The Cecil B. DeMille Collection (Cleopatra/ The Crusades/ Four Frightened People/ Sign of the Cross/ Union Pacific) DVD
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Universal Studios
EAN: 0025192948725
Format: Box set, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
Item Dimensions: 90
Label: Universal Studios
Languages: EnglishOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 2.0 MonoEnglishSubtitledSpanishSubtitledFrenchSubtitled
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
MPN: D29487D
Number Of Items: 5
Publisher: Universal Studios
Region Code: 1
Release Date: May 23, 2006
Running Time: 571 minutes
Studio: Universal Studios
Theatrical Release Date: May 05, 1939
Editorial Review:
Product Description:
This collection of classic Hollywood features directed by Cecil B. Demille includes the following five films: SIGN OF THE CROSS FOUR FRIGHTENED PEOPLE CLEOPATRA THE CRUSADES and UNION PACIFIC. Each film proves that Cecil B. De Mille was the ultimate when it came to creating epic and grandiose versions of history using a signature blend of period realism and sumptuous art direction.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 025192948725 Manufacturer No: 29487
Amazon.com:
One of Hollywood's greatest showmen gets a worthy showcase in The Cecil B. De Mille Collection, consisting of five of the legendary producer-director's most characteristic films. As noted by David Thomson in his influential book A Biographical Dictionary of Film, "De Mille's movies are barnstormers, rooted in Victorian theatre, shamelessly stereotyped and sentimental, but eagerly courting 20th-century permissiveness, if only solemnly to condemn it." That's an apt description of the films included in this nicely packaged box set, which offers no extras beyond the films themselves. Thomson is equally accurate in calling De Mille's films "simple, raw, pious, and jingoistic," but as these five well-preserved films make abundantly clear, De Mille was always a consummate entertainer. One of Hollywood's foremost pioneers, De Mille cut an iconic figure, single-handedly defining the archetypal image of the dictatorial director, complete with boots, jodhpurs and an ever-present riding crop to enforce his domineering authority. After failed attempts to work independently and, later, for MGM, De Mille found a permanent home at Paramount in 1932, and it's there that he made these five films (now owned by Universal as part of their pre-1948 Paramount library), which represent the glorious clash of Christian virtues, epic-scale production values, lurid sexuality, and self-important grandiosity that make De Mille's films so curiously (and in many cases hypocritically) enthralling.
The Sign of the Cross (1932) is quintessential De Mille, now famous for its pre-Code (i.e. pre-censorship) scene of peep-show nudity as Claudette Colbert (playing Poppaea, wife of Charles Laughton's Roman emperor Nero) takes a tantalizing bath in goat's milk, daring DVD viewers to freeze-frame "the naughty bits" while Roman prefect Marcus (Frederic March) struggles to reconcile his loyalty to Rome with his forbidden love for the Christian maiden Mercia (Elissa Landi), who's destined for the lion's den. Full of outrageous spectacle (including dwarves in the Roman arena), this blood-and-guts epic is pure De Mille compared to the more conventionally formulaic adventure of Four Frightened People (1934), also starring Colbert as one of the four titular characters shipwrecked on a remote Malay island (filmed at Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, in Hawaii) and forced to fend for themselves. It's a stodgy but frequently amusing adventure, with Colbert's uptight schoolmarm growing sexier and less inhibited with each passing scene. Colbert returns (De Mille obviously adored her) in the title role of Cleopatra (1934), easily seducing Marc Antony (played by De Mille favorite Henry Wilcoxon) in a film as lavishly appointed as it is melodramatically extreme. Wilcoxon pairs with Loretta Young in The Crusades (1935) with De Mille once again mixing piety with prurience in a religious epic that promises plenty of sex but, in classic De Mille fashion, remains steadfastly chaste. Union Pacific (from Hollywood's golden year of 1939) is a grandly entertaining Western that mangles history (specifically, events surrounding construction of the transcontinental railroad) while casting gunslingers Joel McCrea and Robert Preston in a contest for Barbara Stanwyck's affections.
Choosing a favorite among these five films is purely a matter of personal taste, but for all of his weaknesses as a director (not the least being a condescending and self-righteous arrogance toward his audience), De Mille was never, ever boring. These films helped to make Paramount the most profitable studio of the 1930s, and they hold up remarkably well. Despite the complete absence of bonus features (Universal once again taking the low-cost option with no-frills packaging), each film is presented in pristine or near-pristine condition, ripe for first-time viewing or nostalgic rediscovery by vintage film buffs everywhere.--Jeff Shannon
Average Rating: 
Rating: -
The DVD was really good. The print was good and the voice quality was good. It is to know that Amazon also has such an old collection
Rating:  -
Fabulous, I would recommend to anyone that loves Cecil B. DeMille's work. It's worth every penny! I only wish I had purchased it sooner.
Rating: -
Cecil B. DeMille is one of the pillars of American film and therefore one of the world's pillars of film. Presented here are some of his efforts from the early 1930's. There's the usual pre-code sexual tones, especially in "Sign of the Cross" and "Cleopatra", that were characteristic of movies made before late 1934. Claudette Colbert sizzles in both of the films above and Loretta Young was never more beautiful than she appears in "The Crusades",
Overall, I think the Universal transfer ... Read More
Rating: -
...and those who don't believe it, I pity them.... And, although Cecil B. De Mille is mostly remembered for sprawling epics, my favourite one in this set is "Four Frightened People", where Claudette Colbert should have got the award she got in "It Happened One Night"(same year). I like very much Capra, but I think De Mille gave her a very much funnier part in this one. Of course, it was a flop in its days, but what could you expect from a country which created Prohibition (Birthmark of the Mafia), Hays' ... Read More
Rating: -
5 great DeMille films with very good prints. Unfortunately, there are no extras. I rue the day Universal acquired the Paramount library.
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