Good & Bad Audio Commentaries

C

colinh90

New member
I know Audio Commentaries can be a hit & miss with some people.Personally speaking this is one thing i do look for when buying a dvd movie.

I was just wondering

1.What Audio Commentaries have you enjoyed & would recommend to others?

2.What Audio Commentaries were you let down by?

The Audio commentaries that i enjoyed off the top of my head were

The Fog
The Thing
Big Trouble In Little China
Saw
Rush Hour 1&2 (Haven't got 3 yet)

As for commentaries that i was let down by

I can't remember if it was the Audio Commentary for The Omen II or the Omen III.But what ever 1 it was the guy doing the Audio Commentary only seemed to speak whenever he felt like it.10-15mins of the movie would go by & then he would speak.He would say something like "The day we filmed this scene it was cold" then silence again.The commentary was awful
 
John Carpenters/Kurt Russel audio commentaries are always fun to hear... especially on "The Thing".

Another favorite of mine is the cast commentary on one of the Dawn of the Dead: Ultimate Edition discs. The collection includes 3 different versions of the movie (U.S., Extended & European). The cast commentary can be found on (I think) the European cut. It's very funny to listen to. You can clearly tell that they're enjoying themselves and the movie. :)
 
Any with Simon Pegg (Big Nothing, Sean of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Run Fatboy Run)
Talledega Nights
Anchorman
Dodgeball

I had high hopes for Superbad but didn't enjoy it at all, mainly because the fat kid had an argument with one of the producers who had bought his ten year old daughter in, which meant they couldn't swear. After a while there was a big bust up, lots of swearing in front of the kid and they walked out. Embarrasing.
 
Commentry's by Fincher and Ridley Scott are fantastic, and well detailed.


The worst commentry I've listened to is by Abel Ferrara on the film Driller Killer. Made me want to copy his character in the film! lol.
 
my favorite commentaries are on anything by Kevin Smith (even Ben Af**** comes across well on these), simon pegg/edgar wright, Bruce campbells 'Evil Dead' track and any of the hong kong martial arts films which have commentary by Bey Logan (even if you are not a martial arts fan these are a interesting look at a different culture of film making).

The worst commentary I have heard is Chevy Chase's commentary for European Vacation, where there are long gaps where he says nothing and most of the commentary in general is just the odd fact here and there. I also remember the 'Lost Boys' track to be very dry, which was a huge disappointment.
 
I liked the commentary in "There's Something About Mary". It seemed to me that the things the Directors cared about were the things that mattered.

There's a Terminator 2 commentary which is very good. It's very produced; there's an anchor who introduces various other speakers to cover different aspects of the film. They talk about how they did some of the SFX, actor experiences on set, etc.

Moulin Rouge has a good commentary.
 
I think what makes a good or bad commentary is really subjective; personally, I don't mind small gaps and pauses (one or two minutes is fine), but here's a quick list of things I like and don't like:

LIKES

* A variety of cast and crew members. When you put actors, directors and writers in a room there never seems to be a moment when someone doesn't have something interesting to say.

* Funny stories, unheard anecdotes, etc. Humour and comedy help to lift up a commentary, especially when they are obviously 'old frienRAB'.

* Self-deprecation. When an actor/director/writer has the guts to say something didn't turn out they way they'd hoped it would. Pointing out continuity errors, goofs, bad dialogue, etc all make for a more 'human' yak-track.

* Screen relevance. The worst five worRAB to hear are, "coming up in a minute", because you know full well it's going to be a minimum of five minutes away and, ultimately, anticlimactic. The best tracks keep on track (if you know what I mean ;))

DISLIKES

* Dry technical detail ("...we used 1013-B tape here instead of the standard 1013-A...")

* Eternal back-patting ("...Johnny was great in this scene. He's such a fantastic actor. Oh, and Mary was really great here too. She's a real pleasure to work with...")

* Dull, unengaging anecdotes that go nowhere ("...Y'see Tony was supposed to turn up at seven but got lost at the airport so didn't make it till eight...")

* Cast & Crew talking over each other ("...here's an interesting fact: on the first take somebo-....OH LOOK AT THAT BIRD IN THE BACKGROUND...-ght in the eye!")

* Describing what's happening on screen ("...here I pick up the phone...say the dialogue...now we cut to Rome...here I am in the hotel lobby...")

* A single 'factoid' repeated again and again ("We chose Brian for his size not his acting ability"..."Brian was a great choice, not because he's an actor, but 'cause of his enormous frame"..."Now here, you can see how Brian's weight gives him a presence")

* Looooooooooooong pauses.

Personally, I've really enjoyed commentaries on shows like 'Futurama'. Lots of interesting facts, light-hearted banter, not too much self-congratulation and it's full of insights of the show's production. Producer 'David X Cohen' never lets the track fall silent, interjecting in quiet moments with little facts and pertinent questions for the other crew members. Oh, and the voice-over cast maintain the humour throughout.

I hate to say what my worst commentary ever is, but it'd probably have to be 'Austin Powers'. Jay Roach and Mike Myers sound borderline zombified the vast majority of the time. The sober tone and delivery seems wrong when you've got Austin Powers bouncing around the screen.
 
The Evil Dead commentaries are my favourite. Sam Raimi & Bruce Campbell are hilarious & you get a real insight into how they made the films.

Bruce Campbell's book "If Chins Coulld Kill" is well worth checking out, too.

The '24' & Prison Break commentaries aren't bad either.
 
I totally agree with "The Thing", Russel & Carpenter are excellent, they're also great on "Escape From NY".
Some other great ones are -
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (original)
Ray Winstone on "Scum"
Phil Daniels on "Quadrophenia"

The worst PERIOD has to be Friedkin on The Exorcist (The Version You've Never Seen). Just basically says "ah, thats the priest entering the room", "that's the girl being sick on the priest", "that's the mother walking up the stairs" for the entire movie. I lost 2 hours of my life sititng through that! :D
 
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