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John Milius' youth is woven into this classic surfing movie, as you'll discover on a DVD so evocative of a bygone era it near transports you back to the 60s.
TECHNICAL FEATURES
Picture Apart from the odd minor flecks of print damage, this is a beautiful transfer that's bright and fresh, which is exactly what you want for the surfing scenes.
Sound The 2.0 surround sound mix is quite light, but provides a good strong centre speaker channel.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Audio Commentary Worth the price of the DVD alone, John Milius provides a fascinating commentary that's amongst the best you'll ever hear.
For years he planned "Big Wednesday" as a novel, but as time went by and he got more involved in movies, he realised that a film was the way to go as this would be a highly visual story.
Anecdotes galore flow forth from Milius, as he reveals that the characters were amalgamations of people he knew. He'd hang out with his friends at a place called Starburger, where the owner would tell them they'd all be in jail by their 20s. With expansion in California came the freeways and Starburger was flattened by progress, so taking with it a way of life that Milius will paint in your head like a vivid canvas.
Capturing the Swell Made by Blue Underground, this featurette is too short at 14 minutes. Still, it's compact and full of juicy material, with Milius discussing how he got into surfing, and the critical vilification that the film received (one critic called him a Nazi - a comment he still doesn't understand to this day).
Additional Extra Features Also on the DVD is a trailer, and cast and crew list.
TECHNICAL INFORMATION
Chapters: 30
Ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic)
Audio Tracks: Multiple languages
Subtitles: English and multiple languages
Captions: English and Italian
Menus: Static, with music
Special Features Subtitles All of the special features come with subtitles apart from the Capturing the Swell featurette.
This DVD was reviewed on a JVC XV-N5 DVD player.
