From: jaime@tcville.HAC.COM (Jaime Villacorte)
Newsgroups: rec.video.releases
Subject: Review: Monty Python and the Holy Grail laser disc
Keywords: Python, Monty, African and European swallows, nee!
Date: 17 Dec 92 18:33:45 GMT
Reply-To: jaime@tcville.HAC.COM (Jaime Villacorte)
Followup-To: rec.video.releases
Distribution: na
Organization: Hughes Aircraft Co., El Segundo, CA


  I watched Monty Python and The Holy Grail on laser disc last night.
And uhhhh...no, it's not what you think ;-) The Criterion disc (according
 a phone call to Ken Crane's this morning) has not been released yet.

  A co-worker, and fellow laser-disc enthusiast owns a very rare disc (imho)
- the 1983 RCA/Columbia Pictures release of The Holy Grail (catalog #
VLD3337). I borrowed it last night and viewed it to prepare myself
for Criterion's eventual release of this movie (hopefully) within a month.

  The first thing I noticed was the lack of a digital sound track. The analog
sound that was coming out, appeared to be mono, since almost all the sound
I heard was coming out of my center speaker when I played the movie
through my dolby surround processor. I began to wonder if the movie was
actually recorded in mono (to cut expenses, ala Terminator) or if RCA just
didn't bother laying down a stereo sound track on this disc The audio track
also lacked CX noise reduction (according to my 3070 player's front panel).

  Also, my front panel was only showing minutes for the time display - no
seconds, and no chapter marks. Minutes only. Something I've never encountered
before on my other discs.

  The video quality was poor. I found it comparable to watching a VHS
recording in SLP speed. There was quite a bit of blurriness in the image.
Colors were washed out, lacking the vividness one gets in today's
releases. I also noticed a significant amount of white random speckles at
certain places during the movie, something that's probably attributable to a
dirty movie print used for the source.

  One redeeming thing was the inclusion of the mock theater organ music
that was played at the very end of the movie, just after the film "tears"
This is something one rarely sees on television.

  Finally, beginning imediately with the opening credits and apparent in
many scenes, it was obvious that the movie needed a widescreen treatment.
The ends of some lines in the credits were chopped off.  Knights positioned
at the left and right sides of a scene were often cut in half, or were missing
entirely. You get the picture - (actually you don't :-))

  With all the faults of the disc, I still found the movie immensely,
gut-wrenchingly, enjoyable - even after having seen it dozens of times
since it's initial release. Such is the power of Monty Python's humor over me.

  Hopefully, Criterion will make this great film, a great laser disc release
- complete with a good print as a source, a widescreen presentation, digital
sound, chapter stops, and (maybe?) running commentary on an analog track.
Santa, are you listening?

  						- jaime villacorte
 
...We're knights of the Round Table
   Our shows are for-mid-able
   Oh many times we're given rhymes
   That are quite unsing-able...
Newsgroups: rec.video.releases