Another contributing factor is the cinematography and lighting of the film, which just doesn't lend itself all that well to hi-def. The underwhelming DTS-HD 5.1 audio fares no better, again probably due to the limitations of the original audio source; the overall sound is flat with the rear channels and sub-woofer barely used, if at all. To top things off, this Blu-Ray release doesn't even include all of the extras found on the 2007 DVD release (or the non-anamorphic widescreen Criterion DVD release, for that matter)! Of course, the Blu-Ray edition does currently offer the best visual and audio presentation of this film, but the difference is minimal at best, and contains far more visible film grain, to boot.
For those who DO NOT OWN any DVD edition of "Silence of The Lambs", this is what it boils down to:
The Blu-Ray is currently reasonably priced here on Amazon.com and (depending on your tolerance for film grain) is therefore worth picking up;
For hardcore "Silence" fans, they should seek out both the Blu-Ray AND the (non-anamorphic) Criterion DVD, as the Criterion disc contains special features that are not contained in any other edition of this film on home video (including an outstanding audio commentary track);
For the price conscious, the 2001 Special Edition DVD can be had for under $5.00, has good (anamorphically-enhanced) video and (5.1 Dolby Digital) audio, and a nice set of special features, including an hour-long making-of doc.
As for those who ALREADY OWN "Silence of The Lambs" in either the 2001 or 2007 DVD incarnations, there really is no compelling reason to upgrade to the Blu-Ray edition, unless you are an obsessive-compulsive Hi-Def completist with money to burn. The fact is, both the 2001 and 2007 DVD editions contain comparable audio and visuals that perfectly represent the original look of the film (although the 2001 "Special Edition" DVD release has a slightly greener hue to its video transfer, while the 2007 transfer has a slightly redder hue) and both editions look perfectly fine upconverted. Never mind the naysayers who hate DVD upconversions, as there are some of us who can settle for "good enough" with certain films and save our hard-earned cash for far worthier hi-def material.
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37 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
DVD Features, February 28, 2000
Okay, Silence of the Lambs, a great movie blah blah blah. This review is about the features and lack thereof on the criterion release. First the commentary is very good. They mix five different people onto one track. Personally I would prefer a few independant tracks as was done on (for example) the Contact DVD but it's still is an interesting commentary. The deleted Scenes are interesting and is a feature I would like to see more of on DVDs. The image quality is great; I can't imagine anyone having any complaints about that. Finally, the Documentary material on the disk is interesting but don't get too excited about it - it's nothing you couldn't find on the internet with about 15 seconds worth of effort. Now about the two features the disk is lacking which I think are serious short comings: No Subtitles and no Trailer. That a criterion release is missing these two features REALLY surprises me since they usually put a lot of effort into making a quality release. I hope this was just an oversight on Criterion's part and they won't make the same mistake in the future.
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