Search - Magnificent 7 (2005 Tour de France 12-Hour DVD; 6 pc.) on DVD

WCP Can Do Better

R. E. Marsh | Charlotte, NC United States | 11/01/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Cycling enthusiasts will value this set, because it chronicles the final triumph by Lance Armstrong, who has dominated cycling's "World Series" in an unprecedented manner.
However, as someone who watched OLN's coverage of the event live this year, the set was disappointing because of the inept sound mixing. There is also some questionable editing decisions in including some analyst's features, which detract from the flow of the race. Ned Boulting again has some fine interviews, but the debut of former British cycling champion Chris Boardman is largely wasted. He just isn't given the opportunity to say much of interest, and one suspects that he could contribute more of substance. Don't get me wrong, Boardman and Boulting are fine replacements for the Yanks (Bob Roll and Al Trautwig) who were added to the OLN commentary line-up, but WCP has the best two announcers in sport in Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen, and most time away from their call of the live race is time wasted.
The box promises "12 hours of action," instead, we get 10 hours of action, and 2 hours of filler. Boardman or Boulting may someday make a decent replacement for Paul Sherwen's second chair when Phil Liggett can no longer go, and Sherwen is the main announcer, but Gary Imlach's stand-up comments on racing and local color in years past were less obtrusive, and, frankly, better written.
Liggett is in very bad voice during the Alpes stages, suffering from a cold of some sort. He recovers for the Pyrannes stages, and his voice, at its best, is a mixture of precise British diction and almost Gallic charm delivered in a rich, hypnotic baritone. No one calls a sprint for the finish better, in any sport, than Phil Liggett. It will be a real loss for cycling when he retires.
There were a few inspired special features that were a welcome addition to this DVD set: First among these would be the interview with the poised and clever father of Aussie sprinter Robbie McEwen, who managed brilliantly the damage control for his talented but volatile son, caught just a few days earlier head- butting his rivals at the finishing line.
Armstrong makes winning the Tour de France look easy - too easy, really. His success has had many positive effects - for American cylcing, cancer research, and Sheryl Crow's resurgent career - but it will be fun to see other cyclists emerge from his huge shadow next year, and to see how his former teammates perform, unburdened by the need to support their captain.

[I have edited this review after watching this dvd again in early 2006. My earlier comments were too harsh regarding Ned Boulting and Chris Boardman. The major problem is the sound quality - one hopes that WCP could fix this and rerelease this set.]"

You're going to buy it anyway....

G. Hoffman | 10/28/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"If you're a cycling fanatic, you're going to buy this set anyway, but the other reviewers are correct: there are definate issues with the DVD authoring and sound mixing used for this set. The video itself is the same you would have seen on OLN or virtually anywhere else. The video is clear, except when transmission is blocked due to mountainous terrain. That's the video issue mentioned by another issue. It's not that the DVD transfer is bad or anything - it's the same as what you saw on OLN - brief interruptions and assorted glitches.

The audio is another issue. The sound mixing is bad. I found that if I kept the volume at a medium level, it wasn't bad, but the background noise is often too loud to hear the commentary very well - you hear a lot of helicopter noise, crowd noise, etc. They may have been thinking it added to the realism, but they they are wrong - it's annoying. However, it's tolerable.

On one of the discs, the bonus features menu was screwed up. The menu said it was one thing, but it was actually a repeat of a bonus item off the previous disc. That's just bad QA.

Obviously they had to pick and choose which bits of the race to show, and I think in general they did a good job of it. The race always seems exciting, and you get to see most of the major tactical moves.

The bonus features are nice, generally two extra video segments per disc, and are the sort of "behind the scenes" stories you might have seen when the race was broadcast, but it's not OLN's videos, which might be a good thing if you already saw that on OLN's coverage when the race was actually happening.

"

DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY

Dr. Bill | Texas | 10/28/2005

(1 out of 5 stars)

"PLEASE DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS VIDEO. The quality of this video is that of a high school student. I pre-ordered this video and AM NOW SEEKING A FULL REFUND. The audio is HORRIBLE. The sound mixing is HORRIBLE. The sound quality is as though someone is speaking in a drum, and the next second the helicopter sounds are so loud you have to mute your sound system; and, then the commentary is so low in volume all you hear is static. It is a shame that World Cycling Productions put this on the market. DO NOT BUY IT. I really do not know how to get this thru to you, JUST DON'T BUY IT."

Good Overall Recap of the '05 TdF

SoCal Reader | Los Angeles | 07/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Very nice dvd for those who wish to relive the great moments of the 2005 Tour. Many who may have watched on OLN will recognize the footage, b/c it's basically the exact footage from the OLN broadcasts. Not a bad thing in that, since Phil Ligget and Paul Sherwin do a great job commenting.

A couple of notes:

- I was a bit disappointed in the "Extras." There are 2 Bonus Features on each DVD but 1 is always just a menu to buy other Cycling/TdF merchandise.

- Good coverage of other riders and action that didn't involve Lance.

- On the other hand, there were some instances where more coverage of Lance/Discovery Team (or even leading contenders and their teams) would've been appropriate. I seem to recall long segments focusing on breakaway riders of little consequence, which was interesting to a point but somewhat boring. Where was the peleton? What were the top contenders and their teams doing?

- Why not shorten that coverage and show the Team Time Trial of CSC, T-Mobile, and Discovery in its entirety?? There was barely any footage of what was a spectacularly exciting race. Also, for the last stage, we mostly get a few laps in Paris. I would've liked to have seen the Discovery Team riding en route in their "victory" line-up, Lance riding thru the throng of team cars thanking the other sporting directors, etc.

- Yes, the sound quality isn't good. The volume on my set fluctuated from loud to normal (yet sounding like the announcers were in a tunnel).

Still, a very good dvd to have if you're a Lance, Discovery, or overall cycling fan."