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Rating:  -
I remember seeing this movie in a theater when it originally came out. I really liked it at that time, but I think it has not aged well. For all the gory detail on the movie, see the WIKI pages: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight_Zone:_The_Movie
On the intro, I liked the first scene with the car cutting through the dark landscape and CCR playing Midnight Special, but then the dialog between the two men in the car was too lengthy and sounded forced to me.
The first segment I thought was pretty good, especially for the message it sends (you could think of it as Karma on steroids). The main actor, cursing out loud in a bar on Jews, Blacks and Asian people, gets a load of "karmic revenge" when suddenly transferred to Nazi Germany as a Jew, as a Black hunted down by the Ku-Klux-Klan, and (presumably) as a Vietnamese during the Vietnam war. My wife made a comment that "he will come back as a changed man", and supposedly the original script had him save two Vietnamese children and indeed return a better human, but this episode was cut short by the tragic accident on the set. The resulting ending showing him deported in a train with other Jews does leave you craving for a more satisfying conclusion.
The second segment is probably the weakest. Spielberg's contribution is indeed overly sentimental, the acting a little overplayed and the story not really dramatic. The likeable old black man going from one retirement home to the next does succeed though in showing the elderly that they rightfully so can be proud of the lives they lived, but also not forget that they can still employ a joyful and childlike attitude and still enjoy their remaining years.
The third segment is based on a pretty cool idea, a young boy that can make everything reality that he imagines. The "family" he has assembled in his house acts pretty creepy at first, until you realize that they are just really fearful of all bad consequences that may happen when disagreeing with the little boy.
The fourth and final segment has mostly been found the most entertaining, I would agree. Seeing people smoke on airplanes obviously shows the age of the movie. The acting in this one is pretty realistic, and the story with a gremlin shoving airplane parts into a plane engine at 20,000 feet during a heavy thunderstorm is pretty cool.
It is a funny touch that they ended the final segment with bringing back Dan Aykroyd's character from the opening scene, offering to show "something really scary".
Rating: -
As a big Twilight Zone Series fan, a movie including remakes of the original episodes should be a must-have. Unfortunately, out of over 150 episodes, some of the weakest episodes were picked to be remade in this movie. The only "classic" episode is "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", which originally starred William Shatner. The remake is well done, but the monster was actually MUCH creepier in the original episode.
The funny thing is that Albert Brooks mentions, probably the most popular, and definitely one of the best episodes ("Time Enough at Last" starring Burgess Meredith) in the introduction scene of the movie. Why not remake this episode instead of just mentioning it? It was clearly classic enough to be acknowledged in the movie, so why remake mediocre episodes instead?
I'll never understand the planning of this movie, and I can never really enjoy watching it. If you're unfamiliar with the series, and need a gateway to see what it was all about, this is a terrible representation of what to expect. Don't waste your money here, buy the Twilight Zone Complete Season DVDs instead. There's plenty of bang for your buck there.
Rating:  -
Finally, I have a copy!!! It seems this film was very hard to find anywhere. I happen to work at Magnolia Home Theater and we received (2) copies, so I snagged one before it hit the shelves. On to the movie. This is one of those movies you just want to have. It was my and many's favorite t.v. show and the movie is worthy of it's name.
DVD specs: VC1 codec, Dolby TruHD, DDPlus. Extras: Movie Trailer (poor picture quality)
Since the movie is literally 4 movies by four directors, you cannot review it as a whole as each have distinct differences due to the directors style.
The 1st Segment: Looks very good. The polyester suits and fat ties at the bar date the film. Good detail on the whole. Nazi suits are sharp, good color saturation throughout. Only glaring exception is in dark scenes some noise and not the darkest of black. The sound is very good, great front stage and the rears are used but won't distract what's happening up front. Good midbase and highs are really defined. I can't remember, even in the movies it having the detail in sound it has now, almost no LFE (sub-bass) but that's the way it was initially recorded. The TruHD is slightly better than the DD plus.
7 out of 10 in picture - 8 out of 10 in sound.
2nd Segment: Looks rather soft, but you have to realize again: Different director, different style. This one was directed by Steven Spielberg (good to see his stuff on HDDVD). You will notice the familiar softness that he adds to movies. The classic Speilberg soft filter (Goonies, ET, Close Encounters etc). Close ups of the older people look very sharp, long shots look a little better than a regular DVD, but in regular shots very detailed. The sound again is very, very clean. The score, which I remember as being very emotional and critical to the feel of the segment, was there and more. I still choked up at the end. Its good to see Scattman Crothers again (main charactor). He's a cinematic gem, delivering his usual steller performance. Remeber him in The Shining?
8 out of 10 picture - 8 out of 10 sound. Gave an eight because it's what Speilberg intended it to look like.
3rd Segment: Wow. This is easily the most impressive both sound and video. Colors are amazing! A few very small traces of grain, otherwise very impressive. When in Anthony's home, right away you notice the very colorful over the top couch, then the wall colors are made to stand out. I remember Quinlan being beautiful when I watched this as a kid, wow my memories serves me right. Detail is almost reference. The sound is equally impressive. Great dynamics, detail and out of the segments, the best bass responce. When the rabbit comes out of the hat.....look out it snapped me back.
9 out of 10 picture - 9 out of ten sound.
4th Segment: It went from wow to woe. This is easily the most dissapointing segment of the movie. It starts out very grainy, noisey, and dare I say VCRish. It then cleans up and looks good for a scene or two then for some reason, it goes back to VCRish picture. Very inconsistant and distracting. What was my second favorite segment, has been shown no love. It must have come from a poor master, or just hurried at the end, I don't know, but even the climactic end, was blurry and undefined. Sound was o.k. and that's a compliment. Lithgow is Lithgow so no matter how bad the print, he's an brilliant actor.
4 out of 10 picture - 4.5 out of ten sound.
The closing was worth the price of this disk. Rod Serling's voice and famous Twilight Zone score in TruHD.....PRICELESS.
In parting. This is one of those movies that you just remember every line, every scene, every facial expression. Having scene it in this form, I can say it still is by far the best this movie has been presented. The last segment being considered, I still recomend this film, not for a reference demo, but for what it is, a modern classic. Recommended to all who enjoyed the film in the first place.
Rating: -
While I'm thrilled that this movie has finally made it to DVD, I must admit a substantial feeling of disappointment at the lack of bonus materials included. I mean, COME ON!!....with all the talent involved both in front and behind the camera, they couldn't even spring for a commentary from one single individual involved? It just doesn't seem right. This WAS an event movie when released in the Summer of 1983, not to discount the tragic events that occured in the John Landis-directed segment. All I'm saying is that it would have been nice to have some reminiscences from a few selected cast members and especially the directors...Spielberg, Landis, Joe Dante ["Gremilins"] and George Miller ["Mad Max" and "The Road Warrior"]...each of who were a hot commodity and at the top of their game at the time the movie was made).
All griping aside, the movie remains a fun tribute to the classic TV show and is very much in keeping with the spirit of Rod Serling's vision.
Rating:  -
My husband is so sick of me talking about this movie, he has never seen it and a lot of my friends have not even heard of it!! We are having a mandatory viewing of this movie the day it comes in the mail!! I remember as a child watching theis on VCR over and over again, its the best movie and I am so excited to receive it in the mail!! I am not sure how people are saying that Amazon ripped them of and sent a bad copy when the item is still not available yet? I just love this movie to pieces and hope that my son will one day love it just as much!! i own every color version of the twilight zone and this will complete my collection, lots of good memories!! YAYYYYYYYYY is all that I can say about this movie!!!
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