Customer Reviews

Flash Gordon (Saviour of The Universe Edition)

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Unfortunately, I never saw this movie as a kid. I would have loved it. But seeing it for the first time in my twenties, despite some bad acting and cheesy dialogue, the film was thoroughly enjoyable. The visual graphics in the film are amazing. The colors and otherworldliness really take you into another place.

Not only is the film completely over the top, it's actually a pretty decent take on totalitarianism and the nature of dictators. By inspiring fear into the hearts of his subjects, Ming is able to "divide and conquer". The people are so afraid of Ming that they will sell each other out for his favor. But Flash Gordon, through his conscience and humanity, is able to bring them together to topple the psychopathic Ming.

Pure fun!

Oh, and the Queen soundtrack is worth the price alone.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

The blu ray reviews of the movie brought me to this one, and then, some of the reviews which suggested it was a lot of fun. It is really clear on screen and it is a movie unlike others. Repeat watching for sure with this one!

It took such a long time to finally be released on DVD but it was well worth the wait. This is perhaps the most under-rated movie of all time. Staring Sam Jones, Max Von Sydow, Topol and Ornella Muti this high energy Sci-Fi action adventure is among the best of its genre. It is one of my favorite movies and it has held up increadably well over the years. It enjoyed was massive successful in Europe but failed to do well here in North America which may explain why it took the studio so long to release it. Flash Gordon is not your typical Science Fiction movie, with regards to set design and costume design the film attempted ( successfully ) to remained true to the original 1950's TV serial, it has a look un-like any movie I have ever seen. The dialog, the acting, the action sequences are campy and over the top yet it works so well for the film. If you have not yet seen it I strongly recomend that you do, I believe this is one of the greatest films Ever, a true classic...and part of my Top 25 list of all time.

This was an awesome buy. It came the week before Christmas, so I had time to wrap it, and was in perfect shape. I had a lot of fun watching this with my brother, and we both thought the DVD extras were great (especially the episode of the original Flash Gordon TV show from the 1930s). Well worth it.

For the money I spent on this all new "Flash Gordon" special DVD edition, I feel completely cheated. I'll admit that the front cover artwork and disc design are really cool and well done. However the "Flash Gordon" disc packaging is absolutely terrible and an extremely cheap effort from Universal Studios.

The disc is extremely hard to remove from the package and at one point I was afraid it was going to snap. The good news for fans is that the remastered video transfer is excellent and the colors are incredibly sharp and vibrant. In my opinion the amazing soundtrack performed by Queen is what made this movie, but the remastered 5.1 surround sound lacks bite. The sound is inconsistent throughout the movie, the levels are definitely off and I expected the sound to be much better than it was.

The bonus features included are very lame to say the least. The SCI-FI channel trailer for the Flash Gordon TV show is a complete waste of time and adds nothing to this release. Sadly this release doesn't contain any commentaries from any of the actors and that's a major disappointment. It would have been nice to hear comments from Sam Jones, Melody Anderson, Topol, Timothy Dalton or some type of cast look back featurette should have been included. I'd be willing to bet this film was a scream to make and there must have been plenty of bloopers or extras lying around, so why weren't they included?

I love this movie and rate it five stars for pure campy fun, but at the same time I'm very disappointed in the way Universal Studios has packaged and released it to the fans. A cult classic like "Flash Gordon" should have received the deluxe DVD treatment filled with all the extras. The recent release of "The Monster Squad" on DVD from Lionsgate/Maple Pictures proves that Universal Studios could have easily released a deluxe version of "Flash Gordon" if they really wanted to.

Late in the fourth quarter "Flash Gordon" quarterback of the Jets delivered the perfect pass to Universal Studios and they still managed to drop the ball. Five stars for "Flash Gordon" but only three stars for the subpar DVD release from Universal Studios.

DVD Bonus Features Include:
* Alex Ross, Renowned Comic Artist, on Flash Gordon - Learn how Flash Gordon influenced this legendary artist, both personally and professionally
* Writing a Classic: Screenwriter Lorenzo Semple, Jr. - Meet the man who wrote the screenplay that would live on as a cult favorite
* Flash Gordon 1936 serial episode: Planet of Peril
* Flash Gordon SciFi Channel TV show trailer- (Waste of time)
* Theatrical Trailer

Item reviewed:
Flash Gordon (Saviour Of The Universe Edition) (2007) Region 1/NTSC DVD

It is nice to have DVD of Flash Gordon (1980) back in the stores again after a wait of many years, and I can now upgrade from my VHS cassette copy. It is disappointing, however, that they did not make use of the special edition that already exists in Region 2 PAL format, and has been available since 2005 overseas. The Region 2 DVD (2005) has commentaries and the usual extra features that we have come to expect on special edition DVDs. However, this Region 1 Flash Gordon does not have much to offer by way of extras, and none of those that our European counterparts received in the 2005 Silver Anniversary Edition. The extras featured on the current North American edition do not overlap those on the Region 2 release, so for those who also play other region formats, this still might be worth picking up for those.

Hopefully we will get our own 2-disc issue in the future with at least the Reg. 2 features or something similar.

I have added a few images to the product information above so that buyers can get a better look at the product.

Below is a list of features included with the 2007 Savior of the Universe Edition. For comparison, this is followed by details of the Region 2 Silver Anniversary Edition (2005)

Region 1 America
(Universal Pictures - Saviour Of The Universe Edition)
Extras:
"Alex Ross, Renowned Comic Artist, on Flash Gordon" -featurette (13 min)
"Writing a Classic: Screenwriter Lorenzo Semple Jr." -featurette (10 min)
First Episode of the "Flash Gordon" 1936 Serial - "Chapter One: Planet Of Peril" (20 min)
Theatrical trailer
Bonus teaser: "Flash Gordon (2007)" TV-seriesSubtitles: English, French, and Spanish
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Picture Format: Anamorphic
TV System: NTSC
Soundtrack(s): English Dolby Digital 5.1
Case type: Amaray (Keep) Case

Region 2 AE United Kingdom
(Momentum Pictures 2005 - Silver Anniversary Edition)
Commentaries: 1) Audio Commentary by Director Mike Hodges, 2) Audio Commentary by Actor Brian Blessed
Extras:
Trailer (1:50)
Interview with Mike Hodges (31:42)
Photo Gallery (34 images)
"The Purple Death" Episode One of 'Flash Gordon: Conquers the Universe' - Original 1940s Serial (20:36)
IN THE CASE
8 Page Booklet with photos and production information.
Subtitles: English HoH
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Picture Format: Anamorphic
TV System: PAL
Soundtrack(s): English DTS 5.1
English Dolby Digital 5.1
Case type: Amaray (Keep) Case

I have seen the seriels from the 1930's and 1940's As well as this Movie They are all Great!!!!!!five stars YES!!!! They should rerelease this Movie from 1980 With Sam J.Jones,MelodyAnderson,Jacqulyn Perce(For thoes of you who have seen Blake-7 she played Servolan)in this she's the other Mad scientest the evial one. When and I hope soon!they put this out on DVD again relise it in FULL SCREEN and Wide screen sideA(FULL SCREEN)and sideB(Wide Screen) Put in Both!!!! and as they say LONG LIVE FLASH,DR.WHO,THE SHADOW and HARRY POTTER this fun never,never land!!!!IN THIS DAY AND AGE YOU NEED THESE FUN TV SHOWS AND FILMS LONG LIVE THEM ALL!!!!!!!

This review applies to the current Image DVD release. Most people who purchase Flash Gordon remember it from their childhood and wish to relive a part of it. No complaint there! Unfortunately, the DVD is now out of print and a copy can be expensive. About the only thing commendable about the disc is its widescreen aspect ratio. The soundtrack clearly warbles in places, the sound mix is not in 5.1 and generally lousy, and the video is grainy throughout. This is quite a shame, because the soundtrack and effects lend themselves to a great presentation. There are no extra features at all.

The DVD release rights were licensed by Universal to Image Entertainment. I have purchased 3 Image DVDs and they have all been massive disappointments. Fortunately, Universal re-released Sixteen Candles and I hope they will eventually do the same for Flash Gordon.

Many reviewers have focused on how fun this movie is. Others have commented on Princess Aura who is...very fine indeed. However, I enjoy the performance of Max von Sydow. As Ming, he is perfect. Max has a sneer that meets if not beats that of Harry Potter's Professor Snape. Ming is amazing to the end...or did he end?