Michael Cain
Michael Caine.
Michael. Caine.
I'm not usually partial to any actor in particular, but for whatever reason, when I hear Mr. Caine is involved in a project, I'm always intrigued. He's an actor that I love to watch on screen; he lights up whatever he's in, even recent disasters like Bewitched and Goldmember aren't without their charm because of this man's presence.
This coming Saturday (8/1/08), some friends and I are hosting the First Annual Michael Caine Film Festival, starting at 10 in the morning and going until the late hours of the night. We'll be showing five eclectic films from Caine's six decades in cinema:
1) The Italian Job, 1969, dir. Peter Collinson
We start our film-fest with a bang! I haven't seen this film (or the recent remake), but I picked up a copy at a Barnes and Noble DVD sale. From friends who have seen it, I've heard it's a fun romp with cool cars and a suave and sexy Caine as the leading man. And I can't stop hearing about how awesome the car chases are. For that alone, The Italian Job earned it's place as the exciting opener for our soon-to-be-annual festival.
2) Noises Off..., 1992, dir. Peter Bogdanovich
Our next picture is a goof-ball, ensemble comedy, featuring Caine, Carol Burnett, John Ritter, Christopher Reeve, Denholm Elliot (MARCUS!!) and Larry from Perfect Strangers. Again, I haven't seen this picture, but I've heard it's a light-hearted farce, and the only true comedy on our roster. Any chance for Caine to stretch his comedic skills is fine by me. Plus, we need something like that to lead into our next picture...
3) Children Of Men, 2006, dir. Alfonso Cuaron.
Throwing Caine Fest was the perfect excuse to go out and pick up a copy of this really haunting film. Most of us here have probably seen it, and if not, I hope you're not waiting for a Caine-Fest to watch it. Caine, a supporting player here, famously based his charater Jasper on John Lennon (a good friend of Caines). Sure to bring the mood of the room collectively down, our next picture is much lighter fare.
4) Muppet Christmas Carol, 1992, dir. Brian Henson
We built everyone up with Noises Off, we tore 'em right down with Children of Men, and I figure we need to bring them to a place that's happy and warm. I barely remember this movie, but it's the Muppets...and it's Michael Caine. There are some musical numbers I remember, and I do recall some of the puppetry being downright spooky. The funny thing about this film is the battle over it's DVD release. Here's a real gas from the Amazon.com user review:
"The five stars are for the MOVIE, not necessarily this 2005 DVD release . . . . (Now that I have seen the new DVD, I give it 3 1/2 or 4 stars. See explanation below.)
In Oct. 2002, Disney Home Video released its first DVD formatted THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL. The response was both pro and con. The response that was negative dealt with two primary issues:
(1) That DVD was pan-and-scan (AKA "full screen" or "1.33:1") instead of widescreen, and, in fact, unlike many DVDs, did not even offer the viewer a choice between pan-and-scan and widescreen. For fans of the movie who prefer widescreen, this was a great disappointment!
(2) That DVD also removed the "When Love Is Gone" song. Disney has not, to my knowledge, offered an explanation for the removal. I would guess that it was because the song is "sad" and someone at Disney probably decided that such a "sad" song did not belong on a DVD intended for children.
Thus, that 2002 DVD had TWO strikes against it as far as MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL purists were concerned. At the Amazon site for that earlier DVD, you can find more than 130 reviews, many of which express PROFOUND disappointment and which elaborate in more detail my two points above.
Fast forward to 2005, just a couple of months ago. Disney announced a new release of this film--The Muppet Christmas Carol - Kermit's 50th Anniversary Edition. Eager fans immediately assumed that this would be the long-awaited anamorphic widescreen version. However, various statements and press releases listed the movie as 1.33:1 or, in other words, pan-and-scan. When this was discovered, the fans HOWLED at what seemed like a betrayal and an absence of common-sense by the people at Disney. THEN, within a few days of the official announcement, Disney "back-peddled" and issued a new announcement that the first one was in error and that the 50th Anniversary version would be in BOTH pan-and-scan and widescreen. The ***SIGH*** of relief was like a wind that rushed across the globe!
But now comes the TRICKY PART that tries to answer your specific question. Some fans who have contacts within the industry or have means of mining the Internet, discovered that the CONTENT of the pan-and-scan and the widescreen versions that would be on the same disc would be different in that one would have the afore mentioned song and one would not. As mentioned HERE in these reviews for this new release, apparently the version to contain the song is the pan-and-scan version--which, if it's true--is a totally incomprehensible creative decision. (Why would the the version that was TRUE to the widescreen format be missing the song, thereby compromising that version?)
Right now, as a GIANT FAN of MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL, who has longed for a widescreen DVD since the advent of DVD, I am hoping that there has been some miscommunication going on (for example, look above at the official aspect ratio listed in the Product Details. On today's date of Oct. 13, it's listed as 1.33:1, so the facts about this release seem to be unfortunately garbled!)
Incidentally, there exists a WIDESCREEN (though obviously not anamorphic) Laserdisc version of the film that INCLUDES the song "When Love Is Gone." I know because I own it . . . and it is among my most precious possessions!!
All we can do is wait until November 29 to find out what this new release will truly hold. I personally hope there will be an anamorphic widescreen version that also includes "When Love Is Gone."
ADDENDUM: Well, yesterday was November 29 and I picked up this DVD. There's good news, bad news, and some qualified good news. The anamorphic widescreen image far exceeds any previous video or DVD version. However, the rumours are TRUE that the widescreen does NOT include the wonderful song "When Love Is Gone," and that the fullscreen version DOES include it as "Extended with Deleted Scene." However, for the diehard, there is this awkward-but-workable compensation: The two versions are on the same side of the DVD, thus when the widescreen version comes to the point when the song should be sung, you can use your remote to go back to the menu, choose fullscreen, go to chapter 5, listen to the song, and then go back to widescreen to view the rest of this glorious Christmas movie. It is a pain and an unfathomably poor decision by the suits at Disney!
Since a complete widescreen version obviously does exist in the Disney archives (the Laserdisc version in the mid 90s was both widescreen AND complete), one can only wonder how and why Disney made this very insensitive and unprofessional decision!
Neverthless, FINALLY having MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL in anamorphic widescreen is definitely a plus. It is the best resolution (though not perfect) that has ever been available in any home media format, and the Dolby Digital sound is quite acceptable.
Since this is likely to be the last DVD version of this movie for quite some time, we should (1) continue to ponder Disney's callous obliviousness and its clear childish stubbornness to do what's right, while (2) counting our blessings that at least we are nonetheless PART way to the ideal MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL DVD.
Talk about MIXED emotions! I think that one problem is that nobody at Disney is clear that the film is a true work of art, instead of "just a movie stamped out for kids." I think nobody there realizes that the film deserves far more respect than the grudging, lackluster, shoddy efforts they have so far foisted on the public. I am very pleased to see the many astute reviewers for this new edition over and again make this point exceedingly clear! THE WORST OF IT IS THAT IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!
BTW, on November 29, Garan Grey posted a review mentioning several EXCELLENT points underscoring Disney's faulty decision-making--especially about the lackluster special features, recycled menu design, and so forth, in what is supposed to be a very special "special edtion"! However, this reviewer says: "By the way, it seems that the "widescreen" version is just matted down from the full 35mm 1.33 frame, so the fullscreen version is not missing any of the picture." In point of fact, ALL pan&scan versions that I have seen (INCLUDING the pan&scan on this very disc) SQUISHES the titles, cuts Muppets off the sides of the movie, and even sometimes squishes scenes so the characters look tall and skinny. Which is WHY I have been waiting for the widescreen for years! In general, I'd say that Garan Grey is definitely incorrect on this point.
Carl Cannella, too, has made some fine points!"
And after we've exhausted the Michael Caine with Muppet film category, we're wrapping the evening up with one of my personal favorite pictures:
5) The Man Who Would Be King, 1975, John Huston
By Caine's own admission, they don't make movies like this anymore (and he said that in 1975). This picture, based on a Rudyard Kipling short story, is all adventure, and co-stars the equally affable Sean Connery. The DVD was a bit hard to come by, and many people kind of squint and turn their heads when I tell them it's a favorite, so I encourage all who haven't seen it to try and find it. The adventure it stirs in it's viewers is the perfect way to close the night.
I'll give updates on how the Michael Caine Film Festival is received on Sunday/Monday, but until then, I encourage you guys to throw together a Caine-Fest of your own, or take the opportunity to discuss some of this fine actors' fine work.
