Faith Rewarded:Historic Seas 2004 Rs

Rating:
Summary: Great for Sox Fans - Relive the Impossible Dream of 2004
Review: As a die-hard Red Sox fan who waited a lifetime for last October, I thought that NESN did a great job detailing the successes and struggles of the 2004 Red Sox season - culminating in the historic defeat of the Evil (choke!) Empire and an "Impossible Dream" World Series Victory.

There are some shared scenes with the MLB World Series DVD, which was somewhat disappointing, but the NESN DVD chronicles much more of the 2004 regular season than the World Series DVD, including the July 1 and July 24 battles with the Yankees. I wonder if A-Rod can still taste Veritek's glove?

I would have liked to have heard season commentary from Jerry Remy and other former Red Sox greats (as on the World Series DVD), but I guess you can't have everything. The NESN DVD does provide extended highlights of the victory parade in Boston, which is something worth keeping.

All in all, the DVD is very well done and is a great addition to any Red Sox fan's DVD library along with the World Series DVD. Highly recommended.


Rating:
Summary: Superb!
Review: I had purchased the MLB video for the World Series that came out prior to the release of "Faith Rewarded," and while it was a decent recap of the season and playoffs, "Faith Rewarded" is SO much better. They did an amazing job capturing key moments of the season. Showing the team sharing the WS victory and trophy with Johnny Peske was SO AWESOME... brought a tear to my eye. Red Sox fans, you will not be disappointed by this DVD, it is a must for any Sox fan who wants to relive the glory of the 2004 season (even better than the Patriots 2003 season video!).

Rating:
Summary: AMAZING!
Review: I watched this immediately when I got home with this DVD. I was a little disappointed. I understand that there is only so much you can do in one DVD, still I feeling so many dramatic events were either skipped, or flatly presented. I would hold for a more detailed DVD package if there is going to be one, so I can relive the most amazing turn around in baseball history.

Rating:
Summary: A Bit of an Anti-Climax, but the Best Video Document So Far
Review: I've eaten up pretty much everything there is to read or view on the 2004 Red Sox, and saved this video and the "Official" MLB World Series video for last. Both of these documentaries have significant flaws which keep them from being the perfect souvenir for the season, but they probably both are worthy purchases for the Red Sox fan. Of the two, I preferred this one, so if you want but one purchase, this is it.

Let's start off with a few production quibbles. I thought the video editing and pacing of the DVD was outstanding, but the narration and sound mixing were just dreadful. The script for the narration is not grammatical, hackneyed, at times inaccurate, and delivered the kind of painfully sodden style that reminds one of a cross between the 'Sports Century' documentaries by ESPN and a holocaust movie. The music, which with the exception of the closing (and rousing) 'Dirty Water', is stock movie narration stuff that is way, way too high in the mix and isn't even modulated when a talking head appears for a video. While a lot of the footage is culled from NESN's season-long coverage, some of it is "borrowed" from the official World Series video, so if you watch both movies you'll have to bear with a lot of repetition -- and even seeing certain scenes being taken out of context.

Since the scope of the documentary is the entire season, I was hoping for more inspired storytelling. Yet the season speaks for itself so loudly, the excellent chronology more than makes up for the flaws in the obviously hasty post-season production. I watched virtually every game of this season as it happened, and as much as I felt they left out a lot of details, it must be said I have yet to see another "Team Year" sports film that covered a whole season in such good depth.

The extras on this DVD are pleasing: a montage of the rolling rally victory parade, a weird segment on cooking with David Ortiz, and a few other similarly homey tidbits on specific players in the form of profiles (the official MLB video, by contrast, has game highlights and traditional interview clips.) . I am still perplexed as to why nobody has thought to include statistics, box scores, scorecards, or a still photograph gallery on these types of DVDs.

All in all, a kind of video postcard from the 2004 season, but primarily for Sox fans.

Rating:
Summary: From a Yankees fan's perspective
Review: NESN--New England's Regional Sports Network has come up with a very good video--even if some of the material is already on other videos like the World Series one. Of course as a Yankees fan it's tough to relive the fight on July 24th and then the biggest choke (comeback) in all of baseball. Somehow the trade for Nomar Garciaparra was the catalyst and made Theo Epstein a boy genius.

The video was done in the same way the Yankees championship videos were done in the past with titles for each chapter. The camerawork was a bit shaky and as I said some of the material has been seen on the official MLB World Series video.

I am someone who loves the city of Boston itself regardless of politics or sports and I'm proud to call it my second home/adopted hometown. This no doubt is the number one moment in Boston Sports History. Just as the Yankees are the lifeline of NYC sports, the Sox are the lifeline of Boston. This really gave fans the inside look at one of the most incredible baseball teams of all time.

But let me say this--it took 86 years to win it all--and it will take another 86!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Baseball fans will like this as it does give that more in-depth inside look at what it took for the Red Sox to end the Curse of the Bambino--somehow I think Babe is sleeping rather peacefully--and maybe even talking to Ted Williams over whatever it is they drink in heaven

Rating:
Summary: Great DVD - coulda been perfect IF...
Review: No doubt about it, this is the DVD 86 years in the making and all that. Glad to see NESN produced it so you know they had their hearts in it in the first place (I won't be getting the MLB World Series DVD based on the negative reviews so this'll be it). Will make all present and future BoSox fans realize why they are fans of such a charismatic team. But there are some things I would have liked to have seen...

1) SUBTITLES, SUBTITLES, SUBTITLES!!! Especially when people like Ortiz talk or the ballplayers are so caught up in their comments (especially on the pratcice footage), I have to rewind the DVD a few times to find out exactly what is said...

2) The bonus footage of the post World Series Rolling Rally in Boston should have been at least 10 minutes longer (maybe some more crowd footage??) and what's with the cheesy background music?? ARGH!

3) Maybe an Easter Egg or two?

But like I said, those are minor quibbles. Highlights for me were the Veritek/A-Rod fight (of course); Manny catching the almost-home-run from whatever Yankee hit it for an out and the poor schmuck rounding the bases and wondering why he wasn't getting any congratulations from his fellow overpaid thugs... I mean Yankees; and the entire ALCS footage. The bonus footage of Cabreara and Ortiz was a nice touch too... anyway, if you are a BoSox fan, you have this DVD, if not, get it.

Rating:
Summary: Great not only for Boston Fans, but baseball fans, too
Review: Speaking not really as a Boston fan, but as a fan of baseball (and therefore necessarily an anti-yankee fan), I bought this DVD with the hope that it would focus more on the humiliating defeat the yanks suffered at the hands of my new heros (joining the 2001 Diamondbacks), the 2004 Red Sox.

This DVD did not disappoint. If you who don't really consider yourself a fan of Boston, but despise the yanks and are looking for something chronicling the worst choke in baseball history, this DVD is much better than the World Series DVD.

Rating:
Summary: This is the DVD to get order now!
Review: This DVD is great. I must say, as a new Red Sox fan. It was nice having this season to look back on this being my first season watching almost every game (what a perfect season to start doing that woo hoo!) Just great commentary and overall presentation.

This video lacks almost any mention of the curse of the Bambino. So that as a bonus to many people! My father like the World Series DVD better, but I like this one I think it has an overall better feel to it. And I like that looks at the whole season, and then swings into the playoffs.

Plus, it shows the slap happy a rod going kung fu fighting with Bronson Arroyo in the ALCS! Something the World Series DVD lacks. It's just good stuff!

So if you're new Red Sox fan, or you want to get this for a longtime Red Sox fan of the DVDs out so far, I believe it is the best. Peace out

Rating:
Summary: Good-We want more!
Review: This video is an 80 minute recap of a 176 game season, so true fans can pick apart its oversights and such, but it is indeed a very entertaining portrait of the greatest bunch of idiots ever assembled. It starts in spring training and skims over the regular season, hitting only the important points (i.e. the yankee series). It kind of glosses over the ALDS, but gives sufficient coverage of the ALCS comeback against the spankees and culminates with some nice shots of johnny pesky after rolling over the cardinals in the world series.

Faith Rewarded is great for what it is, but it leaves the diehard fan (me) wanting more... I want to see the entire sequence of dave roberts' stolen base in game 4, with rivera throwing over 76 times with roberts extending his lead after each pickoff attempt.

mlb lurkers, if you're reading this i cordially invite you to show some compassion, remove the pin from your ass and release the box set all us diehards are pining for. Similar to the Patriots "3 games to glory" dvd...but with 10 discs. or 20. hell, we'll buy whatever you put out.

But i digress: Faith Rewarded is a great dvd. It has great narration, decent production quality and a very happy ending. It just seems to skim the surface of what true fans really want in a commemorative dvd of the greatest team in baseball history.