Customer Reviews

The Mask of Zorro (Deluxe Edition)

5 star:		(165)
4 star:		(35)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This movie shows the beauty of Spain and of the horrible way people were treated. Antonio Banderas is excellent and Anthony Hopkins is brillaint once again. It is a must see.

One of the best cloak and dagger modern movies. Intriguing story, fascinating characters, excellent performance by Anthony Hopkins, Bandera and Zeta-Jones. Zeta Jones is at the best of her beauty and sensuality. Good story full of adventure. Really enjoyable.

I have never been a huge fan of Antonio or Jones until I saw this film. With its breathtaking scenery, action and atmosphere it makes you love zorro again! A new zorro for a new age! Very well done film with superb acting. The dvd is full on with excellent picture quality and sound.

THE MASK OF ZORRO is a rousiing, energetic, exciting romantic swashbuckler movie, reminiscent of all those great Fairbanks and Flynn movies.
Antonio Banderas is a perfect Zorro, starting off rude and crude, ending up flamboyant and gallant. His injection of humor and the way he rolls his eyes is a definite good addition to his role.
The ever amazing Anthony Hopkins shines in his role as the first Zorro, whose life is ruined when his wife is killed and his daughter taken away from him by his cruel enemy. It's rare to see an action hero over the 50 year mark!
Catherine Zeta-Jones is breathtakingly beautiful and is wonderful in her role as Hopkins daughter, feisty, yet adolescent in her yearnings for the masked man.
Stuart Wilson is vile and irreprehensible as Don Metero, the head villain, and he plays it to the hilt.
Matt Leschler as the Captain is even worse, his dashing good looks hiding a psychotic imbalance.
The whole movie is superb; James Horner's overlooked Oscar score is beautiful, including the closing credits duet by Tina Arena and Marc Antony of "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You."
This is a fun, enjoyable and uplifting kind of movie. ENJOY!

This movie is so much fun. It could not have been more perfectly cast. Anthony Hopkins as the elder Zorro has just the right amount of suaveness layered over a quiet but intense desire for revenge. Catherine Zeta Jones makes a great traditional "spunky heroine", with enough flashy moves of her own that she's never the damsel in distress. And Antonio Banderas, ahh. Seeing this movie reminds me of why I was a fan of his after so many of his other movies did their best to put me off him. If you'd only seen "Two Much" and "Ballistic: Ecks Vs Sever", you'd wash your hands of him forever.

Which is perhaps what the entertainment industry has done. How else to explain how such a charming, charismatic actor gets so few good roles? Is it just his Spanish accent getting in the way? If so, what a pity. As the younger Zorro, he displays all his talents: He starts off as a bumbling bandit, so unkempt you can practically see the fleas on him. His transformation is a wonderful thing to behold. Step by step, he becomes the dashing swordsman, both in appearance and bearing. Every look of his eyes, every flick of his hand is just right. He has amazing acting instincts.

Another thing I like about this movie is the pacing. It takes its time setting up the story so you get a good background. By the time the bandits appear, you already care about them, because you've met them as children in a previous scene. At the same time though, there's never an instance where I felt the movie was moving too slowly, even with all the backstory.

the minute i first saw this movie i loved every scene of it and i haven't stopped watching it since then, i can hardly wait for the sequal to come in theaters

This sucessful rendition of Zorro`s story is a truly convincing and engaging blockbuster, showing the best qualities so rarely seen in action-adventure movies nowadays. Martin Campbell treats the material with care and respect, never dumbing it down into utterly childish stuff and creating an acessible, enrergetic entertainment that satisfies both kids and adults alike.
Antonio Banderas plays a credible Zorro, Catherine Zeta-Jones shines as his love interest and Anthony Hopkins is a menacing and adequate antagonist. The action sequences are well-done, being suspenseful and exciting enough and not too forced, overlong or tiresome. The script is simple but well-written, and given that the movie is convincing as a whole one can forgive some predictable moments.
So, this is a fun, solid picture, a good blockbuster that rises above most examples of the genre. Consistent entertainment.

First I'll talk on the film itself. IT's an extreme entertainment. It has the honor of old fashioned films, and it does junk up on Digital effects like so many other action films do. It brilliantly combines acting touches, comedy, swashbuckling, chemistry, explosions, revenge, romance and high adventure to make a supremely entertaining film that can stand up to inumerable viewing. A sequel is in the works, with the same director and cast. If it gets made, I'll be very happy.

Now I'll write on the edition. Superbit is always brilliant. Every single package they offer has the very best picture and sound. This edition is no different. But the problem with superbit is it's lack of special features. This two disc edition compensates with a whole disc of bonuses. Magnificent.

Completely worth the money.

"The Mask of Zorro" is a well-written, old-fashioned swashbuckler, filled with glorious scenes of Mexico, the passionate and romantic music of James Horner , and a marvelous tale about love, loss, redemption, and retribution.
Don Diego De La Vega, so aptly, and elegantly played by Anthony Hopkins, is Zorro, a nobleman who disguises himself in order to fight for justice on behalf of the peasants of California.
On the last day of the tyrannical Don Rafael Montero's tenure as Governor, Zorro appears before the wondering eyes of the two orphaned Murrieta Brothers, Joaquin and Alejandro, as well as a crowd of peasantry to fight one last battle on behalf of the wrongfully condemned before the Dons leave for Spain.
Little does the benevolent Don Diego realize that he is enjoying the last hours of a tranquil home life with his beautiful wife and infant daughter; for his identity is discovered, and along with his soldiers, Don Rafael ( played by a devious Stuart Wilson, who always makes a great onscreen villian), comes to arrest De La Vega. De La Vega's wife, Esperanza (played with joyous and affectionate solemnity by Julia Rosen) who was once courted by Don Rafael, is killed by a soldier while pleading for her husband. The De La Vega's crying infant, Elena, is kidnapped by Montero, the mansion looted and burned, and the unfortunate De La Vega condemned to wallow in the filth of a prison for 20 years.
The story picks up in 1841 with the Murrieta Brothers now wanted bandits working with fellow outlaw, Three-Fingered Jack, played by L.Q. Jones, who has a crafty turn of phrase every so often. A confrontation with the U.S. Cavalry, led by a stiff-haired Aryan Ken Doll of an officer, ironically named Captain Love (Matt Letscher), results in the death of Joaquin Murrieta and his brother's quest for vengeance.
When Montero returns to California and visits the prison to see if his old adversary is still alive, De La Vega realizes that the time for vegeance has come and escapes. The only thing that prevents his immediate revenge is the appearance of his long-lost daughter, played by a stunningly beautiful and spunky Catherine Zeta-Jones.
A chance reunion with Alejandro in a tavern gives De La Vega the means for settling old scores.As Alejandro, Antonio Banderas runs the gamut of emotions from haggard, belligerent, and grief-stricken to snide, playful, funny, diplomatic, and clever.Despite some faux pas, he soon proves himself worthy to inherit the mask of Zorro.
Disguised as Alejandro's valet, De La Vega has poignant moments of grace as he views the stolen painting of his wife, viewing his firey daughter dancing at a party and being the only one in the room who knows her true identity,her confiding her feelings about Don Alejandro to him without knowing his true identity, and her final acknowledgement of her past. We feel that Elena was meant to return to her birthplace to learn the truth and help remedy the injustices of her abductor. She lends herself beautifully to the task.The most sensuous scenes are of her alternately dancing with Don Alejandro and sparring with Zorro.
Audiences can cheer the finale where justice is served. Generally, I would recommend this intensely spectacular film because it is simply one of the most beautiful and intelligent morality tales to have ever blazed across the screen.

I'm a little behind the times. I've just seen this five year old film on DVD for the first time! This film also is behind the times and thank goodness it is. It brings back many good things about the great action-adventure films of Hollywood's Golden Age without trashing up the film just for sensationalism. This film has too much class to be sensational! There's no foul language or nudity, so I could enjoy it with my 12 year old son. He was enthralled. This movie has tons of action, romance and a large portion of emotion. In short, an escape from the usual action fare.

It is easy to get involved in the plot and characters. I would not have believed that Anthony Hopkins who plays Zorro would be so "right" for the role. If I was doing the casting I might have looked elsewhere. I guess that's why I'm not a casting director because Mr. Hopkins is absolutely perfect in this role. Sometimes looks are deceiving in real life too.

The stunt work is as spectacular as it could be in a Zorro film. The extra special features on the DVD are great.

If you are looking for an action adventure film with a little romance thrown in that the entire family will enjoy, this is your film and it is certainly worth owning. I rented it but now I'm buying it because we all want to see it again!

Special mention must be made of the excellent score, truly a work of art in itself. I would like to own the score on CD to play in my car.

This is without a doubt the best Zorro movie I've ever seen, or likely to see. I don't think this one can be topped. I give it 5 stars because it is one of the two best films I've seen in the past year.