2001 World Series - Arizona Diamondbacks vs. New York Yankees

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Every World Series has its own distinct dramatic elements, but the Fall Classic in 2001 was inevitably marked by tragic events that took place away from the diamond. The terrorist attacks on America at first made sports seem insignificant. But thankfully, baseball served up a much-needed distraction, two perfectly matched teams in a ferocious seesaw battle that wasn't finished until the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game. This DVD does a fine job of showcasing the thrilling games in which the upstart Arizona Diamondbacks dethroned the New York Yankees, the perennial powerhouse that had won the World Series for three straight years. But the production also features commemorative ceremonies and interviews with New York City firefighters who attended some of the games. The Series was a true classic on the field and will always be recalled as the World Series that helped give America something else to think about. --Robert J. McNamara

Customer Reviews:

Nice DVD - End of an historic run.......2007-06-12

This DVD is a nice compilation of the 2001 World Series. It captures the significance of this historic and thrilling World Series. Unlike "Nine Innings From Ground Zero", which is a moving chronicle of Fall 2001 and 9/11, this is more about the series itself. Beyond it's significance around the world that year because of 9/11, the 2001 World Series was a classic series for the ages. It also represented the end of a remarkable era in Yankee history, a 5 year run that may not be duplicated by any team ever again. The world changed dramatically on 9/11, and the baseball world changed dramatically in the Fall of 2001 as well. Enjoy.

Fall Classic captured in a classic highlights film.......2007-01-13

I'm a Red Sox fan so there are two obvious reasons why I would be drawn to this dvd. The first is Schilling and the second is seeing the Yankees lose.
Ok, obvious rivalry with NY out of the way, let me review the dvd itself. This is one of the best highlight films I have ever seen. The only film that quickly comes to mind and would rate higher than this dvd would be the documentary "Do you believe in miracles?" about the 1980 Olympic Hockey team. That's how far up on the scale this film rates. Other reviewers have said that if you are a fan of baseball (regardless of your team affiliation) you will enjoy this dvd and I couldn't agree more.
The end of Game 7 is captured in a way which makes it feel like a big budget movie. You know what's going to happen but they still have you on the edge of your seat. Buy this used for a good price and you'll feel like you are getting away with something - that's how good this dvd is.

Brilliant World Series! Historic era framed by the battle of the bruised and the geeky..........2006-12-31

When the 2001 series kicked up I had been away from baseball for a good 8 years, but watched this series for a variety of reasons. I expected a rather boring show of athleticism and strategy, framed with average faces, average techniques and predictable play. What I got was the series of a lifetime with so much drama coming from the pity of New York and the 'new boys' from Arizona with quite a nice run of seasoned pros. And the way the games played out had me sitting on the edge of my seat from around game 3 onward.

And it is all concisely packaged here in this DVD. I wish I could buy the entire run of games in full on DVD, it was that good, but this is better then nothing by far. What a great tribute DVD.

On here they show the strange, awkward, amazing moments of play that rocked the last 4 games of the series. What an amazing time in American history, and baseball history. You can't buy drama like this on a screen, but it happened live in 2001.

Easily the greatest sports highlight DVD I've seen.......2005-08-26

The genre of sports highlight DVD is a very subjective and, most times, very unsatisfying one. Sports highlight videos, in almost every circumstance, are created just to capitalize on a recent sporting event. In most situations, the quality of the video reflects the rush to cash in on the moment. There are a couple of sporting events near and dear to my heart: the 1998 home run chase between Sosa and McGwire [before the steroid scandal sullied the memory] and Maryland's 2002 Men's basketball championship. I rushed out to buy their highlight videos when they first became available, but was sorely disappointed. Neither of these videos managed capture the thrill and emotion of the events. The 1998 home run chased completely glossed over the excitement of that night that Mark McGwire hit #62 and didn't even really do justice to him hitting #70. The 2002 Maryland championship video was basically 15% Maryland highlights and 85% rapid clips of games throughout the tournament, which were so jerkily edited that you hardly knew which teams where playing in the highlights. Even the Maryland highlights did nothing to capture the emotion of this star-crossed team winning its first National Title. Sadly, this is symptomatic of most sports highlight DVDs. None seem to get that the reason most people buy these videos is so that they can get back in touch with the emotion they felt when they watched the actual event live. These videos are far too perfunctory to get or understand that feeling. Fortunately, for sports fans, there is a video that DOES get it. That's the 2001 World Series highlight DVD.
The classic fall face off between the three-time World Champion New York Yankees and the expansion Arizona Diamondbacks was a series tailor-made for a wonderful highlight video. Yet, far too often, even a sporting event that one would think couldn't be messed up, ends up being screwed up by these money-grubbing editors (calling them directors would be an insult to directors). Fortunately, the editors that crafted this DVD seemed to know what they were doing.
Never have I seen a sporting video that could capture the emotion of the teams, the fans, and an entire nation, the way this one can. In many ways it was crucial for this series to be great and for this DVD to be great. The horrific events of 9/11 shattered a nation and the people of this country needed something to divert their attention, however briefly, from the grief of this terrible terrorist attack. This series did an astounding job of that. It provided drama, heroics, and spectacular performances. Basically, it provided a baseball-scale version of the very traits that the people of the United States had been exhibiting for the previous one and a half months. The fact that the New York Yankees were involved in this series only enhanced its significance. Though the 9/11 terrorist attacks hit in three locations, New York will always be most associated that day because of the massive loss of life and terrible images of planes flying into the World Trade Center buildings and those buildings collapsing. New York needed the Yankees more than they ever have and more than any city has ever needed a team. The Yankees delivered by producing the most electrifying post-season run in recent memory, with a dramatic comeback over Oakland and a stunning domination of the record-setting Seattle Mariners and some of the most amazing comebacks in World Series history against Arizona. In fact, the only team to have a more spectacular post-season run than the 2001 Yankees, was the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks, which dramatically won their first round series in the final at bat against St. Louis and blowing past perpetually contender Atlanta to reach the World Series. Their ability to persevere the withering comebacks of the Yankees and win the World Series and win the whole deal with an amazing comeback of their own is the stuff of legend. Coming back in 9th inning of Game 7 to defeat the greatest relief pitcher in baseball history is a climax that can never be topped.
This highlight DVD captures all every single drop of drama, emotion, and significance that this series contained. Re-watching this DVD 4 years after the event still makes it seem as fresh and as exciting as when it first happened. If more sports DVDs were like this, then maybe it wouldn't be such a maligned genre.

A Great Memory of a Great Series (actually 4 1/2 stars).......2004-06-03

I am not a big Diamondbacks fan or a Yankees fan (on the contrary, I HATE them). So I had been rooting against the Yankees all year, and slowly began to take notice of the D-Backs. I had watched the Yanks win 3 World Series in a row, only losing 1 game to their 12 WS wins.
Once the series started, I was pretty hyped about those D-Backs and was really ready to watch the Yankees lose.

The only series' I had seen so far were boring, because I had only really been a baseball fan since '98, when I was about 9 years old.
But this series wasn't a quick sweep, or a lopsided series. It was amazing. Right down to Game 7, Bottom of the 9th, Final Pitch. What a thriller! What a roller-coaster ride!

This DVD is almost as good as the series itself, and brings back many fond memories and feelings that were created while I watched it on TV. The music, footage and commentary is great. The only part I didn't like was the part about the Yankees, in the ALDS against the A's.
That was such a sell-out series, I think the A's lost on purpose. Anyways, I couldn't STAND when they made such a big stink about Derek Jeter's 'backhand shuffle' or when he 'threw his body into the stands' to make a catch. Those plays were so fake, especially when he 'fell' into the stands.

Product Description

The Diamondbacks Militia violently opposes certain U.S. policies regarding satellite information. After an attack on a federal courthouse, the Militia takes over a spaceshuttle tracking station. Their goal is to take control of a multi-billion dollar communications satellite. The standoff leads to a wild encounter between the Militia, the FBI and the local police. Meanwhile, who will save the shuttle and its crew?

Customer Reviews:

Mission Accomplished.......2006-10-05

I bought DIAMONDBACKS primarily because of two of the names on the cover.

1) Miles O'Keeffe. I fondly remember the joke from the CAVE DWELLERS episode of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" when O'Keeffe's name appears in the opening credits. "How much Keeffe is in this movie?" asks one of the crew. The answer: "*Miles* O' Keeffe".

2) Timothy Bottoms. When I saw that name, I desperately tried to remember why it was so familiar. Suddenly, it came to me. Timothy Bottoms portrayed President Bush in the short lived Trey Parker and Matt Stone sitcom from 2001, "That's My Bush!".

With those two happy names in the credits, I figured that they'd make the movie at minimum bearable. I mean, a George Bush look-a-like in an action movie has to be worth at least a chuckle, right?

Wrong.

Mostly, because this movie is far too boring to be much fun.

The film opens with NASA shuttle Atlantis successfully lifting off. The televised launch angers a lot of white guys living out in the middle of nowhere. It turns out that the shuttle is not just a force for science; it's also carrying a new super spy-satellite that will allow the United States government to track everyone in the world including its own citizens. And it turns out the angry drifters aren't just grumpy and disaffected; they're also all members of a militia group bend on cutting the government down to size (remember, this was 1998, before the small-government conservative was placed on the national endangered species list).

This militia (called "Diamondbacks") means business. How do we know they mean business? Because we watch them endlessly packing up every piece of military equipment and dark clothing they posses in a sequence that seems to last as long as the entirety of THE WACKIEST WAGON TRAIN IN THE WEST. And if that isn't torture enough, minutes later we're treated to an even more lengthy sequence where the militia plant explosives in the town courthouse. I'm sure the viewer was supposed to be impressed by how hard they are, but all I got out of it (while trying to stay awake) is that this militia is great at sneaking around in the dark and taking a long time to put pieces of equipment next to other pieces of equipment.

Diamondback's plan is to take over the remote communications station which relays all communications activity between NASA ground control and the shuttle. After invading this location (out in the desert with no guards and only two technicians on duty), they will transmit a computer virus onto the satellite which would give them compete control. And this should give you, gentle reader, an idea of the kind of implausible situations, clichéd scenes and cardboard characterizations that make this movie the trainwreck that it is.

I'm guessing that the real NASA -- understaffed they may be -- would post at least one rent-a-cop at the door to their only link to the shuttle. The only thing they use to deter potential terrorism threats is an unassuming stop sign on the road leading into the complex. I have yet to hear of a terrorist who kills freely and risks death, but who has a fanatic devotion to obeying state and local traffic laws.

Several plot points are only possible because the film's protagonist has the uncanny ability to telephone straight in to a local radio DJ multiple times. Not only does she seem to work at the station morning, noon, and night, he must be her sole listener. (Had any of the screenwriters ever tried calling a radio station? Even when you're not trying to win free U2 tickets, it's a near impossible feat to accomplish even once in a day.)

Now, it's a bit unfair of me to criticize the movie for not being realistic when I bought it in the hopes of it merely being amusing. Unfortunately, the movie isn't terribly distracting or entertaining. Instead of goofy, silly scenes, I just got long drawn-out scenes of guys growling boring clichés at each other. If you're going to have a film with nothing but clichés, make them fun, over the top clichés. No overbearing boss shouting at his underlings. No self-righteous bad guy. No protagonist worrying about his wife and little girl at home. Been there; done that; seen it on "Mystery Science Theater".

Worse than characters growling speeches at each other are the action sequences. I realize that it's incredibly difficult to make a good chase sequence with not a lot of money, but I've seen other movies do a lot more with a lot less. At some point during the filming, someone needed to point out that it just wasn't working. If all you have are four vehicles and one long, straight dirt road, then maybe two extended chase scenes aren't in your film's best interests. (Actually, I should give the director some credit, because when the chases move outside of the vehicles and the characters are chasing each other around the power-station equipment, it approaches interesting. It's a pity though that those scenes end up being marred by the extremely fake sound effects on the guns.)

Apart from the film's obligatory easily-bamboozled henchmen, there were a few characters worth watching. I liked Miles O'Keeffe as the head of the Diamondback militia, if only because he managed to make all of his speeches perfectly through clenched teeth.

I will also admit to being amused by Timothy Bottoms' physical resemblance to President George W. Bush. And if the thought of Bush as the clear-headed, quick-thinking, no-nonsense manager of all NASA ground operations doesn't bring at least a smile to your face, then there's no hope of you extracting any enjoyment from this movie.

Average customer rating:

Learn To Play The Diamondbacks Way

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Product Description

The Arizona Diamondbacks Training Centers brings you the most comprehensive instructional video available. 60 minutes of fast-paced instruction designed for the young player, youth coach and parent. You'll get tips on every aspect of the game inlcuding: hitting, pitching, catching, fielding, base running and team defense!

Charlie Rose with Dave Anderson & Frank Deford; Gerry Adams; Kevin Kline (November 2, 2001)

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Charlie Rose with Dave Anderson & Frank Deford; Gerry Adams; Kevin Kline (November 2, 2001)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video

Description

Charlie Rose talks with sportswriters, Dave Anderson of the New York Times, and Frank Deford, of Sports Illustrated, about the Yankee-Diamondback World Series. Next, Gerry Adams, the president of Sinn Fein, talks about the prospects of peace for Northern Ireland. Finally, actor Kevin Klein talks about his new movie, Life As a House.

Charlie Rose with Tim McCarver; Salman Rushdie; Jerry Colangelo (April 16, 1999)

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Charlie Rose with Tim McCarver; Salman Rushdie; Jerry Colangelo (April 16, 1999)

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Description

New York Yankees announcer Tim McCarver talks about his new book, The Perfect Season: Why 1998 Was Baseball's Greatest Year, the culture of the Yankees and his decision to leave the Mets to become a Yankee announcer, and his thoughts on various players. Then, Part Two of an interview with The Ground Beneath Her Feet author Salman Rushdie, who discusses his ten years in exile and his writing career. Finally, Phoenix Suns and Arizona Diamondbacks owner Jerry Colangelo talks about his new book, How You Play the Game, his thoughts about basketball and baseball in Phoenix, and his career as a player and owner.

Average customer rating:

Diamondbacks

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000EGIDWW

Product Description

From the heartland of America they aim to bring down a region of terror...

DVD:

DVD

DVD