The Jolson Story

Customer Reviews:

You like old movies...you haven't lived till you see this one!.......2007-09-10

Like anothers, I've also seen this movie many times in the early 60's as a kid growing up in Newark N.J. I used to run around the house singing the songs! I never forgot how much I enjoyed this movie! I bought a used tape of this movie (vhs) about 10 plus years back and have watch it another 30-50 times...I even work on my computer and listen to it! I just like it, it works for me ....I hope someone reads this and decides to watch it for the first time. But you have to watch it ten to twenty times till you can just the club! Maybe it reminds me of my own childhood. I hope to receive my dvd that I just ordered from [...] by my 55th birthday,just weeks away. This movie always entertains me, yet you may not even like it, I hope you do! I imagine if you haven't seen it you wouldn't buy it! If you watched this in the pass you can easily get hooked(addicted). You haven't seen nothing yet ! Have a good life!

You ain't heard nothing yet.......2007-08-19

I think the Jolson Story should be required viewing ... the energy, vitality of the Jolson voice can transform a cloudy day to pure sunshine. Just a great movie..outstanding acting by Larry Parks and of course the Jolson voice...you'll find yourself singing in the shower for weeks afterwards. A five star, must see.

The Jolson Story.......2007-05-12

A superior musical of the 1940s. The film has held up well over 60 years. I first watched it when I was in grade school, then most recently at the age of 52, and I was surprised at how solid it remains. Like most biopics of its day, it plays fast and loose with the facts, but the story is entertaining and the production values very high. Lost of wonderful details and a great cast. Parks (oscar nomination) cannot convey the dynamic charisma reported about the live performances of the man he portrays, but then, Jolson himself could not do that on film, either. Still, Parks gives it his all, and lip sinchs magnificently. Terrific character actors fill in all the gaps. Still a great film.

The Jolson Story Still A Hit!.......2007-01-11

I saw the original Jolson Story 18 times as a youngster and went on to emulate the "Larry Parks" dead-on portrayal in school events and in my parlor. This DVD is exceptional in terms of color quality and sound. A wonderful restoration of a truly classic film that traces Asa Yolsen's rise from a young lad singing in the synogogue to the world's greatest entertainer. The Jolson songs and voice are still thrilling and there are lots of favorites to enjoy..Mammy, Rosie, California Here I Come! and more. As Jolson used to say, if you havent seen this video "You ain't heard nothing yet!"

The Jolson Story.......2006-11-10

I loved this movie growing up in Southern California. It was on every night for weeks on "The Million Dollar Movie," a local movie channel. Larry Parks is amazing as Al Jolson. Truly, the greatest entertainer who ever lived!

Average customer rating:

A Beautiful Bio
Pickford Program Perfection minus 1 * !
The Life of a Legend
Not as detailed as I thought it would be...
A WELL MADE BIOGRAPHY

Mary Pickford - A Life on Film
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg , Douglas Fairbanks Jr. , Jean Firstenberg , Samuel Goldwyn Jr. , and Camille Johnson
Director: Hugh Munro Neely
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Biography | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00005M2CG
Release Date: 2001-08-28

Description

By the age of seventeen, Mary Pickford had become the first actress to achieve international superstardom. By the time she was thirty, she was the first and only woman ever to own a major movie studio, the only woman to be the highest-paid actor in Hollywood and the first actress to have complete control in making her films. With comedic talents equal to Keaton, Lloyd or Chaplin, the tragic range of Gish and Swanson and business acumen to rival any Hollywood mogul, Mary Pickford was the consummate movie star of the 20th Century. "Mary Pickford: A Life on Film" is the definitive documentary on the most powerful woman in the history of cinema. Hosted and narrated by Whoopi Goldberg.

Customer Reviews:

A Beautiful Bio.......2007-07-01

Okay, first of all, I'd like to say I am a Mary Pickford fan and yes, Charles "Buddy" Roger's too. (Love, love, love "My Best Girl, 1927)

So, I've seen most of the documentaries on Mary (they don't seem to have any on Buddy). Then, lo and behold, this one has both of them. It also has footage I haven't seen anywhere. Nice :)

Pickford Program Perfection minus 1 * !.......2005-05-05

If you have never seen Pickford in action, this is the biography to watch for it is chock full of short footage of the incomparable Mary doing her screen antics. Displaying scenes from her rare unseen silents & talkies, "A Life on Film" made me want to go out searching for Pickford reels to spin for myself. I especially love the scenes of Mary from "Cinderella," "Rosita" (A rare Lubitsch classic) and "Hoodlum!" not to mention "Secrets" which is a Pickford's last talkie. Another thing I love is the home movie footage of Pickford, Chaplin and Douglas. I gave it Minus 1 * because the menu is sparse and there is no extras included. I would have liked a Pickford "Biograph" short to be included or a feature just to wet the appetite of the viewer more but oh well . . . (NOTE TO MILESTONE: Keep those Pickford Pictures coming!!)

The Life of a Legend.......2003-07-07

I was really excited to see this after I bought it because I am a huge Mary Pickford fan and because many of her movies only partially survive. I had a seen a preview on another Milestone release and was happy to hear that Buddy Rogers and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. were commenting on her.

The story was told and not a whole lot of new information was given that could not be found in books, but clips from rare movies were shown like Kiki and Secrets. However, some information seems to contradict some things that I have read, so I am not sure how completely accurate this film is.

Not as detailed as I thought it would be..........2003-03-22

For an Image Entertainment production, I thought this biography of Mary Pickford would have been much meatier than it actually was. Overall, this biography gives a pretty good outline of Mary Pickford's life. One thing that annoyed me about the film was how they kept referring to Mary as being American; she was a CANADIAN from Toronto and during her middle age she was concerned about losing her Canadian citizenship and renewed it in honour of her parents who were Canadians. CBC did a Pickford documentary as part of their Life and Times series which was very good and only an hour long. I wish CBC would release their documentary on DVD.

They should have included commentary from Eileen Whitfield who wrote a wonderful biography of Pickford in 1997: "Pickford: the Woman Who Made Hollywood". Since Whitfield spent many years doing research for this book, I think she would have been able to give better insight into Mary than someone like Leonard Maltin and the other people who had commentaries in this documentary.

A WELL MADE BIOGRAPHY.......2001-01-15

IF YOU LOVE MARY PICKFORD AND WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT HER LIFE, THIS IS A VERRY WELL MADE BIOGRAPHY. IT`S HOSTED BY WHOOPIE GOLDBERG ??? AND IT TAKES YOU THROUGH HER BIRTH IN 1893 TO HER DEATH IN 1979. YOU SEE PEOPLE LIKE DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS JR AND HER LAST HUSBAND CHARLES "BUDDY" ROGERS TALKING ABOUT THEIR FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH HER AND OTHER ACTORS AND FRIENDS TALKING ABOUT WHO SHE WAS AND WHAT SHE DID. YOU ALSO SEE A CHRONOLOGY OF THE FILMS SHE MADE FROM HER FIRSTS SHORTS TO HER FEW TALKIES, THIS WAS INTERESTING TO ME BECAUSE THERE`S A LOT OF STUFF I NEVER SAW BEFORE. SO,IF YOU LOVE MARY PICKFORD LIKE ME AND DON`T HAVE TIME TO READ A BOOK ABOUT HER YOU`LL PROBABLY LIKE THIS. IT ALSO HAD A NICE RUNNING TIME OF 96 MIN.

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