Apocalypse Now on DVD and Blu-ray

[scubadonc]

DVDbeaver.com lists the Blu ray as region free. So UK viewers don't need to wait.

[Jeff]

I can't fathom why Lionsgate chose to package this in a case the height of standard dvd cases. It's a relatively minor complaint considering what an all-around amazing release this is, but it's still annoying. The case sticks up nearly an inch above all of my other Blu-rays, dwarfing even digibooks, Criterion digipaks, and other deluxe sets like Close Encounters. Like so:

[aox]

I can't fathom why Lionsgate chose to package this in a case the height of standard dvd cases.

I forgot about this and wanted to bring this up actually... is this the first time a BD has been packaged in a standard DVD case? It really couldn't be more annoying and wasteful.

[stwrt]

Maybe Francis wanted to let everyone know his package was the biggest one in four counties.

[andyli]

is this the first time a BD has been packaged in a standard DVD case? It really couldn't be more annoying and wasteful.

Not the first time, I think. Warner has done it a lot. The Notebook Limited Edition is in a DVD-sized case. And I seem to remember that the Harry Potter Ultimate Editions are also taller than regular blu-rays?

[swo17]

Are you guys actually arguing for a case height-to-width ratio of 1.29 over the more epic 1.43 afforded by DVD cases? [-X

Yes, this joke required the use of a ruler and a calculator.

[CSM126]

Dirty Dancing "Keepsake Edition" is a fucking shoebox* as far as oversized blu-rays go. Too bad it's the only way to get a good transfer of the movie.


*No, seriously, it opens like a shoebox, with the lid coming off the top.

[Finch]

Director of Hearts of Darkness has passed away

[zedz]

Director of Hearts of Darkness has passed away

[tasteless]So does this mean that Hearts of Darkness finally got packaged with Apocalypse Now over the wrong director's dead body?[/tasteless]

[flyonthewall2983]

Bought the 2-disc a few days ago, and watched Redux and the new special features. I'm so glad I can say I saw it in the original framing because needless to say I felt a little cheated by watching the other versions. The interviews with Sheen and Milius are great. John is a great storyteller, and it comes through just watching his interview. Many may not agree with his gung-ho Republican view (even though it is awesome that he once said Rush Limbaugh should be "drawn and quartered") but he's a damn good screenwriter, whether it be films like this or his roles in smaller films like Jaws and Dirty Harry.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

John [Milius] is a great storyteller, and it comes through just watching his interview. Many may not agree with his gung-ho Republican view (even though it is awesome that he once said Rush Limbaugh should be "drawn and quartered") but he's a damn good screenwriter, whether it be films like this or his roles in smaller films like Jaws and Dirty Harry.

And his Dillinger and - especially - Big Wednesday are excellent films.

[eerik]

UK: It looks like there will be theatrical rereleases for both Apocalypse Now and Hearts of Darkness coming in April from Optimum.

[matrixschmatrix]

Bought the 2-disc a few days ago, and watched Redux and the new special features. I'm so glad I can say I saw it in the original framing because needless to say I felt a little cheated by watching the other versions. The interviews with Sheen and Milius are great. John is a great storyteller, and it comes through just watching his interview. Many may not agree with his gung-ho Republican view (even though it is awesome that he once said Rush Limbaugh should be "drawn and quartered") but he's a damn good screenwriter, whether it be films like this or his roles in smaller films like Jaws and Dirty Harry.

I thought the Milius-ness of Dirty Harry was kind of disgusting- the man's not far from a fascist sometimes (Red Dawn and Judge Roy Bean, I'm looking in your direction) and I find it difficult to stomach his worldview when it comes to advocating unfettered violence in one way or another. As I recall, Milius came in later on the Dirty Harry script, and it felt (to me) like a pretty straightforward Siegel kind of movie with a lot of really unpleasant reactionary shit thrown in on top.

I was actually surprised to find out Apocalypse Now was Milius-scripted, since it's a favorite and I generally hate the man. I'm going to have to try my best not to see fascist bugbears all over the place next time I watch it.

[oldsheperd]

Let us not forget CONAN!!!

[Highway 61]

I was actually surprised to find out Apocalypse Now was Milius-scripted, since it's a favorite and I generally hate the man. I'm going to have to try my best not to see fascist bugbears all over the place next time I watch it.

Unlike Dirty Harry, I don't think you have to worry about his influence on Apocalypse Now. Although I imagine a right-winger like Milius would relish the character of Kilgore (or in Redux, the Frenchman who evokes Dien Bein Phu and asserts his right to stay in Vietnam), the film was shaped by so many people that the final product reflects a completely different worldview. Duvall's interpretation of Kilgore is basically a mockery of military fetishism.

The writer whose influence I'm more interested in is Michael Herr. Obviously he wrote the narration, but I'm sure that his contribution is deeper than that, and it's an aspect of the film that as far as I know has never been thoroughly discussed. The greatness of Apocalypse Now lies with the extraordinary product that Coppola and Murch created in the editing room (the so-so quality of Redux and the mess that is the bootleg cut speak to this), and I suspect that their conception of the film changed once they began working with Herr, who understood the war better than anyone else involved in the entire production.

[matrixschmatrix]

That was the impression I had- it's hard to imagine anyone's conception of Apocalypse Now from before they started filming having much effect on how it turned out, given the way shooting happened.

[Mr Sausage]

Bought the 2-disc a few days ago, and watched Redux and the new special features. I'm so glad I can say I saw it in the original framing because needless to say I felt a little cheated by watching the other versions. The interviews with Sheen and Milius are great. John is a great storyteller, and it comes through just watching his interview. Many may not agree with his gung-ho Republican view (even though it is awesome that he once said Rush Limbaugh should be "drawn and quartered") but he's a damn good screenwriter, whether it be films like this or his roles in smaller films like Jaws and Dirty Harry.

I thought the Milius-ness of Dirty Harry was kind of disgusting- the man's not far from a fascist sometimes (Red Dawn and Judge Roy Bean, I'm looking in your direction) and I find it difficult to stomach his worldview when it comes to advocating unfettered violence in one way or another. As I recall, Milius came in later on the Dirty Harry script, and it felt (to me) like a pretty straightforward Siegel kind of movie with a lot of really unpleasant reactionary shit thrown in on top.

I was actually surprised to find out Apocalypse Now was Milius-scripted, since it's a favorite and I generally hate the man. I'm going to have to try my best not to see fascist bugbears all over the place next time I watch it.

His script for Magnum Force, however, is directly against lawless, reactionary violence.

[matrixschmatrix]

Interesting- I was so turned off by Dirty Harry that I never watched any of the sequels. I'd be really happy to watch one that didn't make me feel ill, since I like Siegel a lot and there's a sort of braindead joy to Clint Eastwood in total action hero mode.

[Highway 61]

His script for Magnum Force, however, is directly against lawless, reactionary violence.

I'm torn about Magnum Force. It's one of the few action movie sequels with a purpose, and I admire that. But I can't quite pinpoint how sincere its intentions are. It seems almost too calculated a response to Dirty Harry's detractors, as though it were crafted by a public relations team to repair Eastwood's image in the eyes of liberal audiences.

[oldsheperd]

The writer whose influence I'm more interested in is Michael Herr. Obviously he wrote the narration, but I'm sure that his contribution is deeper than that, and it's an aspect of the film that as far as I know has never been thoroughly discussed. The greatness of Apocalypse Now lies with the extraordinary product that Coppola and Murch created in the editing room (the so-so quality of Redux and the mess that is the bootleg cut speak to this), and I suspect that their conception of the film changed once they began working with Herr, who understood the war better than anyone else involved in the entire production.

Interesting that you brought up Herr. I just started reading Dispatches last week.

[stwrt]

I've read Heart of Darkness a couple of times. Clearly it is a huge influence on Apocalypse Now but I feel many would be surprised how much closer the movie is to Michael Herr's Dispatches, particularly the Do Long bridge sequence of the movie. Michael Herr wrote the narration script for the movie; anyone who has read his book will see it is as big an influence on Apocalypse Now as the Conrad novella

[MyNameCriterionForum]

Bought the 2-disc a few days ago, and watched Redux and the new special features. I'm so glad I can say I saw it in the original framing because needless to say I felt a little cheated by watching the other versions. The interviews with Sheen and Milius are great. John is a great storyteller, and it comes through just watching his interview. Many may not agree with his gung-ho Republican view (even though it is awesome that he once said Rush Limbaugh should be "drawn and quartered") but he's a damn good screenwriter, whether it be films like this or his roles in smaller films like Jaws and Dirty Harry.

I thought the Milius-ness of Dirty Harry was kind of disgusting- the man's not far from a fascist sometimes (Red Dawn and Judge Roy Bean, I'm looking in your direction) and I find it difficult to stomach his worldview when it comes to advocating unfettered violence in one way or another. As I recall, Milius came in later on the Dirty Harry script, and it felt (to me) like a pretty straightforward Siegel kind of movie with a lot of really unpleasant reactionary shit thrown in on top.

I was actually surprised to find out Apocalypse Now was Milius-scripted, since it's a favorite and I generally hate the man. I'm going to have to try my best not to see fascist bugbears all over the place next time I watch it.

I think the word you're looking for to describe Milius is "jingoist," not "fascist." And dude, RELAX -- it's just a film, not actual foreign policy, yo. Maybe when Democrats (or whichever bipolar-partisan-party you may favor) stop dropping as many bombs as Republicans, your rage will make sense; until then, it's all the same bunch of folks pressing the button.

And how do you know it's not the residue of Terry Malick's work on Dirty Harry that you find so offensive?

Anyway, films like Saving Private Ryan are far more wretched as they're little more than pro-war films tempered with a little white-liberal hand-wringing. At least Dirty Harry doesn't pretend otherwise (it's also far more entertaining).

[Nothing]

I suspect that their conception of the film changed once they began working with Herr, who understood the war better than anyone else involved in the entire production.

Apocalypse Now is a strong piece of work, but it says little to nothing about the American war/genocide in Indochina. Full Metal Jacket comes close (that being Herr too, of course), but it remains a subject that the medium has yet to do justice, unless one counts the Winter Soldier documentary, (and even then the scope is limited to the experiences of American GIs).

Imho, every American child should have to visit the War Remnants Museum in HCMC, just as every German child must visit Dachau or Bergen-Belsen (although the first step would of course be to hang Henry Kissinger).

[aox]

I suspect that their conception of the film changed once they began working with Herr, who understood the war better than anyone else involved in the entire production.

Apocalypse Now is a strong piece of work, but it says little to nothing about the American war/genocide in Indochina.

I am not 100% convinced that it set out to do this. Out of the 50-100 times I have seen the film (it's been my favorite or Top three since I was 8), and the older I have gotten, I almost see it as being a generic statement, and much more faithful to Conrad's story than people give it credit for. As my years stack, I see it less and less about the American war in Vietnam, and more about imperialism in general.

[matrixschmatrix]

I think the word you're looking for to describe Milius is "jingoist," not "fascist." And dude, RELAX -- it's just a film, not actual foreign policy, yo. Maybe when Democrats (or whichever bipolar-partisan-party you may favor) stop dropping as many bombs as Republicans, your rage will make sense; until then, it's all the same bunch of folks pressing the button.

And how do you know it's not the residue of Terry Malick's work on Dirty Harry that you find so offensive?

Anyway, films like Saving Private Ryan are far more wretched as they're little more than pro-war films tempered with a little white-liberal hand-wringing. At least Dirty Harry doesn't pretend otherwise (it's also far more entertaining).

I don't want to get into the whole definition of fascist argument, but I believe that I meant precisely what I said. Nice job on the 'all politicians are basically the same therefore your politics are irrelevant' argument, though, I've never seen that one busted out in such short order.

I don't really have any idea of what Saving Private Ryan has to do with this conversation, Armond, but Dirty Harry isn't about war. It does have a lot of attacks on the ideas of rights and a lot of fairly pathetic propaganda, which I find it difficult to enjoy. Perhaps that was Malick's contribution, but I haven't found any of Malick's other scripts difficult to enjoy for that reason, so who knows!