Anyone else pick up NoShame's R1 release of Carlo Lizzani's LAST DAYS OF MUSSOLINI? It's a nice package, with the usual well-done RHS essay. The packaging says there's an English audio track, but I'm only seeing Italian as the sole option. I normally wouldn't care, but I remember renting the Lightning VHS of this, truncated and retitled THE LAST FOUR DAYS, and it featured a great Rod Steiger performance as Il Duce. I was hoping to hear Steiger's and Henry Fonda's real voices here, and Ian Jane's review at DVD Talk indicates that they do their own dubbing on the English track.

I don't see that option on here. Is mine an anomaly? Did Jane get a review copy that didn't hit stores? There is a mention at the beginning of the movie that the improved subtitles clear things up that were lacking in the dubbed version, but Jane's review clearly states that the viewer has a choice which track to play.

The back of the DVD case states "Italian mono/English DD Mono." Zurlini's THE DESERT OF THE TARTARS said the same thing, and that was only available in Italian, so maybe this is the same situation.

I'm not at all a subtitle-phobe--I just really dig Steiger and wanted to hear HIM playing Il Duce. I recently checked out Criterion's release of HANDS OVER THE CITY--great, great film, and the only complaint I have about it is that Steiger's voice wasn't accompanying his outstanding physical performance. Same thing here with LAST DAYS OF MUSSOLINI.

Richard, you got a line on this at all? Does the English track exist on this release? Am I crazy? Help!

DVD Talk's LAST DAYS OF MUSSOLINI review

I don't have the release disc here but I've sent an e-mail to Joyce Shen mentioning that inquiring minds want to know about an English soundtrack option.

My review copy of The Last Days of Mussolini and even though the box art says there is an English track there is not one included for this release. It would appear that the reviewer over at DVD Talk received a DVD version that no one else got. ;)

As great as Steiger appears to be in this, I probably wouldn't have purchased it had I known his voice wasn't going to be included in the deal. I went ahead and purchased it after reading Jane's review at DVD Talk. Now, I hate to be accusatory, but I find it a tad hard to believe that he got the ONE copy that actually had an English language track on it, or that he was given a review copy that would completely misrepresent the final product. Anybody know this Ian Jane guy? It's pretty apparent he didn't even watch this before reviewing it, and until I get evidence stating otherwise, he owes me $20 if I ever cross paths with him.

But on to another issue: this is the second time (of which I'm aware) that NoShame has listed an English track when there wasn't one. I didn't mind with THE DESERT OF THE TARTARS as it's such a visually stunning work, but here with MUSSOLINI and the great Rod Steiger, it's a deal-breaker. They've got a fine track record and I've been pleased with everything thus far, but I hope this isn't the first tiny hint of something snowballing into Media Blasters-esque quality control issues.

That is frustrating and annoying; I hate it when film reviewers seemingly haven't actually watched what they are supposedly commenting on. Although for the record, before we crucify Ian Jane I would like to hear his side of the story. Maybe he did actually get a review copy with an English-language track...

I am sure many people will disagree with me, but as much as I enjoy watching Rod Steiger I think his hamming often destroyed what could have been fine performances. I recently saw him in Claude Chabrol's Innocents With Dirty Hands (Les Innocents aux mains sales) and in his own voice Steiger was a typical eye-rolling tour-de-force: Fun, but not suited for the role. But his performance when viewed in a French-dubbed track took on another, far more subtle dimension. I thought he was quite amazing, and don’t know if anyone would consider this correct, but I would classify it as one of his best 1970s roles!

Speaking of No-Shame, has anyone else had the problem of the paint/ink coming away from the outer slip case of the Luciano Ercoli box set?

I admit to playing Miles Davis' trumpet solos at paint stripping volumes, but I never figured they would damage my DVD collection! :P

Absolutely.

Someone screwed up here: either Ian Jane commented on something he didn't watch, or NoShame sent out review copies that didn't reflect the product that would be on store shelves.

But Michael's review copy seems to be the one that's out for purchase.

I just sent Ian Jane a message through the DVD Talk board. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of this.

I doubt it.

I'm sorry, but I think Ian Jane is reviewing way, way too much product over at DVD Maniacs and DVD Talk for his - and especially our - own good.

On 02/15/2006 & 02/16/2006, in three different reviews, Jane incorrectly identified the non-anamorphic full-frame on two films and the non-anamorphic 1:66:1 ratio on the last film of Seijun Suzuki's Taisho Trilogy as all being anamorphic 1.66:1 transfers, "The 1.66.1 anamorphic widescreen transfer on this DVD is excellent." Other reviewers noted the dull full-frame transfers (Unfortunately, I purchased the set after reading Jane's reviews).

On 03/15/2006, I mentioned the aspect ratio and anamorphic errors as my cineweb alter ego - Tony Block - over at DVD Talk (see link below), and Jane changed/altered/corrected all three reviews without responding to my post, privately emailing me, or noting his error in the actual DVD Talk reviews of the three films, Zigeunerweisen, Kagero-Za and Yumeji.

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?s=...=459044&___rd=1

Prior to that, Jane also had some problems with his review of the Criterion Rebel Samurai collection (see link below).

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?s=...=443401&___rd=1

I've stopped reading his reviews, and it's too bad because he seems to get review a lot of the DVD releases I'm interested in, but I can't trust the information in his reviews.

Looks like Ian's DVD Talk review has been changed. Here's what it now reads:

I did a little digging, and the Google cache of the earlier iteration of the page has the same paragraph reading:

Methinks, Mr. Jane -- the Jayson Blair of DVD reviewers -- is guilty as charged.

Commence crucifixion...I just got this reply:


Hey Mark,

Nope, that's definitely a screw up on my part. It's Italian language only
despte what the packaging claims. I'm sure that when I saw the film on VHS
years back though that there was an English dub on the tape and that Fonda
and Steiger did do their own dubbing, but no, it's definitely not on the
DVD. Sorry for the confusion.

Ian



How the hell does this happen? It looks like NoShame AND Ian Jane screwed up here: they mistakenly indicated an English track AND Jane just assumed it was there because it said so and he saw the English dub on VHS years ago. I mean, he saw the disclaimer about the subtitles at the beginning, so I know he at least put the DVD in his player--did he not see that it went straight to the Italian track and offered no other option?

I work as a journalist occasionally. I know stuff like this happens. About ten years ago, in younger, dumber days, I took a shortcut in a piece for a local paper and it bit me in the ass hard. It was embarrassing, and I learned from it. But, as Blanton points out in the previous comment, this seems to be a recurrent problem with Jane.

And NoShame needs to stop indicating English audio tracks on DVDs that don't have them. Once is a mistake, twice is a coincidence...I hope there's not a third.

Everyone makes mistakes, and getting some aspect ratios wrong in reviews can be forgiven (even if it may rightly lead one distrust the reviewer in future), but to actually comment on the quality of an audio track that isn't even there is dishonest, pure and simple...funnily enough I have Tom and Yuko Weisser's "The Sex Films" book sitting on the chair next to me (as I just had to consult it) and, while it remains invaluable for some of the info contained, a large % of the films "reviewed" in it were not viewed by the authors.

I wonder if DVD Talk pay their contributors by the review? If so, that would encourage writers to review as many discs as possible with accuracy perhaps being forsaken. Anyway, if the editors at DVDTalk want all their reviewers (and not just the likes of Glenn Erickson and Stuart Galbraith) to be trusted it seems they may need to do some tinkering with their roster.