Tommy [Blu-ray]

Tommy : The Movie; The 4k UHD Disc, Very Subtle picture improvement. Movie is listed 1.85:1 in Dolby Vision. It showed on my 65" TV almost Full Screen, barely any black bars. The clarity was outstanding. The color accurate and believable. It is technically better than when I was at the World Premiere in Quintaphonic Sound, in 1975.The Soundtrack was 5.0 Quintaphonic or 5.1 DTS HD or Dolby 2.0 Stereo. I am very pleased with quality of the mix. The vocals were clear and present, without distortion, and it really was improved over the Sony BD. I listened in 5.1 (auto 7.1 Atmos), and heard instruments that I never heard before. I have seen this movie at least 200 times. It is too bad that there is no supplemental materials, Not even a trailer. However the film, I am very pleased with this 50th anniversary edition's rendering. P.S> Although Ann-Margret was nominated for an Oscar, she didn't win, but should have.

Works as expected

Scream/Shout! Factory has done a Phenomenal, Fantastic job on this release. Tommy 4k looks as though it was just released. Does not look like it was released 50 years ago. Colors are vibrant. Grainy in a few scenes but definitely not a distraction. My only concern is that more features should of been included but the look of the film makes up for that. Another fantastic 4K release from Scream/Shout Factory. Thank you!!!

What is there to say about "Tommy"? Most people buying this will know that it is based on the Rock Opera by Pete Townshend (with some minor contributions from both John Entwistle and Keith Moon). It was a pivotal album for the band coming off of the previous albums. Townshend had already penned a concept album ("The Who Sell Out") including jingles and the idea of listening to Radio 1. He took it to the next step using his enlightenment and following the philosophy of his guru. The big hit single from both this soundtrack and the original album was "Pinball Wizard" which Townshend integrated into the original album when a DJ stated he would play their next album if it had a song about...playing pinball. So the concept was packaged and sold as such with an inspired bit of songwriting that many artists would turn into major hits.For those that don't know the plot. Who singer Roger Daltrey plays Tommy- a child who is blind, deaf and can't speak. His one passion and what makes him come alive is playing pinball where he never loses. His mother seeks a cure for him including using unconventional methods such as drugs to try and bring him out of his prison. Eventually, a cult grows around Tommy.Featuring a stellar cast of (at-the-time) who's who of Hollywood including Jack Nicholson, Ann-Margaret, Robert Powell (who went on to fame playing Jesus Christ in the popular TV movie "Jesus of Nazareth") and Oliver Reed, the musical guests include Elton John (who turned "Pinball Wizard" into a massive hit single for the album and himself), Eric Clapton, the members of The Who and Tina Turner.Director Ken Russell known for his often outrageous approach to the material he directed, adapted the script from Townshend's songs and directed.Shout has put the film on a 100 gig 4K disc which allows for maximum detail. There's also a Blu-ray with the same transfer included. Pulled from a new 4k scan of the original camera negative (and the interpositive where the negative was damaged), colors pop and the film, with its new HDR grading, looks terrific or at least the best it possibly could for a film from 1975. There might be a smidge drop in quality where the film goes from the OCN to the inter-positive but it isn't a huge jump. Most folks won't notice it.The audio is presented in its original 5 channel presentation, stereo (for some theaters) and a 5.1 mix in DTS. There is no Atmos mix (I have to wonder if all the stems are still available or if, perhaps, they couldn't afford the expense of using Peter Jackson's MAL software to assemble an Atmos).English subs are provided.There are no special features to speak of for the film. It's a pity as a commentary track from Townshend and Daltrey would have been interesting but expensive. There are no surviving outtakes that are included, edits or trims of various scenes. A featurette discussing the making of the original album, its translation to the screen would have been of interest to fans but I suspect, due to licensing costs and the cost of the new transfer, that just wasn't in the budget."Tommy" is dated in its own way but it's also a timeless musical at the same time. Given the fact that cult-like behavior still exists among us, it also is just as timely in its own way as it was in 1969 and 1975.

A great all star classic

My all-American husband insists this is a rock opera, to Italian me this is a musical. In any case, several of the songs are great and the movie, while a bit bizarre and occasionally sad, is very enjoyable and has aged well. Young Elton John as the Pinball Wizard was my favorite part. I wouldn't recommend this movie for young children, the abuse of poor Tommy is disturbing, and some of the situations are for an adult public (Acid Queen, alcohol, violence).

I have been wanting to see Tommy because I enjoy the music so much. I saw it when it first came out and had it on my Netflix DVD list forever but it always noted that it would be a very long wait. I'm also waiting for snowballs in Hell.Finally decided to see if I could buy my own DVD. When I placed order I was told it would be about a month before I would get it. Surprised me, Amazon orders are usually just a few days. I ordered it, expecting Amazon to get it to me much quicker than initially promised. After a couple of weeks I got email saying it had shipped. Figured it would be a few days after that. It was more like two weeks and it required a 21+ signature. It obviously came from overseas, had a customs label on it.As soon as wife-unit and I had an uninterrupted time, I loaded it up.The video portion was not as sharp as contemporary DVDs, but I accepted that due to the technology of the time when the DVD was produced. The audio was terrible, which surprised me, because audio has pretty much been good to great since DVDs were first made.This was very disappointing to me, Tommy is a rock opera and the music makes the production.I will try to find a better DVD locally, but this will have to suffice until I do.Tommy itself is one of my favorite albums. I got vinyl when it first came out and my wife bought a super high-end CD for about three times what the standard CD cost that I treasure. If I could only have one album on a desert island it would be Tommy--I wouldn't think twice about it.