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By
NICK ZEGARAC
The greatest living director
of our generation, Martin Scorsese, finally gets a
much overdue tribute, thanks to Warner Home Video.
"The Martin Scorsese Collection" features five
outstanding examples of a master director
indulging in his craft; "Who's That Knocking At My
Door" (1968), "Mean Streets" (1973), "Alice
Doesn't Live Here Anymore" (1974), "After Hours"
(1985) and "Goodfellas" (1990). Scorsese, who
became a producer, writer, actor and finally
director, grew up in New York's Little Italy --
the inspiration for his best films. Many of his
masterworks have long been available on DVD,
including "Taxi Driver," "Raging Bull," "The Last
Waltz," "The Last Temptation Of Christ," "The Age
Of Innocence," "Casino" and "Gangs Of New York."
There is so much to talk about: "Who's That
Knocking At My Door" is the story of J.R. (Harvey
Keitel), a young man of no ambition who, quite by
accident, finds himself sitting next to "the girl"
(Zina Bethune) on the Staten Island ferry. The
girl is impressed by J.R's knowledge of classic
movies and the pair quickly become lovers in a
problematic relationship that is, sadly, doomed
nearly from the start. This is the only B&W film
in this box set. Contrast levels appear a bit weak
with whites slightly on the gray side. Image
detail is also unstable, some scenes appearing
quite detailed and others just so-so to extremely
blurry. These shortcomings appear to be inherent
in the original film negative and are not a flaw
of DVD mastering. Film grain is present but hey,
it's a Scorsese film: he generally likes a gritty
image and this film is certainly a fine example of
that.
"Mean Streets" was the first teaming of Scorsese
and De Niro on film. Harvey Keitel is Charlie, a
thug who collects debts and runs a numbers game.
One of his friends, Johnny Boy (Robert De Niro),
owes money to Michael Longo (Richard Romanus). But
Johnny is a loose canon and, as the plot
progresses, we learn just how unstable a person he
can be. Tensions mount after Charlie becomes
enamored with an epileptic, Teresa (Amy Robinson).
By no means a watershed production, in hindsight
"Mean Streets" heralds the coming of "Goodfellas."
This is a very dark film -- literally. But
Warner's DVD mastering is bang-on with colors that
are vibrant and flesh tones that are accurately
rendered. Black and contrast levels reveal a
significant amount of fine detail. Overall, the
image is very sharp. There is a slight amount of
film grain and some light shimmering present. No
edge enhancement though, for an image that is
basically smooth.
Next up is Scorsese's first important masterwork,
"Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore." Departing from
his formulaic atmosphere of dark, brooding,
unscrupulous characters, "Alice…" tells the story
of Alice Hyatt (Ellen Burstyn) an abused housewife
on the verge of a nervous breakdown when her
husband Donald (Billy Green Bush) is suddenly
killed in a truck accident. Determined to exploit
the tragedy as her new lease on life, Alice packs
up her station wagon with son Tommy (Alfred
Lutter) in tow. Alice's dreams of becoming a
singer are short-lived but a second chance at
romance might be in the stars when Alice lands a
job as a waitress at Mel & Ruby's Café, where a
frequent customer, David (Kris Kristofferson),
recognizes Alice as a soul mate. Burstyn's tour de
force performance won her the 1974 Academy Award
as Best Actress and the film spawned the long
running, highly successful television series,
"Alice." Warner's DVD certainly delivers with
vibrant colors. Black levels are very deep and
whites are always clean. Contrast and fine details
are nicely realized with only a hint of film
grain. During the opening shots there are a few
distracting artifacts, but they vanish after the
opening credits. The image that will surely not
disappoint.
"After Hours" is the out of control spiraling saga
of mild-mannered Paul Hackett (Griffin Dunne),
whose chance meeting with the seemingly harmless
Marcy (Rosanna Arquette) leads to an increasingly
perilous adventure. Marcy is full of interesting
stories and this is precisely why Paul is
initially attracted to her. However, Marcy's
behavior becomes increasingly unstable and Paul
bolts. Feeling like a jerk, which of course he is,
Paul decides to return for an apology but
discovers Marcy dead in her bedroom. Unfortunately
for Paul, he soon finds himself the focus of a
troupe of vigilantes who believe he is responsible
for a string of burglaries. Eventually, Paul's
artist friend offers him a means of escape by
turning him into a Paper Mache figure -- go
figure! Although much maligned by critics upon its
initial release, "After Hours" has since developed
a cult following that has spilled into the
mainstream. Critics and poor box office aside, the
film is a tour de force of set pieces with an
eerie, unsettling quality and some very grim, but
infused with black humor scenes that are terrific.
Warner's DVD delivers a very nice looking vintage
'80s image. Colors are vibrant and flesh tones are
accurately rendered. Black levels are deep and
whites are very clean. Film grain and a hint of
dirt are present but do not distract. There are no
digital anomalies for a very smooth image.
Now, for the icing on the cake: "Goodfellas," #94
on A.F.I.'s list of 100 greatest movies of all
time and widely regarded as the best mob movie
ever made by critics and audiences alike. Written
by Nicholas Pileggi and based on his book
"Wiseguy," "Goodfellas" charts the meteoric rise
and catastrophic crash and burn of tough guy Henry
Hill (Ray Liotta). Hill was a small time thug
whose involvement with the mafia paved the way for
the most daring narcotics ring ever established in
the U.S. Hill's teaming with the very dapper, very
savvy, Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) and the very
foul-mouthed Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci) is at once
fortuitous and frustrating, as Hill watches Conway
and DeVito rise to great heights within organized
crime while he remains a front runner. The trio's
mob boss, Paulie Cicero (Paul Sorvino), befriends
Hill but the association is short-lived after
their latest heist goes horribly awry. Brutally
violent and viscerally disarming, the first time
viewing experience of "Goodfellas" is very much
like riding a psychotic horse through a burning
barn -- particularly in the latter half when
Hill's own drug addiction leads to a manic and
paranoid way of life. As for the quality of this
newly minted DVD, there is a marginal improvement
between this disc and the original flipper from
Warner. Flesh tones are overall accurate but there
continues to be a reddish tint in certain scenes.
A murky haze continues to be present during the
early scenes. Digital anomalies are completely
absent for an overall smooth look that is
appealing. Fine details, black levels and contrast
levels are bang on.
Apart from the "Goodfellas" disc, all other
soundtrack elements have been preserved in mono.
There's really nothing to talk about in terms of
fidelity for the mono films. They are presented at
an adequate listening level and instances of hiss
or popping that are usually characteristic of
films of this vintage are absent. "Who's That
Knocking At My Door" has perhaps the weakest audio
of the bunch, sounding muffled. However,
considering the shoestring budget for the film
this is to be expected. Conversely, "Goodfellas"
is a very finely wrought 5.1 presentation.
Dialogue is perhaps a bit more front sounding than
one would expect -- though no less bold and clear.
The effects and music tracks really pack a wallop.
Extras include commentary tracks for all the
films. "Goodfellas" has two, plus a host of
featurettes and a thorough documentary on the
making of the film. For the rest, there are shorts
and featurettes. One would have appreciated a
definitive documentary on Scorsese as a filmmaker,
but perhaps this was asking too much for a box set
that retails well under a hundred dollars.
Overall, this is a great edition to any home
theater aficionado's library and it comes highly
recommended. |
