Itâs not the most insightful track, with the five mostly just recalling stories about the production, sharing thoughts on their cast mates who arenât there (maybe even judging them for not showing up), and what it was like to work with Meyer. Now the Criterion Collection has released a new 2K digital restoration of the film, along with its sort-of-but-not-really sequel, Critic Kim Morgan made a video essay on the film that’s included on the Blu-ray, which I believe sums up the movie perfectly, even if I didn’t completely feel the same way as she on all points made. She aptly draws a comparison to Aronofsky’s. Ultimately I enjoyed a lot of material on here but there is a disappointment that a good chunk of it is fairly average material produced for the previous Fox DVD. This one spends about half its time covering Susann and her bestselling novel while production has begun on the film version. Criterion includes a DTS-HD MA 3.0 LCR track, meaning the sound is directed to the front left, center, and right speakers. Ultimately, for what is a very lively and colourful film, its biggest sin is that it is âopen to improvement.â Itâs fine in the end, and easily the best the film has probably looked on video, but a new 4K, or even 2K scan would have given the film a new dose of life. The minute you pop in the disc, a ridiculously gorgeous shot featuring Anne Wells (Barbara Parkins sporting massive hair and slinking among surreal sculptures in an oversized pop-art landscape) appears above the usual Criterion options. in Blu-ray/DVD Reviews,Reviews [Rating: Solid Rock Fist Up] The Criterion Collection is known for restoring and preserving the best and most prestigious works of art since the dawn of moving pictures. Participating are Meyer, Ebert, Haji, Napier, La Zar, Read, Edy Williams, Michael Blodgett, and David Gurian. Movie skip! This movie is just...awful. It was my summer read and I was truly surprised how hooked I became after a few chapters. Overall itâs a nice presentation, not overly showy, but fitting for the film. First up of the previously available features is the audio commentary featuring film critic and writer of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, Roger Ebert, which was, again, recorded by Criterion in 2003 (Fox would zlso use it on their eventual DVD release in 2006). R.I.P. Dialogue sounds clear, has some range to it, and never comes off muffled or distorted. It had been SO many years since I saw this film. Itâs a fairly funny conversation, with Vilanch sharing certain gossip heâs come across (like what influenced the wig-stealing moment in the film) and Duke offering backstage stories from the production. Carried over from the original DVD and called A World Premiere Voyage, the 48-minute 1967 piece appears to be an advertisement for both Valley of the Dolls and (I think) Princess Cruises. I canât speak to the quality of whatâs missing since I never watched them, but I donât think thatâs hurting this edition all that much. If it was over-acting Marlon Brando instead of Patty Duke, he probably would've been nominated for the Oscar. The included booklet (yes, an actual booklet) features a great essay on the film by Glenn Kenny, covering the changes going on in the studio system that led to Fox looking to Meyer to make the film, followed by a reprint of an article by Stan Berkowitz, which is also a fascinating read. The movie, itself, is trash but, some might argue, truly great trash. Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2016. Though it clearly may have been beneficial to get another academic who wouldnât have any bias at all the commentary is still a well-rounded track and certainly one of the stronger features here. A lot of the material is covered in the commentaries, but getting alternate perspectives here from other members of the crew (or general fans) is welcome, as well as a more thorough look at Meyerâs career before Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, from his World War II photography to his early nudie pictures. Casablanca is there really to keep the track going I think, and for the most part heâs fine but his entertainment journalist instincts kick in at times in attempts to get gossip, and this aspect doesnât help the track at all: he tries to get more details about Sharon Tateâs murder, which is in particularly bad taste, Parkins handling it well by going around the subject, and he also seems intent on getting the dirt about affairs that would have gone on during filming (nothing happened according to Parkins). The presentation for this film is a fairly pleasant surprise; despite not being as colourful or energetic looking as Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (thanks a lot to its heavy use of beige) the image here manages to look quite a bit better than its quasi-sequel. My knowledge on sexploitation is basically nil; other than the obvious titillating aspects of the genre itâs never really interested me and I havenât seen a lot of films that would fall under the genre. Arrow Announcements, Speculation & Wild, Irresponsible Conjecture, [Arrow Rumors and News] / Wed Nov 11, 2020 09:26:52 AM, [General Film Discussion] / Wed Nov 11, 2020 08:15:54 AM, [Arrow DVDs and Blu-rays] / Wed Nov 11, 2020 07:36:20 AM, [General Film Discussion] / Wed Nov 11, 2020 03:37:47 AM, The Criterion Channel -- Film and Content Discussion, [Criterion Rumors and News] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 09:01:36 PM, [Boutique Labels] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 05:25:05 PM, [Filmmakers] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 10:04:49 AM, [Indicator Blu-rays] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 10:03:16 AM, [Boutique Labels] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 09:47:13 AM, [Arrow DVDs and Blu-rays] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 08:33:57 AM, [General Film Discussion] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 07:28:19 AM, [Filmmakers] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 03:40:07 AM, [DVD and Blu-ray News and Discussions] / Tue Nov 10, 2020 02:47:44 AM, This site is not affiliated with The Criterion Collection. Details are sharper, with patterns and textures on outfits and the various settings coming through quite a bit more, and compression isnât a concern. I still think a new scan and restoration would lead to spectacular results for this film, but as it is it still looks very good and does look better than Foxâs previous DVD. Drawn from the real life experiences that author Susann had during her own time in show business, the film follows the lives of three women navigating the treacherous waters of the entertainment industry as each of them attempt to carve out a piece of fame for themselves. You'll also find in-depth discussions on world cinema. Despite a couple of slight misfires (the commentary and that odd feature about the filmâs premiere) Criterion has put together a rather respectable edition for the film. The filmâs premiere was actually held on the SS Princess Italia and was done during a 28-day cruise. After viewing product detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in. PICTURE. The disc then features about 28-minutesâ worth of screen test footage followed by a new visual essay by film critic Kim Morgan called Doll Parts. I knew I'd probably remember absolutely nothing and I was right. The audio commentary from the original DVD has made it, though, and take that for what you will. Valley of the Dolls is a 1967 slice of melodrama directed by Mark Robson, and starring Patty Duke, Barbara Parkins and the lovely Sharon Tate. Duke expresses her thoughts on the film in not at all subtle terms, stating sheâs always hated everything about the film (except for Sharon Tate), but sheâs obviously touched that there is a passionate audience for it and she lets the audience there know that. and Vixen for good measure. Surprisingly Criterion hasn’t carried over everything from the previous DVD, which is odd since they carried over most of the material from Fox’s Beyond the Valley of the Dolls to their own edition. contains everything you’d come to expect. This is followed up by some advertising material, including trailers and TV spots. And then there is the 4-minute Casey & Roxanne: The Love Scene, which simply features Myers and Gavin talking about their love scene. This 17-minute essay is more of a defense of a film, though a well put together one that does admit all the faults to the film, Morgan forgiving them more because the film still reaches her on some emotional level. And Beyond the Valley of the Dolls is no different, with a number of buxom Playboy Playmates in starring roles. Plain and simple. Here the participants speak about Russ Meyer and this film, talking highly of both. Of course, it's a bit campy, and bit melodramatic, but it's what you would expect and it's great entertainment. The audio commentary on the disc is from the 2006 release and features Barbara Perkins and journalist Ted Casablanca, but there is some new content as well, including the aforementioned video essay and new interviews. Disabling it will result in some disabled or missing features. The second one is exclusive to Patty Duke, who focuses on her character, the âtypesâ of characters that appear in the film, and explains the title (warning: there are spoilers in her appearances in this feature). Ross also manages to get interviews with Roger Ebert and Tura Satana, but most surprisingly he also gets the former manager of the Sex Pistols, Malcolm McLaren, to talk about the failed Sex Pistols film that Meyer and Ebert were to work on. The filmâs premiere was actually held on the SS Princess Italia and was done during a 28-day cruise. A full-color booklet is also included that features an essay from critic Glenn Kenny, which is also a great read if you grab the disc. I canât speak to the quality of whatâs missing since I never watched them, but I donât think thatâs hurting this edition all that much. The new 1080p/24hz high-definition presentation comes from a 2K restoration taken from a 35mm interpositive made from the original negative. The interesting aspect to this is that the dialogue for the scene being read differs from the finished film and ties it more to the original Valley of the Dolls. I was just really curious to see Sharon Tate, who I've always heard of but never saw her in anything. For a mono track (presented in lossless PCM) itâs fairly robust with some decent fidelity, most notable in the more music heavy sequences. There is good, there is good-bad/campy, and then there is just awful. Finally, Sharon Tate plays Jennifer, a beautiful starlet who believes her looks are her only talent and who resorts to acting in soft-core French porno in order to make ends meet before eventually taking her own life. This commentary works on a few levels thanks to Ebertâs involvement with the film, along with his knowledge of Meyerâs work and film history in general. Transgressive and outrageous, this big-studio version of a debaucherous midnight movie is an addictively entertaining romp from one of the moviesâ great outsider artists. In general itâs a more than serviceable mono presentation. A feature that I originally tossed off as just filler proves to be one of the more interesting: a couple of screen tests featuring two sets of tests of the same scene between Lance Rocke and Kelly MacNamara, one featuring Michael Blodgett and Cynthia Myers, the other featuring Harrison Page and Marcia McBroom. Parkins is ravishing. It seems to focus more on the more âgossipyâ elements, I guess you could call them, like Judy Garland coming on set (and getting fired) and the issues between Patty Duke and director Mark Robson, but scattered about are a few other interesting production stories, including about the premiere and author Jacqueline Susannâs reaction. Itâs a very colourful film, though this one aspect is a bit disappointing in the presentation. But for the first half I found the feature an incredibly engaging one and Iâm happy Criterion carried this one over. Cutthroat careerism, wild sex, and fierce female protagonists are all on offer in this adaptation of Jacqueline Susann’s sensational and wildly popular novel.
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