Spectre

Starring:Alexandra Paul, Greg Evigan, Scott Levy
Studio: New Concorde Home En
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Russian ballet
A passable presentation
Good Performance
Excellent performances
An amazing selection!

The Kirov Celebrates Nijinsky / Sheherazade, La Spectre de la Rose, The Polovtsian Dances, The Firebird
Starring: Paris Opera Ballet , The Polovtsian Dances , and The Firebird
Manufacturer: Kultur Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0006SSQ6Q
Release Date: 2005-02-08

Description

From the Theatre Musical de Paris - Chatelet; the Kirov Ballet salutes Nijinsky. Sheherazade with Svetlana Zakharova, Faruk Ruzimatov, Vladimir Ponomarev. Music by Rimsky-Korsakov, Libretto by Leon Bakst, Choreography by Mikhail Fokine. Le Spectre de la Rose with Zhana Ayupova and Igor Kolb, Music by Carl von Weber, Orchestration by Hector Berlioz, Choreography by Mikhail Fokine. The Polovtsian Dances with Islom Baimuradov and Polina Rassadina, Music by Alexander Borodin, Choreography by Mikhail Fokine. Firebird with Diana Vishneva and Andrei Yakovlev, Music by Igor Stravinsky, Choreography and Libretto by Mikhail Fokine.

Customer Reviews:

Russian ballet.......2007-06-27

The dances and dancing are excellent.But the title is misleading, since all is done by the Paris Opera ballet and Nijinsky was long dead. Just say "Russian Ballet Sampler."

A passable presentation.......2007-03-31

Not what I expected. Colors too gaudy, the dancing less than what is expected from this company.

Good Performance.......2007-01-19

The quality of the taping was superb....sound, picture clarity. I've seen some recording of live ballets that were pretty awful in sound and picture. As for the perfomances themsevles.....it was good, not great. The Kirov is considered to have the best Chore in the industry, yet they were hardly on stage. All in all, it's not a bad purchases if you are a ballet enthusiast.

Excellent performances.......2007-01-10

It's always nice to find multiple performances on on dvd. Great company. Wonderfurl dancing for my students to view.

An amazing selection!.......2006-09-28

This is one of the best purchases I ever made! The music, the dancing, and the selection of pieces all complement each other to provide for a true beautiful performance. My favorites at this point are Sheherezade and La Spectre de la Rose. I really like to wake up and whenever I can watch them because they have so much positive energy and beauty about them. Highly recommend it!

Naked City - Spectre of the Rose Street Gang

Average customer rating:

Release the earliest episodes first!

Naked City - Spectre of the Rose Street Gang
Starring: Horace McMahon , Harry Bellaver , James Franciscus , John McIntire , and Nancy Malone
Director: Harry Harris , Lawrence Doheny , Ralph Senensky , John Peyser , and Paul Stanley
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0001UZZMM
Release Date: 2004-05-11

Description

In "Spectre of the Roses Street Gang" Carroll O'Connor (All in the Family) is one of three successful businessmen who killed a boy long ago. An old friend who learns about the crime hopes to use the information for his own interests. In "Goodbye Mama, Hello Auntie Maud" a murdered woman's daughter unwittingly has a romance with the killer, the family chauffeur (The Magnificent Seven's James Coburn). In "Torment Him Much and Hold Him Long" Barney Sonners (The Godfather's Robert Duvall) is a down-on-his-luck bartender who borrows money from a crime gang to help his family, only to find himself relentlessly hounded by thugs. In "Five Cranks for Winter# Ten Cranks for Spring" Manager Gus Slate (Peter Gunn's Herschel Bernardi) turns on his boxer and helps his opponent, all for a rose.

Customer Reviews:

Release the earliest episodes first!.......2004-09-06

I'm giving this DVD five stars because Naked City was one of the greatest shows to hit the air, and because this DVD is definitely worth buying and is better than 99% of what appears on TV (and about 70% of films) nowadays.

Unfortunately, this DVD happens to contain four of the weaker episodes from the third season, when Naked City moved to "softer," more character-driven shows. The first two seasons were much harder edged, and in my view much better.

Obviously they were selected because of the stars who appeared--Carroll O'Connor in two episodes, Jack Warden in one, James Coburn in one and the great Robert Duvall in two.

But the Coburn episode, while well-acted, is set in an upper-class milieu and the plot is claustrophobic and unappealing. The motivation of the Coburn character doesn't make sense.

The Rose Street Gang episode is hampered by weak acting (apart from O'Connor and Warden) and a cop-out ending.

The two Duvall episodes were OK--Duvall is always a pleasure to watch--but not as great as the early episode Hole in the City, which fortunately was released in an earlier DVD.

Jack Warden was in many Naked City episodes. Why hasn't the distributor released the famous "water tower" episode (I believe it is entitled the King of Venus), also with Jack Warden giving a superb performance, which was better than all these four combined?

There are literally dozens of much better episodes from the first two seasons that remain unreleased. By choosing weaker episodes because they have "stars," the distributors are shooting themselves in the foot.

But don't get me wrong. Note the five stars. This DVD is definitely worth buying. But I would suggest that a newcomer to the show go back to the first released DVDs. They contain such classics as "Hold for Gloria Christmas" with Burgess Meredith, which was really outstanding.

Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 28, Episodes 55 & 56: Assignment: Earth/ Spectre of the Gun

Average customer rating:

And So Season 2 Ends and Season 3 Begins!
"That, Miss Lincoln, is simply my cat."
Gary Seven & Eugenic Wars
Two unusual episodes bridge seasons 2 and 3
"I can't just kill them!!!"

Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 28, Episodes 55 & 56: Assignment: Earth/ Spectre of the Gun
Starring: Star Trek Original Series
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005J6RF
Release Date: 2001-07-10

Amazon.com

"Assignment: Earth"
The final broadcast episode of Star Trek's second season was this clever and funny story in which the Enterprise travels back in time to 1968 (the year this program aired) to discover how the nuclear arms race came to an end. Captain Kirk (William Shatner) encounters a strange fellow named Gary Seven (Robert Lansing), who claims to have been trained by extraterrestrials in sabotaging the escalating nuclear threat. With the ambivalent aid of a nervous secretary (Teri Garr), Seven (yes, there was a Trek character with that name before Voyager) attempts to carry out his assignment, but Kirk isn't sure if he can be trusted. Lansing's droll and somewhat imperious performance is nicely counterpointed by Garr's cute confusion, and the eerie presence of his familiar--a black cat named Isis--adds a hint of hoodoo exotica. (Don't blink at the end or you'll miss the really exotic creature Isis briefly turns into.) "Assignment: Earth" was actually the pilot for an intended Gene Roddenberry-produced TV series that never happened. Too bad... But speaking of eerie, Spock (Leonard Nimoy) at one point refers to an important assassination that will soon take place. A week after this episode's original airdate, Dr. Martin Luther King was murdered.

"Spectre of the Gun"
In this taut, exciting episode, the Enterprise trespasses Melkotian space and is punished in a unique fashion. Kirk (William Shatner), Spock (Leonard Nimoy), McCoy (DeForest Kelley), Scotty (James Doohan), and Chekov (Walter Koenig) are all transported to the planet's eerie surface, where they are trapped in a re-creation of 1881 Tombstone and mistaken for the Clanton brothers, doomed principals in the infamous gunfight at the OK Corral. Despite their efforts to avoid trouble, Kirk and company can't seem to avoid their fateful duel with the Earp brothers and Doc Holliday (Sam Gilman). When Chekov is shot dead by Morgan Earp (Rex Holman), the danger is all too clear. The strange Twilight Zone look and atmosphere of this episode--tumbleweeds and Old West facades popping up in a black void--grips one's imagination and doesn't let go until the very end. Fans of Captain Kirk's street-fighting style will especially enjoy the thrilling climax. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

And So Season 2 Ends and Season 3 Begins!.......2007-01-02

This volume would come under the "nice-to-have but not essential" category if you are picking which volumes to keep. We have a couple of strange episodes here but for different reasons.

In the first episode, the Enterprise clearly plays second fiddle as Gary Seven and his assistant played by the multi-talented comedianne, Teri Garr, take the leading roles as an episode of Trek is sacrificed so that a pilot for a new sci-fi adventure could be showcased and mooted for public acceptance. Based on the evidence of this episode, it may actually be a shame that this attempt at a spin-off creation didn't succeed as there is enough here to suggest that Gary Seven may well have gone on to be quite a good series. Overall, this was a pretty decent episode to end the second season and it was a lot better than the previous few episodes that were major disappointments given what we had seen in the first season and the first half of the second.

The second episode of this volume is the beginning of the third and final season and is actually a good one. It's as if the powers that be realised just how badly the second half of the second season was and they decided to suck it up and we have here what overall is a very well-acted and well-written episode with a unique plot. A superior race of beings employ a very interesting method in determining whether or not to engage alien visitors on a friendly level based upon their reactions to situations created entirely in the mind of the one in charge (here Kirk) based on the premise that the leader reflects the overall thinking of the masses and should the leader fail to show the requisite behaviour when faced with the hypothetical situation, the entire band would be sent off on their merry way. For this reason, this episode ranks among my personal favourites although admittedly not among the all-time best Trek episodes ever.

In conclusion, this volume represents a significant improvement over the previous few volumes and is a good way to end season two and begin the next.

"That, Miss Lincoln, is simply my cat.".......2006-06-04

The enterprise is sent back to the late 60's to see how a potently deadly nuclear situation was avoided. They may have to do a little interfering themselves. While there their transporter snags a string man, Gary Seven (Robert Lansing), and his feline looking traveling companion Isis. A secretary Miss Roberta Lincoln (Terry Garr) to a missing agent is suspicious and thinks that Gary Seven may be a spy.

Is Gary Seven a sinister being, or part of a larger plan? And keep a close eye on his co-traveler Isis.

Other Startrek time travel episodes include "Tomorrow is Yesterday", and "The City on the Edge of Forever". One of the most interesting time Startrek travels is "Assignment: Earth" It was probably meant as a pilot for a spin off. We also get to see a young Terri Garr with her signature confused facial expressions. We also get to contemplate the ramifications of time travel mixed with a few comic situations.

Gary Seven & Eugenic Wars.......2005-02-18

Episode 55 is great, yet episode 56 is a dud. What's more, Seven & his secretary, Teri Garr, are xellent in the two novels, "The Eugenics Wars". Given, the books are far better than this episode. Yet, this does give key (& very eerie) clues to the future.

Two unusual episodes bridge seasons 2 and 3.......2003-09-11

Assignment: Earth-This episode, which featured the crew returning to Earth in 1968 to observe a rocket launch, was certainly unusual. it becomes much more than an observation once they are forced to decide whether Seven's role is a positive or negative one in the prevention of nuclear war. Any viewer unaware that this was a pilot episode of a proposed spy show would be forgiven for wondering how the crew ended up in a such a mundane setting. While Robert Lansing and Terri Garr are a big step up from your average Trek guest stars, there is a reason the show was not picked up. Nevertheless, the plotline is entertaining enough to yield one quirky episode.

Tidbit: Kirk was never any rounder than he was right here; well, not until the Trek movies anyway. (3 stars)

Spectre of the Gun was the first third season episode to be produced, and one need watch no more than the teaser to sense that the show would have a very different feel during the 1968-1969 season. First off, those shiny, synthetic-looking uniforms that replaced the corderoys of the first two seasons. A minor point, yes, but perhaps a metaphor for other changes. The third season shows have a slick quality about them, an emphasis of style over substance. There is a sense that everyone is somehow in the know, no longer willing to invest themselves in the simple morality tales so common in the first season. This process was certainly well underway by the midpoint of season 2, when we began to see action (and high camp in the seminal case of I, Mudd) episodes that were light, devoid of moralizing, and somewhat tongue in cheek. By the third season, it could no longer be reigned in. Gone was the moral foundation of the show, but also gone was the feeling that the actors were having fun. What's left is highly formalized episodes.

It should be added though that stylistically season was 3 was by far the most developed season. Musically, scores became more florid and psychadelic, unusual camera angles and cuts became more common, and character' actions became less predictable. I for one enjoy the fluidity, trippyness, and dark tone of the third season. I know I'm in the minority (to say the least) here though.

But this is supposed to be a review of Spectre of the Gun, in which the crew are forced to participate in the events leading up to the gunfight at the OK Corral. Overall this is a pretty good episode, with more action than most 3rd season shows. Better though is the fact that this episode is very atmospheric, with a stong score, wind, and effects contributing to the sense of unreality and futility. But this too is an illusion. We end with the positive message that the crew were tested, and found worthy, for not killing. They are not judged on the basis of wanting to kill, but rather for not killing (although upon scrutiny even this worthiness is undermined somewhat by the fact that at that point the crew knows the Earps are unreal).

This episode doesn't hammer the moral theme as earlier seasons did. Surprising is the extent to which the crew must focus on their own survival, even to the extent of accepting demeaning abuse the Earps.

This episode has it's flaws though. Most notably, only Kirk seems phases by Chekov's death; of course the others were no doubt constrained by the new production team. (3.5 stars)

"I can't just kill them!!!".......2003-05-13

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into the Ground: Messin' with the space-time continuum; trusting the motivations of complete strangers

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember (`Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: Three incapacitated

REVIEW/COMMENTARY:

Was `Assignment: Earth' just another rip-roaring Star Trek adventure, or was it the teaser for a possible spinoff show? Well, let's see now... the guest stars (Gary Seven and his not-so-trusty receptionist Roberta Lincoln) are given an extensive amount of screen time and character development, much more than what most other guests have been granted on classic `Trek. The screen time that Kirk, Spock and company use up is minimal, with most of the celluloid dedicated to Gary Seven embarking on and completing his mission, and Roberta getting in the way in a supposedly humorous fashion. And if those two bits of evidence don't seal the deal for ya, there's Mister Spock's statement at the end of the show where he predicts "interesting experiences in store for them (Seven and Lincoln)". I dunno `bout the rest of ya's but it definitely looks like a set-up to me...

Sadly, `Assignment: Earth' didn't grab me as a show that would've had much promise if it were made into a series. Robert Lansing's portrayal of Mister Seven could have used a bit more charisma, especially during his bizarrely comic exchanges between himself and the rookie receptionist. Speaking of which, Teri Garr didn't impress me as the young and slightly dense Roberta Lincoln, whose personality consisted of an annoying meld of ditzy naivete and "whoa, far out, man"-style hippiness. She also has way-too-easy access to her new boss' hi-tech equipment, which she always seems to discover by accident. The addition of the shape-shifting feline Isis and her pathetically fake meows (what, they couldn't record a real cat meowing and dub it in where needed?) adds the final death knell to any hope of seeing these folks venturing beyond the confines of the original Star Trek series. Which is probably just as well...

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: Reality versus unreality and illusions that kill; Humans dealing with and overcoming their instinct for violence

Historical Milestone: Star Trek's second temporary death of a core cast member (Mr. Chekov). This is also one of the small handful of eppies where a crew member other than Kirk (Chekov again) bags the babe-of-the-week. Hah, take THAT, you overacting, starship-commanding horndog!

Notable Gaffe/Special Defect: During the climactic scene at the OK Corral, the lightning strikes cause the trees to cast shadows on the "sky" (back wall) of the indoor set where the scene is being shot.

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember (`Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: None

REVIEW/COMMENTARY:

The Melkotians told ya to stay away, but no-o-o-o-o, that wasn't acceptable to you, was it Jim? You just had to butt in where you weren't welcome! I guess "boldly going where no man has gone before" includes disrespecting the wishes of other beings, as well as trespassing on their territory! And then you had your three head specialists and Chekov beam down with you on the Melkotians' home planet so they could share your punishment! It's a good thing Mr. Spock had special abilities that helped save you and your fellow crewmen's sorry hides from certain death in the end (except for Chekov of course) or else you'd have been-- well, dead I guess. Or would the death have been merely an illusion? Wow, man... that's kinda deep. I gotta sit down and think that one through...

Taking into consideration all of the other historical eras and characters the Enterprise has encountered during its three-year run (Nazis, mobsters, a modern-day Roman empire, the Great Depression, hippies, 19th-century American Indian tribes, an angry Greek god), it was only a matter of time before the wild west got its day in the Star Trek spotlight. Throw in Gene Roddenberry's past work as the self-proclaimed "head script-writer" of the classic western series `Have Gun, Will Travel', and the status of this episode goes from "destined-to-happen" to... um, "destined-to-happen-and-then-some" I guess. I wish I could describe the whole thing better, but I'm still tryin' to wrap my mind around that whole `illusionary death' thing I brought up at the end of the previous paragraph...

DVD:

DVD

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Watership Warrior