Search - The Hitchhiker on DVD

MPAA Rating: NR Movie Release: 2004 DVD Release: 03/16/2004 Format: DVD - Closed Captioned Edition: Television Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: English, French, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 2 Number of Discs: 2 Run Time: 5 hrs 0 mins Studio: HBO Home Video Total Copies: 1

The appearance of this fondly-remembered cable show on DVD is a pleasant surprise, but HBO Video's presentation is a mixed bag. The first problem is that, instead of delivering a full season, this set includes ten episodes plucked from various seasons. The ones presented are some of the best (especially "Man's Best Friend" and "WGOD"), but there simply aren't enough episodes to create a comprehensive overview of the show. The mixed-bag feel of the set extends to its technical merits. While the audio is fine (both mono and stereo mixes are included), the image suffers from some graininess and wavy video that make it look like these discs were taken from poorly maintained elements. Despite these flaws, the set's producers provide an unexpectedly nice bonus feature in the form of director commentaries on half of the set's episodes, which offer some revealing insights into what it was like to shoot material that combined a lot of creative freedom with the demands of television programming. Paul Verhoeven, in particular, offers a fascinating commentary that foregoes the usual behind-the-scenes details to discuss how working on this show helped him make the transition from European filmmaker to Hollywood director. This DVD set is not an ideal introduction to The Hitchhiker, but the commentaries make it worth a look for the show's fans. ~ Donald Guarisco, All Movie Guide