Two Versions of Howard's flick a bonus too good to pass up!

Rating: 8/10 (15 June 2005)

Ron Howard's "Apollo 13" (1995) is a compelling account of the bravery and commitment that men of character faced during the initial and dangerous days of the space race. The film stars Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell, devoted family man and adventurer who's dream of outer space turns into a nightmare when a serious malfunction jeopardizes the safety of his crew orbiting the earth. Along for the ride are Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) and Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon). Grounded after a bout of measles, but ever the committed optimist, is Ken Mattingly (Gary Sinise)  aiding in the morale boosting efforts of NASA specialist, Gene Krantz (Ed Harris). The talented Kathleen Quinlan is wasted in the role of Jim's devoted wife, Marilyn Lovell  an insult to her formidable talents made all the more obvious when one views the new IMAX edition of "Apollo 13" presented on Universal's new 2-disc edition. Her performance has all but been distilled into a cameo.
About the transfers: both the original 1995 2hr and 20 min. Panavision 2:40:1 aspect ratio feature and its new 1hr. 57 min. 1:85:1 IMAX aspect ratio incarnation have been digitally remastered by Universal for DVD. In both cases image quality is quite superb. Colors are bold, rich and vibrant. Whites are white. Blacks are deep, solid and rich. Contrast and shadow delineation is stunning with fine details appearing throughout both versions, even during the darkest scenes. The audio on both editions is 5.1 and will give your speakers a healthy workout, particularly during the blast off and re-entry scenes.
What is particularly irksome for the film purist, is the way director Ron Howard's original pacing has been butchered on the new IMAX edition. Nearly 35 min. of footage has been excised  presumably because anything more than two hours of a really big image is just too much for audiences to endure. As a result, the IMAX edition loses some of the film's most poignant scenes to the cutting room floor. Also, the original scope and depth of the Panavision aspect ratio is compromised greatly during several space scenes. The bone of contention here is in today's ever increasing ability to make disposable art that is more user friendly to the masses. The IMAX version fills all of one's widescreen television with the film's image. The original presentation results in thin black bars filling the top and bottom of the screen. And yet, that is the way the film was originally intended to be seen, with more width and a longer running time. Purists will undoubtedly agree with this assessment. The average consumer will easily overlook the both absences.
Extras include some very nicely packaged and quite comprehensive documentaries on both the real space mission and the making of the film, as well as an audio commentary and theatrical trailer. Since Universal has given us both versions to experience in pristine image quality, this edition of "Apollo 13" comes highly recommended.