Great DVD "Bonus" Films

[NotSoSilent]

I recently purchased Why Change Your Wife? on DVD. While I bought it specifically for that film, I have to admit I was very impressed with the "bonus" film included, William C. deMille's Miss Lulu Bett. This got me thinking, what other bonus or secondary titles on DVDs (or similar) do you like as much as, if not more, than the primary film you were purchasing? Basically, what other "bonus" finds are out there?

[R Michael Pyle]

I recently purchased Why Change Your Wife? on DVD. While I bought it specifically for that film, I have to admit I was very impressed with the "bonus" film included, William C. deMille's Miss Lulu Bett. This got me thinking, what other bonus or secondary titles on DVDs (or similar) do you like as much as, if not more, than the primary film you were purchasing? Basically, what other "bonus" finds are out there?

Almost too many to count!!

I recently watched the Kino release of "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". On the same DVD is the truncated version of Wiene's "Genuine: The Tale of a Vampire", exceedingly rare, indeed. Many other DVD's have these special films on them. A few Blu-Ray discs, too.

[Salty Dog]

Because of Chaplin family wishes, I think most DVD or Blu Ray issues of "The Gold Rush" have the talkie reissue as the main feature and the original silent as an extra, and I think most here would prefer that version.

[ColemanShedman]

I don't know if it is "better" but the DVD of Greta Garbo's Camille also includes the 1921 silent version starring Alla Nazimova and Rudolph Valentino.

[Rodney]

The Old Wives for New disc includes The Whispering Chorus as an extra. Which is better depends on your taste, of course, but The Whispering Chorus was definitely a ground-breaking film, if not a great success. I also prefer Miss Lulu Bett to Why Change Your Wife?, though I like both of them for different reasons. Miss Lulu Bett is quite powerful, Why Change Your Wife? is quite entertaining, and both are pretty funny.

[s.w.a.c.]

Not silent, but it was a nice bonus to get Fritz Lang's version of Liliom (1934) as a bonus on the deluxe DVD (not sure about a blu-ray, if one exists yet) of 20th Century Fox's Carousel (1956). Too bad they couldn't throw in the 1930 version directed by Frank Borzage.

Speaking of which, has anyone seen the 1921 version set in Coney Island, retitled A Trip to Paradise, with Bert Lytell?

[SilentsPlease]

The DVD edition of the early French musical "A nous la liberte" contains the surrealist silent short film "Entr'acte". Very nice film.

A documentary called "Hollywood Chinese" contains as a DVD supplement the 1910 D.W. Griffith Biograph short called "That Chink at Golden Gulch", which is an interesting look at how Chinese-Americans were depicted in film back then. I made a thread about it. Also on the DVD is a recently-discovered, 1916 silent film made by Asian-Americans in San Francisco called "The Curse of Quon Gwon".

[Spiny Norman]

The many faces of Catwoman, an extra on the DVD of Catwoman.

But of course, that wasn't a real challenge to beat.

[Rick Lanham]

The Cottage on Dartmoor DVD has a documentary called Silent Britain. I found it interesting, but it gave me the feeling that each country's documentaries try to carefully parse their claims so that they are "first" at as many things as possible in the history of film.

The blu-ray of Bullitt has a documentary called The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing; about which I remember nothing.

Rick

[Christopher Jacobs]

The blu-ray of Bullitt has a documentary called The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing; about which I remember nothing.

Rick

Watch it again ASAP! That documentary alone (which is in full HD) is worth twice the price of the Blu-ray (which is currently in bargain bins at $7 to $10) and it's like getting the okay late-60s full-length feature BULLITT in full HD at no extra cost! There are also some SD bonus features about the star of BULLITT, that actor called Steve McQueen (not to be confused with the current director who has the same name).

[s.w.a.c.]

The Cottage on Dartmoor DVD has a documentary called Silent Britain. I found it interesting, but it gave me the feeling that each country's documentaries try to carefully parse their claims so that they are "first" at as many things as possible in the history of film.

So you're saying that Roundhay Garden Scene isn't a classic of the cinema?

[ColemanShedman]

The Criterion version of Stagecoach also includes Ford's Bucking Broadway (1917).

[T0m M]

Kino's DVD releases of Buster Keaton's features all contain two or three his shorts and many would argue that the shorts outshine many of the features. The sole exception is the dual feature DVD of Our Hosptality and Sherlock Jr, with both being excellent. Similarly most of MIlestone's Mary Pickford releases contain bonus shorts, though offhand I couldn't pick one where the short outshines the feature. Their Pickford double feature of Heart O the Hills and M'Liss rate about equal IMO. Image has a double feature with Louise Brooks in The Show Off pairing off against Clara Bow in the Plastic Age. Which is better will probably depend on your actress preference. I always thought that Hoodoo Ann stood up reasonably well against the True Heart Suzie on another Image double feature disc. I know Image includes DeMille's The Golden Chance on his Don't Change Your Husband disc, but it's been a long time since I've seen either and neither have really stood out in my mind.

[s.w.a.c.]

Ford's Bucking Broadway

Try saying that five times fast!

One of the DVD versions of the James Bond spoof version of Casino Royale also includes the original 1954 TV broadcast of Casino Royale which was part of the series Climax! with Barry Nelson as an American (!) "Jimmy" Bond and Peter Lorre as Le Chiffre. For some annoying reason, this was not included as an extra on the later Blu-ray of the '60s Casino Royale, possibly because they didn't have a transfer that was up to hi-def standards, but it drives me bonkers when a Blu-ray of a film comes out missing extras found on a previous DVD edition.

On a similar note, the UK DVD of Blake Edwards' freeform comedy/Tati tribute The Party includes extras not on the North American disc, like a number of Peter Sellers' TV commercials for Barclays Bank and some featurettes.

[Rick Lanham]

The Cottage on Dartmoor DVD has a documentary called Silent Britain. I found it interesting, but it gave me the feeling that each country's documentaries try to carefully parse their claims so that they are "first" at as many things as possible in the history of film.

So you're saying that Roundhay Garden Scene isn't a classic of the cinema?

I didn't even get back in with my popcorn! It was already over!

Rick

[Rick Lanham]

The blu-ray of Bullitt has a documentary called The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing; about which I remember nothing.

Rick

Watch it again ASAP! That documentary alone (which is in full HD) is worth twice the price of the Blu-ray (which is currently in bargain bins at $7 to $10) and it's like getting the okay late-60s full-length feature BULLITT in full HD at no extra cost! There are also some SD bonus features about the star of BULLITT, that actor called Steve McQueen (not to be confused with the current director who has the same name).

I will definitely watch it again this week.

Rick

[drednm]

The old Fort Lee documentary is rather bleak, but the 30-minute version of A Girl's Folly (1917) is a delight. I have not seen the 65-minute version. This one has a terrific score by Robert Israel and looks pretty good with just a few minutes of deterioration.

Doris Kenyon stars as a country girl who by mishap ends up with a chance to be in the movies, makes a screen test, etc. Robert Warwick is the star who becomes smitten with her. Lots of scenes of how they assemble sets, rehearse scenes, etc. (all at Fort Lee). Film was directed by Maurice Tourneur who plays the director. Josef von Sternberg plays the cameraman. Leatrice Joy the the leading lady and Johnny Hines plays the villain. June Elvidge is a problem in that her part seems to be that of some sort of groupie in love with Warwick, but she also seems to be a joke among the movie players. I guess a lot of her part is not in this version.

[ColemanShedman]

The Christmas in Connecticut DVD also includes the Oscar-winning short Star in the Night (1945). TCM occasionally slips this little gem in-between films during the Holiday Season but for me it is worth buying the disc for, especially as it is currently only $5.99 at amazon. I've given it as a gift to several people and specifically pointed them to the bonus film. Most people tell me they had never heard of it but that it has become a must-watch for them.

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Connect ... onnecticut

[FrankFay]

The old Fort Lee documentary is rather bleak, but the 30-minute version of A Girl's Folly (1917) is a delight. I have not seen the 65-minute version. This one has a terrific score by Robert Israel and looks pretty good with just a few minutes of deterioration.

Doris Kenyon stars as a country girl who by mishap ends up with a chance to be in the movies, makes a screen test, etc. Robert Warwick is the star who becomes smitten with her. Lots of scenes of how they assemble sets, rehearse scenes, etc. (all at Fort Lee). Film was directed by Maurice Tourneur who plays the director. Josef von Sternberg plays the cameraman. Leatrice Joy the the leading lady and Johnny Hines plays the villain. June Elvidge is a problem in that her part seems to be that of some sort of groupie in love with Warwick, but she also seems to be a joke among the movie players. I guess a lot of her part is not in this version.

My favorite part: Kenyon has a screen test. When they project it Tourneur keeps the camera on the audience so all we see is her horrified embarassed reaction.

[Gaucho]

A few obvious ones.

Captured on Film: The True Story of Marion Davies has "Quality Street" (1927) as an extra.
Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Power of Women in Hollywood has "The Little Princess" (1917) as an extra.
The Olive Thomas Collection has "The Flapper" (1920) as an extra (or is the documentary the extra?)
The Blu-ray release of All Quiet on the Western Front has the excellent silent version as an extra.
O. Henry's Full House (1952) has 2 silent shorts included on it: "Girls" (1927) and "A Man About Town" (1927)
The Lumivision DVD Nothing Sacred (1937) has "Campus Vamp" (1928) and "Matchmaking Mamas" (1929)
Rudolph Valentino: The Great Lover has "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" (1921) on it
The documentary Silent Britain has a short "Cut it Out" (1925)
Criterion's Floating Weeds (1959) has the silent version "Story of Floating Weeds" (1934)