Search - Marathon Man on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations, Not For Children, Adult Language Movie Release: 1976 DVD Release: 08/28/2001 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Special Collection Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 5 mins Studio: Paramount Members Wishing: 1 Genres: Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Paranoid Thriller See Also: Marathon Man [Circuit City Exclusive] [Checkpoint]

Doc Levy (Roy Scheider) is an American secret agent who has been running interference between the U.S. government and escaped Nazi war criminal Szell (Laurence Olivier). Believing that Doc has stolen a valuable cache of gems, Szell emerges from his South American hiding place and heads for New York. He has Doc killed, then kidnaps Doc's in-the-dark brother, Babe (Dustin Hoffman). Repeating the phrase "Is it safe?" over and over, Szell, a onetime concentration camp dentist, tries to extract information from Babe by performing sadistic "oral surgery" upon him. Babe, who still doesn't know about the gems, escapes, breaking his own self-imposed rule of nonviolence to defend himself against his pursuers and gearing up for sadistic revenge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Dustin Hoffman - Babe Levy
Laurence Olivier - Szell
Roy Scheider - Doc Levy
William Devane - Janeway
Marthe Keller - Elsa

One of the more original movies to come out of the 1970s, director John Schlesinger's manic thriller about a man (Dustin Hoffman) unwittingly caught up in a Nazi plot scored an Academy Award nomination for legendary actor Laurence Olivier. Paramount has also gone the distance with this edition of Marathon Man on DVD. Featuring a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, Marathon Man looks surprisingly good for its age. Although images sometimes look flat and dull, overall the colors are bright and the blacks a nice solid dark. A small amount of edge enhancement is spotted in minor scenes, but this should not intrude on the viewer's enjoyment. Audio is presented in a newly remixed Dolby Digital 5.1 track that is less than stellar. Marathon Man is not a high-octane action film, and as such, was not in dire need of an expansive remix. However, the 5.1 track is more than welcome and certainly much clearer than the Dolby 1.0 track also included on this disc (in English and French). Directional effects are present in some scenes. Also included are English subtitles. Although not a full-blown special edition, =Marathon Man includes some fairly nice extra features. Two featurettes -- a newly produced "Going the Distance: Remembering Marathon Man," and a 1976 promotional spot titled "The Making of Marathon Man" -- are both funny and insightful. The 1976 featurette is somewhat goofy and fun, while the newly produced segment features interviews with cast and crew reminiscing about the making of Marathon Man. Rehearsal footage is included, but is somewhat unengaging, and there are some cast and crew biographies and a theatrical trailer. While not perfect, =Marathon Man does make it to the finish line with a nice edition that should please fans. ~ Patrick Naugle, All Movie Guide