Gripping human drama. Sumptuous period epic. Glorious celebration of the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
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Gripping human drama. Sumptuous period epic. Glorious celebration of the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. This marvelous winner of eight Academy Awards(R) portrays the rivalry between the genius Mozart (Tom Hulce) and the jealous court composer (Best Actor Oscar(R) Winner F.Murray Abraham) who may have ruined Mozart's career and shortened his life. Format: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: DRAMA Ra
Product Details:
Actors:
F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Lisbeth Bartlett, Elizabeth Berridge, Barbara Byrne
Average Customer Review:
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113 of 124 found the following review helpful:
Gorgeous Director's Cut transfer. Beware of the Digital Copy, if included.Jul 12, 2009
By John S. Harris
"The Voice of Reason"
I've purchased every disc release of this movie: the expensive LaserDisc collector's set, the original DVD release and the subsquent Director's Cut, and this new Blu-Ray of the Director's Cut. The Blu-Ray release stands head and shoulders above the rest for picture quality, color, and sound.
My only gripe is that the original theatrical cut is not available on Blu-Ray as a separate item or as an alternative viewing option on the Director's Cut. The theatrical cut is the one that most of us saw first and saw over and over again over the course of some 20 years before the Director's Cut was released on DVD.
The additional footage in the Director's Cut is interesting but, to me at least, seems intrusive. It interrupts the flow and tempo I am used to. There is also a brief scene of female nudity that seems a bit gratuitous. The scene does, though, lend some weight to a scene later in the film where you see Constanze's open hostility toward Salieri. Normally I'm not one to complain about a little female flesh being exposed, but I think the film works well enough without it.
Other "new" scenes follow pretty much the same description: they are interesting but their necessity is debatable.
There is one small addition that I did enjoy, though. Early in the film, during one of the scenes where the elderly Salieri is confessing (?) to the young priest, Salieri is recounting the episode when he first met the young composer Mozart he'd heard about for so many years. He was blown away by his talent but outraged and offended by his peurile behavior. He insisted to the priest that such talent (evident in one composition in particular) could not and should not exist in such a vile and vulgar child. That brilliant composition simply HAD to be an accident! Salieri's lines are briefly extended in that moment, and it adds a wonderful touch of menace. I can't understand why it was cut from the original release.
The LaserDisc release included a wonderful behind-the-scenes documentary called "The Last Laugh". So far I haven't seen it included in any DVD or Blu-Ray release. I'm holding on to my LaserDisc player for precisely that reason. Add that documentary to this Blu-Ray release and you have a slam-dunk 5-star product.
Depending on the release version, this Blu-Ray movie may come in book form and include a short bonus CD of some music from the film and a picture booklet. If you bought/buy the version that comes with the bonus Digital Copy of the film (available at some retailers but harder to find online), bear in mind that the Digital Copy is NOT compatible with iTunes and cannot be loaded to your iPod. There is no wording on the package to indicate this. One has to open the Digital Copy booklet to find that out. The Digital Copy booklet looks the same on the outside as the booklet for the Digital Copies of other movies that ARE compatible with iTunes, so a consumer who has purchased iTunes-compatible Digital Copy-included DVDs before could reasonably assume this one would be compatible also. That consumer would be wrong. Nice bait-and-switch, don't you think?
If you got the non-book version of the Blu-Ray, it probably didn't come with the bonus CD, booklet, or Digital Copy.
68 of 78 found the following review helpful:
Wait for a Theatrical ReleaseDec 08, 2009
By Patricia J. Mintz I'm in agreement with many others who have reviewed the Director's Cut - the added footage ruins the flow of the movie and coherence of the characters.
I love the theatrical release of this movie, and I'm very disappointed that they chose not to include the theatrical release in this blu-ray set. Amadeus is a gorgeous film, and I would very much like to enjoy the original in hi-def splendor.
As of now it's a choice between watching a pretty movie and a good movie. I'll be watching my old DVD theatrical version until they release it on Blu-Ray. Watching the blu-ray directors cut equates to wasting 3 hours getting mad about what they did to an excellent movie.
33 of 40 found the following review helpful:
A travestyNov 15, 2009
By G. Vliet A beautiful transfer of video and sound ruined by gratuitous extra footage. The original cut won all the Oscars for a reason. It should have been left alone. Why cannot they offer both versions on the same or 2 discs! Sacrilege.
33 of 41 found the following review helpful:
great movie - horrible mastering of dvdNov 15, 2008
By B. Wicklander the movie is stellar, the people who mastered this dvd should be ashamed. This is for the 1997 & Jan 08 re-release of this movie. I owned the 1997 release and they split the movie half on side 1, the other on side 2. I thought the re-release, which I repurchased, would have the movie on 1 side, as technology has improved immensely, it was just the same horrible sub VHS copy as my original dvd. Having the movie as a "flipper" is impractical. I hope the blue-ray release will be remastered and for those who purchase won't be subjected to a grainy pixelated version. Very sad to see this movie put out this way. Again brilliant movie! Horrible DVD.
11 of 12 found the following review helpful:
Where's the original theatrical cut??Mar 19, 2009
By Pen Name I'm writing this review as someone who absolutely loves the film "Amadeus." It really is one of the top ten films made after 1980 -- a gorgeous, engrossing, funny, hugely entertaining achievement.
I'm also writing this review as someone who does not own the Blu-Ray edition and in fact refuses to buy it in its current form, even at the low, low sale price of $13.99.
Why? And why only two stars? For one reason and one reason only: this Blu-Ray edition does not (as far as I can tell) contain the original theatrical release.
When "Blade Runner" was released on Blu-Ray last year, I snatched it up immediately. I even paid $30+ for it -- gladly. Why? There were FIVE DIFFERENT VERSIONS of the film included in the package, including the original release with Harrison Ford's voiceover.
When "The Godfather Trilogy" was released on Blu-Ray, I paid more than $40 for it -- gladly -- because they had ALL THREE Godfather films included in the package.
So it's baffling why they didn't do the same thing with "Amadeus." At $30+ or even $40+ it would've been a steal. Without the original theatrical cut, I wouldn't pay more than $5 for this Blu-Ray disc.
I own the standard-definition DVDs of "Amadeus" -- both the original theatrical version (released in 1997!!) AND the Director's Cut that was released a few years later. While the Director's Cut DOES make some things a little clearer in the story, nothing in the Director's Cut -- NOTHING -- makes it a better film. With all due respect to Milos Forman, the original theatrical version is VASTLY SUPERIOR to the Director's Cut. The storytelling is tighter, the film more engrossing. The scenes that were added in the Director's Cut with Kenneth MacMillan and the barking dogs would've been better in a Deleted Scenes section of the DVD -- they're extraneous, superfluous. Too many notes.
It's like the French plantation sequence in "Apocalypse Now" (ANOTHER DVD package that was smart enough to include both the "Redux" version AND the original theatrical release), where you can't wait for the director's self-indulgent digression to end so you can get back to the story.
I would MUCH prefer to watch my 1997 standard-definition DVD of the original theatrical release than pay more than $5 for this Blu-Ray edition. If you've never seen the film, I envy you -- you'll love it. But don't buy this version. Get this one instead: http://www.amazon.com/Amadeus-F-Murray-Abraham/dp/6304712936/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1237481543&sr=8-2
The picture quality won't be as good as Blu-Ray, but you'll be seeing a better film.
based on 460 reviews
( 460 customer reviews )
