Exactly. One can watch The Jazz Singer and appreciate the technical achievements and its place in film history (and watch the supplements to dig deeper into that) without 'condoning' the racist approach.

It's unfortunate that the EW review couldn't look past that. Regardless about how one feels with the representations the movie makes, it's a major film and deserves to be released in a fantastic edition that acknowledges it's importance in history. I don't need supplements with current African American leaders telling me that blackface is degrading and offensive. I think I know that well enough. Most grown adults do.

Given the tenor of the reviews I've read so far, I can't blame Disney for holding back on the film (even though any 'racism' with SotS is mild at best).

Why would Disney open themselves up to this? If film critics for major publications are going to go off on something as crucial to film history as The Jazz Singer, what hope does Song of the South have?

Looking at EW for reliable film/DVD reviews is like looking in National Enquirer for reliable news.

I actually think the opposite. I think people certainly can and do appreciate what movies like The Jazz Singer did for cinema and their place in history.

I believe, though, that people actually only really care about that. They're willing to overlook the stereotypical depictions and performances because, hey, this movie is a "classic." Like one poster in here stated a few messages ago...he doesn't see what the big deal is. And when you have things like a DVD set like this with two or three discs of extras without a mention of the degrading blackface or an attempt to show why it was the norm in that era, and a coverart that pretends to hide the truth of character portrayals via a silhouette, you will consistently get people who are apatehtic to the issue.

I am SO impressed by this 3 DVD set on all levels....the print is one of the best restorations I've seen for a "silent" title, hands down. Nearly free from the usual scratches and other flaws usually present in films from this era. Sadly, some missing frames are evident but its just exceptional, as is the restored original soundtrack. I'm a sucker for the "prop" extras in sets like these like program book facsimiles and the like. These add to the film experience and help remove it from the realm of being a simple historical relic. The extra features I've just tapped into but am pleased with what I see. And a disc loaded with the "dawn of sound" short subjects is something I hoped WB would tackle on DVD...as they did with some exceptional laserdisc packages they did some years back.

One of the most amazing DVD packages that WB (or anyone else) has ever produced, something I really wasn't expecting. Good job folks! :thumbsup:

So the blackface is not touched upon anywhere in the set? That's unfoirtunate.

That was me. I offered a counterpoint that no one seemed to address yet. How is the Jazz Singer any different from a film that portrays white people as idiots...or Irish as drunks? It is all relative. I am not saying that it is right and you certainly have a valid point, but I am just asking what the big deal is now 80 years later.

If I may pose another question, since the Sopranos is degrading to Italian Americans, does that mean they shouldn't have a place in history? Should they have something talking about how this does not reflect the community as a whole?

I don't consider myself apatethic to the issue either.I understand the context of things and realize that the country was different. Most people (in general) don't know the context of things...that is the way the media operates today. Hear something from someone passing by and it starts as a snow flake and ends up an avalanche by the time it reaches the masses.

However, that doesn't mean that it should be swept under the rug for either a) historical value or b) lack of commentary on an issue.

I go back to my Irish being drunks part of this post. I am Irish and it seems like the only "correct" way to show them, is drunk. Am I offended, no. But I am not that way and most of the community isn't. But no one seems to look at that.

You are right of course. It really is unfortunate that people are generally pretty thin-skinned here in the USA in this day in age in regards to something as innocuous as THE JAZZ SINGER. Is it a proud moment? Maybe not...but Jolson's character in the film wasn't ridiculing blacks either. I think having some extra feature on the disc talking about the racial overtones would have simply made the focus of the film...racial. It's unfortunate that is seems to be about the only interest in the film even now.

watching this on the Toshiba A-2 the audio drops out if i skip ahead in chapters...anone else having this problem. I skipped the intro and no sound, went back to the menu no sound. restarted player and things were back on, until i skipped ahead again...

I belive that happens with many disc on the Toshiba HD-DVD players. It happened to me with Zodiac and Bourne Identity HDs.

weird. i have been using this as my primary player for going on 6 months and this is the first time its happened to me