dvd-4-life

Did Escape From NY LD commentary track(J Carpenter,Kurt Russell) ever make it over to DVD? What other famous commentary tracks didn't make it dvd?

Pizza

The criterion Bonds.

wd40cloud

Yes it did. It's only available on the two disc SE though. The Blu-Ray doesn't have it.

Brian T

Mortal Kombat.

Something Wicked This Way Comes (Ray Bradbury)

DouglasRobert

The Criterion King Kong commentary.
I also think Tootsie has an audio commentary on the Criterion LD too.

Doc Moonlight

The Cronenberg Criterion Commentary for CRASH

ScissorPuppy

I'd say 80% of the Commentaries for (Major studio films) Criterion laserdiscs (that Criterion didn't release on DVD/Blu) are unreleased on dvd or blu. There have been a few releases that licensed the tracks The Rock, Taxi Driver and maybe a few others.

When New Line did their dvd special edition of Seven they opted to record new commentary tracks instead of getting the Criterion from a few years before. There has got to be a definitive list of Criterion commentaries only released on laserdisc somewhere.

EDIT: Found this list from 2005, might be out of date at this point.

49th Parallel - film historian Bruce Eder (DVD rumored to be coming soon)

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen - director Terry Gilliam

The Adventures of Robin Hood - film historian Rudy Behlmer (different from Warner's DVD)

Bad Day at Black Rock - director John Sturges

Blackmail - screenwriter Charles Bennett, additional material written by Laurent Bouzereau and spoken by Stuart Birnbaum

Boyz N The Hood - writer/director John Singleton

Bram Stoker's Dracula - director Francis Ford Coppola, visual effects supervisor Roman Coppola, makeup artist Greg Cannom

Carrie - screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen, De Palma expert Laurent Bouzereau

Casablanca - film historian Ronald Haver

Cat People - film historian Bruce Eder

Crash - director David Cronenberg (DVD rumored to be coming soon)

Damage - director Louis Malle

Darling - director John Schlesinger (only for 1st hour)

Dr. No - film historian Bruce Eder, director Terence Young, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt, production designer Ken Adam

Evita - director Alan Parker

The Fisher King - director Terry Gilliam

From Russia with Love - Bond historian Steven Jay Rubin, director Terence Young, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt

The Game - director David Fincher, actor Michael Douglas, screenwriters John Brancato and Michael Ferris, digital animation supervisor Richard "Dr." Baily, production designer Jeffrey Beecroft, visual effects supervisor Kevin Haug, visual effects producer Robyn D'Arcy, director of photography Harris Savides

Goldfinger - film historian Bruce Eder, director Guy Hamilton, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt, production designer Ken Adam

The Graduate - film scholar Howard Suber

The Great Escape - director John Sturges, composer Elmer Bernstein, second unit director Robert E. Relyea, stuntman Bud Ekins, film historian Bruce Eder

Green for Danger - film historian Bruce Eder

Here Comes Mr. Jordan - Elizabeth Montgomery [daughter of star Robert Montgomery]

High Noon - film scholar Howard Suber

Invasion of the Body Snatchers - film scholar Maurice Yacowar

It's A Wonderful Life - film scholar Jeanine Basinger

Jason and the Argonauts - special effects creator Ray Harryhausen, film historian Bruce Eder

King Kong - film historian Ronald Haver

The Last Picture Show - director Peter Bogdanovich, actors Cybill Shepherd, Cloris Leachman, Randy Quaid

The Magnificent Ambersons - film historian Robert Carringer

Menace II Society - two seperate tracks by co-directors, Albert Hughes and Allen Hughes

Midnight Cowboy - director John Schlesinger, producer Jerome Hellman

Naked - director Mike Leigh, actors David Thewlis, Katrin Cartlidge

A Night at the Opera - film historian Leonard Maltin [different from Warner's DVD]

Othello - director/historian Peter Bogdanovich, Welles scholar Myron Meisel

Pink Flamingos - writer/director John Waters [different from New Line's DVD]

The Player - director Robert Altman, screenwriter Michael Tolkin, director of photography Jean Lepine

Polyester - writer/director John Waters [different from New Line's DVD]

The Prince of Tides - director Barbra Streisand

The Princess Bride - director Rob Reiner, screenwriter William Goldman, producer Andrew Scheinman, actors Billy Crystal, Peter Falk

Robinson Crusoe on Mars - director Byron Haskin, screenwriter Ib Melchoir, actors Paul Mantee, Vic Lundin, production designer Al Nozaki, special effects designer Robert Skotak

Rome, Open City - film scholar Peter Bondanella

Sansho the Bailiff - film scholar Thomas Gunning

Scaramouche - director George Sidney, actor Stewart Granger, film historian Dick Dinman

Se7en - director David Fincher, actors Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker, production designer Arthur Max, special makeup effects designer Rob Bottin

She's Gotta Have It - writer/director Spike Lee, cinematographer Ernest Dickerson, sound designer Barry Brown, production supervisor Monty Ross

Shine - director Scott Hicks, actor Geoffrey Rush

Short Cuts - 1) film critic Pauline Kael; 2) film critic Michael Wilmington [both audio essays not appearing over the entire film]

Show Boat - musical theater expert Miles Kreuger

Singin' in the Rain - film historian Ronald Haver

Some Like It Hot - film historian Howard Suber, actor Jack Lemmon

Sweet Sweetback's Baaadassssss Song - actor/director Melvin van Peebles

Swing Time - Astaire scholar John Mueller

The Tales of Hoffmann - film historian Bruce Eder, director/P&P enthusiast Martin Scorsese (hopefully, this will appear in the near future on DVD)

Tootsie - director Sydney Pollack

Ugetsu - media artist and critic Norman Yonemoto, Mizoguchi expert Keiko MacDonald, Japanese film expert Donald Richie (DVD is possible, although it won't happen in the next 12 months)

The Wizard of Oz - film historian Ronald Haver

Preterite

[lukecage] Christmas! [/lukecage] That's one of my favorite movies! I would love to hear that track!

Two years ago, I saw Richard "Oscar Goldman" Anderson at the Chicago Comic-Con*. It wasn't until the drive home that I remembered he had a supporting role in Scaramouche. It would have been great to talk to him about it.


*Yeah, I know. I still call them "the Sears Tower" and "New Comiskey", too.

Ash Ketchum

Wow, some of those are real treasures. I'm interested in any classic film ('60s and earlier) in which the original participants do the commentary. The early Bond films, the John Sturges films listed (BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK, THE GREAT ESCAPE) and the ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS ones especially intrigue me.

ScissorPuppy

The bond commentaries were pulled shortly after release because EON didn't appreciate some of the comments from the filmmakers. I haven't heard them myself, but I have heard they are pretty blunt about things.

Ash Ketchum

Which is why they would be valuable to fans!

Preterite

While I haven't yet tracked down the Scaramouche commentary, I did find a page that features the entire interview Dick Dinman did with Stewart Granger, only 30 minutes of which were used for the commentary. The hour and a half interview is spread out over five podcasts, which are over-produced in the style common to enthusiasts of OTR and old Hollywood.

http://wmpg.org/archivefiles/dvdclassics.htm

dvd-4-life

Doesn't the Crime's of Passion LD have a Ken Russell commentary track and he leaves half way through the movie because he has to catch a plane? Did that port over to dvd?

Giles

so wait, the commentary on the laserdisc and the bluray of Adventures of Baron Munchausen are different?

Dr. Forrester

Indeed. I picked up all three LDs several years back, and it's striking how much more open and exciting they feel compared to the tracks on the DVD/Blu releases. Not to say those weren't informative, but the LD tracks definitely get more into the grit of making the films. It's been awhile since I've listened to them, but things like budget, time, and personality conflicts being discussed in shockingly blunt ways.

salamander2

IDOLMAKER LD had a director commentary.

EASY RIDER LD had a commentary with both Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, while the DVD is a newly recorded one with Hopper only.

ScissorPuppy

Yeah I think the special edition from a few years ago has an all new commentary. Infact when it first came out, their was a stick on the cover that said " All new commentary ".

Pizza

The Bond commentaries are quite jovial. You really feel like you're sitting in the same room and getting the skinny on these films. It's a shame things get so legal. I have the original LD releases but I do believe Criterion offered the commentaries separately on tape when they were re-released. I think you had to request them or mail something in to get them.
The Robinson Crusoe on Mars track is on the Blu-ray.
The King Kong track was the first commentary I ever heard. I wish I still had that set. Tootsie is a good one too.

The Lizard King

My thread in another forum:

http://forum.lddb.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=82

And Criterions get their own thread:

http://forum.lddb.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=81

Enjoy!

TLK

ScissorPuppy

Cool, thanks for the list!

I had no idea that the G.I. Jane laserdisc was released with the Commentary! Looks to have and alternate title sequence as well. I guess that "director's cut" never happened, or perhaps the artical I remember mistook the info of the alternate titles as an alternate cut. I'm off to find this disc, should be interesting to hear the commentary!

Alan Smithee

Fred Williamson on "Original Gangstas". He kind of rambles but says a few interesting things about the blaxploitation genre. The DVD also seems to only have a 2-channel matrix track while the LD has 5.1 AC-3.

The Lizard King

I added this information to the thread I started over at the lddb.com forums. Thanks!

TLK

The Lizard King

I just realized that only people who register over at lddb.com can see the above links, so I'll repost them here, since I'm the creator of them in the first place:

Besides Criterion LD titles, which get their own list (boldened below)...

1776 (1972) (different from SONY's DVD)
The 6th Man (1997)
Angie (1994)
The Arrival (1996)
Attack of the 60-Foot Centerfold (1995)
Basic Instinct (1992) (different from Lionsgate/Artisan's DVD/BD)
Bat 21 (1988)
The Big Country (1958)
Blood on the Moon (1948)
Boxing Helena (1993)
Burn Witch Burn (1962)
Champion (1949)
Citizen Kane (1941) (different from Warner's DVD/BD and Criterion's LD)
The Comancheros (1961)
Cop Land (1997) (different from Lionsgate/Miramax's DVD/BD)
Dawn of the Dead (1978) (different from Anchor Bay's Ultimate Edition DVD)
The Day After (1983)
Dunston Checks In (1996)
For Richer or Poorer (1997)
G.I. Jane (1997)
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) (different from Lionsgate/Artisan's DVD)
Hotel de Love (1996)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
The Idolmaker (1980)
The King and I (1956) (different from Fox's DVD)
King Kong (1933) (different from Warner's DVD/BD and Criterion's LD)
The Lighthorsemen (1987)
Macbeth (1948)
Marjorie Morningstar (1958)
Men in Black (1997) (different from SONY's DVD/BD)
Mighty Joe Young (1949)
Mortal Kombat (1995) (also the DTS version)
The Naked City (1948)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) (director Milos Forman's comments were edited into the group commentary on Warner's DVD/BD)
Original Gangstas (1996)
Out of the Past (1947)
Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982) (different from Columbia Music's DVD)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977) (different from Fox's DVD/BD)
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (different from Fox's DVD/BD)
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) (different from Fox's DVD/BD)
They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)
The Wizard of Oz (1939) (different from Warner's DVD/BD and Criterion's LD)


Criterion LD titles:

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen - director Terry Gilliam (different from SONY's DVD/BD)
The Adventures of Robin Hood - film historian Rudy Behlmer (different from Warner's DVD/BD)
Bad Day at Black Rock - director John Sturges (different from Warner's DVD)
Blackmail - screenwriter Charles Bennett, additional material written by Laurent Bouzereau and spoken by Stuart Birnbaum
Boyz N The Hood - writer/director John Singleton (different from SONY's DVD/BD)
Bram Stoker's Dracula - director Francis Ford Coppola, visual effects supervisor Roman Coppola, makeup artist Greg Cannom (different from SONY's DVD/BD)
Carrie - screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen, De Palma expert Laurent Bouzereau
Casablanca - film historian Ronald Haver (different from Warner's DVD/BD)
Cat People - film historian Bruce Eder (different from Warner's DVD)
Crash - director David Cronenberg
Damage - director Louis Malle
Darling - director John Schlesinger (only for 1st hour)
Dead Presidents - co-directors Albert Hughes and Allen Hughes, Dr. Todd Boyd, director of photography Lisa Rinzler, actors Larenz Tate and Keith David, and Ari Merretazon
Dr. No - film historian Bruce Eder, director Terence Young, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt, production designer Ken Adam
Evita - director Alan Parker
The Fisher King - director Terry Gilliam
From Russia with Love - Bond historian Steven Jay Rubin, director Terence Young, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt
The Game - director David Fincher, actor Michael Douglas, screenwriters John Brancato and Michael Ferris, digital animation supervisor Richard "Dr." Baily, production designer Jeffrey Beecroft, visual effects supervisor Kevin Haug, visual effects producer Robyn D'Arcy, director of photography Harris Savides
Goldfinger - film historian Bruce Eder, director Guy Hamilton, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, editor Peter Hunt, production designer Ken Adam (different from MGM's DVD/BD)
The Graduate - film scholar Howard Suber (different from MGM's DVD)
The Great Escape - director John Sturges, composer Elmer Bernstein, second unit director Robert E. Relyea, stuntman Bud Ekins, film historian Bruce Eder (different from MGM's DVD)
Here Comes Mr. Jordan - Elizabeth Montgomery, daughter of star Robert Montgomery
High Noon - film scholar Howard Suber (different from Lionsgate/Artisan's DVD)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers - film scholar Maurice Yacowar
It's A Wonderful Life - film scholar Jeanine Basinger
Jason and the Argonauts - special effects creator Ray Harryhausen, film historian Bruce Eder (different from SONY's BD)
King Kong - film historian Ronald Haver (different from Warner's DVD/BD)
The Magnificent Ambersons - film historian Robert Carringer
Menace II Society - two seperate tracks by co-directors Albert Hughes and Allen Hughes (different from New Line's DVD/BD)
Midnight Cowboy - director John Schlesinger, producer Jerome Hellman (different from MGM's DVD/BD)
A Night at the Opera - film historian Leonard Maltin (different from Warner's DVD)
Othello - director/historian Peter Bogdanovich, Welles scholar Myron Meisel
Pink Flamingos - writer/director John Waters (different from New Line's DVD)
The Player - director Robert Altman, screenwriter Michael Tolkin, director of photography Jean Lepine (different from New Line's DVD/BD)
Polyester - writer/director John Waters (different from New Line's DVD)
The Prince of Tides (first pressing) - director Barbra Streisand
The Prince of Tides (second pressing) - director Barbra Streisand
The Princess Bride - director Rob Reiner, screenwriter William Goldman, producer Andrew Scheinman, actors Billy Crystal, Peter Falk (different from MGM's DVD/BD)
Scaramouche - director George Sidney, actor Stewart Granger, film historian Dick Dinman
Se7en - director David Fincher, actors Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker, production designer Arthur Max, special makeup effects designer Rob Bottin (different from New Line's DVD/BD)
She's Gotta Have It - writer/director Spike Lee, cinematographer Ernest Dickerson, sound designer Barry Brown, production supervisor Monty Ross
Shine - director Scott Hicks, actor Geoffrey Rush
Show Boat - musical theater expert Miles Kreuger
Singin' in the Rain - film historian Ronald Haver (different from Warner's DVD)
Some Like It Hot - film historian Howard Suber, actor Jack Lemmon (different from MGM's DVD/BD)
Sweet Sweetback's Baaadassssss Song - actor/director Melvin van Peebles
Swing Time - Astaire scholar John Mueller
Tootsie - director Sydney Pollack
The Wizard of Oz - film historian Ronald Haver (different from MGM's Ultimate Oz LD and Warner's DVD/BD)

Feel free to make any additions/modifications/corrections.

TLK

Alan Smithee

"The 6th Man" is also a 'director's cut' that as far as I know hasn't been available elsewhere. I've been meaning to check out the theatrical version just to see what the differences are, the director's cut runs a bit long for the type of movie it is.

The Lizard King

Hmmm... Maybe, so. LDDB lists the LD run time as 109 minutes, whereas amazon lists the DVD run time as 107 minutes.

TLK