Just uttering the term "Blues Brothers" can instantly put
a smile on anyone’s face for those that remember them. The pair began as a memorable
character duo on Saturday Night Live, and soon evolved into a pop culture
phenomenon when the motion picture hit in 1980. Directed by John Landis (An America
Werewolf In London), Brothers made no bones about its goofy characters or absurd
storyline, but thanks to its unforgettable car chase scenes, musical numbers, cameos (with
the likes of John Candy, Pee Wee Herman, Frank Oz, and Steven Spielberg), and musical
guests (including Cab Calloway, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, and the legendary Ray
Charles), the film had a definite everlasting impact.
Musically, The Blues Brothers gave new life to the blues genre, and revitalized
the careers of its musical guest stars. If not for the film, the large franchise known as
"House Of Blues" might have never existed. Now, on their 25th
Anniversary DVD edition, fans get the chance to experience more goodies than ever before.
First on Side A (the disc is dual layered) is an extended version of the film that runs
15 minutes longer than the original version. In this cut, you get additional small scenes,
as well as new shots to scenes you might already be familiar with. This new version is
entertaining in some ways, but lackluster in others. For example the image quality varies,
as you can easily tell an original shot from a new shot (they aren’t as clean, and
even look like a deleted scene). The sound quality for this cut is well done however,
focusing strongly on the music and some of the sound effects that weren’t as
noticeable on the previous DVD release. Accompanying this new cut, strangely, is a feature
that was on the original DVD, "Stories Behind The Making Of The Blues Brothers",
which is an extensive hour long documentary featuring interviews with the cast and crew
and behind the scenes footage (I personally liked the story of Aretha Franklin’s
inability to synch her playback music to her performance). You also have the option of
watching specific musical sequences from the film in Musical Highlights (a feature that
also appears on Side B).
In Side B, for the purists, is the original cut of the film (sadly, without its 5.1
mix, you have to settle for 2.0). On the features end is an intro by Dan Akroyd (which
should have been placed on Side A for the anniversary edition). There is also a House Of
Blues 2005 mini-concert with Akroyd and James Belushi (stepping into the shoes of his
brother) that nicely gives one an idea what their concerts are like today. Transposing The
Music is a condensed version of Stories Behind, pretty much giving the same stories and
information in a smaller frame of time. The Remembering John piece is respectful, thanks
to interviews provided by Belushi’s widow, and his brother James.
In the end, I like this new anniversary edition, but have some questions regarding the
logic of where some of the special features were placed. Side B should have been the
original DVD release, with the features that came with it, and Side A should have had
everything new put all together instead of this backwards set-up. Still, I love The Blues
Brothers for their characters, and everyone should at least experience them once. You can
do it well on this edition.
