Viva Zapata!

Product Description

This is the second in the magnificent series of films by director Elia Kazan (On the Waterfront, A Streetcar Named Desire, East of Eden, Baby Doll). PLOT SUMMARY: Branded an outlaw after helping Mexican peasants reclaim their stolen land, Emiliano Zapata (Brando) retreats into the mountains with his brother Eufemio (Quinn). Then Zapata's love interest takes priority over his revolutionary activities, as he courts Josefa, who refuses his offer of marriage because he's poor and lacks standing in the community. When he rises to the rank of general, she deems him a worthy suitor and they marry. Later Zapata becomes president, but by then, he's greatly disillusioned and ends up being used as a political pawn. ++++ DVD FEATURES: This officially licensed Asian import is NTSC Region 0 (All-Region) with 4:3 Full Screen display, Dolby Digital Sound in ENGLISH with optional English subtitles.

Customer Reviews:

Not quite complete........2007-09-08

I was very happy to see this film which I first saw with my Dad back in the 50s. It still holds up as a powerful story about passion and devotion to a cause and to the power of charismatic leadership. I was only disappointed to see that the final symbolic image of Zapata's white horse running free in the hills, had been left off and the film abruptly terminated. Oh well.

A history lesson........2007-06-30

The review by 'Maxi' shows the value of movies like "Viva Zapata". Most people, Americans, have very little knowledge of important moments in the history of our neighbors to the south. Or Canada for that matter. Brando, as his usual brooding self is outshone by Anthony Quinn. Nobody plays a Mexican better than Mr Quinn. The storyline is fairly close to the true historical life of the title character. I've seen several Mexican movies about Zapata but I like this one better. Mostly for the production values I think.

For years, on the radio, I listened to "La Hora National" They had 1/2 hour plays about historical events from the past. I wish that we had something like that. It pays be aware of historical events that developed the character of our neighbors. I'd like our people to be more informed about heros from our past, too. Most Mexicans, even after many years of living here, are still Mexican at heart. This is a very good movie about a worthwhile subject.

A True Story of Mexican Revolution........2007-01-18

Actually this was the film that triggered my interest on the Mexican Revolution.
I've seen it many times and always found new details to take into account. As I read more and more on the subject my appreciation of this movie increases.
It presents the viewer with a big fresco of the Revolution that convulsed that country for more than ten years.
I admire the strange capacity of the film to show condensed in each scene, many key issues of why and how the Revolution exploded and continue growing along the years, with an immitigable fire.

Director Elia Kazan has been criticized for his appearance on the Un-American Activities Committee that lead many people related to cinematography to be ostracized.
This been said, regardless of his political stand, he had directed many great Oscar winner films as: "Gentleman's Agreement" (1947), "Streetcar Named Desire" (1951); "East of Eden" (1955); "Splendor on the Grass" (1961) and the present "Viva Zapata!" (1952).
He had directed two "Movie Icons" as Marlon Brando (more than once) and James Dean obtaining the best from them. All his films explored the inner depth of human soul with unflinching stare.

Since the first shot, showing a very accurate characterization of President Porfirio Diaz (Fay Roope) and giving an inkling of the type of ruler he was, an enormous gallery of Mexican historical figure are made known.
Francisco Madero's (Harold Gordon) personality and idealistic naïveté is depicted with very few strokes.
Huerta's (Frank Silvera) wickedness and treachery is shown too.

Above all of them Emiliano Zapata's figure impersonated by an inspired Marlon Brando stands with an epic height. His ideals, stubbornness, charisma and internal sorrows leading him to the final sacrifice, are shown convincingly.

A special mention must be done of Anthony Quinn's superb performance, which entitled him to win the Oscar. He not only has the physique du role, but an internal conviction to give flesh to Eufemio, Zapata's brother, a semi cultured and brave centaur, product of his times and environment.

Josefa (Jean Peters) the fiancée and later wife of Emiliano shows all the traits of a high middle class woman romantically requested by a rural hero. The scene played with Brando in the church's atrium is wonderful.
The only character that gives a discordant note is the fictional Fernando, representing an addict to revolution for revolution in itself.

Joseph MacDonald's black and white photography is very beautiful. Steinbeck's screenplay has a solid internal coherence that shows all along the film.

A Classic Movie not diminished by the more than fifty years passed.
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

Poetic, powerful and moving..........2007-01-17

Elia Kazan will be remembered as the director of some of the most vivid film performances of the fifties... In 'Viva Zapata', Kazan's 'Method' style of acting is applied to John Steinbeck's screenplay that power inevitably corrupts, with Brando again charismatic as the doomed Mexican revolutionary...

Kazan, not only shows us the extremely unpleasant world of poverty where life is hard, short and brutish, but also the story of the agrarian rebel who was Pancho Villa's first revolutionary ally...

Kazan paints a convincing emotional portrait of a mythical figure, who is considered as the 'Wind that swept Mexico.' Kazan explores a facet of the Mexican history, describing the reasons for the revolution fought by Zapata, and works on basic emotions as passion, anger, fear, aggression, ignorance and wisdom...

Brando projects the dedication and the anguish of an inspiring rebel... He portrays the illiterate Mexican peasant revolutionary who for ten years led Guerilla uprisings against dictators and presidents... Brando plays the part with fervor and passion, even transforming his features with special makeup and fake mustache to look amazingly like the Guerilla leader... For his performance, he was nominated for his third consecutive Oscar, but Gary Cooper won for 'High Noon'.

Anthony Quinn gives an effective portrayal of Eufemio Zapata , the swaggering, lecherous, bullying brother, and wins his first Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor... Through his consummate acting skills, Quinn creates in Eufemio a strongly characterization which, despite its brevity, was not overshadowed by Brando's Zapata...

Jean Peters portrays the typical educated girl of the village who falls in love with the wild man of the hills and marries him...

The film begins near the close of the 34th year reign of President Porfirio Diaz (Fay Roope) where a delegation of Indians from the State of Morelos have come to the capital for an audience with the great dictator... There they make known their strong objections over the stealing of their lands by the wealthy, powerful estate barons... Diaz addresses them paternally and instructs them they must examine their boundaries before they bring legal action, something he knows they are incapable of doing...

Burning with a sense of injustice, the simple Emiliano Zapata directs the president's attention to this point, requesting his consent to cross the railing of wires...

President Diaz was disturbed by the persistent Zapata and on the sheet of paper listing his visitors, he unpleasantly circles the name of this one humble man who has really came for 'something.'

Some time later Emiliano and his brother lead the farmers in a general inspection through their expropriated fields and as they do so, a squad of Diaz militia attack them, shooting and cutting down men, women and children indiscriminately...

Zapata and some of his followers fight back, and retreat to a mountain hideout... There they are located by a sly political agitator, a newspaperman named Fernando Aguirre (Joseph Wiseman), who brings news of Francisco Madero (Harold Gordon), exiled in Texas...

Zapata sends his friend Pablo (Lou Gilbert) to interview Madero and find out if he is worth following...

One day, and in a church, Zapata risks his life to speak of truth, and of love... But the pretty brunette Josefa (Jean Peters) rejects him, even though she admits to being attracted to him, and tells him he must improve his social position before she might think out his proposal...

When Espejo (Florenz Ameo) refuses to consider him as a suitor to his daughter, Zapata angrily leaves his house... He is immediately arrested by policemen and led away with a rope around his neck...

As the mounted police walk him behind their horses through the countryside they are gradually joined by peasants, who silently march along... The group increases into a huge number of farmers... Zapata comes to a realization, that the peasants have chosen him as their leader and that he has no course but to accept... Destiny has singled him out...

'Viva Zapata!' received 5 Academy Award Nominations...It is a greatly entertaining film, excitingly directed by Kazan who made its action sequences so intense and who permitted his actors full scope in developing their characters...

negleted masterpiece.......2006-12-28

Viva Zapata is one of the three or four movies that made Marlon Brando the best actor of his generation -- "the Men", "Streetcar---", "On the Waterfront" and "Godfather 1", being among the others. Scripted by Nobelist John Steinbeck, directed by Elia Kazan, featuring bravura performances by Anthony Quinn and Joseph Wiseman, and winner of many international and US awards for acting, directing and scrit, Viva Zapata should rank among the top 100 movies (it did make the NYT's recent top 1000). Yet,it's been sadly neglected -- not even released on DVD is the USA, and to my knowledge unseen on TV. Viva Zapata is a masterpiece lost for suceeding generations.

The Complete James Dean Collection (East of Eden / Giant / Rebel Without a Cause Special Edition)

Average customer rating:

James Dean Special
Complete James Dean Collection
Complete James Dean
great acting and great scripts
James Dean 3 dvd pack

The Complete James Dean Collection (East of Eden / Giant / Rebel Without a Cause Special Edition)
Starring: James Dean
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0007TKNK6
Release Date: 2005-05-31

Amazon.com

The Complete James Dean Collection includes two-disc special editions of the three major films Dean made during his meteoric career: East of Eden (1955, never before available on DVD), Rebel Without a Cause (1955), and Giant (1956). In addition to new transfers, the films collect new and vintage documentaries, commentary tracks, publicity materials, and even the infamous "Drive Safely" commercial spot Dean filmed shortly before his death in an auto accident.

East of Eden is an acknowledged classic, and the starring debut of James Dean lifts it to legendary status. John Steinbeck's novel gave director Elia Kazan a perfect Cain-and-Abel showcase for Dean's iconic screen persona, casting the brooding star as Cal, the younger of two brothers vying for the love of their Bible-thumping father (Raymond Massey) in Monterey, California, at the dawn of World War I. Massey is a lettuce farmer, striving for market domination with an ill-fated refrigeration scheme. Having discovered that his presumed-dead mother (Oscar winner Jo Van Fleet) is a brothel owner in nearby Salinas, Cal convinces her to finance an investment that will restore his father's lost fortune, but neither money nor the tenderness of his brother's fiancée (Julie Harris) can assuage Cal's anguished need for paternal acceptance that comes nearly too late. Kazan's oblique camera angles and Dean's tortured emoting may seem extreme by latter-day standards, but their theatrics make East of Eden a timeless tale of family secrets and hard-won affection.

When people think of James Dean, they probably think first of the troubled teen from Rebel Without a Cause: nervous, volatile, soulful, a kid lost in a world that does not understand him. Made between his only other starring roles, in East of Eden and Giant, Rebel sums up the jangly, alienated image of Dean, but also happens to be one of the key films of the 1950s. Director Nicholas Ray takes a strikingly sympathetic look at the teenagers standing outside the white-picket-fence '50s dream of America: juvenile delinquent (that's what they called them then) Jim Stark (Dean), fast girl Judy (Natalie Wood), lost boy Plato (Sal Mineo), slick hot-rodder Buzz (Corey Allen). At the time, it was unusual for a movie to endorse the point of view of teenagers, but Ray and screenwriter Stewart Stern captured the youthful angst that was erupting at the same time in rock & roll. Dean is heartbreaking, following the method acting style of Marlon Brando but staking out a nakedly emotional honesty of his own. Going too fast, in every way, he was killed in a car crash on September 30, 1955, a month before Rebel opened. He was no longer an actor, but an icon, and Rebel is a lasting monument.

Giant got its name because everything in the picture is big, from the generous running time (more than 200 minutes) to the sprawling ranch location (a horizon-to-horizon plain with a lonely, modest mansion dropped in the middle) to the high-powered stars. Stocky Rock Hudson stars as the confident, stubborn young ranch baron Bick Benedict, who woos and wins the hand of Southern belle Elizabeth Taylor, a seemingly demure young beauty who proves to be Hudson's match after she settles into the family homestead. For many the film is chiefly remembered for James Dean's final performance, as poor former ranch hand Jett Rink, who strikes oil and transforms himself into a flamboyant millionaire playboy. Director George Stevens won his second Oscar for this ambitious, grandly realized (if sometimes slow moving) epic of the changing socioeconomic (and physical) landscape of modern Texas, based on Edna Ferber's bestselling novel. The talented supporting cast includes Mercedes McCambridge as Bick's frustrated sister, put out by the new "woman of the house"; Chill Wills as the Benedicts' garrulous rancher neighbor; Carroll Baker and Dennis Hopper as the Benedicts' rebellious children; and Earl Holliman and Sal Mineo as dedicated ranch hands.

Customer Reviews:

James Dean Special.......2007-09-13

I am very pleased with this purchase. Fast shipping and delivery makes it even better.

Complete James Dean Collection.......2007-02-12

I was very pleased to find all 3 movies in a classic collection set.

Complete James Dean .......2007-02-07

This boxed set of James Dean is completely the way I expected. Very clear and totally error free.
East of Eden is one of my all time favorite movies.
Rebel Without a Cause is awesome and the extra special features were awesome too.
Giant was a bonus since I only saw it once before on regular tv and at least no commericals in watching it now.
Thank you and the price is certainly a great deal too.

great acting and great scripts.......2007-01-09

These three movies go well together. Steinbeck's novel is considered by many to be Steinbeck's best:
Giant by Edna Ferber who chronicled the change of the Texas west from a frontier to an oil metropolis.
And last but certainly not least the coming of age story of modern teenagers
caught between their parents and society: Rebel Without a Cause.

James Dean 3 dvd pack.......2006-07-03

This is an amazing value, for James Dean lovers like me.

Average customer rating:

In A Word: Impressive
Dean on Display
Classic American Cinema
Moviemaking at its best
Great film, terrible dvd commentary

East of Eden (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Starring: Julie Harris , James Dean , Raymond Massey , Burl Ives , and Richard Davalos
Director: Elia Kazan
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ASIN: B0007US7F8
Release Date: 2005-05-31

Amazon.com essential video

East of Eden is an acknowledged classic, and the starring debut of James Dean lifts it to legendary status. John Steinbeck's novel gave director Elia Kazan a perfect Cain-and-Abel showcase for Dean's iconic screen persona, casting the brooding star as Cal, the younger of two brothers vying for the love of their Bible-thumping father (Raymond Massey) in Monterey, California, at the dawn of World War I. Massey is a lettuce farmer, striving for market domination with an ill-fated refrigeration scheme. Having discovered that his presumed-dead mother (Oscar ^® winner Jo Van Fleet) is a brothel owner in nearby Salinas, Cal convinces her to finance an investment that will restore his father's lost fortune, but neither money nor the tenderness of his brother's fiancée (Julie Harris) can assuage Cal's anguished need for paternal acceptance that comes nearly too late. Kazan's oblique camera angles and Dean's tortured emoting may seem extreme by latter-day standards, but their theatrics make East of Eden a timeless tale of family secrets and hard-won affection. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Based on John Steinbeck's novel and directed by Elia Kazan, East of Eden is the first of three major films that make up James Dean's movie legacy. The 24-year-old idol-to-be plays Cal, a wayward Salinas Valley youth who vies for the affection of his hardened father (Raymond Massey) with his favored brother Aron (Richard Davalos). Playing off the haunting sensitivity of Julie Harris, Dean's performance earned one of the film's four Academy Award nominations.* Among the movie's stellar performances, Jo Van Fleet won the Oscar as Best Supporting Actress.

Customer Reviews:

In A Word: Impressive.......2007-09-09

Wow, what an impressive screen debut for a 24-year-old. That was the famous James Dean, here in his first of three starring roles before death took him at a tragically young age. Just as impressive, however, is the overall performance of the rest of the cast, including lesser-known Richard Davalos, who also was making his movie debut.

The most impressive person connected to this movie, however, was director Elia Kazan who not only excelled directing this film but - in the same year - directed "On The Waterfront." Now, that's not a bad year of work!

Overall, it's a solid drama with complex characters who make you reflect about them long after you view this. I don't know why it took so long for me to finally see this movie, but I was impressed. (May I recommend this two-disc, special-edition DVD?). I am surprised it only garnered one Academy Award. I think it deserved more.

Dean on Display.......2007-06-22

Excellent film, but lost much of book's richness. For example, there is no Chinese-American character. Dean exhibits some fine acting.

Classic American Cinema.......2007-05-23

James Dean has become a legend, both because of his amazing talent and the fact that he died so young. One has to wonder how he would have developed if he had lived longer. He, Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando all appeared at the same time, with the same soul searing magic. Clift died young too. Would Dean have self destructed like Marlon Brando or matured to handsome but sensible old-age like Paul Newman and Robert Redford? Of course we don't know, but fortunately we have these records of the few films he made, to enjoy.

Elia Kazan made this movie from a book by Steinbeck, who was inspired by the write of the book of Genesis. Pretty good stuff! Add the wonderful actors, (besides Dean,) Julie Harris, Raymond Massey and Jo Van Fleet...and how can you miss?

The story is deep and universal with fundamental human problems. Who can't relate to wanting to be loved? to be considered good? to having one's gifts honored? We see the "good" man, Adam, who has ideals and standards, who wants to make a contribution for the next generation, who sincerely tries to do what he believes is right, but who has no idea that his very "goodness" is crushing the life of his son, Cal, just as he crushed the life of his former wife. We see the former wife, by all standards a "bad" woman, a madame, who is profiteering off of the weaknesses of others and yet we come to like her. As the Julie Harris character says, she really doesn't know what's good and what's bad anymore.

There's an interesting sub-plot in which a formerly considered "good" neighbor, a German shoemaker, is now considered to be "bad" because we're now at war with Germany.

At the time this film appeared, our country was just about ready to wake up from the myth of "we're good and everyone else is bad." We had fought and defeated the bad guys in another world war and had grown fat and complacent in our new prosperity. We were on the brink of the 60's in which all hell broke loose and a whole new generation of young people would rise up and re-write the rules of morality. Dean, in this film, portends the new revolution in consciousness, which is why, in my opinion, he captured the hearts and souls of so many people. He embodied the spirit that was ready to burst out...that of the guy who dared to break the rules, to discover for himself what was right..(.but boy, it sure wasn't easy.) Dean's talent, good looks and charm dressed this new rebellious spirit in a very attractive package; we wouldn't have fallen so hard for a mere thug. (A decade later we had John Lennon.)

Kazan wasn't afraid of feeling or telling his version of what's right and wrong. He gives us a fully formed, deeply felt and emotionally satisfying film that should please every sentient being on the planet. It was a perfect film for that time, and, come to think of it, a pretty good film for now!

Moviemaking at its best.......2007-05-07

I can still remember the night I saw this movie. I was in my teens, and came out of the theater with my hands in my pockets and a bit hunched, just lika James Dean in the movie! The acting in this movie is top-notch, by even the actors and actresses in bit roles. Unforgettable movie, well adapted from a masterpiece novel.

Great film, terrible dvd commentary.......2007-02-24

The film and the special features are great, but the commentary is offensively biased against James Dean. Anyone who likes this film is going to first recognize the genius of James Dean, so why the reluctance to acknowledge the incredible display of acting. This film would not be the classic that it is without Dean's presence. Dean, (along with Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift) elevated the craft of acting on film to an art form. The commentator on the dvd consistently avoids praising Dean, and whenever he can he gives all the credit to the director for a scene's effectiveness. Don't get me wrong, Kazan was a great director, but Dean was the genius. How many young actors displayed such a range of emotions prior to this. The worst part of the commentary is when it is said that this is by far Dean's best performance. The commentator apparently wants Kazan to have the credit for turning a juvenile delinquent into a star, who's luster subsequently faded under the eye of less talented directors. This is completely false. Dean's next film, Rebel Without a Cause, is directed by Nicholas Ray, an even better director than Kazan, and once again Dean is terrific. Dean's last film Giant features some of his best work, although the movie has too many scenes with the terribly boring Rock Hudson, and director George Stevens was apparently not sympathetic to Dean's improvisational spirit.

EAST OF EDEN (DVD/SPECIAL ED/2 DISC/WS-2.55/ENG-SP-FR SUB)

Average customer rating:

In A Word: Impressive
Dean on Display
Classic American Cinema
Moviemaking at its best
Great film, terrible dvd commentary

EAST OF EDEN (DVD/SPECIAL ED/2 DISC/WS-2.55/ENG-SP-FR SUB)

Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

ASIN: B0007US7EY

Amazon.com essential video

East of Eden is an acknowledged classic, and the starring debut of James Dean lifts it to legendary status. John Steinbeck's novel gave director Elia Kazan a perfect Cain-and-Abel showcase for Dean's iconic screen persona, casting the brooding star as Cal, the younger of two brothers vying for the love of their Bible-thumping father (Raymond Massey) in Monterey, California, at the dawn of World War I. Massey is a lettuce farmer, striving for market domination with an ill-fated refrigeration scheme. Having discovered that his presumed-dead mother (Oscar ^® winner Jo Van Fleet) is a brothel owner in nearby Salinas, Cal convinces her to finance an investment that will restore his father's lost fortune, but neither money nor the tenderness of his brother's fiancée (Julie Harris) can assuage Cal's anguished need for paternal acceptance that comes nearly too late. Kazan's oblique camera angles and Dean's tortured emoting may seem extreme by latter-day standards, but their theatrics make East of Eden a timeless tale of family secrets and hard-won affection. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Customer Reviews:

In A Word: Impressive.......2007-09-09

Dean on Display.......2007-06-22

Excellent film, but lost much of book's richness. For example, there is no Chinese-American character. Dean exhibits some fine acting.

Classic American Cinema.......2007-05-23

Moviemaking at its best.......2007-05-07

Great film, terrible dvd commentary.......2007-02-24

Half Japanese - The Band That Would Be King

Average customer rating:

Dissapointing
Very Entertaining
fairly interesting documentary about ADHD
An okay documentary of a band that deserves so much more
For Indie Rock fans

Half Japanese - The Band That Would Be King
Starring: Maureen Tucker , Jad Fair , Penn Jillette , and David Fair
Director: Jeff Feuerzeig
Manufacturer: Vanguard Cinema
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ASIN: B00003IPFA
Release Date: 2000-02-01

Amazon.com

There's a moment in Jeff Feuerzeig's rockumentary Half Japanese: The Band That Would Be King in which Jad Fair--one half of the brother team that made up the avant-garde indie rock band Half Japanese--casually states that his only goal as a musician is to write the most popular song in the world. The statement gushes forth without irony or pretension, only admirable confidence and naiveté. Most of mainstream America probably hasn't a clue who Half Japanese is, and Feuerzeig's main agenda here is to enlighten all of us who let the band slip through the cracks of rock history. He does a pretty fine job. Along with performances by the band (whose lo-fi sound champions the Velvet Underground and whose goofy approach recalls the earnestly infantile Jonathan Richman), the film features interviews with the numerous lineups that have played with the Fair brothers, as well as gushing critics who seem like they've waited a lifetime to preach about Half Japanese ("Given the choice between Sgt. Pepper and Charmed Life [considered Half Japanese's masterpiece], it's a no-brainer: I'd take Charmed Life," blurts out one critic). Perhaps the finest hour belongs to Penn Jillette (one half of the comedy troupe Penn and Teller), who tells long, hilarious stories about taking all of the money he made on Miami Vice and starting a record label (50 Skidillion Watts Records) just to release out-of-print Half Japanese albums. Obviously Half Japanese: The Band That Would Be King shouldn't be missed by any of the band's hard-core fans, but it's also the kind of rare, in-depth rockumentary that captures the essence of rock & roll and is a must-see for anyone interested in the medium. --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews:

Dissapointing.......2007-06-07

I started watching this DVD with wide eyed anticipation and an open mind.
And then I watched it..
This documentary just seems to drag on slowly, like trying to run over a five lane railroad track with chains and weights around your body; three trains barreling toward you in both directions. Not to mention a rabid rhino in there just to confuse you.
Save your money and buy something else.

Very Entertaining.......2007-03-21

I was totally enthralled by this DVD because I had never heard of this band and the whole time I was watching it I was thinking to myself that this is a mock-documentary and a genius one at that. Then it dawned on me that no one could have made this up even though the lead singer, I think his name was Rad, seemed to be sent from central casting to play the part of a sort of idiot savant, misunderstood genius, anti-hero, Peter Pan pop singer.
What I liked about this documentary is that they kept going back to the band performing songs. Which are hard to tell whether they are joke or genius.
We are still trying to figure out if "Half Japonese" is an urban myth.

The talking heads in this movie, expressing their bitterness over the fact that this band never made it big are also from central casting and really add the spice to this film.

fairly interesting documentary about ADHD.......2005-08-21

This is a documentary about crazy people-not Half Japanese. Most of the so-called critics can't remember a damned thing except for how great they are for recognizing the greatness of Jad while continuously ranting about their major-label conspiracy theories. Penn Jillette even goes so far as to brag about how he conned a homeless person out of Jad's material and then threatened Jad with physical violence if he ever talked to the guy. If you're interested in mental illness and sleazy people like Penn Jillette stroking themselves then by all means watch this. If you're interested in a great American rock band then just buy the albums and listen.

An okay documentary of a band that deserves so much more.......2001-09-20

Please, before the rotten vegetables start flying, I'm in no way disparaging the brilliance of Half Japanese by low-balling this documentary. I just think there are glaring flaws abounding here. To start with, the film almost completely whitewashes over the music and era that really made the band unique. They talk at length about 1/2 Gentlemen/Not Beasts, but we hear none (or next to none) of the music!! We get a few seconds of "Calling All Girls" and some live versions of "Firecracker Firecracker," and then suddenly we're in Jad's indie-rock later period. All of Jad's "Zany" later songs about Walt Disney and his wholesome songs about dating Juanita and her red dress are emphasized, while his completely seminal work, which revealed a much greater fear of being hurt by women, is ignored. You're going to play "This Could Be The Night" but totally avoid "Nicole Told Me" or "I Know How It Feels...bad"??!?! It's this love/terror mix that makes Jad such a complex artistic figure. Nearly all the music covered is from the Charmed Life/Band That Would Be King era, which is apparently all the thing for certain 1/2 Jap fans, but c'mon, we don't ever hear word (or sound) one about the "Loud" album!

Finally, with the exception of Penn Jilliette, who's at his best here, the lesson we seem to learn from this film is that Half Japanese fans are professional feebs. I can't think of a worse triumvirate to shower praises on this great band than pucker-holes like Byron Coley, Phil Milstein, and the king of all that is wrong with independent music, Gerard Cosloy (No great music has been released on a major label? Warner Brothers put out the Gang of Four's "Entertainment!" Tell me, how's that new Matmos album coming, foolio?). Are there no decent people who like 1/2 Japanese? I mean apart from Penn and David Greenberger?

This is a must-see documentary in that 1/2 Japanese are a must-hear band, and Jad and David really are the best people to tell their own stories. And what great stories they are! Proceed with all due caution, but enjoy the beams of pure unrefracted kindness and sweetness that crack through the cynical hipster overcoat that's haphazardly thrown over the subject matter.

For Indie Rock fans.......2001-02-10

This is a very cute and amusing documentary on "Half Japanese". It seems really relavent to the rock music scene here in the U.S. in which " ... rock" groups like Korn and Limp Bizkit are the big sellers. If you're a big indie rock fan (like me) then this will definately tickle your fancy and give you hope that someone out there is in their garage making another breakthrough album.

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James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young

Manufacturer: Digiview
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ASIN: B000BCNJ1O

Product Description

Casper Van Dien (Sleepy Hollow, Starship Troopers) stars as James Dean in the retelling of this enigmatic bad boy that infatuated America and captured their hearts. Film begins with Dean's first rise to Hollywood stardom. Reportedly, Dean was very much in love with Pier Angeli and they planned to marry, but her mother blocked the union because Dean wasn't Catholic, and helped arrange Pier's marriage to Vic Damone. Before she committed suicide, Pier wrote that Dean was the only man she had ever really loved. Approx. 100 Minutes, Stereo Compatabile with all DVD Players.

Average customer rating:

Jane Seymour evil incarnate in East of Eden TV miniseries
Please put this movie on DVD!!
Please put it on DVD!!!!
The Best Version Ever Made
Pretty please DVD it ! East of Eden with jane seymore

East of Eden (1981 Miniseries)
Starring: Timothy Bottoms , Jane Seymour , Bruce Boxleitner , Soon-Tek Oh , and Karen Allen
Director: Harvey Hart
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Miniseries | Television | Genres | DVD | Video

( E ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B00005JO4B

Customer Reviews:

Jane Seymour evil incarnate in East of Eden TV miniseries.......2007-03-14

Before Jessica Lange's "Cora" plotted her husband's demise in The Postman Always Rings Twice, and Sharon Stone's "Katherine" ice-picked, but more importantly outwitted her would-be captors by sheer intellect in Basic Instinct, Jane Seymour set the stage for portrayals of evil women with brains and amoral resolve in this TV miniseries with Timothy Bottoms and Bruce Boxleitner. I'd buy this DVD in a nanosecond when it's made available - it's one of the best TV miniseries I can remember based upon a classic novel (Steinbeck). Please post a projected release date on the info page for this item!!

Please put this movie on DVD!!.......2007-03-11

I would buy this DVD in a second if it existed.

This mini-series was excellent and I still vividly remember Jane Seymore's excellent (EVIL!!) performance after all these years. Whoever can make it happen, PLEASE release this fantastic show on DVD! And while you're at it, some interviews from the stars?

This would be a must for anyone's DVD library.

Please put it on DVD!!!!.......2007-03-07

I just got Lee Holdridge's incredible soundtrack for this series from Intrada Records. If the series is even HALF as good as the music, I want to see it!

I'll update this review after I buy and watch it.

The Best Version Ever Made.......2007-02-19

This is by far the best version of Steinbeck's "East of Eden" ever made; far, far better than the superficial James Dean version, which was little more than a vehicle for the then popular teen idol. (Contrary to all the Hollywood hype I never thought much of Dean as an actor.)

Steinbeck has always been my favorite American novelist; and "East of Eden" is, in my opinion, his finest work - superior even to "The Grapes of Wrath." It is a substantive and timeless work, in which Steinbeck transcends his earlier novels, bounded as they are by his conception of the nobility of the poor. Here, in "East of Eden" he goes beyond his earlier sociological obsessions with poverty, exploitation and radical politics to explore somthing much deeper: character, the essence of good and evil, betrayal and guilt. This is a book of Biblical proportions, based on the story of Cain and Abel; and the meaning of God's pronouncement upon Cain.

All of which is captured beautifully in this TV mini series; just as it is ignored, overlooked or simply not grasped in the James Dean movie. Needless to say this version is true to Steinbeck's conception. And the many memorable performances by the cast - Jane Seymour, Timothy Bottoms, Bruce Boxleiter, Lloyd Bridges, Soon-Tek Oh, Sam Bottoms, Hart Bochner, Karen Allen -(a number of which I can still visualize in my mind 25 years later) bring clarity to the meaning of Steinbeck's story - something one can rarely say about contemporary Hollywood acting.

A movie not to be missed.

Pretty please DVD it ! East of Eden with jane seymore.......2007-01-13

This was a wonderful mini series. I have checked for it to be on DVD over the years through Amazon , Now it seems like its going to happen.

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