Vertigo: Collector's Edition
Universal / 1996 / 124 Mins / Rated PG

This Review is sponsored by 
Columbia/Tri-Star Home Video
MOVIE
Now here is one I had not seen before, I had heard about it, saw bits on the television, seen the.. gulp VHS of it but never got around to seeing it fully and I am glad I didn't. Don't get me wrong here I love the movie and I'm just glad that I got to see it for the first time on DVD it looks stunning.

The movie centers around a detective played by James Stewart who suffers from vertigo. After an accident he retires from the police force and takes on a job for an old friend to watch his wife who suffers from a mental disorder believing she is someone else. The woman then jumps into San Francisco bay trying to kill herself when she is saved by Stewart, they begin to fall in love with each other when things take a sudden twist. This is a wonderful movie and if you haven't seen it before, grab a copy it is truly exceptional and is a damn sight better than most movies of today.

VIDEO
The version of Vertigo is a 70mm restored version from the original VistaVision prints and compared to how the non-restored version looks it's a delight.

The transfer is quite sharp for a movie of it's age, colors are beautifully rendered. the only slight problem would have to be the shadow detail it seemed a little off. There were no visible MPEG artifacts and film grain was very minimal considering the age of the stock.

Vertigo is framed at 1:85:1 and is 16:9 enhanced.

This is an single sided, dual layer disc.
AUDIO
Vertigo was remastered in DTS stereo sound for the re-release which would have been a darn sight better than it's original track. The movie is based toward the front sound stage primarily with little or no surround use. That said the sound track is still very functional ad enjoyable.
EXTRAS
A great set of extras for a great movie.

Theatrical Trailer: There are 2 trailers on original and one re-release trailer. They are both in Dolby Digital 2.0 sound, framed at 1:85:1.

Making of Feature: This runs for about 30 minutes and is very informative and interesting to watch.

Audio Commentary: This is a very good commentary with quite a lot of informative info about the restoration. There are also other inter cut into the commentary in interview form.

Production Notes: A good set of production notes adorn this disc.

Cast & Crew Notes: A standard set of cast notes.
FINAL THOUGHTS
A wonderful movie on a great disc.
16:9 ENHANCEMENT DISC RATING

VIDEO:
AUDIO:
EXTRAS:
PLOT:
OVERALL:

REVIEW EQUIPMENT
Display: 48" Sony RPTV.
DVD Player: Panasonic A350 Player using S-Video Cables.
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-D508 Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround.
Speakers: Accusound speaker system.

Copyright © 2000 by [Roger Ward].
Revised: 26 May 2000 18:55:21 +1100 .

DVD INFORMATION
Region Coding: Region 4
No of Discs: 1
OFLC Rating PG
Running Time: 124 Minutes
Case Type: Keep Case
Release Date: 2/5/2000
Catalog Number: DU31165
List Price: $39.95
Distributor: Columbia/Tri-Star
DISC SPECIFICATIONS
Disc Format: PAL
Disc Type: Picture Disc
Disc Format: SS-RSDL
Chapters: 35
Macrovision: Yes
Manufacturer: WAMO
VIDEO SPECIFICATIONS
Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1
Anamorphic: Yes
Film Format: 35mm
SOUND SPECIFICATIONS
Dolby Digital:

5.1 Surround
2.0 Surround
1.0 Mono
DTS: None
PCM Stereo: None
Other: None
Languages:


 English
German
Italian
French
Spanish
Subtitles: Yes
SPECIAL FEATURES
Audio Commentary: Yes
Theatrical Trailer: Yes (2)
Teaser Trailer: None
TV Spots: None
Dolby Trailer: None
Documentary: Yes
Cast & Crew Bios: Yes
Deleted Scenes: None
Music Videos: None
DVD Rom Content: None
Collectable Booklet: None
Scene Access: Yes
Animated Menus: None
Production Notes: Yes
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INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE INFO
OFFICIAL WEB SITE
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VIEW TRAILER
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