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Le Mans

Le Mans

List Price: $14.99
Your Price: $11.24
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Finally!!!
Review: I've been waiting 3 years for this DVD, since the first time I had seen this film. 'Le Mans' has stood the test of time to be considered one of the great racing films ever made. There are many failures, including recent ones like 'Days of Thunder' and 'Driven'. The minimalist plot doesn't take away from the incredible racing footage, and McQueen captured one of the most exciting eras in racing, as Porsche battled Ferrari with V-12 monster cars.

I'm a little dissappointed that there is no additional commentary or documentaries included with the DVD. Chad McQueen hosted an excellent 'Making of Le Mans' that could have easily been included. But the film itself can finally be seen as it was over 30 years ago in the theater: chrystal clear, widescreen, and Dolby surround sound. Grab a copy, you won't be disappointed.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: One of the greatest racing films ever!
Review: OK, how many of you are reading this review and will see this film because of its great dramatic reputation? Not many, I suppose. Le Mans is perhaps the truest film for pure racing, and racing fans. Along with Grand Prix, its perhaps one of the best films about racing ever done. There's very little dialog, and half of that is silly. There's a small attempt to add some drama, and this is put into context by the fact that Steve McQueen walks out on the girl to go back to the race....
McQueen plays an American driving for the Gulf Porsche team. His great rival is a German who drives for Ferrari, and evidently there was some drama between the two at the Nurburgring during a previous race. McQueen was also involved in a fatal accident the previous year, and its strongly implied he had a relationship with the driver's widow. She hangs around the pits of Le Mans almost like the angel of death, actually, until some attempt is made to insert romance in her relationship with McQueen.

The dialog is sparse, which is probably just as well; if you see this film, watch it for the racing. No other film captures the speed and drama of real racing as well as Le Mans. Much of the footage came directly from the race and was perfectly edited into the film: it all plays smoothly. The rest of the footage was shot with real cars and real drivers at real speed, and it shows. The result is almost a documentary on Le Mans.
There's a famous quote from former driver and sometime commentator Sam Posey. He was asked what was the fastest he's ever driven, and he replied that it was around 235mph on the Mulsanne straight at Le Mans (formerly the longest straight in motorsports) driving a Porsche 917. The person comments on the speed of the car, and Posey says that he really wasn't sure exactly how fast the car was - it was still accelerating at the end of the straight! The point is that this film captures a good part of the awe and drama of the speed of the place. For anybody who loves racing, its not to be missed.
As to the DVD, the print has some small dirt specks and a little noise occasionally but is otherwise pretty good: the picture is nice and sharp, and color is quite good. The Dolby 5.1 soundtrack is perhaps one of the best remastering jobs on a 70's era film I've seen. Its not up to modern standards but its still really good.
So... 3 stars for the silly drama, 4 stars for the print and 5 stars for the racing. I'm guessing if your idea of racing is a bunch of loud cars going around in circles this isn't the film for you, but if you love it, this is an experience you'll enjoy and won't readily forget!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Its about time they put this Classic on DVD
Review: This DVD is a must if you are a Sports Car Racing fan. The Video and Audio is unreal. Blows the VHS format out of the water.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Even better on DVD, but.......
Review: This is still the finest racing movie ever made, and, in the light of today's restrictions, ever likely to be made. The widescreen DVD with Dolby Surround track is long overdue. The only problem I have with the movie itself is the difficulty in hearing the background loudspeaker announcements in my non-Dolby environment.
So why only 4 stars? The lack of any bonus material, particularly the one item that should have been included: "Filming at Speed", the fine documentary about the making of the movie. Hopefully a future release will include the documentary.
Still, if you care about motor racing, do not hesitate to buy this DVD! Then find someone with a big-screen TV and Dolby Surround to give yourself the full experience.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: 5 star movie, but no extra features on the DVD.
Review: The movie gets 5 stars, but the DVD package gets 1 for poor effort. Reason: there doesn't appear to be anything extra on the DVD. This is one of the greatest racing movies of all time and there isn't any special features, so why would I get rid of my Laser Disc copy? I would like to see a "making of" documentary or perhaps interviews with the crew 30 years later. Speedchannel had a great documentary on this movie that should be included in the dvd. It had great stories from the film makers and Steve McQueen's son. I'm just a little disappointed in Paramount and the movie's release to DVD. This great movie deserves more than just being on the new format.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Plot Plot, so who needs a plot?
Review: If anyone ever needed a reason to purchase a LARGE screen TV, this movie is it. There are lots of movies that I would like to see on DVD and then there are the few that really should be on DVD, and this is one of them. Don't sweat the minor critiques, just do yourself a favor and get it! Two other movies that have great auto scenes are "The Italian Job" and "Ronin." Add 'em to your collection. You won't regret it. Aloha

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The way a racing movie should be made...
Review: Probably the best movie in automobile racing, the 25-Hour of Le Mans delivers incredible scenes for the lovers of this sport. Storyline its not bad, although the real excitment comes from the track itself. If you like any kind of racing, and enjoy wathcing on-board cameras @ 200mph, you should definately own this dvd.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A true classic!
Review: Until I bought my own copy of LeMans, I was forced to try and catch it on the obscure channels at 2:00 am. Now, I can watch it at my leisure and turn the volume wayyyyyy up - thereby scaring my cats and irritating my wife - and just close my eyes and soak up the sounds of those glorious Porsche and Ferrari engines at full chat. If I could give it 6 stars, I would. Outstanding!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing!!
Review: Best race film ever, and steve mcqueen in his best act!
Very identical movie about the legendary 24 hours du mans.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Simply the essence of the 24 hours of Le Mans
Review: Loaded with authentic racing action, every camera angle, with only a few concessions to the mass market. Minimal plot - Mcqueen plays a race driver. McQueen was a race driver, he probably could have gone professional if he had devoted himself to it. He did some of the driving in this movie, 220 mph in the incredible Porsche 917.

If you want a storyline, you'll have to look somewhere else. But, if you want to be there, to feel, to live the 24 hours of Le Mans, circa 1970, this is your movie.

The best racing movie ever made.


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