That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection (HD) in December
05-10-2007 22:57 | 6733 views | Dave Foster | Show Backlinks
Warner Home Video have announced the US Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD release of That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection on 18th December 2007 priced at $79.98 SRP each. Warner presents MGM’s acclaimed musical anthologies - That’s Entertainment!, That’s Entertainment, Part 2 and That’s Entertainment! III - in a special edition three-disc giftset on both High Definition formats this holiday season.
That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection gets the Hi-Def “red carpet” treatment with each feature in the trilogy presented with full HD 1080p masters and Dolby True HD audio. The set also includes more than five hours of extras and rarities including three documentaries, premiere night coverage and salutes to the great behind-the-camera talents, TV specials, making-of featurettes, plus an extensive video jukebox of rare, star-packed musical outtakes from classic films, and more.
“In 1974, the theatrical release of That’s Entertainment! was an unexpected box-office bonanza. Part of the reason for the film’s enormous success was the visual and aural splendor of its 70mm presentation and 6-Track Stereophonic Sound. Now, thanks to the wonders of High Definition, that excitement can finally be re-created for the home viewer, as the film and its two exciting sequels look and sound better than ever before,” said George Feltenstein, WHV Senior Vice President, Theatrical Catalog Marketing. “With virtually all the greatest musical moments of all-time to draw from as its subject matter, this collection of the three THAT’S ENTERTANIMENT films will surely become an essential part of any film fan’s library. The dramatic improvement High Def brings to the amazing imagery and sonics of the great MGM musicals is astounding. We feel this is going to be a tremendously popular gift item for the holiday season”.
That’s Entertainment! showcases 125 stars from nearly 100 films including superstars Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Mickey Rooney, Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Liza Minnelli, Peter Lawford, Donald O’Connor, James Stewart and many more. Originally released in 1974 to mark MGM’s 50th Anniversary and to celebrate the golden era of the greatest movie musicals ever made, That’s Entertainment! was an unexpected surprise smash at the boxoffice, grossing $28 million at the time and firmly establishing the MGM musical within the pantheon of greatness within American film history. Written, produced and directed by Jack Haley Jr., with Daniel Melnick as executive producer, That’s Entertainment! uniquely blends newly-filmed accounts of the personal memories of 11 of the stars who were at MGM from 1929-1958 during the making of these classic films with a panoramic retrospective of unforgettable musical sequences from them. Film historian Robert Osborne provides a personal and fascinating behind-the-scenes introduction to each of the three films in the collection.
Originally released in 1976, That’s Entertainment, Part 2 continues the dazzling tradition of That’s Entertainment! taking up where the other one left off, presenting fabulous sequences from movie musicals and highlighting such non-singing stars as Greta Garbo, Clark Gable and the Marx Brothers. Also featured are two of the champion song and dance men of all time, Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly (together for the first time since Ziegfeld Follies of 1946), acting not only as narrators but also as performers, singing and dancing in all-new numbers directed by Kelly just for the film. That’s Entertainment, Part 2 was produced by Saul Chaplin and Daniel Melnick, with narration by Leonard Gershe and additional music arranged and conducted by Nelsen Riddle.
Released in 1994 in celebration of MGM’s 70th Anniversary, That’s Entertainment! III brings back to the screen the stars and musical numbers that have excited audiences for generations. In the acclaimed tradition of its two predecessors, That’s Entertainment! III incorporates scores of famous songs and dances from MGM films and reunites nine of the performers who rose to international stardom through their MGM association. That’s Entertainment! III features astonishing classic musical moments, great comedy and romantic teams and unearths rare footage with marvelous big-star scenes originally unseen because they were cut from their films. Gene Kelly opens and closes the picture as nine starry hosts including June Allyson, Cyd Charrise, Lena Horne, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Debbie Reynolds, Mickey Rooney and Esther Williams present this must-see assemblage of Golden Era treasures, none of which has been seen in either of the previous films. Written, produced and directed by Bud Friedgen & Michael J. Sheridan, the film was executive produced by Peter Fitzgerald.
The That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection giftset also contains an amazing potpourri of extra content. More than five hours of fascinating extra features are presented across the three discs in the set, each of which is sure to enthrall fans of the great MGM musicals. Among the many archival pieces gathered together for the collection are rare footage from MGM’s 25th Anniversary in 1949, “That’s Entertainment: 50 Years of MGM” (1974 TV special); “That’s Entertainment! III Behind the Screen” (1994 making-of documentary about the behind the camera talent); “The Lion Roars Again” (1975 MGM short); footage from the original premiere of That’s Entertainment! in Beverly Hills with Army Archerd as master of ceremonies and the cast of stars on stage; excerpts from “The Mike Douglas Show” TV special in 1976 that featured two days of premiere coverage of That’s Entertainment, Part 2; “The Masters Behind The Musicals” (a half hour documentary about the MGM wizards behind the camera, with interviews from stars including Ann Miller, Jane Powell, Angela Lansbury and others); “Just One More Time” (1974 featurette); and a dazzling MGM Outtake Jukebox which includes an impressive array of rarely-seen deleted musical numbers from the cutting-room floor featuring such stars as Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Durante, Esther Williams, Lena Horne, Jane Powell, Mel Torme and many other legendary MGM stars. These archival special features are all presented in standard definition.
Tech Specs:
That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection gets the Hi-Def “red carpet” treatment with each feature in the trilogy presented with full HD 1080p masters and Dolby True HD audio. The set also includes more than five hours of extras and rarities including three documentaries, premiere night coverage and salutes to the great behind-the-camera talents, TV specials, making-of featurettes, plus an extensive video jukebox of rare, star-packed musical outtakes from classic films, and more.
“In 1974, the theatrical release of That’s Entertainment! was an unexpected box-office bonanza. Part of the reason for the film’s enormous success was the visual and aural splendor of its 70mm presentation and 6-Track Stereophonic Sound. Now, thanks to the wonders of High Definition, that excitement can finally be re-created for the home viewer, as the film and its two exciting sequels look and sound better than ever before,” said George Feltenstein, WHV Senior Vice President, Theatrical Catalog Marketing. “With virtually all the greatest musical moments of all-time to draw from as its subject matter, this collection of the three THAT’S ENTERTANIMENT films will surely become an essential part of any film fan’s library. The dramatic improvement High Def brings to the amazing imagery and sonics of the great MGM musicals is astounding. We feel this is going to be a tremendously popular gift item for the holiday season”.
That’s Entertainment! showcases 125 stars from nearly 100 films including superstars Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Mickey Rooney, Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Liza Minnelli, Peter Lawford, Donald O’Connor, James Stewart and many more. Originally released in 1974 to mark MGM’s 50th Anniversary and to celebrate the golden era of the greatest movie musicals ever made, That’s Entertainment! was an unexpected surprise smash at the boxoffice, grossing $28 million at the time and firmly establishing the MGM musical within the pantheon of greatness within American film history. Written, produced and directed by Jack Haley Jr., with Daniel Melnick as executive producer, That’s Entertainment! uniquely blends newly-filmed accounts of the personal memories of 11 of the stars who were at MGM from 1929-1958 during the making of these classic films with a panoramic retrospective of unforgettable musical sequences from them. Film historian Robert Osborne provides a personal and fascinating behind-the-scenes introduction to each of the three films in the collection.
Originally released in 1976, That’s Entertainment, Part 2 continues the dazzling tradition of That’s Entertainment! taking up where the other one left off, presenting fabulous sequences from movie musicals and highlighting such non-singing stars as Greta Garbo, Clark Gable and the Marx Brothers. Also featured are two of the champion song and dance men of all time, Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly (together for the first time since Ziegfeld Follies of 1946), acting not only as narrators but also as performers, singing and dancing in all-new numbers directed by Kelly just for the film. That’s Entertainment, Part 2 was produced by Saul Chaplin and Daniel Melnick, with narration by Leonard Gershe and additional music arranged and conducted by Nelsen Riddle.
Released in 1994 in celebration of MGM’s 70th Anniversary, That’s Entertainment! III brings back to the screen the stars and musical numbers that have excited audiences for generations. In the acclaimed tradition of its two predecessors, That’s Entertainment! III incorporates scores of famous songs and dances from MGM films and reunites nine of the performers who rose to international stardom through their MGM association. That’s Entertainment! III features astonishing classic musical moments, great comedy and romantic teams and unearths rare footage with marvelous big-star scenes originally unseen because they were cut from their films. Gene Kelly opens and closes the picture as nine starry hosts including June Allyson, Cyd Charrise, Lena Horne, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Debbie Reynolds, Mickey Rooney and Esther Williams present this must-see assemblage of Golden Era treasures, none of which has been seen in either of the previous films. Written, produced and directed by Bud Friedgen & Michael J. Sheridan, the film was executive produced by Peter Fitzgerald.
The That’s Entertainment: The Complete Collection giftset also contains an amazing potpourri of extra content. More than five hours of fascinating extra features are presented across the three discs in the set, each of which is sure to enthrall fans of the great MGM musicals. Among the many archival pieces gathered together for the collection are rare footage from MGM’s 25th Anniversary in 1949, “That’s Entertainment: 50 Years of MGM” (1974 TV special); “That’s Entertainment! III Behind the Screen” (1994 making-of documentary about the behind the camera talent); “The Lion Roars Again” (1975 MGM short); footage from the original premiere of That’s Entertainment! in Beverly Hills with Army Archerd as master of ceremonies and the cast of stars on stage; excerpts from “The Mike Douglas Show” TV special in 1976 that featured two days of premiere coverage of That’s Entertainment, Part 2; “The Masters Behind The Musicals” (a half hour documentary about the MGM wizards behind the camera, with interviews from stars including Ann Miller, Jane Powell, Angela Lansbury and others); “Just One More Time” (1974 featurette); and a dazzling MGM Outtake Jukebox which includes an impressive array of rarely-seen deleted musical numbers from the cutting-room floor featuring such stars as Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Durante, Esther Williams, Lena Horne, Jane Powell, Mel Torme and many other legendary MGM stars. These archival special features are all presented in standard definition.
Tech Specs:
- 1080P (Mixed 1.33:1, 1.85:1, 2.4:1 and 2.55:1)
- English Dolby True HD 5.1 Surround
- English DD5.1 Surround and Spanish 1.0 Mono
- French DD2.0 Surround (That’s Entertainment! and That’s Entertainment! Part 2 only)
- English, French and Spanish subtitles (Main Features only)
Comments
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Originally Posted by David Mackenzie:
Glad to see something other than men and guns movies on HD optical disc. Warner have always been great in this regard.
I think Warner Bros. was built on men and guns! (Okay I know there were Casablanca and a few others) But MGM was the studio for musicals and women's pictures ;) Of course Warners acquired the bulk of MGM's library through Turner/Time Warner merger.
Blu-ray.com
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Originally Posted by David Mackenzie:
Glad to see something other than men and guns movies on HD optical disc. Warner have always been great in this regard. I'd love them even more if their HD transfers were as good as Paramount's all the time.
WB has a substantially better HD record than Paramount. I am unsure what you are trying to point out.
Pro-B
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Originally Posted by Pro-Bassoonist:
WB has a substantially better HD record than Paramount.
Pro-B
Some of us would strongly disagree with that statement.
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WB more than any other studio release their vast amount of classics. And as far as HD-DVD supporting studios go are No. 1 in the lossless sound front with Dolby TrueHD.
EDIT: However, yeah in a ideal world, all of Warners HD releases should be like Disney.
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WB has a substantially better HD record than Paramount. I am unsure what you are trying to point out.
http://www.lyris-lite.net/2007/10/its_a_big_movie_so.html pretty much sums up my opinion.
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Originally Posted by Michael Mackenzie:
Originally Posted by Pro-Bassoonist:
WB has a substantially better HD record than Paramount.
Pro-B
Some of us would strongly disagree with that statement.
David,
You may disagree with such a statement but fact of the mattesr is Paramount is not in the same league with Warner. I could bring a case by case comparison on Blu-Ray titles they have released (I am not an HDDVD supporter) and both in terms of voulme and video/audio presentation WB is clearly the winner. Furthermore, I am ususre why you are quoting yourself with the article supplied above to vladiate your OWN pre-existing claim. Makes little sense to me if at all.
From Rattle and Hum, to Sleepy Hollow, to Sahara, etc. Paramount have revealed plenty of inconsistencies which many of the main reviewing sites have pointed out. In the audio department the situation is quite similar.
Once again, I respect your opinion, but the two distribs are quite different, with WB having the upper hand.
Pro-B
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You have reiterated your opinion and even claimed that it's a fact, but you haven't produced any evidence to back this up (which was the purpose of linking to my own site - ignore my writing and look at the direct frame-grabs, which I believe tell the whole story).
Paramount have certainly had inconsistencies as you've said. But the most recent titles I've seen have looked fantastic, whereas more often than not, the WB discs I've seen have featured a softened look (the exceptions being the likes of 300 and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire).
Regarding Blu-ray only titles: this might explain some of our differences. I believe Sony actually encoded Paramount's earlier BD titles.
What Warner titles do you recommend I should compare to the average Paramount disc to change my mind? The title "Zodiac" might turn out to be an interesting one, Warner distribute it here in the UK and Paramount in the US. Assuming they do two different encodes, I wouldn't be surprised if the Paramount version ends up being the more detailed. Might be worth revisiting in a few months.
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I am unsure precisely how many of Paramount's catalog product you have had the chance to evaluate but a quick comparative search at the main reviewing sites should reveal to you that the cumulative grading for their discs (I take into consideration Paramount's entire output so far) is slightly above average. Reds, Sleepy Hollow, Rattle and Hum, Coming to America, Black Rain, etc are some great example of the distrib's quality standard. Yes, they do have some top-tiers but compared to the consistent output of quality releases provided by Warner there is simply no room for comparison.
In fact, I must note that it would be substantially easier to point out an average looking WB title than an exceptionally good-looking Paramount disc. In addition, WB boast a much bigger list of releases compared to Paramount (the quantity to quality ratio comes to play here).
Regarding fact(s): refer to DVDTALK if you wish and compile a list of Paramount titles versus WB titles (note the amount of titles each studio has produced thus far) and compare the average score each studio gets. Then do the same with a second source of reference and compare the exit data again.
Pro-B
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I'm not really into commenting on most of the review sites because there's been a lot of ratings from them that I've scratched my head over (none of those from DVDTalk that I can remember though, in all honesty). Either way, because a review site says it doesn't mean it's a fact (can someone's opinion of a video transfer ever be more than an opinion?)
You prefer WB because most of their discs haven't looked poor and have looked pretty good. I prefer Paramount because a lot of their recent stuff has been excellent, and I choose to discount the older, perhaps poorer titles (again I need to point out, those first Paramount discs - I've not seen the BD versions. That could further explain our differences of opinion). D'you think that's a fair summary?
Blu-ray.com
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Sounds fair to me. We shall agree to disagree since de facto there is no way for us to avoid the site-pattern you note and this does appear to be a strong argument in your case.
Keep up the good work.
Sincerely yours,
Pro-B
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