Has anyone hearrd the commentary by John Milius on BW DVD?
I have to say what a huge dissappointment. He sounded like he had just woken up, smoked a pack of unfiltered cigerettes after a night of drinking. Sorry to sound so cut-throat. I love his work and am a HUGE fan of Big Wednesday. There would have been so much trivia and behind the scenes info about Jan-Michael, Busey, Kaat and others that would have been fun to hear. He barely talks and when he does, it's very un-interesting!! No passion!!
I completely agree. I'm heading up the coast this weekend and want to stop by some of the filming locations. I've cruised by them countless times, but this time I'm taking my camera. I'm watching it with the commentary on right now. I was hoping he would discuss the exact locations used, but his commentary falls short even in that regard. Hopefully, they will put out another edition and get some of the actors to do a better commentary.
I quite liked the commentary. He comes across as wistful, as though he's getting lost in the film. In a way, it's kind of bittersweet because it's clear that he loves this film yet it didn't get the praise it deserved at the time.
I loved his commentary. He seems to do the kind of commentary that's a bit more deep and thoughtful. He'll talk about the themes of the movie or the characters and what influenced him or inspired him, and it helps me see things I hadn't seen before, and helps me understand the film more.
When a director just talks about the sets or the camerawork or things like that, it BORES me. The director's commentary for Die Hard was exactly like that. It's like, John McClane is having a defining moment in his development as a character, or there's a massive explosion in an elevator shaft, and these guys are still mumbling about the damn fountain in the lobby!! Are you saying that you're the type of person that that stuff is aimed at?
I prefer Milius' kind of commentary. I may be biased, though, as I already know where most of the surf footage was made, and I've been to many of those spots. The "Great Swell" surf scene at the end was all filmed at various famous waves at North Shore, such as Waimea Bay, Pipeline/Backdoor, and Sunset Beach (which John Milius says in the commentary). I've surfed several of those spots (or rather, I wiped out and got pummeled there lol) and I was instantly able to recognize those looming, menacing peaks lol
If he sounds hoarse and tired, that's how he always sounds. In interviews, commentaries, etc. Is he supposed to go through voice-box surgery just to please you?