Search - The Fantastic Films of Ray Harryhausen - Legendary Science Fiction Series (It Came from Beneath the Sea / Earth vs. the Flying Saucers / 20 Million Miles to Earth / Mysterious Island / H.G. Wells' First Men in the Moon) on DVD

FAKE "widescreen" ruins several titles!

Nostalgic for the '50s | 04/28/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Although I am a fan of all the films in this collection, and the quality of reproduction is good, I wound-up trading away three of these five films in anger! "It Came from Beneath the Sea", "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers," and "Mysterious Island" (none of which were originally filmed in a widescreen process) are all presented in a FAKE "widescreen" which does nothing more than essentially cut-off the tops and bottoms of the films as originally presented. Thus--watching them is like watching the originals through a mail-slot! As a purist, I consider this to be sacrilege, and my purchase of this collection essentially a complete waste of money! (Fortunately--though wearing out--I still have my VHS copies of these films, which are much closer to the original film ratio.)"

ORIGINALLY MADE IN 1.85 WIDESCREEN

Paul Scott | CENTRAL COAST,, N.S.W. Australia | 01/25/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These films,were in fact filmed in either 1,85 or 1,66,both Widescreen for the cinemas.
Being a Projectionist working in the 50's I can vouch that these films were all presented in Widescreen.
So as one reviewer puts it,these are not fake Widescreen'but are being presented as they were originally filmed.
Had to clear that up.
"

Before Star Wars & LOTR

James D. Porter | Waco, TX USA | 12/08/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I saw these films on those rainy Saturday afternoon movie presentations on tv during the 60's & 70's when I was growing up on a farm in central Texas. I liked em then and I still like em in spite of all the cgi efx we now enjoy on film. There was something special about these movies that you just have to experience to appreciate. Like OZ and King Kong- the old efx are sometimes the best."

FX Genius

Gary E. ERTMAN | Kissimmee, Fl | 01/11/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have every Ray Harryhausen film on VHS...now I am near completion of the DVD versions. Here is a man who did not
need computer graphics to achieve his incredible goals of
excellent special effects. He was able to entwine fact and fiction in scenes you have to see many times to appreciate
the pain staking stop motion (I've read 8 hours for just a few moments on film)that is presented. This SCI FI set is a very good indication of his genius. The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms was his first screen credit. The last known film I have is Clash of the Titans. If you want to enjoy old movies that deliver great
special effect punch...get The Fantastic Films of Ray Harryhausen
They are a credit to his profession."