The Man, The Myth, The Legend
Who is he? Ray Harryhausen is a film maker and special effects pioneer who paved the way for many film classics. The technique that Harryhausen is more famous for is stop motion, a genre in which he was a pioneer and a genius. Harryhausen has dozens of credits for producing, visual effects, writing, acting, animation, cinematography, and much more.
He’s also won many awards for his work in special effects and the contributions that he’s made to cinematography. Harryhausen has a star on the legendary Hollywood Walk of Fame, and holds the Academy Awards Gordon E. Sawyer Lifetime Achievement Award to name a few of his honorable distinctions. At 88 years of age, Harryhausen is STILL producing films, producing War Eagles, which is due out in 2010.
While Harryhausen is still hard at work, his most notable work came out in the 1950’s and 1960’s. In these early years, Harryhausen helped pioneer film techniques which are still in use today! The Ray Harryhausen Collection features four feature length films dating from 1955 through 1958, available in both original black and white as well as “Chromochoice” color.
While many movie-goers would be quick to dismiss the work of Mr. Harryhausen as old and unimpressive by todays standards, without pioneers like Ray Harryhausen, there would be no blockbuster special effects movies like we enjoy today. Film makers like Tim Burton (Nightmare Before Christmas), and Stephen Spielberg (Jurassic Park) would have never been able to make some of their best works were it not for their ability to follow in the footsteps of Harryhausen.
Four Feature Films
Ray Harryhausen Collection features four different films, but since this is a box set, I’ll review it just one time with a brief nod to each. We start with, It Came From Beneath The Sea. In this classic, a giant radioactive octopus attacks a submarine, which must then pursue it across the ocean before it gets the chance to strike again. Unfortunately, as they try to figure out how to destroy the beast, it crawls onto land and wreaks havoc on San Francisco. This movie runs 79 minutes.
Next up we are treated to an alien invasion in another classic, Earth VS. The Flying Saucers. This film is about Dr. Russell Marvin, a man who works for the government sending rockets into space. When the rockets start disappearing, Dr. Marvin investigates, finding that the rockets are being intercepted by space aliens! Soon aliens begin attacking Earth! This feature film runs 83 minutes.
Can mankind survive this creatures wrath? Its 20 Million Miles to Earth! When an American space ship crash lands back on Earth, the rescuers find a weird goo that soon hatches into a bizarre creature. The creature grows like it’s been eating it’s Wheaties, and soon is over 20 feet tall! Before long it’s all over Rome like a bull in a china shop, and we are treated to campy early 50’s movie action at it’s finest! This film runs about 82 minutes.
Last, but certainly not least we have, Te 7th Voyage of Sinbad. Sinbad is probably Harryhausen’s most popular character, Harryhausen brought him back two more times in the mid 70’s for a very successful encore. The legendary Sinbad sets off on a quest to explore the mysterious land Colossa. He battles all sorts of magics, including a legendary battle with some skeletons which gets nods even in pop culture today. Sinbad lasts about 88 minutes, and was my favorite of the four films in this collection.
No doubt you’ve probably seen Harryhausen’s work before on Saturday afternoon television, or late at night on AMC Classic. If you are a fan of Ray Harryhausen, this collection is a must own. Not only do you get over five hours of movie classics, but you get a ton of special features.
Special Features Done Right!
Every film features both the original black and white version as well as a colorized “Chromachoice” version as well. Additionally you also get:
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Remembering The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
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Audio Commentaries
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The Harryhausen Legacy
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The Music of Bernard Herrmann
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Photo Galleries
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“Sinbad may have been bad, but he’s been good to me” Music Video
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A Look Behind the Voyage
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This is Dynamation Special Effects Featurette
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Ray Harryhausen interviewed by Director John Landis
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A Digital Sneak Peek of 20 Million Miles More Comic Book
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Remembering 20 Million Miles to Earth
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Tim Burton sits down with Ray Harryhausen
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Interviews With Joan Taylor
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The Colorization Process
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Original Ad Artwork
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David Schecter on Film Music’s Unsung Hero
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Video Photo Galleries
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Remembering Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers
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The Hollywood Blacklist and Bernard Gordon
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Digital Sneak Peek of Flying Saucers Vs. The Earth Comic Book
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Remembering It Came From The Sea
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Tim Burton sits down with Ray Harryhausen/
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A Present Day look at Stop Motion
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Video Photo Galleries
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A Video Sneak Peek of It Came from Beneath the Sea…Again! Comic Book.
And yes, MUCH MORE.
If you don’t appreciate old films, this box set may not impress you. If you are a budding film maker (and with the prevalence of YouTube these days, who isn’t?) then this is a must see (and must own) collection.
If you grew up watching Harryhausen classics, the nostalgic feeling you get watching these films again is priceless. But the really great value is the plethora of extra content packed on to each disc. Instead of copping out with just a few special features, you get four feature length discs perfectly packaged together.
Each volume could stand alone, so getting four is a very impressive thing. I am very impressed with Columbia Pictures on this release as they demonstrate how the Blu-Ray format can make even classic films better when they exercise the full capacity of the disc for alternate versions and additional features. This film makes a proud addition to my growing Blu-Ray collection.