The Ten Best DVDs of 1999

by Bill Chambers

10. Out of Sight
    Steven Soderbergh’s genre-bending George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez sizzler made for the first great SE of the year. On a separate audio track, Soderbergh and screenwriter Scott Frank deliver one of the best feature-length commentaries ever recorded, opening up about the production and offering keen insights into the genesis of the screenplay–which, like Get Shorty, was adapted from an Elmore Leonard novel by Frank. The DVD also includes a section of 12 deleted scenes, some of them very funny (one of them an extended version of the trunk sequence), plus an excellent 25-minute making-of documentary called “Inside Out of Sight.” (Universal Home Video)
11. The Dark Crystal
    Frank Oz and Jim Henson’s fable of an elfin creature’s quest to save a once-green world from eternal evil is a visual marvel and, despite its characters’ extremely basic motivations, emotionally compelling. Although remastered, the image quality isn’t quite up to Columbia TriStar’s unusually high standards, but terrific supplemental material compensates: a thorough, hour-long BBC documentary on the film’s inception that’s worth the cost of the disc on its own; deleted sequences (including a lovely funeral passage, whose music haunts); Trevor Jones’s isolated score; and character sketches (with bios) by Brian Froud. Currently the only way to see the film in widescreen. (Columbia TriStar Home Video)
12. Ghostbusters
    Three paranormal researchers (Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Harold Ramis) got into the ghost extermination business together and made box-office history. Columbia TriStar’s Ghostbusters DVD was one of the most anticipated releases since the format’s introduction, and the studio really rolled out the red carpet for it. A host of extras accompany the movie (which is presented in refurbished, anamorphic widescreen video and 5.1 Dolby Digital sound), most significantly a “live” commentary wherein you can watch MST3K-style silhouettes of Ramis, director Ivan Reitman, and producer Joe Medjuck as they reflect on the good times of shooting a blockbuster in New York City. Storyboards, two featurettes, F/X demonstrations, deleted scenes, and “pop-up” trivia round out this terrific package. Only the curiously lousy cover art spoils the fun. (Columbia TriStar Home Video)
13. Halloween
    This serial-numbered, two-disc set is already a collector’s item. John Carpenter’s perennial favourite, about a homicidal maniac’s seasonal return to his hometown, was initially botched by Anchor Bay, but they made up for it by crafting a Limited Edition that contains both the original version of the film (with spit-polished 16×9-widescreen video and 5.1 DD audio) and the infamous TV cut (also letterboxed!), featuring some 12 minutes of new scenes that were inserted to plug the gaps left by NBC censors back in the Eighties. Written and directed by Carpenter long after the fact, they’re actually pretty good–especially the moment where we see an adolescent Michael Myers unmasked. A solid making-of, TV and radio spots, trailers, a stills gallery, and a booklet are icing on the cake. (Anchor Bay Entertainment)
14. Hard Eight
    The surprisingly accomplished–and production-troubled–debut of Boogie Nights and Magnolia director Paul Thomas Anderson, Hard Eight excavated Secret Honor‘s Philip Baker Hall to play Sydney, a professional gambler who tutors a young drifter (Reilly) in casino etiquette. The story moves from (in Anderson’s words) character drama to film noir to chamber piece and artfully so, and it only gets better on repeat viewings. A velvety-smooth video transfer is proffered in both widescreen and full-frame (each has its merits, though I prefer the letterboxed compositions), and it’s paired with dynamic Dolby Surround sound. Among the disc’s highlights: two inspiring, profane commentary tracks from P.T. Anderson and crew that every film student needs to hear; a marvelous omitted scene; and outtakes from the Sundance Filmmaker’s Lab, where Anderson put his screenplay through its paces. (Columbia TriStar Home Video)
15. Taxi Driver
    Martin Scorsese’s cathartic 1976 masterpiece, about a lonely cabbie on the brink of implosion, eased the narcissistic angst of my youth. Contains bonuses you won’t find on the much-celebrated Criterion LaserDisc, such as one whopper of a Laurent Bouzereau documentary (75-minutes) that includes interviews with just about every major player of the production. Paul Schrader’s full script, accessible to even those without DVD-ROM drives, is another spectacular addition. Together, they compensate for the lack of Scorsese and Schrader’s riveting commentary track, which remains a Criterion exclusive. (Columbia TriStar Home Video)
16. Grand Illusion
    This was to be Criterion’s first DVD release (it still bears the catalogue number “1”), but the discovery of new film elements led to a full-blown restoration of Jean Renoir’s classic WWI drama that took longer than anyone had anticipated. Watching this pristine print is a revelation–Grand Illusion had come to look beat-up and cheaply made through years of public-domain neglect. Peter Cowie provides both a liner-notes essay and an informative full-length commentary; Criterion has also unearthed a Hitchcockian trailer starring Renoir, radio ‘footage’ of Renoir and his star, Erich von Stroheim, accepting the New York Film Critics award for Best Foreign Film, and a trailer, notable because it looks as weathered as the movie itself used to on home video. I only wish that Criterion had remembered to insert Renoir’s note to projectionists, erroneously listed on the back cover as one of the supplements. (Voyager Company)
17. Patton
    This offbeat biopic of “Old Blood and Guts,” written by Francis Ford Coppola, is almost 30 years old and still packs a wallop. No mere retread of the LaserDisc box set from a few years back, Fox’s first 2-disc package treats Patton fans to a sparkling, THX-approved anamorphic transfer and a punchy DD 5.1 remix, as well as a retrospective on the film that doubles as a tribute to its inventive director, Franklin J. Schaffner. Additionally on board: a feature-length audio essay on the historical Patton by Charles M. Province and a fold-out that summarizes Patton’s life experiences. But wait, there’s more! Jerry Goldsmith’s rousing score, arguably the best of his career, is available for listening on an isolated track. (Fox Video)
18. Dracula (1931)
    Dracula has an edge on the other entries in Universal’s Classic Monster Collections because it contains not one but two different versions of the first supernatural talkie. Back in the days before dubbing or subtitling were common practice, the studio decided to shoot two Draculas simultaneously, the second with a Latino cast and crew for Spanish audiences. Comparing the films reveals English-language helmer Tod Browning’s limitations as a stylist, though Bela Lugosi’s portrayal of the Count remains indelible. David J. Skal provides enlightening anecdotes in both his commentary and a 30-minute lookback at producer Carl Laemmle’s first foray into horror. Exclusive to the English-language Dracula is an optional score by new-age composer Phillip Glass and his Kronos Quartet (in 5.0 Dolby Digital!) that transforms the picture into a curiously melancholy experience. A must for buffs, with clumsy menus the DVD’s only drawback. (Universal Home Video)
19. A Bug’s Life
    Surely its status as not only the best DVD package of the year but also in the format’s short history is indisputable. Besides presenting the world’s first digital-to-digital transfer of an animated film in both its original widescreen form (16×9-enhanced) and a recomposed full-frame version, this double-disc behemoth features a wealth of extra material, all of it valuable and educational. With each individual segment introduced by a key member of the Pixar team, this Collector’s Edition covers every imaginable aspect of the production, from rough pencil tests to sound design. Personal fave: using the “angle” button of your remote, you can toggle between the P.T. Flea circus sequence in its four major stages of completion–what a difference lighting and shading makes! What else do you get? Audio commentary from co-directors John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton and editor Lee Unkrich, the famed prefab “outtakes,” the Oscar-winning short Geri’s Game, isolated music and effects tracks, a poster gallery, a demo reel that was crafted to appease Disney executives…the list really does go on. At first I bitched about the MSRP ($49.95), but a precedent-setting release warrants a precedent-setting price. (Buena Vista Home Entertainment)

Oh so close but no cigar: The Alien Legacy, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (if only the movie were better; ditto Mallrats), The Wizard of Oz, Thunderball, The Matrix, eXistenZ (Canadian Special Edition), Lolita (1998 remake), Ravenous, Ronin, The Iron Giant, Election, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.