Review of Indy DVDs by Matt Shaw

Review of the Indiana Jones DVDs by 'Matt Shaw':

October 23rd, 2003

The Holy Grail of DVD's arrives...

..and all I can say is about time!!!! Now after all the rumours earlier in the year that Lucas and Spielberg wanted to release these one by one, I'm sooooo glad that Paramount stuck to their guns, and released the set that now sits proudly on my shelf.

Firstly, the films themselves. Have they ever looked better? Probably not. Painstakingly restored to their new pristine condition, I don't recall having seen Doom look this good, since I saw it at the movies. And are we missing out on a commentary track? Don't know, don't care, don't tend to listen to them anyway. Probably saving that treat to the Indiana Jones Quadrilogy Set in 2006, with hours of bonus stuff that we'll all go out and buy I guess!!!

Now the bonus disc. I have to admit this was the first thing I had to watch And yes - it was really good. Maybe a little short - an hour on each film wouldn't have been too much to ask. But this was a fascinating exploration from start to finish. Of the four mini-featurettes, my favourite would be the John Williams one. It blows me away some of the themes he's come up with (Star Wars, Indy, Jaws, Schindler's List and Harry Potter) so this was a nice addition to this set. The only thing in addition I would have liked to see is the hour doco on Doom released back when the movie was released - something I remember from my childhood. That and a few deleted scenes perhaps.

Now the downside - the LucasArts game trailer for The Emperor's Tomb... why oh why?

Now if you own it - you'll already know that this is a must. If you don't, I imagine you're reading up first to see if it's worth your hard earned cash. So stop thinking, and run don't walk to your local store, because it is.

DVD Rating: StarStarStarStarStar