Rating: 
Summary: 5 stars for the movie + 1 for the DVD quality= averages to 3
Review: No one wanted this DVD to be fabulous more than I! I've loved this film since I was little and was so excited to get it on DVD. What can I say....the audio is nearly incomprehensible- I feel like I must be watching it with ear-muffs on. The picture isn't all that great- it looks like a fuzzy, poorly-managed colorization process that makes it look kind of "muddy". I really had hoped that the other reviews about the quality were just other production company's poor editing but my copy is the Alpha Video edition that's sold here.That said, it's still a great movie and I hope that someday I'll be able to watch the whole thing without getting so annoyed with the quality. Perhaps I'll resort to taping it the next time it's on TV. A great dissappointment!
Rating: 
Summary: Sounds and looks like a bootleg!
Review: This movie is a beautiful classic but this DVD version is quite shoddy. It looks like somebody pointed a video camera at a theater screen and pressed record. The sound doesn't even seem to be synchronized with the picture!
Rating:
Summary: Buyer Beware!
Review: This movie is transferred so badly, that it is definetly unwatchable...it is a big distorted pan and scan mess! While some reviewers find it "watchable" wait until you hear the sound! This movie is not worth the 4 bucks it sells used for...
What a pity for such a great film. Shame on you, Madacy Entertainment!
Rating:
Summary: A Film worth restoring! Terrible sound makes it unwatchable!
Review: I watched this movie many years ago on AMC. It made me laugh outloud! I cannot understand why the DVD transfer is so poor.The colors are faded and the sound is so garbled that you can't understand what they are saying. This is the kind of film that deserves to be transferred by real professionals. If that ever happens I will buy a new copy. The one I own, I will keep as a reminder that Madacy entertainment=poor quality.
Rating:
Summary: Speaking from a well
Review: I love this movie, but this DVD has horrible sound quality. The actors sound as though they were speaking from a well, and the louder anyone speaks, the worst the garbled effect. I ordered this to replace my VHS copy, but have since discarded the DVD. The VHS is a far superior product.
Rating: 
Summary: Life With Father- - - A True Classic
Review: This film has lost none of its appeal over the years. I remember loving it as a child and it still is one of my favorites. William Powell is a joy to behold as the overbearing yet loving Clarence Day Sr. And Irene Dunne gives what I consider to be one of her better performances. Elizabeth Taylor can do no wrong and is as adorable as ever. Fans of Adam-12 might not have noticed that the second son, John, is played by Martin Milner (who, co-incidentally, is in Mr. Roberts with William Powell, though sadly, not in any scenes together). As for the quality of the DVD, I found that my copy has two minor audio problems where the sound drops out entirely. Thankfully it is only for a short moment. Otherwise it is a wonderfully preserved movie, showing some of our finest actors at their best. LOVE IT!!! Five stars all the way!
Rating:
Summary: Winning movie deserves better presentation.
Review: Despite the anomalies of this DVD version, "Life with Father" is still a winning, wonderful movie suitable for viewing by all ages. William Powell stars as the combustible, but essentially kind and loving patriach of a late 1800's family in New York City. A wife and three adolescent boys round out this colorful family. Powell lends irascible charm to his role while Irene Dunne plays the slightly ditsy, well meaning wife marvelously. The supporting cast includes a young and very beautiful Elizabeth Taylor as a flirtatious visitor as well as the future star of the television series "Adam 12", Martin Milner, as the middle son. "Life with Father" has plenty of warmth and humor to make it well worth seeing. It just needs a better presentation than in its current DVD format. Catch it when it airs on television for an optimal viewing experience.
Rating:
Summary: Buyer Beware!
Review: This movie is transferred so badly, that it is definetly unwatchable...it is a big distorted pan and scan mess! While some reviewers find it "watchable" wait until you hear the sound! This movie is not worth the 4 bucks it sells used for...
What a pity for such a great film. Shame on you, Madacy Entertainment!
Rating: 
Summary: Madacy DVD quality is poor but watchable
Review: I agree that the picture and sound quality of the Madacy DVD is poor, but I do find it watchable by turning up the contract and color on my TV. This film is in the public domain (copyright protection was lost) so Warner Brothers (Turner) will probably never spend the money to restore and release the film in a quality product. Where there is no copyright protection anyone can copy and sell the product. The print used to master the Madacy DVD was probably a 16mm dupe, the negative being made from another print causing the fuzzy generation loss. Finding a good original 16mm or 35mm Technicolor print to use for a master is next to impossible. Unless Turner feels it has enough of a market to warrant the expense of restoring and releasing an unprotected picture, we are stuck with what we get from public domain distributors. Maybe Criterion will come through once again.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing Wrong with My Copy
Review: There seems to be much confusion about the quality of this DVD release. I purchased it from this page and received a release from Alpha Video, although the information here says Gotham (are they the same ?). In any case the quality is quite acceptable to me. The picture is clear and the color is surprisingly good for the age of the picture. Also I found no problem whatever with the sound. It appears there is another version of this movie, from Madacy, which people may be confusing with this one. This version has no extras of any sort, and there are no claims of refurbishing. The movie itself of course is a classic.
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