DVD Movies: The Hunt for Red October (Special Edition) DVD Movie
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| from: Paramount Home Video |
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| Customer Reviews |
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Decent film; terrible DVD
"The Hunt for Red October" is a smart, tightly directed adaptation of Tom Clancy's novel of the same name. It's probably one of the more entertaining submarine movies (if you'll buy into the genre). There are some wonderful performances (especially by Joss Ackland, Courtney B. Vance, and the late Richard Jordan) as well as some inspired casting (most notably Tim "Dr. Frank-N-Furter" Curry as Dr. Petrov). While this film is certainly no "Das Boot," it is highly entertaining for all of its 134 minutes.
However, as an avid collector of DVDs and laser discs, this is perhaps the worst video transfer I have ever seen. In fact, I've seen Chinese bootleg copies of other films that have been superior in terms of video quality. For example: In the opening sequence there is a great deal of dust and dirt on the screen - like you're in a third-rate theater watching the film after it has been showing for about a month and a half. Another example: There is an important interior scene on the USS Dallas that features a wonderfully acted and written interplay between Seaman Jones (Vance) and Seaman Beaumont (Ned Vaughn). However, each shot of Jones is inexplicably awash with so much video noise that it completely distracts from the performances.
Why Paramount would neglect such a film is beyond me. The other huge disapointment on this disc is the complete lack of any extras. This disc is a complete bust. Frankly, I hope that another edition is released out of respect to this worthy film.
Rating:  - Fantastic adaption of Clancy's novel
A first-rate thriller that provides the goods again and again. Excellent cast, good direction (the almost always reliable McTiernan--see "Last Action Hero" for the only real blemish on his record), plenty of suspense and thrills. There are a few differences between the novel and the film, but only purists will quibble about that. And yes, Scotsman Connery plays a Lithuanian, but he does it well, and as always, brings a touch of class to the role. I despise Alec Baldwin, but he's perfect as Ryan--the right age and look combined with the proper mix of guile, humility, and cockiness. The film also boasts an excellent supporting cast, with kudos to Sam Neill, Richard Jordan, and Courtney Vance for their performances. Scott Glenn and James Earl Jones are also solid in their roles. The occasional "technobabble" and military talk may confuse those unfamiliar with such terms, but it doesn't detract from the plot or action--in other words, you can still understand and follow the film even if you don't understand the terminology. The DVD features no extras of note, unfortunately, but the transfer quality--while a bit off-color at times--is still far better than VHS, and those of you with home theaters BEWARE--the sound quality (5.1 Surround) is frighteningly good at times (is that torpedo in your living room, or on the screen?!?). A so-so disc, but an incredible, intelligent thriller that's worth buying in any format.
Rating: - Only the lack of a THX dvd keeps this from ranking 5 stars
THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER, the third film in John McTiernan's "holy trinity" of action films (following 1987's PREDATOR and 1988's DIE HARD) ranks as one of the finest action thrillers of modern times. What makes it rise miles above slop like the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced CRIMSON TIDE is the intelligent script. Viewers feel like they are immersed in this military underwater world, complete with submariner jargon that hasn't been "dumbed down" or "conveniently explained" for you. The story is tense, believable, and PLAUSIBLE, factors often missing from lesser knock-offs of this film. Alec Baldwin brings so much believability and humanity to the character of CIA analyst Jack Ryan that Harrison Ford's subsequent portrayals of Ryan, albeit in far inferior movie sequels, seem wooden and stiff. But that is mostly the fault of the scripts he had to work with. And Philip Noyce, who directed Ford in the 2 Clancy movies so far, just isn't the director McTiernan is. But what this DVD SORELY lacks is the THX treatment that the RED OCTOBER laser disc got. Why Paramount didn't insist on it is a mystery to me. Great, great movie, but it deserves the superior picture and sound that THX affords. Hate to say it, but the laser disc beats the DVD in this case. If you pay close attention to the RED OCTOBER movie trailer included on this DVD, though, you can see a shot of footage of some AWAC planes that didn't make it into the final film. That's the fun of movie trailers included on DVDs. You get to see what the trailer editors had to work with long before the final cut of the film was delivered to the distributors for release. (Another example: the trailer for BATMAN RETURNS featured a different take of a Michelle Pfeiffer line reading than the one that ended up in the film - a noticeably different one. But I digress...) Back to RED OCTOBER: Great film! Even a buddy of mine who is career military finds this film fascinating and believable! But you are not getting the best video transfer available by buying the DVD.
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