http://www.a-film.nl/dvd.php?id=00007196
(After following that link, you have to scroll down the page to get to year 1991, i.e., the year "Prospero's Books" was theatrically released)
Apparently, the DVD was released in the Netherlands several weeks ago. As I do not speak Dutch, I cannot decipher the dvd details (which are few, anyway), so I'm not sure if this latest version is any better than the VHS version. If somebody gets it, though, please, let us know!
They're not DVD details, actually. All it says is that this film version of The Tempest was manufactured using the latest HDTV-technology (I don't know what that is) and that John Gielgud plays two roles at once- the role of Prospero and the role of Shakespeare. It doesn't say anything about the format or the length of the film itself. All I know is that I'm NOT spending nearly $200 on something that might prove to be a low-quality product. (The recent Baby of Macon DVD I purchased online from an Australian merchant is crap- the colors are all distorted and it's also fullscreen, to boot). I'm just going to wait and see I guess. If they released it this September perhaps another release is bound to come out either in the UK or maybe France.
LMW: Crash (2004)- 5/10.
I have the Kalverliefde box DVD of Prospero's Books. I was surprised by the high quality transfer (having bought many badly done Greenaway DVDs before), this is how it *should* look!
It is a PAL disc, 720x576 50Hz, 16:9 aspect ratio, AC3 5.1 sound, English language audio (of course), removable Dutch subtitles, movie length is 2:00:38, no special features except basic menu and scene selection / chapter stops. Only thing I could wish for would be English subtitles.
I can strongly recommend this, though I agree that buying the whole Kalverliefde box set if you are only interested in this movie is certainly a very high price.
Is Kalverliefde DVD single-layered (DVD-5) or dual-layered (DVD-9)?
Thank you!
It's single-layered, but I have to warn you (if you're a "purist")--the DVDs do NOT come in separate cases. Basically, there are these four plastic "fold-outs"--sorry, don't know the technical term for it (the extended editions of The Lord of the Rings trilogy are exactly like this)--which include five films at a time--each gets a "page" of its own, basically.
But the transfer is amazing--beautifully restored, in widescreen, absolutely no problems with playing it!
P.S. I ordered mine at bol.com (gotta know your Dutch, though, in order to shop there), and it arrived in four days (I live in NYC). I highly recommend this store!
A store on Amazon Marketplace is selling this in the US now. Search for "Prospero's Books" in the DVD section and look for the "Golden Calf Winners" collection.
It's a very fine disc. But: you have to buy the whole collection (about $80), and you have to be able to play PAL discs.
-Bill
For such visually overwhelming film, a dual-layered DVD 9 is imperative. But the present DVD (from the Golden Calf Winners collection) is of decent quality, but the picture would've benefited more by spreading the data over dual layers.
I honestly think this movie deserves a Criterion release!
There is also a Spanish version out, which is a slighty better (than the VHS), albiet still fullscreen, transfer. The only downside is that is has non-removable Spanish subtitles, which distract like crazy. It's almost impossible to get through as a result. I don't recommend this version, but it does give me hope that there will be others in the future.
shareReally!? That suprises me. Spanish DVDs are usualy of pretty trustworthy quality.
Also surpised it's full screen as all the UK VHS editions I know of (Palace, Electric, 4 Front) are 1:66 ratio.
"I think you're a load of old crap too, Mr Mulligan."
I saw this movie on TV years ago. And just recently I could watch it on a decent DVD edition. This time I watched lots of details that I missed when I watched it for the first time on TV.
This movie should be released on Blu-ray (it must look wonderful) instead of so many cheap and stupid Hollywood flicks.
This movie was released on September 18, 2009 in a new DVD edition. It is available at Amazon.com for $80. Netflix hasn't purchased a copy yet. I'll wait until the price goes WAY down.
shareProspero's Books on DVD www.blujay.com
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