Rating: 
Summary: WOODSTOCK was THE ultimate, absolutely the best concert ever
Review: i wish i could've been there...and when you watch this video, you'll know why.all the music is awesome and the people were really far out as well. what happened to all that love??
Rating:
Summary: A jewel in the crown
Review: Now this is what DVD is all about! The best rock documentary of the twentieth century is now preserved on longlast DVD. To be honest i ordered this DVD for two reasons: one was to test if a region 1 DVD would run on my 'fixed' region 2 MPEG card (hooray it works!) and reason number two was nostalgia. I saw the original movie at the age of 18 and was impressed by the new (1969!) wide and threefold screen technique. Now after thirty years and some poor sound video copies I was surprised that these same techniques still impressed me. I became aware that this rockdocumentary is absolute unique in atmosphere, technique and 'filmic' quality. Warner has done a great job on the sound and by adding 'new additions' to the DVD copy. They understand the added value DVD. Simply the best rockdocumentary of the century and a jewel in the crown of DVD!!
Rating: 
Summary: An Era Restored
Review: The Woodstock generation was my generation, and this landmark film is an almost 4 hour history of that generation. The issuance of Woodstock on DVD revived many memories and feelings for me. But most wonderful of all is the restoration of the soundtrack - the heart of the film. The sound is glorious, actually even better than CDs I've heard of the soundtrack. The visual restoration is still a little fuzzy, but then the original film had that fuzzy, documentary-like quality rather than a slick Hollywood production. All in all, this is the film for those of use who were in our teens and twenties during the late 60's. I highly recommend the film, and particularly the DVD version.
Rating:
Summary: It makes you want to re-live the 60's
Review: Richie Havens, Canned Heat, The Who, Arlo Guthrie, Sly and the Family Stone, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jefferson Airplane, John Sebastion, Santana, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, 2000 pounds of heavy narcotics, and One-Million Screaming Hippies: Thats One hell Of a Concert!
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Summary: I WUZ THERE !!!
Review: IT WUZ A BLAST MAN...... I REMEMBER MOST OF IT!! LOST A FEW BRAIN CELLS THAT DAY IF U KNOW WHAT I MEAN!! BUT OVER ALL I THINK THEY DID A GOOD JOB ON TRYIN 2 RECORD IT. THE WEATHER,COPS,ETC...... THEY DID REAL GOOD !!! I BOUGHT IT 2 TRY AND REMEMBER SOME OF WHAT I MISSED !! PEACE n LOVE !!! "BULLDOG"
Rating:
Summary: Truly a testament to the talent and psyche of a generation.
Review: Mr. Wadleigh's striking documentary is truly spectacular. Anyone who experienced those times, as well as any fan of good music from the 60's and 70's will thoroughly enjoy this work. The enhancement to digital format has been accomplished tastefully and adds striking texture to a film already littered with realism. Humor, love, anger, and truth are all represented in hours of interviews with concert-goers, band members, ancillary staff, and locals. This in itself would be enough to entertain. However, some of the best concert footage ever filmed is included. Although I belong to the generation which followed that represented in the film, this feature is one of the most often viewed in my collection. One word of caution to parents of young children - drug use, which defined an aspect of the festival, is well depicted. Otherwise, this is certainly one for the collection of any fan or follower of that era of music or philosophy. Also of note, listening to the music in digital surround may be as good or better than a front row seat in 1969!
Rating:
Summary: A Document of a Feeling
Review: It's inevitable that arguments will take place, as they do in these reviews, about what the meaning of Woodstock really is -- many have evoked peace and anti-vietnam sentiments and a great social movement, while others take a more mocking tone and dismiss it as a kind of upper middle class fantasy camp, a sewing of the oats before beginning corporate life.Not having been alive in the 60s, I only know what I've read and been told by those older than myself, but I'd guess that the first assessment is a bit idealistic, while the second is unfair, and that the truth is "somewhere in between," to fall back on the cliche. What the film does successfully document, I gather, is what it felt like to be young and hippie and excited about music and social protest and all the things Woodstock at least appeared, at the time, to represent. The feeling is what's embodied in the filmic techniques, the scenes chosen, and the performances themselves, and this makes Woodstock a successful documentary. The 60s were many things, and no film could capture all of them. Actually, in spite of the fact that it allows itself to get very much caught up in the excitement, I think the film has its moments of ironic distance and sobering reality, such as the port-a-san scene (particularly the extended shot of the average joe cleaning the things). For a good counterpoint, I recommend the Isle of Wight festival film, which captures the darker, more selfish side of the hippie generation.
Rating:
Summary: The original is great--the director's cut not so
Review: My rating is for the original version. I'd give the "director's cut" 3 stars. I invite all newcomers to the Woodstock experience to compare the original cut (if you can find it--it's not yet on DVD) to the "director's cut." I only ask that you see the original cut first (if possible, more than once). The two together may form a more complete picture of the whole festival, but in my opinion, the original cut is far artistically superior, in regard to its editing, to the "director's cut." One point of reference: note in the original cut how the crowd chanting "no rain" and beating on various objects segues so artfully into Santana's "Soul Sacrifice." (one of the high points of the film for me.) That and many other precious moments are lost in the director's cut. True, the original could have dumped Sha Na Na in favor of more Joplin and Jefferson Airplane, but overall, the cadence and pacing of the original are, in my opinion, far superior to the cut available on DVD. I only hope the original cut becomes available on DVD. In the meantime, I'm going to spring for the VHS version. For those who deplore the sound quality of the original, think of it as a piece of precious history that will never happen again. Consider the time and the available technology and just enjoy the experience.
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Summary: Three Days of Chaos
Review: Woodstock was the high point of the late sixties. It was a time of innocence and pain. It was a time when we who were young were members of a tribe - we cared for each other and shared visions of a better world. Yes, there were problems - bad drugs, lack of sanitation, and the like. But it worked in its time. The movie captures this mood so well, both in the interviews and in the music. The multiple frames help to show the different aspects of life at Woodstock so well. I'm not sure if those who are younger now can truly understand why Woodstock was so important - maybe this film will help them to understand.
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Summary: The first of the Saga !
Review: Michael Wadleigh was the director of that hidden cult movie -Wolfen - in the early eighties , but in this documental film , he got an artistic triumph because he literally broke the walls with a challenge work , which meant to take and preserve in the screen the original emotion , the astonishing histamina and the essential spirit and frenetic state of a generation tired of waiting .
For the first time you were capable of watching a seventy two hour show with colossal figures and authentic rock legends .
The absence of technological support worked out better as an advantage than a weakness , because the real spirit was transfered without distortions , you will watch special lights effects but the music emerged such as a force of nature .
Hendrix was simply a God guitar . Fortunately the new generations have been capable to enjoy this recording through that admirable CD : Hendrix live in Woodstock.
Santana performance with Chepito Areas in the percusion playing Soul Sacrifice was one of the peak highlights .
How can you forget the legendary Joe Cocker performance singing With a little help from my friends?
But what about the Who and his outstanding piece: See me , Feel me , touch me from Tommy .
Alvin Lee the faster guitar in the world in those ages playing I'm goin' home , or that ravishing performance of Crosby Stills Nash and Young playing Judy blue eyes .
Richie Havens with his dark voice playing Freedom and Sly and the Stone Family , The Butterfield Blues band , Canned Heat , Jefferson Airplane and Mountain made of that mythical encounter an unique mass phenomen due precisely that spontaneity , that rebel rage , those wildful rhythms and those illusions belonged not only to my emotional memory but a countless young people at that time loaded with a special commitment that hardly you will be able to forget .
Can you imagine that Woodstock Festival with Led Zepellin , Cream, Steppenwolf, Al Kooper, Deep Purple and Traffic ?
It would have meant the supreme dream .
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