Reivers, The (1969) [000054]
The only laserdisc release of this film was the French version with the title "The Reivers" from 1969 (000054) a UK PDO release with no rot whatsoever. The film itself is a nice family film with some funny stuff going on. What isn't funny is the picture quality is not even up to VHS standards, complete with washed-out colors that bleed terribly and the whole mess is blurry too! Although the soundtrack is analog only, it is fine with good strong sound. I was concerned my player was acting up when first viewing this film but quickly realized that the French were trying to hide the fact that it was an American release by using heavily freeze-framed, zoomed-in chroma-laced stills during the opening credits to avoid anyone seeing any English titles on screen, instead of simply running the original opening credits with burned in French subtitles in place. A great story though and a shame it had to be released in this quality.
I remember years ago those bargain bins that were always filled up with VHS tapes for a dollar in most department stores and I would find a title that looked interesting and hope for the best....but usually when I got home and played the tape it would have disgusting quality...after looking at this laserdisc I'm wishing I had the tape!
This disc has the dubious distinction of winning first prize in my collection as the worst looking PAL laserdisc I have ever seen!!!