Moby Dick - MiniSeries Masterpiece

It could have been a disappointment, as it was made for television. But this movie is very good at keeping the excitement rolling right along and at projecting one of my favorite books intent and purpose sure and true. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality and beauty in the depiction, on a lower budget, of a very difficult to replicate convincingly, story of the sea, and two of its greatest monsters locked in their life and death battle. The peril of the seamen and their better sense being overcome by Ahab's manipulative insanity could not have been more convincing. To see their will melt in the face of his power of personality coupled with his madness, gives a sense of understanding for the overall history of humankind.What a powerful tale, and warning, of the drumbeat of the combination of charisma and madness, with its power and sway over the minds of the unwary. I highly recommend this movie. I highly recommend that we listen and take heed of its great warning, before the ship sinks, wrecked and forlorn, into the sea.

Like the story

I was a bit concerned since this version comes out of Korea, but I must say the technical quality of the DVD was fine. it was very easy to turn off the Korean subtitles (I do read Korean and speak it a bit, but I find the subtitles distracting), and from that point on, it was technically a fine DVD.In terms of the acting, this is my favorite version, with Gregory Peck's version a close second. Peck is more of a smoldering, deep Ahab. Stewart is a fiery, charismatic Ahab. When Quequeg comes out of his death trance and crawls over to Ahab and proclaims, "Me sabe. You god. You god" it's totally believable. Stewart has that kind of presence. Even though everyone on board the ship thinks Ahab is crazy, they are willing to follow him to the death. It made me think of the power Adolph Hitler must have had in 1930s Germany.There are of course a few artistic liberties - variations from Melville's original story. But I do not think any of these detract from the essential story. If you have read Melville, you will enjoy this re-telling. And if you have never waded through Melville's prose, you will find in this version why Moby Dick continues to be a story that is told again, and again, and again. Even if you have the Gregory Peck version (and I hope you do), you will want to buy this one. It's a great version and much superior to some which have come later, IMHO.

Mill Creek Entertainment's new R1 DVD has incorrectly stated on the packaging a widescreen format of 1.85:1. This production from the late '90's was conceived and shot in 1.33:1 aspect ratio, which is how TV audiences of the day first saw it and is how it is presented here.Another gaffe on the DVD case, but this one's just amusing: to go merely by the description on the back, in this version Ahab is "a man obsessed with vengeance against a menacing beast that *not only stole the lives of his former crew* but continues to haunt him from the sea."A deceptive attempt to stoke expectations for the film, perhaps? Or genuine ignorance of the source material? Who knows?The menu screen after start-up gives an immediate clue to the film's presentation on the new disc. There are only two options from which to choose: "Part One" and "Part Two". Ergo, this edition preserves the original miniseries format.I'm not too crazy about this decision -- I would have preferred a seamlessly edited 3-hour picture without two sets of opening and closing credits, but c'est la guerre.As to the film itself, there has never been a "faithful" adaptation of Melville's masterpiece on film, but how could there be? Maybe a filmmaker as unconventional as, say, Terrence Malick, could come close. Many of the traditional dramatic conventions embraced by this and other renditions might have to be eschewed. What that leaves you with in terms of compelling cinema, though, is a good question. As I post this, Ron Howard's adaptation of Nathaniel Philbrick's "In the Heart of the Sea" (about the Essex disaster, which inspired the writing of "Moby Dick") is close to its premiere, and may prove the best approach for this kind of material, assuming it'll be more than just another amusement park ride.This 1998 version is the best, overall. Its budget whale effects were never impressive compared to John Huston's film, and that picture also captured a more convincing flavor for New Bedford whaling. Oswald Morris' scrimshaw hued cinematography is also missed. But Franc Roddam's film is better as a whole, using the expanded run time to fill out the characters. It feels less cursory, less rushed, Christopher Gordon's music is superb, and the performances by Patrick Stewart and Ted Levine are unforgettable. Gregory Peck does better in his cameo as Father Mapple (his last film appearance) than he did as Ahab in Huston's film.Movie -- 4DVD -- 3 (point deducted for the two-parter presentation)

I used a summary of this book and this movie as an assignment in American Literature for my great granddaughter whom I homeschool. The movie is faithful to the text and presents the themes of the book accurately. The acting is excellent. The story and the picture of the historical era is engaging as well as interesting. I recommend this to those who do not enjoy reading the long books of the classics, but want to be knowledgeable about them, or to anyone who enjoys a good movie.

A racy and spirited tale of the hard life out to sea, with colorful sailors and harpooners venturing to take on the great beasts called sperm whales, fighting them from small skiffs sent out from the fragile wooden whaling vessel, and their captain set on a relentless crusade to have his revenge upon the great white whale that once took his leg.

Il mio ordine è arrivato celermente grazie all'interessamento personale del venditore. Il pacchetto era ben sigillato e al suo interno era tutto apposto. Mi reputo pienamente soddisfatto dell'acquisto.

Great movie, unfortunately dvd quality wasn’t so great .

El DVD llegó antes de la fecha prevista en perfectas condiciones. Recomendable. Saludos

D'un monstre de la littérature, tous les acteurs ont leur rôle adéquat vu leur charisme respectif. Le film suit le roman avec des originalités, et les effets spéciaux sont satisfaisants. Colis bien livre par pearl diffusion neuf, merci bien.l'évolution mentale des différents caractères est superbement jouée, jusque la fin des fins, il y a je crois en tout trois scènes où on voit les chasses et une où ils vident les entrailles d'une baleine et récoltent la fameuse huile, c'est très prenant.gregory peck qui avait joué dans le précédent il y a fort longtemps Moby Dick revient le temps d'une scène, celle de l'église où il donne un fameux sermon biblique, l'acteur qui joue Starbuck est particulièrement fin, c'est comme une adaptation théâtrale du livre surtout pour suivre le grand Patrick Stewart, le plus parfait des capitaine Achab. On aurait tellement aimé une heure épique en plusbref, si vous ne connaissiez pas ce téléfilm foncez !

Francis Ford Coppolas Fernsehzweiteiler-Verfilmung von "Moby Dick" ist vermutlich die bisher beste Verfilmung des Stoffs. Sie richtet sich ziemlich genau nach dem Buch und die schauspielerischen Leistungen sind Top. Einziges Manko sind vielleicht die Fernsehproduktion-typischen Special Effects, die manchmal etwas billig wirken. Ansonsten echt zu empfehlen. Patrick Steward gibt noch einen besseren Ahab ab als Gregory Peck.