- Joined
- Jul 3, 1997
- Messages
- 66,751
- Real Name
- Ronald Epstein
THE GOONIES
I had hoped to have had a review for all
of you over a week ago, but Warner Brothers
accidently forgot to get a copy shipped out
to me.
It with great feeling that I sit here and
write a review of The Goonies, a movie
that has sat on everyone's most requested list.
It took 4 years for Warner Brothers to finally
bring this title out to DVD. After 4 years,
however, I have mixed feelings about the end
result.
Watching THE GOONIES is as fresh today
as it was back in 1985. The film has not aged
at all, and I couldn't help but think that in
the year 2001, with a crop of horrible Summer
theatrical releases, a movie like THE GOONIES
would be just the kind of entertainment we need.
It's an astounding Indiana Jones type of adventure
starring a bunch of kids known as GOONIES.
GOONIES is a term for kids who are nerdy rejects
and don't just quite fit in.
This film reflects the amazing creative team
of Director, Richard Donner (Superman) and
Executive Producer, Steven Spelberg. It is an
amazingly fun Summer flick full of adventure,
secret passageways, whizzy gadgets, inept
criminals, a hideous monster --- and lots of
humor that will have you smiling ear to ear.
It is no wonder that fans have been petitioning
Warner Brothers for years to release this film.
But was the wait worth it?
For the most part, THE GOONIES looks
good on DVD. However, age has not been good to
the film elements. There are definately noticeable
flaws in the print quality, most noticeable in
the beginning scenes when Rosalita, the spanish
speaking maid, is introduced to the household.
You can see quite a bit of color shifting and
an unbalanced brightness/darkness in the picture.
You'll also notice a considerable amount of grain
in some of the dark scenes. It is my guess
that Warner just didn't want to put the money
into a full restoration, and perhaps I can't
blame them for that. Overall, fans will be
quite content with the picture quality.
The sound is quite good. I was impressed about
how good the stereo mix was in this DVD, and
how strong the audio sounded. Although the DVD
boasts a 5.1 audio soundtrack, the rear speakers
rarely came alive at all except for effect audio
such as thunder. I was rather impressed that my
subwoofer kicked in during major rock falls adding
some nice THUMPS to the soundfield.
Let's talk a little about the added extras....
For years I had heard about a giant "octopuss"
sequence that was removed from the film. I
never knew if this was just a fabricated rumor
or not. The GOOD NEWS is that after all these
years of hearing about it -- we finally get to
see it.
In a short 6-minute sequence, there are 3 or
4 outtakes presented. The outtakes are in
perfect finished condition, which tells me that
Donner probably cut these at the very last minute.
Most noticeably, there is a scene in a candy
store where the Goonies meet up with the bully kid.
Another scene involves Chunk and Sloth in the cave.
Another involves Data and his binocular
invention not working quite right. None of
these scenes add anything to the film except to
slow the pacing and it is obvious why they were
removed.
The heralded OCTOPUSS scene is very disappointing.
I can imagine it was never included in the final
cut because it looks very phony. Even worse,
the Goonie's final solution to getting rid of the
menacing creature is very poor. Had Donner left
that sequence intact, it would have ruined the
film.
Still, after all these years, it is great to
see the extra added scenes.
There is also a really cool featurette on
THE MAKING OF THE GOONIES that was filmed
on the various sets. It was real fun watching
Donner interact with the child actors. Even more
(uhm) interesting was watching the actress who
played "Mother". I would NEVER guess the actress
had real tattoos on her body.
I didn't have time to look for the hidden
"Video Treasures" that the DVD packaging boasts.
I am not one that believes in Easter Eggs on DVDs.
For that reason, I may have an invalid complaint
that nowhere on this disc are there pictures or
interviews with the now grown cast members.
They do participate on the audio commentary, but
nowhere on the disc do I see any pictures of them
as they are today. If someone finds anything on
this disc, I would sure appreciate knowing about it.
The menus are very well done on this DVD.
Clicking on any of the choices takes you through
winding caves and down waterfalls to the next
submenu choice. It was nice to see that Warner
put some effort into the DVD menu.
Overall, I have no major complaints about this
DVD release of THE GOONIES. It is probably
the best job that Warner afforded itself to do.
It certainly is great to have this film on DVD
after all this time. It certainly is a MUST BUY
film for the ENTIRE family.
------------------
Ronald Epstein (pronounced like the English "Ronald Epstein")
Circa 2000
Home Theater Forum Administrator
All forum questions & to get on our private forum mailing list (new members)... Email: [email protected]
Problems with the webpage or site? Contact WEBMASTER
Email Packy [email protected]
