Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I was a Pink Floyd fan throughout my younger years, but The Wall to me is still one of the most wonderfully well-produced albums of all time. I must have seen this film in the theater over 20 times during my high school years. And now, seeing and hearing this film on DVD has 'remastered' my appreciation for this entertaining visual and audio experience. At first sight, the graphics work on the package and the disc itself is attractive. the animated flowers are beautifully portrayed on the disc. The inner pamphlet is a simple mini poster, with movie and DVD credits. I was hoping for a little more to read, but I guess not this time. I popped the DVD into my player and was immediately introduced to the main menu. You have 4 choices....the movie, the extra features, scene/song selection and audio selection. Let's first talk about the audio selection, titled "Set The Controls". You have a choice of 5.1 surround and PCM stereo surround. **TECHNICAL NOTE-If your DVD player has 3D sound enhancement, you must turn this off for this disc. Having that feature on will lower the sound quality from this disc** You also have a "system set up" choice. It gives you specific sound tests and directions on volume and surround elements. A nice addition, kind of like the THX optimode on other discs, but slightly different. The next menu button is titled "Any Title You Like". Under this, you get to choose subtitles if you wish. Your choices are Spanish, French or English. You get to choose scenes by song, of course. Unfortunately, these choices are only numbered, there are no descriptions of the scene or the song. So, it may take a few tries to find an individual scene. You also have a choice to watch the film with the song lyrics below the picture. This is pretty cool. It reminded me of those "Pink Floyd Karaoke Parties" that I never went to! Anyway, it would probably be taken more seriously to those not too familiar with the lyrics. The final button, titled "A Soucerful of Features", contain all the supplemental material. You have your choice of two documentaries, titled "The Other Side", "Retro Part One", and "Retro Part Two". "The Other Side" is a piece produced around the time The Wall was released, and it's great to watch. There is a lot of behind the scenes footage. "Retro Part One and Two" are recent documentaires containing rather new interviews with Roger Waters, Alan Parker and others who worked on the film. Both of these documentaires are fascinating because it is well known (to fans), that Roger and Alan had very different views as to what the film is about! A lot of behind the scenes stories and information. They are put together very well and a pleasure to watch! You also have the choice of watching the film with commentary by Roger Waters and Gerald Scarfe (animation). These commentaries have great behind the scenes information throughout the film. Roger Waters is especially a pleasure to listen to because he laughs (which is rare), and he gives the commentary a more personal experience since the film is semi-autobiographical. He even mentions a story about Syd Barrett (the founder of Pink Floyd). This commentary is outstanding. The final piece of supplemental material is when you click a button titled "Oddities". These pieces of supplemental material include the trailer, photographs from the movie set, paintings from the film, a music video of "Another Brick in the Wall-Part 2", and a sequence of the song "Hey You" that was not in the final cut of The Wall. That's all the supplemental material...well worth it too! The only two complaints I have are these buttons that you can press that give you 10 second sound bites from the film, and the slowness of the menus. After you select something, you need to watch 10 seconds of video before you are allowed to make your next choice. Menu design and graphics is pretty good, but should be MUCH faster. OK, so I watched the film and the high definition transfer is incredibly beautiful. Colors are deeply saturated with a sharp picture and wonderful clarity. The transfer is very impressive! Sound quality is a mixed bag. The production track sounds dated, not too much range but not at all annoying, just noticeable. The music is unbelievable! The soundtrack was remastered from the ORIGINAL MASTER TAPES. If you've never heard The Wall on a surround sound system, you are in for a big treat. The music sounds almost perfect, with some hiss, but nothing to complain about. There were times I heard instruments that I didn't remember from the album....incredibly clear, wonderfully recorded music. I can't say enough about the musical soundtrack, it comes alive on DVD. Pink Floyd never sounded better! In conclusion, I recommend this DVD to EVERY Pink Floyd fan, and to those who want to hear a unique, musical experience and watch a beautifully photographed film. I must add that the animation is absolutely wonderful. Gerald Scarfe has included his great creativity throughout the film! The disc loses points ONLY for its slow menu navigation. Other then that, Pink Floyds The Wall on DVD is wonderful. Tons of extra footage, a beautiful transfer and unbelievable sounding music. A great DVD to own whether you live inside or outside the wall! Enjoy!