What are the Best/Worst Commentary tracks?
I like commentary tracks that are insightful/amusing/revealing. I like knowing "inside information" about how movies are made, interesting stories about shoots etc. I hate commentaries where some attention starved actor talks over what the director is saying or simply praising their performance...Tell me what you think are some of the best/worst tracks you've listened to. For example, I loved the Jackie Chan's commentary for "The Myth" (even though the movie was terrible). I hated Irwin Kershner's track for "The Empire Strikes Back" (he literally is describing what is happening on screen, as if he's doing a track for the visually impaired)
Tags: commentary, track
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Spindaddydad on -
I always thought Kevin Costner's commentary of Dance With Wolves was a great one even though it was back in the relatively "new" days of DVDs and commentaries, even though he wouldn't reveal what they substituted as buffalo liver when he ate it fresh out of the dead beast.
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Permalink Reply by Secret Agent Gal on -
A very good commentary track for Breach features the real-life Eric O'Neill talking about the pursuit and capture of Robert Hanssen, considered the worst spy in U.S. history. O'Neill shares interesting details about Hanssen and the filming of the movie.
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Permalink Reply by ColSlade1 on -
Generally, I think all commentary tracks are a waste of time... I really don't understand the point of them 95% of the time.
They seem to fall into one of these categories:
1.) Actors pontificating
2.) Mindless set gossip
3.) Boring tidbits
4.) Truncated how to
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Permalink Reply by tmjung on -
Unless, I'm in a rush to mail off a movie, I always listen to commentaries..."Wrong turn 2", had 3 commentaries...bad movie, but I still listened...too much time on my hands...
I agree that I don't want to hear some lame actor talk about their "craft" just like I don't want to hear their opinion about Britney Spears. I find it funny how people who make their living from reciting other peoples words think that their own opinion actually matters...
As a technical person, I find the "process" the most interesting to hear about. To hear about how/why a 2 minute scene took all day to shoot. To hear about how much time and thought some directors put into shots, to the smallest detail...and yet, I wouldn't have noticed had it not been pointed out...or maybe some mistake that was made that I didn't notice.
In "Alien vs. Predator", there were 2 commentaries, the first was the director and the male/female lead, the second was the special effects team. After listening to the first, I wanted to punch the female lead in the face, but in a effects heavy film like this one, the second commentary was really interesting. Granted, most people wouldn't find it interesting, but I'm one of those guys who watches "How it's made" so I like that kind of thing...I like knowing how the "tricks" were done.
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Permalink Reply by WhiteNoise on -
Anyone listened to Burton's commentary on Planet of the Apes? Last track, particularly. Ten minutes or so of complete empty nonsense. I wanted to hear his take on the ending. My jaw dropped when I listened to it.
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Permalink Reply by Matthew on -
I find Joss Whedon's commentary tracks (he's done a few for Buffy, Angel, and Firefly, and he did one for Serenity as well) informative, useful (in terms of filmmaking technique and advice), and entertaining.
The Fight Club commentary, with Fincher, Pitt, Norton, and Carter (the latter recorded hers seperatley and was edited in, which I hate, but the boys were all in the same room) was pretty excellent as well.
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Permalink Reply by Nathan on -
Herzog, totally!
When I saw this topic, I immediately was going to jump in and say ANY Herzog film (with the exception of perhaps My Best Fiend, which seems to be almost a video commentary - is there even an audio commentary on that film?) is worth watching twice so as to listen to the commentary.
Learning of what the film crew went through, and the budgets being as small as they were on many of his films, just astounds me on how good the films still turned out. Especially on Aguirre: Der Zorn Gottes and Fitzcarraldo, the film isn't complete without the commentary in my opinion.
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Permalink Reply by Mark Zajac on -
Dear tmjung,
My favorite commentaries reveal some minute detail of the creative process that significantly impacted a film yet escaped my notice, at least at a conscious level.
The commentary for "Dear Frankie" reveals that the color palate for the film was strictly limited to the hues employed by a famous school of Scottish painters. For one scene at a school, children's exercise books with grayish paper were specially ordered from France, since the typical bleached white paper of the Scottish location did not fit the color scheme for the film. Also, the director requested a subtly wester theme for the costuming of one character. In a million years, I would never have guessed this for a film shot in Glasgow but, once the secret was out, it became screamingly obvious, much to my surprise. Moreover, upon reflection, that subtle signature note fit perfectly with the story and really gave that character an extra dimension.
The commentary for "Sweet Land" reveals that all of the music was composed and performed on instruments that were found at garage sales, including prominent use of a child's plinky-plonk toy piano. Amazing! How did I not notice?
Sincerely,
[:-)] Mark
Mark Zajac
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Permalink Reply by Jo17ie on -
I can't wait to watch that commentary on Dear Frankie. That movie is great.
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Permalink Reply by The Real Uncle Bob on -
It was fun joining Frank Henenlotter as a guest on his commentary for Brain Damage (sadly unavailable). Frank complains about doing them, but his commentaries are always well-reviewed.
The commentary I've most enjoyed among recent film viewings was Karen Moncrief's for The Dead Girl.. One of those films that is fashionably non-linear, it comes off as much less artificial than Babel (for one instance); it was interesting to find that the idea came to Moncrief in a rather "organic" way, from a jury duty experience where the testimony of various witnesses shed light on the persona of a murdered girl, somewhat like the title character.
After listening to the commentary, I looked into Moncrief's career, and found my stereotypes blown as I learned of her background as a soap opera actor and a beauty pageant contestant.
Have to agree with the Bum about Herzog's incisive and insightful commentaries.
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Permalink Reply by Sillstaw on -
I like listening to commentaries once in a while, when I'm really curious. Some of the more interesting ones:
John Sayles' "Limbo." It's somewhere between "how-to" and "set gossip." He talks about how the cinematographer planned the movie, how rain doesn't show up on film unless backlit, and most importantly, why he chose the ending. Maybe it's a little basic, but for film nerds who want to make movies, it's nice to know that kind of stuff.
Francis Ford Coppola's "Rumble Fish." It's kind of just about what the movie was like to make, and about his kids being in the movie. (It was a real "Whoa!" moment for me to find that Sofia Coppola had a minor-but-visible role in the movie.)
Yeah. As you can tell, I don't listen to them a lot--just when I'm curious enough.
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