Controversial Classics: Volume 2: The Power of Media DVD Review:
Controversial
Classics Volume 2: The Power of Media (All the President’s
Men SE/Network SE/Dog Day Afternoon SE)
The second volume
of controversial classics focuses on the power of media with
three great films from the seventies, two of which come directly
from true events. All the President’s Men is about the
Watergate incident and the journalists who figured it out, Network
is a satire about broadcast news, and Dog Day Afternoon is based
on the true events of a bank robbery turned into a media circus.
Two of these films, Network and Dog Day Afternoon, are Sydney
Lumet films and are available for the first time in special
edition. They are also available to be purchased separately
as well as in this fantastic set.
All the President’s
Men: Special Edition
Directed by: Alan
J. Pakula
Produced by: Walter Coblenz
Screenplay by: William Goldman
Based on the Book by: Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
Cast: Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Warden
Rated: PG
Running Time: 138 minutes
It’s a good
thing that All the President’s Men was included in this
collection, because it is the one film with a positive view
of what media is able to accomplish. While the other films are
filled with poignant truths and satire, this is a great example
of what media can do right. Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford
play Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two reporters who were
determined to discover the truth behind the Watergate break-in.
Based on the book written by the two, the film follows the reporters
as they grab onto the story and stay with it until they have
it right. It shows their dedication to get the truth out to
the public and it is also a remarkable portrayal of a working
newspaper.
This film by Alan J. Pakula won four Academy Awards in 1976
and it is still as gripping today as it was then. The dedication
of these two reporters is something to be admired, and this
two-disc special edition understands that with a number of great
features which go even more into depth with the film and the
men and events that inspired it. There are a number of new featurettes
and a few older ones as well, and a great commentary track by
Robert Redford.
Telling the Truth
About Lies: The Making of All the President’s Men:
This documentary about the making of the important film is filled
with great insight from cast and crew in interviews. The actors
look back on one of the most important films of their career.
There is behind the scenes footage and fantastic production
photography as the cast and crew talk about small details and
the big picture. It’s about thirty minutes in running
time.
Woodward and Bernstein: Lighting the Fire:
This featurette is about the truly inspirational men that the
story is really about. Woodward and Bernstein continue to be
an inspiration to journalists around the world, and the film
is a great showcase of what they did coming from the book they
wrote themselves. This great featurette has interviews with
cast and crew, but it mostly focuses on the journalist aspect
and calls upon many professionals to comment. It is just short
of twenty minutes.
Out of the Shadows: The Man Who Was Deep Throat:
This featurette goes into detail examining the mystery of the
man who was Deep Throat. This man is a huge mystery in the history
of journalism, with secrecy and intricate methods of getting
in touch with him. There are mostly interviews with Woodward
and Bernstein. Even during the production of the film people
were trying to figure out who he was, and it wasn’t until
later that it was discovered who he was. The documentary gives
a profile of the man behind the mystery.
Vintage Featurette Pressure and the Press: The Making of All
the President’s Men:
This great featurette is a rare find. These days featurettes
are common place, but at the time that this was made it was
a special thing. The interviews with the cast mirrored by the
newer featurettes are fascinating. Some of the same footage
is used in both of the featurettes, but the interviews are remarkably
different.
Vintage Jason Robards Interview:
This 1976 interview with Jason Robard on Dinah! By Dinah Shore
is great. It is simply a promotional interview, but it is also
a piece of history now.
Network: Special Edition
Directed by: Sydney
Lumet
Produced by: Howard Gottfried
Written by: Paddy Chayefsky
Cast: Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall,
Beatrice Straight
Rated: R
Running Time: 121 minutes
As hilarious and
satirical as Network was meant to be, and still is, it is also
a shock how much it applies today. If anything it is an even
more accurate portrayal of television news in the world that
we live in now. This is the 30th anniversary for the film, and
yet the power of the material which was an Academy Award winning
screenplay still retains all of its power. Filled with amazing
performances that also were Oscar award winning, Network is
a marvel to watch. Faye Dunaway won best actress as the vicious
television executive, Peter Finch won best actor as Beale, and
Beatrice Straight took home the best supporting actress award.
When television anchorman Beale has a breakdown on-air and lets
a slew of obscenities out, he is fired immediately, but then
the executives see an opportunity. Beale is brought back and
ratings begin to soar. He has lost all patience and is “mad
as hell” about the state of the world. He is tired of
the newscasters that cushion the real news with movie news and
feel good stories about puppies, and he plans to tell everyone
how he feels. This 2-disc 30th Anniversary Edition of Sydney
Lumet’s film is filled with all sorts of great features,
including a commentary track by Lumet.
The Making of Network:
This six-part documentary was made for the 30th Anniversary
of the film and it has a number of great stories from Lumet
as he looks back on the film. There are a number of great production
photos and fantastic insight about how the film came to be,
and what the production was like. There are also reflections
on the film from Walter Cronkite.
Vintage Paddy Chayefsky Interview:
This feature is excerpts from an interview on Dinah! Dinah Shore
interviewed Paddy Chayefsky and he shows the humor which comes
through in the script.
Private Screenings with Sydney Lumet:
This featurette examines the brilliance of director Sydney Lumet
on the show Private Screenings. He talks about his childhood
on up to the many award winning films that he made on the show,
and he proves that he has stories that he can tell to this day.
Dog Day Afternoon:
Special Edition
Directed by: Sydney
Lumet
Produced by: Martin Bregman and Martin Elfand
Screenplay by: Frank Pierson
Cast: Al Pacino, John Cazale, James Broderick, Charles Durning
Rated: R
Running Time: 124 minutes
Al Pacino and Sydney
Lumet teamed up after Serpico to make Dog Day Afternoon, one
of the strangest true stories to be turned into a film. It is
a bizarre and energetic thriller which also has a great deal
of comedy mixed in as well. This strange film earned six Academy
Award nominations and Frank Pierson won best screenplay because
of its gritty realism.
In Dog Day Afternoon Pacino plays Sonny, who plans a bank robbery
with his partner Sal. The robbery was supposed to go quick,
but instead it turns into a media circus and they take the bank
customers prisoner. The hostage situation turns even more bizarre
when the media finds out that Sonny was planning to use the
money from the robbery for his lover’s sex change. The
entire event unfolds on a humid New York afternoon, and as each
strange turn of events unfolds it draws to a dramatic conclusion
for Sonny and his partner. As well as partnering up with Lumet
for the second time, Pacino fans may also notice that he is
paired up with actor John Cazale as well. Cazale played Pacino’s
brother in the Godfather trilogy.
This two-disc special edition has a number of great special
features, including a four part documentary and a great commentary
track by Lumet. Lumet obviously knows film, and this is one
of his best films, so it is a big plus to have a commentary
track by him.
The Making
of Dog Day Afternoon:
This great documentary is split up into four parts. It starts
with the explanation of how it became a film. It all started
with an article in a magazine that someone thought would make
a great film, and from there the rest is history. Then the documentary
follows the film through production all the way to the aftermath
of the film. There are a number of great interviews, mostly
used as voiceover with a great deal of footage. The interesting
part about the documentary is the examination of whose story
the film belonged to. They weren’t sure from which direction
to tell the story when they first began to think about making
it.
Vintage Featurette Lumet: Film Maker:
This is a great featurette about the director that has made
a name for himself but what makes it great is the fact that
it was made during the production of Dog Day Afternoon. This
was before Network, but he was already a great and respected
director. There is a fantastic amount of footage as he directs
the crowds in the scene outside the bank.
