Writer: Various
Director: Various
Cast: Joanne Woodward, Susan Hayward, Jacqueline Bisset, Candice Bergen, Meg Ryan, Diane Keaton, Dana Hill, Sandy Dennis
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Warner Home Video
Release Date: November 6, 2007
Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 follows in the footsteps of the first volume by offering a collection of movies with strong female leads. The problem with the second collection is that it’s hard to make an impression bigger than the first collection made. The first collection offered movies starring the likes of Bette Davis, Grace Kelly, Joan Crawford, and Judy Garland. It’s truly hard to compete with such great talent. This causes the second installment of Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 to come up somewhat short and fall flat in comparison.
It’s not that Hollywood hasn’t put out enough good movies with women to warrant a second set. It just seems that this set was thrown together without much thought. The overall quality of Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 is lacking when it comes to true entertainment value. There were many movies that could have been added that weren’t. The remaining ones leave you wanting something more satisfying, which is usually not the case with a typical Warner Bros. set.
Release Information:
Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 has the star power to make a good box set, it just seems the wrong movies were picked for this set. Released on November 6, 2007, the Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 includes five movies and a few special features related to the various films that are in the set. The suggested retail value for Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 is around $50. However, it can be purchased through Amazon for under $40 with free shipping.
The Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 Plot
The Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 includes such films as A Big Hand for the Little Lady, I’ll Cry Tomorrow, Rich and Famous, Shoot the Moon, and Up the Down Staircase. Each movie is listed below in more detail so that you can make up your mind about whether this set is for you or not.
A Big Hand for the Little Lady – Released in 1966 offering a runtime of 95 minutes:
When a family arrives in Laredo, none of them have any idea what is about to happen to them. A poker game is beginning and when the husband cannot find his wife, he enters the game only to lose everything they have worked so hard to attain. Before he knows it, the wife has come back and while he has a winning hand he does not have any money left so the game will be coming to an end. As he collapses, it becomes the wife’s job to win this hand, but she doesn’t have the faintest idea of how to play poker. This movie stars Henry Fonda, Joanne Woodward, and Jason Robards.
I’ll Cry Tomorrow – Released in 1955 offering a runtime of 119 minutes:
By far the best movie in this set, Lillian Roth (Susan Hayward) is deprived of a normal childhood thanks to her overly ambitious mother, Katie (Jo Van Fleet). Thanks to her mother’s incessant pushing, Roth becomes a star of both Hollywood and Broadway at a young age. When her childhood love dies prior to their wedding day, Lillian begins drinking to numb the pain. Soon after, she becomes an alcoholic, which leads to a small string of marriages that are more harm to her than good.
Next comes a suicide attempt and a gentleman that is there to help her rebuild her life and find a way to a happier place. The special part of this film is that the musical portions are actually Lillian Roth singing, while the acting is all Susan Hayward. The performance is amazing and certainly worthy of the Oscar nod that Hayward received.
Rich and Famous: Released in 1981 offering a runtime of 117 minutes:
This is the story of two college friends and roommates that find a way to make their friendship last throughout the years. One of the friends, Liz (Jacqueline Bisset), becomes a respected novelist. Meanwhile, Merry (Candice Bergen), writes trashy fiction, which makes her successful while she builds a family. The movie goes through their lives at college and what happens beyond college. Unfortunately, this film, while filled with possibilities ended up offering less than was necessary. The only worthy mention, in fact, is that it was one of Meg Ryan’s first films.
Shoot the Moon: Released in 1982 offering a runtime of 124 minutes:
A family is in shock and shambles as a marriage that has lasted 15 years suddenly comes to an end. While the husband, George (Albert Finney), and wife, Faith (Diane Keaton) are at a loss, their four children (played by Dana Hill, Tina Yothers, Tracey Gold, and Viveka Davis) are also absolutely devastated. The couple, who divides because they are self-absorbed end up reconnecting after a series of jealous and bitter events.
Up the Down Staircase: Released in 1967 offering a runtime of 124 minutes:
Sandy Dennis stars as Sylvia Barrett a new teacher in one of New York’s inner city schools. Barrett teaches English Lit at Calvin Coolidge High. While she struggles to teach a crowded classroom, the administration is concerned with forms, rules, and everything other than educating the kids. The movie takes you through her first term which includes students becoming suicidal because of their love for one of the teachers, students dropping out or getting thrown out, kids sleeping through class, and even a touching misunderstanding between student and teacher.
While some of the movies are watchable in their own way, only one is really stellar enough to keep this box set afloat. It’s hard to recommend a set of five, when the one shining moment is available on its own.
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Audio/Visual:
The Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 is decent when it comes to sound and video quality. All of the DVDs are presented with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 in widescreen format. Audio is handled with Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono. All of the DVDs have subtitles in English and French. The result of the audio and video leave little to complain about. The video was clean and without blur or fuzz of any kind and the audio remained on the normal level with little interference or trouble hearing.
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Bonus Features:
The special features in this set leaves much to be desired. In fact, a few of the movies have little or no special features at all. A Big Hand for the Little Lady offers no special features. Meanwhile, Up the Down Staircase only comes with a trailer for To Please a Lady and Shoot the Moon only offers audio commentary and a trailer.
Rich and Famous offers a trailer and a rather boring production “Making Of” featurette. Finally, I’ll Cry Tomorrow offers three MGM Parade TV Shorts, a trailer, a twenty minute short called “Story Conference”, Newsreel Snippets about the film opening, and Newsreel snippets about top awards for the MGM stars of 1956.
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Bottom Line:
The Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 is definitely not the usual collection that is put out by Warner Bros. Generally, their collections are must haves, but this one is barely worth picking up at all. While a few of the movies are worth watching, as a set, the Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2 just falls flat.
Technorati Tags: Leading Ladies Collection Vol 2, DVD Box Set, Collection, Joanne Woodward, Susan Hayward, Jacqueline Bisset, Candice Bergen, Meg Ryan, Diane Keaton, Dana Hill, Sandy Dennis, DVD Review
