Review of Any Given Sunday (Special Edition Directors Cut)

Introduction

American Football is often known in Europe as a kind of wimps’ rugby – where players have so much padding and protection that it seems like they are Hollywood stuntmen. And it is usually difficult for any American to get a European interested in their sport – almost as difficult as it is for a European to get George W. Bush interested in anything not American. But who better to make a film about this sport than the Great American Cynic, Oliver Stone?

Video

The anamorphic print is excellent in every way – the images are detailed, the colours are strong and bright, and the picture flawless. Warner have produced yet another excellent picture. And of course Cameron Diaz is also on screen…

Audio

The 5.1 audio mix is truly excellent, and the film is well suited for such a track. The ‘bumps’ sound bone jarring almost to the point of pain, and the atmospheric crowd effects are suitably realistic.

Features

Here is where this double-disc set really shows its quality. Practically every conceivable extra is included here, including the three that I always look out for: commentary, documentary, deleted scenes. All three of these extras are superbly presented and well made. In addition, there are also outtakes, stills, 3 music videos (based on the rap culture of American football) and of course a trailer.
This 2-disc set is better than the single disc DVD currently out in the States. The 2-disc R1 SE is arriving with the massive Oliver Stone boxset to be released in January 2001. If these extras are included, we will see a lot of happy Yanks!
This release also includes the Director’s Cut – the film was shorn of some American football scenes from it’s US theatrical cut because it was deemed that European audiences wouldn’t understand it. Well, we understand it better than they understand cricket…

Conclusion

Any Given Sunday is a good film, and a very good sports film. What Oliver Stone gives is a sense of excitement and objectivity, unlike the more sentimentalized and emotional stuff that sports film guru Ron Shelton often makes. The film is shot in documentary style – almost like an expose of American Football similar to The Insider – but much more fast and furious. The ensemble cast of Dennis Quaid, Al Pacino, James Fox, Cameron Diaz, Matthew Modine, Jamie Foxx, LL Cool J and Charlton Heston in a cameo, means that the acting is always top-notch. The editing is also superb – incredibly complex and paced to give you an adrenaline rush. The only flaw in this film was the writing, in which Stone seems not to have decided whether he is going for action, drama or romance. When I saw this in the cinema, I was a little disappointed because I expected more of the stellar cast and great writer / director. Now I think that the film definitely works, but could have been just that little bit better.
The DVD release is absolutely amazing, one of the best R2 releases this year. The extras, the picture, the sound: everything is first class. Buy it now! And for those of you wondering about the packaging: yes, Warner still used those crappy cardboard cases of theirs. I mean, Warner Australia have moved to the plastic Amaray / Alpha packaging, so why can’t the rest of Warner do too? The second disc is in fact hidden away inside a little pocket inside the case cover – easily missable. Luckily, this is the only shoddy bit about this DVD – the rest is of the best quality we have seen this year.