Led Zeppelin – Dazed & Confused (2008) + Elvis
– The Great Performances (1990/Umbrella/PAL Region Free/Zero/0/PAL DVD
Imports)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras:
C Main Programs: B-
PLEASE
NOTE: These DVDs can only be operated on machines capable of playing back DVDs
that can handle Region Zero/0/Free PAL format software and can be ordered from
our friends at Umbrella Entertainment at the website address provided at the
end of the review.
Elvis
Presley helped make Rock ‘N’ Roll a big business, but blamed The Beatles (when
he should have blamed Colonel Tom Parker for putting him in too many movies)
for his decline of popularity in the 1960s.
When they broke up and Led Zeppelin arrived, he reportedly liked them. Umbrella has issued two documentaries on
Elvis and Zeppelin that are decent and worth your time.
Led Zeppelin –Dazed & Confused (2008) only lasts an hour, but is
an impressive effort to show how the band came to be, starting with a solid
opening piece on Jimmy Page and The Yardbirds.
From there, we get old and new interviews, vintage footage and original
music that will impress fans of the band who have seen so much product to
date. Zeppelin manager Peter Grant,
Atlantic Records legend Ahmet Ertegun and Zeppelin tour manager Richard Cole
are among the interviewees. My only
problem is that it is not longer. Though
it says it is Region 4 on the back, it plays on all DVD players, so fans can
order it without hesitation.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.77 X 1 image is a mix of old film, old videotape and
newly recorded footage that is typical of any music documentary, but footage
usually looks pretty good (though some could be better) and the Dolby Digital
2.0 Stereo is also good and mixed (some audio is monophonic), but there were
times I wanted a 5.1 mix. Extras include
a trailer and Legacy segment that runs 16 minutes and features later interviews
with Robert Plant and John Paul Jones.
Elvis – The Great Performances is an older special hosted by
Priscilla Presley that includes her parts filmed and at 90 minutes squeezes all
kinds of filmed, videotaped and even kinescoped footage of Presley performing
at all stages of his career. Well done
for its time, it has dated a bit and the main credits are in early computer
animation. Especially with some Presley
films out on Blu-ray, the estate needs to redo this special in High Definition
and include all feature film clips in their original widescreen aspect ratios.
The 1.33
X 1 version here is an old analog master where everything is finished on
videotape and it shows with aliasing errors, softness and color issues
throughout. The Dolby Digital 2.0 sound
is sometimes stereo and sometimes mono, but holds up better than the image. Note some Elvis films have been already
upgraded to 5.1, so this special in a future incarnation should do the
same. There are no extras.
As noted
above, you can order these PAL DVD imports exclusively from Umbrella at:
http://www.umbrellaent.com.au/
-
Nicholas Sheffo
