From Russia To Hollywood
Picture:
C+ Sound: C Extras: B Sound: B
Lee
Strasberg was a great actor and teacher of actors, but just as prominent was
Michael Chekhov, who came from the Russian School of thought on acting and the
stage. Even less known is George
Shdanoff, an actor and director who with Chekhov brought this all From Russia To Hollywood. This fine documentary was originally issued
in a shorter version in the late 1990s, but is here on DVD in its longer form.
Rich in
clips, new and old interview footage, trailer footage galore, and narration by
no less than Gregory Peck, writer/director Frederick Keeve puts together one of
the most important, vital works about how the film art grew, how actors found
new realism, and how this realism scared too many in this country in
power. That brought on the infamous
Hollywood Witch Hunts.
The long
list of great actors is stunning, with the DVD case alone noting Lloyd Bridges
(interviewed in his final months with his wife), Leslie Caron (now running a
restaurant), Patricia Neal, Jack Palance, Anthony Quinn, Craig Sheffer, Robert
Stack, Beatrice Straight, and Sharon Gless.
James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Alan Ladd, and Clint Eastwood are only
pictured, but also discussed. All that, and that still does not begin to
scratch the surface of what the program offers.
The image
is usually full frame, but there are various letterboxed clips. It looks good, even when we are dealing with
analog videotape, but still offers the kind of diversity in picture quality
typical of such productions. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 sound is not bad, with the only problem about the sound being the
commentary by Keeve. The sound playing
from the main program while he speaks is not low enough for him to be heard, so
you have to listen extra carefully. It
is worth it, though, because he is excellent and has great facts and thoughts
to offer. The only other extra is extra
interview footage.
So
overall, this is a very pleasant surprise, despite some minor technical
glitches. There are many silly, stupid
DVDs out there that pretend to know about or show the real Hollywood,
especially some very bad independently made films (and video shot projects
pretending to be films), but From Russia
To Hollywood is the must-see real thing and the sooner you catch it, the
better.
- Nicholas Sheffo
