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[Peter]

Hello Ken and everyone else on this great site, hope you are all well.
I will be home (England) in January or February and will be getting a few things and of course DVDs are some of those things. Although I have a list bigger than what is here, I would like to know if anyone else has any opinions that differ from mine.

1) Fred & Ginger Box Set Volume 2
Flying Down To Rio / The Gay Divorcee / Swing Time / The Story Of Vernon And Irene Castle
I know the story about this and have written about this in the Fred & Ginger section. As I said before, I want to get this for two reasons. First I love Fred & Ginger and second, I want to get this to compare with Ken’s first box set. I will obviously be nowhere as happy about it as I was with the first box set and will let the ‘those from another planet’ at Universal know once I have checked it out.

2) The Complete Thin Man Collection DVD Box Set (Powell & Loy)
The Thin Man (1934) - After The Thin Man (1936) - Another Thin Man (1939) -
Shadow Of The Thin Man (1941) - The Thin Man Goes Home (1944) - Song Of The Thin Man (1947)
I have been waiting for this for a long time and it is here at last. Sadly the quality does drop as the series progresses but they are still a great collection.

3) Sherlock Holmes Classic Films Box Set (7 Discs) (14 films)
7DVD Box Set: Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce
Hound Of The Baskervilles (1939) - The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes (1939) - The Voice Of Terror - The Secret Weapon - In Washington - Faces Death - Spider Woman - The Pearl Of Death - The Scarlet Claw - The House Of Fear - The Pursuit To Algiers - Woman In Green - Terror By Night - Dressed To Kill
This set is around £40-£50 but is the best if quality is wanted as they are better quality than the cheaper set (Baker Street Dozen: Sherlock Holmes Collection - around £20 no extras), have extras and two (important) extra films, Hound Of The Baskervilles (1939) - The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes (1939).

4) Universal Monsters Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Dracula / Wolf Man) Box Set (13 Discs)
The Dracula Legacy
1. Dracula (1931)
2. Son Of Dracula (1943) and House Of Dracula (1945)
3. Dracula (Spanish language version) (1931) and Dracula's Daughter (1936), plus bonus footage
The Frankenstein Legacy
1. Frankenstein (1931)
2. The Bride Of Frankenstein (1935)
3. Son Of Frankenstein (1939) and Ghost Of Frankenstein (1942)
4. House Of Frankenstein (1944), plus bonus footage
The Wolf Man Legacy
1. The Wolf Man (1941)
2. Werewolf Of London (1935) and She Wolf Of London (1946)
3. Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man (1943), plus bonus footage
4. A documentary of horror from the Universal studio, narrated by Kenneth Branagh
The Monster Legacy
1. The Mummy (1932)
2. The Invisible Man (1933)
3. Phantom Of The Opera (1943)
4. Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954)
Yes, Universal again and this box set does work out more expensive than getting them separately for some reason but is still a good collection. I did actually find Frankenstein (1931) & The Bride Of Frankenstein (1935) in a double DVD box for £2.99 but I don’t think all of the above are available like this in the UK.

Warner Brothers New King Kong Collector's Edition 2-disc DVD
I have the Universal (them again) single DVD one but now know that the Warners double DVD version is far superior and has all of those extras.

Astaire & Rogers Collection, Vol. 1 (Warner Brothers)
(Top Hat / Swing Time / Follow the Fleet / Shall We Dance / The Barkleys of Broadway)
Astaire & Rogers Collection, Vol. 2 (Warner Brothers)
(Flying Down To Rio / The Gay Divorcee / Roberta / The Story Of Vernon And Irene Castle / Carefree)
I’m will wait for region 2 but not forever as I know these are well worth getting.

There are others on my list but they either keep getting delayed or are not being brought out (yet?).

[Ken Barnes]

Hi Peter,

I have most of the box sets mentioned in your message of 12 December - and all represent good value. The Sherlock Holmes - Basil Rathbone set released earlier this year by Optimum is excellent value and can be currently purchased on www.Amazon.co.uk for just 31.99. Not bad for 14 films (on 7 discs) The extras include a documentary on UCLA's restoration of the films (repeated on all seven discs) and there are some interesting audio commentaries ( which are not without errors but still worth hearing )

The Thin Man Collection is a knockout. As you point out, some are better than others but all benefit from the magic of Powell and Loy.

Universal's Monster Legacy Collection is well worth the money and, again, you can get a pretty good discount on Amazon.UK. There are a number of good extras in this set and some really engrossing audio commentaries from the likes of Rudy Behlmer and Scott McQueen. Obviously, these were not produced by the London office. But the London packaging is better than the U.S. release.

Warner's Region 1 King Kong Collector's Edition on 2 discs is an absolute knockout and ought to make Universal's London office hang their heads in shame. The audio commentary on discs one by Ray Harryhausen and others is not as brilliant as I had hoped it would be. But the second disc has two engrossing documentaries - the first is Kevin Brownlow's account of the life of producer, Merian C. Cooper ( and what a life it was ). The second is a collossal 2hrs and 40 mins Making Of... by Peter Jackson ( director of the spectacular new version of Kong ) and this is put together with such detail and loving care that no one could possibly argue that Mr. Jackson is the best man to do a re-make of this beloved classic.

As for Warner's second box of FRED AND GINGER, this will be released in August of 2006. So, happy viewing. Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.

[G. Weatherly]

To all DVD collectors, get the Warner Region 1 edition of KING KONG and forget the miserable Region 2 from Universal. There is no contest.

[Peter]

Hello Ken,
Thank you for the valuable information and time you have given to answer. I'm looking forward to getting them and having a feast of true entertainment. Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year to you too.
Peter

[Ken Barnes]

My thanks to Ken Barnes for pointing out Warner's region one special edition DVD of King Kong. This is an outstanding release and far exceeds the cheapjack UK version from Universal.