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The Monster Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Dracula / The Wolf Man)

The Monster Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Dracula / The Wolf Man)

List Price: $79.98
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: long-awaited, worth the wait
Review: I received this collection today, and I'm elated. The discs play well (so far), the picture and sound quality are high, the movies are so good, and the statuettes are quite cool, too-- made from a substance called "polystone," they're weighty, and carefully made to capture the personalities of the monsters. My favorite of the movies is Son of Frankenstein, with its disturbing expressionist sets, and Basil Rathbone crumbling from British-cool into brandy-fueled, maniacal-dartthrowing paranoia. My only wish is that there were a way to time-transport this box (along with a DVD player and adapter) back to my 10 year old self in 1963.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: All of my favorite childhood Monsters!
Review: I just received this boxed collection today, and I was really pleased with everything! This is such a great value, and if you're like me and have always wanted these movies in your own collection, then this is the one to get!! Each Monster has his own separate DVD Case containing several movies pertaining to each one. I couldn't believe how nice this whole gift set was put together, and the "bust" of each Monster was done really nice. I am so...pleased to finally have all of my favorites to enjoy and share whenever I please. You must own this set, and get prepared for the Van Helzing movie opening soon!!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Quality Control Issues
Review: I also had the same problem as a previous reviewer. I bought 2 sets (not from Amazon) and had severe scratches on several of the DVDs. I brought them back to the store and had to open 4 other packages in the return counter until I found 2 packages that I was happy with.

Other than that, this is an incredible DVD set.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Essential Collection!!!
Review: The Monster Legacy Collection Box Set is worth every penny. Each film is presented uncut and all the scenes that have been censored over the years (especially Frankenstein) are included and cleaned up beautifully. Having purchased the set and watched many of the films already, I can say to all those out there that have questions about the new DVD quality, don't worry, its perfect. The picture is stunning with a few minor imperfections that are to be expected with films from the 1930's. The sound is even better. You can hear every line of dialogue perfectly. Also, for Dracula you can choose between the original score, or Phillip Glass's stunning new score that debuted at the Telluride Film Festival a few years ago that only adds to the brilliance of the film. The special features are also great for the main films. There are lenghty documentaries on the making of Frankenstein, Bride of.., Dracula, and The Wolfman. There are trailers for all the films except one(Son of Frankenstien if I'm not mistaken). The audio commentaries are insigfhtful, by worthy film critics that respect the genre and the original intent of the filmmakers. Also, director Steven Sommers has three short doc's where he explains the influences of these three films on his new film, Van Helsing(which is sure to dissapoint and ruin everything that was great about the original films). So overall, this is essential for any film buffs collection. These films are amoung the most influential of all time and continue to grow in stature as we are bombarded with crappy horror film after crappy film nowadays. Don't let the opprotunity pass you buy to get this great set, because you will end up buying all the films seperately anyway, and you won't get the cool hand painted busts that are a collectors items in themselves.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Chlidren of the Night...beware of merchandising
Review: Who is making the decisions at Universal when it comes to the classic horror films of the 30's & 40's? The 1999 issue of Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolfman, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Mummy,The Invisible Man,& The Bride of Frankenstein were in release for a year or two then gone. Likewise the 2001 double bill features of Son of Frankenstein/Ghost of Frankenstein and 5 other double bills featuring sequals to The Mummy & Dracula were available for a very limited time. All were priced at around $30.00. That would make this "Legacy Collection" a very good deal indeed. Fourteen classic movies and a number of features and commentaries. Watch out though. The liner on the back of The Wolfman claims that the film is available for the first time on DVD. It is 1 hr and 10 min just like the 1999 Universal release.

Lets keep these in the stores for a while and away from the "Ebay Bloodsuckers" ... not that there is anything wrong with bloodsuckers as long as they are the Tod Browning variety.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The first and still the best
Review: This box set is absolutely worth the cost. These movies are rare and never before seen on DVD well here they are. Timeless classics fully restored to share with those have not seen these classic characters at their best. I for one will cherish this box set because it is loaded with tons of extra features, and the movies are timeless. Not to mention the collectible busts are a timeless keep sake in themselves. Pick this one up before it turns into a bat and flies away forever!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Movies and a Great Deal
Review: Try to find the original DVD releases of these films and you'll feel your wallet scream in agony. Even on eBay the single DVD's sell for $15-$25 plus whatever shipping the seller wants. Now, Universal has re-released their classic monsters again on a wonderful collection that includes 13 films including House of Dracula, which was previously unreleased (on DVD anyway). At $55.99, that's only $4.30 per movie! Plus Amazon offers free shipping! Anyone who loves these classic films should jump at this opportunity.

The only downside is the focus on 3 of the classic monster pantheon. Sadly missing are the Creature from the Black Lagoon and Mummy films, but I really can't complain. Maybe the strong sales for this collection will spur another collection soon.

Just watch these great films. There was something magical about these movies from the 30's (and early 40's in Wolfie's case). The sets were detailed and lush. The actors had a certain dynamic, over-acted life to them. The monsters were foreboding and dangerous. The fear was conveyed without gore. Their motives dealt more with evil and our own repressed natures.

Each monster has his own 2 disk set featuring a total of "13 films" although I count 14. It's possible they are counting the english and spanish versions of Dracula as one film even though they are different. Many actually consider the spanish version superior to the english version. The set includes documentaries, commentaries, and musical tracks.

The set was released today (April 27, 2004) but Universal, unfortunately, did not meet production expectations, so if you have ordered the set, there MAY be a delay getting your copies. Even so, get your name on the list... order this amazing collection... and get ready for the ultimate marathon this Halloween!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Quality control?
Review: Being one of the original "Monster Kids", I have been eager for this set. So eager in fact that I bought it @ a "brick and mortar" establishment so I wouldn't have to wait. Here's the bad news. I bought the set, opened it and found one of the discs unattached to its spindle and scratched. I returned it to the store and swapped it out. More bad news. The second set had TWO loose discs (also scratched). I opened the third set in the store and found that it was MISSING one of the discs! I decided to give it one last shot, so customer service allowed me to open a fourth set. You guessed it: two more loose and scratched discs! Universal apparently has some serious quality control issues. I gave this set two stars only becasue of the concept of the packaging w/ the little busts. I really hated walking out of that store empty handed.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The right price for a horrific batch
Review: While I did buy a few of the Monster DVDs when they first came out, I didn't buy any of the double features because I didn't feel like playing $30 for two films and no frills. But now the price is right.

For those of you concerned about putting this many movies on six DVDs, don't get too worried because a majority of these films are barely an hour long. Frankenstein was only 71 minutes - Bride 75 min - Dracula 75 min Dracula's Daughter 71 min - Wolfman 70 min so it's not too much of a squeeze.

It would be nice if Universal puts out a 2 disc set of The Mummy and another of their other classic monster movies along with the Abbott and Costello. Clear out the vaults by Halloween!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Economic Packaging
Review: I do not generally want to review DVD's I have yet to see, but just wanted to add some information to the previous review. Apparently the discs in this collection will be "flippers", therefore five movies and extras would be spread over four sides, not two, so compression should not be a problem. Certainly looking forward to this!


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