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MI6 reviews the new James Bond Ultimate Edition
DVD of the 1965 outing "Thunderball"... |
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DVD Review - Thunderball
31st January 2007
The James Bond movies have been brought into
the 21st century with special 5.1 surround sound remastering,
new film transfers and extra special features in the "Ultimate
Editions" series. MI6 reviews the films and each of these
features along with all the special new content.
| Official Blurb
The thrills never let up as James Bond dives into this riveting
adventure filled with explosive confrontations and amazing
underwater action sequences! Sean Connery brings his characteristic
style, humour and magnetism to Agent 007 as he travels to
Nassau to track down villainous criminal Emilio Largo, who
is threatening to plunge the world into a nuclear holocaust.
Data Stream
Region: 2
Release Date: 17th July 2006
Running Time: 125 minutes
Screen Format: 2:35:1 Anamorphic PAL
Soundtracks: English DTS 5.1, English DD5.1
Subtitles: English, English Captions, Greek, Danish, Dutch,
Finish, Hindi, Norwegian, Swedish.
Audio Specs
English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
English DTS 5.1 (768Kb/s)
English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0
English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 |
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Video
The Lowry Digital team had a challenging task ahead of them with "Thunderball".
Many would agree that the video quality of the Special Edition
"Thunderball" left much to be desired. However, considering
the age of this reel, the video is crisp and bright and everything
a fan could hope for. Colours are much fuller making the underwater
scenes as impressive as they must have been on the big screen
back in 1965.
Audio
The two audio tracks featured on the Ultimate Edition "Thunderball"
are subtle in their differences. The Dolby Digital 5.1 is much
as the fans might expect. All dialogue is audible and the music
lends an impressive air to the action sequences. The new audio
track, DTS 5.1 is a little bolder – background noise, or
"foley", is slightly stronger in the mix, sometimes
assisting with the telling of a story, sometimes impeding the
character’s dialogue. On the whole, DTS is a slight improvement
to the viewing of "Thunderball".
On The DVD
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DECLASSIFIED: MI6 VAULT
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The Incredible World of James
Bond – Original 1965 NBC Special
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A Child’s Guide To Blowing
Up A Motor Car – 1965 Ford Promotional
Film
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On Location With Ken Adam
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Bill Suitor: The Rocket Man
Movies
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"Thunderball" Boat
Show Reel
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Selling Bond – Original
1965 Television Advertisements
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007 MISSION CONTROL
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Interactive Guide Into the
World of Thunderball
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THE COMPLETE SPECIAL FEATURES
LIBRARY - MISSION DOSSIER
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Audio Commentary Featuring
Terrance Young and Others
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Audio Commentary Featuring
Peter Hunt, John Hopkins and Others
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Making of "Thunderball"
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The "Thunderball"
Phenomenon
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The Secret History of "Thunderball"
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MINISTRY OF PROPAGANDA, Original
Trailers, TV Spots & Radio Communications
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New Bonus Features
The Incredible World of James Bond –
A 1965 look at the past three Bond films, their villains,
their girls and their action. This feature also introduces
the world to the newest film in the Bond series, "Thunderball".
Dated, and a bit rusty, but an interesting look at what
some would say was the high period of Bond’s success
in the cinema - the 1960’s.
A Child’s Guide To Blowing Up A Motor Car
– A Ford motorcar promotional video. In the style
of a ‘60s home movie, this featurette finds a young
boy and his uncle on the set of the "Thunderball"
car chase! Features some interesting behind the scenes footage
of the film.
On Location with Ken Adam – Production
Designer, Ken Adam, talks the viewer through a selection
of personal footage he took whilst location scouting or
shooting “Thunderball”. Features a laid-back
yet very interesting commentary from Ken Adam.
Bill Suitor: The Rocket Man Movies –
The Rocket Man Movies is the story of the infamous Rocket
Belt as seen in “Thunderball” and it’s
pilot, Bill Suitor. Features old, untouched footage of
Rocket
Belt test-flights, and behind the scenes “Thunderball”
footage.
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"Thunderball" Boat Show Reel –
Introduced by modern-day Bond producer Michael G. Wilson,
the boat show reel is an alternate version of the final
underwater
confrontation in "Thunderball, put together for a
boat show months before the film's release! The John Barry
musical
score does not accompany this footage – the only audio
featured is underwater foley.
Selling Bond
– Three 1965 black and white TV advertisements marketing
various Bond merchandise. Includes the Burton Rain Coat,
the
Burton "Action" Slacks [trousers] and the 007 Toy
set by American Character.
One Last Thing....
Sadly, only a couple of still photographs survive of a cut scene where Bond is
given a tour of the Disco Volante.
MI6 Rating
| Video |
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| Audio |
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| Special Features |
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| Overall |
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