Chariots of Fire

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Summary: "It says in the old book:'He that honours Me,I will honour'"
Review: "SO WHERE DOES THE POWER COME FROM, TO SEE THE RACE TO IT'S END? FROM WITHIN." Eric Liddell

Funny, I am neither an athlete nor very religious, but this movie stands as one of the triumvirate of movies which I consider to be the greatest I've ever seen (the others being "It's a Wonderful Life" & "The English Patient"). What "It's a Wonderful Life" did for duty & friendship, what "The English Patient" did for passion, "Chariots of Fire" does for principle & open-mindedness - it gives an endearing & compelling demonstration of these values, better than any movie ever has.

There is little more I can say which hasn't already been said before - the cast is magnificent, the screenplay superb, and the soundtrack among the most famous ever - but I'll add this: Ian Charleson's voice overs (as Eric Liddell) are a magnificent treat, in two running scenes - the most important of the movie - which sum up the whole point of the movie.

If you have children - heck, even if you don't - I can't think of any piece of entertainment that could teach them better values than this film. This movie belongs on your shelf...

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Summary: A Wonderful Film...But the DVD is Another Story...
Review: I am a recent initiate to this glorious movie and have enjoyed it many times on video, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that it had been released on DVD. That pleasure was soon deflated as I read that this film was NOT formatted for widescreen viewing. I was speechless. Such a richly filmed and acted movie like this deserves to be presented in widescreen but for whatever reason such is not the case. I thought one of the main benefits of DVD was the widescreen format, but I guess that only applies to movies that deserve it(?). Tragic...

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Summary: Rare pleasure
Review: A rare convergence of exceptional talents created this film masterpiece. An even rarer convergence of common sense and good taste awarded this film the Academy Award for best film in 1981 rightly relegating the spurious historical epic REDS to deserved oblivion. And what a cast! Past and future theatre greats came together to give Hugh Hudson what might prove to be his one dip in the high tide of glory.

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Summary: this is a classic
Review: Classic and a true story. This is a must for today's young people. It's about values and courage. If your children are in sports they must watch this.

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Summary: Is the widescreen version lost forever?
Review: This is one of my favorite films. Luckily, I got to see it twice on the big screen during its original release. Where is the widescreen version of this film??? Are the suits at WB afraid to admit they've lost it - an Academy Award winner for "Best Picture"?

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Summary: Incarnation of the hymn that inspired the title.
Review: Less of a "review" and more of a reminder that the title "Chariots of Fire" is derived from a turn-of-the century English hymn--Jerusalem--that raises the question: Did Jesus Christ visit the British Isles??? The text of the hymn provids a valuable insight into the spirit of the film itself.

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Summary: A brilliant and moving personal drama
Review: Chariots of Fire is one of the greatest screen dramas ever made. An inspire blend of subtle qualities and achievement. It is also a deeply personal and profound insight into one of sports most famous moments. Solid performances, inspiring story and of course Vangelis's brilliant score, the main title theme being one of the best and most memorable in film History.

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Summary: Review the film, not the format
Review: Come on all you other film fans who paned this great film solely on the basis of no widescreen format and poor DVD quality. What are you playing at? Chariots of Fire is one of the greatest screen dramas ever made. An inspire blend of subtle qualities and achievement. It is also a deeply personal and profound insight into one of sports most famous moments. Solid performances, inspiring story and of course Vangelis's brilliant score, the main title theme being one of the best and most memorable in film History. The fact that widescreen is not available and the DVD is sub standard is disappointing, but come on. These are minor faults that shouldn't detract from, or discredit a brilliant film such as this.

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Summary: What were they thinking!
Review: It is astounding to me that the people at Warner Bros. could have so little respect for this movie as to not have a letterbox option on this DVD.

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Summary: Call me when it's widescreen
Review: I keep looking for my favorite movies on DVD, and look forward to buying this flick-- when it's finally released wide-screen. Can't imagine what dolts at Warner Bros. were thinking in not at least giving a widescreen option on this flick. I have the same question about why they released Bonnie & Clyde full-screen.