Rating: 
Summary: "Magic it is and magic it always was."
Review: Back in January 2000, I reviewed this box set here (see "If You Liked the TV Special, You'll Love This!"). 3 years later, many Beatles fans' prayers (including my own) have been answered with the release of this video library in DVD form. Rather than resay what I said back then, I just thought I'd write with a different perspective. The opening statement is from the liner notes of Derek Taylor, who served as the Beatles' press agent.To answer a recent review, here's what's on it: performances of the Beatles live in concert and television performances (not complete concerts), some original videos, narrated by Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, the late George Harrison (who was still around during the making of this documentary) and the late John Lennon (his comments are culled by old interviews), excerpts from early recordings, studio outtakes, press conferences and all 5 of their movies and finally, over 30 complete Beatles tracks (By the way, "Real Love" is included in this edition). The sound quality is superior here than the original VHS (and you have the option of LPCM Stereo, Dolby Digital surround sound and DTS 5.1 surround sound). You also have the option of subtitles in English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese (Brazilian and European). Just don't expect your Linguistics teachers to be impressed with how many French or Spanish words you learned while watching this! It is a bit of a shame that individual tracks weren't assembled for complete songs. Oh well, a minour disappointment! Keep in mind that the 8 video VHS box set was actually pricier than the 5 DVD box set back when it was released in 1996 (I remember paying over [money] for mine!). Then of course, there's the Special Features DVD. In addition to the "Real Love" video (which wasn't included on the original VHS edition), there's a segment in which Paul, George and Ringo all gather together in 1994 to discuss the old days and jam out on old songs. The 3 are also featured here in 1995 discussing with George Martin, their producer, the choosing of different outtakes on the 3 Anthology CD's and studio techniques they used during the original recording sessions. Paul, George and Ringo also discuss with Jeff Lynne how a Beatles mini-"reunion" took place with 2 John Lennon demos ("Free As a Bird" and "Real Love"). Also, there's a section on how many hours of interviews and classic footage came together for this documentary and a feature on how the "Free as a Bird" video was made. Give yourself at least 2 weeks to enjoy as Derek Taylor once put it these "10 hours of unchallengable evidence" of the Beatles' legacy, which continues even to this day.
Rating:
Summary: The COMPLETE Beatles
Review: I've been a Beatles fan for about 6 years now, I'm very familiar with their later stuff, somewhat familiar with the early stuff... That having been said, this documentary is absolutely amazing. I used it as 11 hours of background noise while doing spring cleaning, and i'm now going back to watch the good parts. THE FULL ROOF-TOP CONCERT!! THREE FULL SONGS FROM SHEA STADIUM. BOTH FULL SONGS FROM THE FIRST ED SULLIVAN APPEARANCE. FULL MUSIC VIDEOS FOR PENNY LANE, DAY IN THE LIFE AND MANY OTHERS... This is what sets this documentary apart...the Beatles were documented at the time like no one else, and this set takes full advantage of the existing material as well as multiple lenghty interviews with George, Paul, Ringo and George Martin to create an absolute anthology of the life of The Beatles. ...The first episode alone is about the four guys growing up in Liverpool, getting their first instruments and such. The beauty of DVD, you can skip it. I think it's good background that enhances anyone's appreciation of the band, but I've been able to watch the Shea Stadium performance numerous times without slogging through Paul's baby pictures too much...
Rating:
Summary: Life is Short - Enjoy Anthology
Review: A Beatle fans dream come true. I'd give it a box of stars if I could. The reissue is fantastic, the extra disc splendid, but my favorite Anthology moment will never change - I'm Down at Shea Stadium. That, my friends, is what The Beatles were all about. I dare you to find such footage of any other band. So many other complete performances that are also wonderful - I Saw Her in Washington 1964 - I Am The Walrus from MMT - The Long and Winding Road - the list goes on. If you love the Beatles - treat yourself - if you know someone who loves them - don't let them go on without owning this fantastic gift from Apple. Don't wait for a birthday or Christmas. In this world - you'd better get it for them right away. They deserve it. We all do.
Rating:
Summary: Better Than VHS Release
Review: The audio is excellent. Various songs from the first four albums are in stereo. The live version of "Revolution" still has Lennon's narration in the middle.
Rating:
Summary: Quite unbelievable!
Review: So much to say, so little space. Of course, I bought the VHS version when it came out in 1996, and it was great. I thought, even back then, that the sound was a bit disappointing, a bit thin. When I found out it was coming out on DVD, I was somewhat apprehensive. After all, A Hard Day's Night was a tremendous disappointment, sound wise. It was hyped to be in 5.1 Surround, but was actually mono, and hollow, thin mono to boot. So I started with the bonus disc, and I was absolutely blown away. You get extensive footage of the three together, talking, reminising, playing (WOW!). You got a bit of that in the original anthology, but just in snippets. Now, you really get a sense of their time together on this, and of them working together on the two new songs. Plus, you get, for the first time, the Real Love video mixed in 5.1 Surround. Absolutely incredible!!! This is 81 minutes of pure heaven for the Beatles fan, and this DVD alone is worth the price of the set. There really are no words that can do it justice. One can't help but imagine what it would have been like had John Lennon still been alive when they did this. Then I worked my way through the original Anthology. Over the years, I've watched the Anthology a number of times, so I'm fairly familiar with the material, and the sound, which, as I mentioned, I thought a bit thin on the VHS version. As I put on the first DVD, I told myself not to overexpect, that they probably just took the sound from the VHS and transferred it to DVD. Well, I was wrong!!! Almost all of the music has been remixed in true 5.1 Surround. I couldn't believe it!! Of course, the picture quality is outstanding, but I expected that (however, there are segments where certain cuts of video are very dirty, and I don't really understand that). But it's the music that really blew me away. Some of the biggest surprises:
1. A TRUE surround stereo remix of I Am The Walrus, FROM BEGINNING TO END!!! I always thought that in the middle of the song, where it switches to rechanneled stereo on the original, it was impossible to ever get a stereo mix becuase they took sounds from a live radio broadcast during mixdown. But even the radio broadcast is panned from left to right in the rear speakers. Also, the strings and horns are in stereo, and believe me, I've heard things I've NEVER heard before...and I bet I've listened to that song a thousand times. 2. At the very end of the Anthology, there is a short snippet of Sie Liebt Dich, IN TRUE STEREO, with one guitar in either channel. Maybe there's still a chance we will get to hear a decent stereo version of She Loves You. 3. A sadly too short edit of Got To Get You Into My Life. Any audiophile Beatles fan knows that on the original stereo version, Ringo drums are pretty much buried in the left channel. On this remix, Ringo's drums are FRONT AND CENTER and MUCH LOUNDER!!! I got goosebumps on the tom roll that I always struggled to hear. As I said, such a pity it is so short. I'm only giving three highlights of an unending parade of Beatle songs, mostly edits, that surprise with the Surround remix. It's an unbelievably wonderful experience. I'm not neccessarily advocating releasing all the Beatles' music in 5.1 Surround, but what this shows is that the quality of the sound we've been hearing on the old CDs is woefully inadequate. All the songs from Revolver that are featured here are simply an incredible upgrade in sound from the CD; there is no comparision. As great as this DVD set is, in the final analysis, what the Beatles were really about is the music. Capital/EMI, it is time that you stepped up to the plate and give us Beatles fans what we deserve: the absolute best stereo sound that is now available. We now know, thanks to this DVD, how much better our precious Beatles albums can sound. We are counting on you to finally deliver it. For the fans, if you thought that paying one hundred bucks for the VHS version of the Anthology was enough, think again. The amazing clarity and detail of both the video and audio on this DVD set makes it well worth the investment. Buy it, watch it, listen to it on a good home audio system, and I'm sure you will agree.
Rating:
Summary: Beatles Anthology DVD - Another Reason DVD was Invented
Review: Just like the Godfather DVD Collection, why DVD was invented. This DVD edition of the BBC's Beatles Anthology is worth every penny, including the extras. I've watched all the discs and am extremely impressed with how Apple Corps has issued this on DVD, especially at a great price ... Apple went as far as remixing the audio to DTS asides from the Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, which is quite impressive. Video quality rocks compares to VHS (always of course! i'd give it a 4 out of 5 for vid quality). The Bonus Disc is the cream of the crop in this collection. It has extra jams of the surviving Beatles doing their Hamburg days songs (covers mostly). Then there is an awesome short of them with producer George Martin analyzing two Beatles songs and how they mixed it, etc. Probably the most interesting is a short documentary on how they recorded "Free As a Bird" and "Real Love", along with "Making of" the two videos ... Well worth the buy, especially for the Bonus Disc. Did I mention there's 5 more hours than the ABC release in 1995? WELL WORTH THE BUY!
Rating: 
Summary: 4 stars for lack of bonus material
Review: I have the video set as well and you would have thought that they could have put more footage on the DVDs.
The bonus DVD is ok but it's anoying that every scene must be loaded manualy. Good production, lack of extra material, still worth getting if you haven't seen it on video.
Rating: 
Summary: What's on it?
Review: The reviews here are excellent, without telling anyone what is on the DVD. There is mention of un-seen footage - concerts etc, but what are they. I am particularly interested in whether there are complete performances (early ones) or whether this is essentially a set of mostly talking.
Rating:
Summary: I'd give it six stars if I could
Review: The bonus disk of the three remaining Fabs (before the death of Harrison) was worth the $. There is also plenty of footage cut out of the original versions...some Cavern footage, some from Hamburg, etc. that just makes this a true Beatle fans dream. To see Paul, Ringo and George getting on like three brothers was just heartwarming. It proved that despite the negative garbage that went down during the breakup, and subsequent business disagreements, the Beatles still love each other like brothers. I'm sure that Lennon would agree.
Rating:
Summary: "They can work it out"...
Review: The only thing that doesn't make sense is that they didn't allow us to hear each seperate song sequence complete and uncut. Otherwise, everything is covered brilliantly and indepth. The videos for "We Can Work it Out" and "Hello, Goodbye" are the best fun, yet "A Day in the Life" and "Strawberry Fields Forever" are not to be missed. Ringo and Paul comment poignantly and hilariously on many things, and this DVD is packed with astonishing and generous amounts of goods. This isn't rated, and though it contains a bit of profanity and some scenes that evoke the sixties attitude, it is mostly suitable for everyone to view. It is the most entertaining history lesson you'll ever get.
| 
