The Color Purple [1985] (DVD, 1997, Widescreen) NEW

Steven Spielberg, proving he's one of the few modern filmmakers who has the visual fluency to be capable of making a great silent film, took a melodramatic, D.W. Griffith-inspired approach to filming Alice Walker's novel. His tactics made the film controv


Steven Spielberg, proving he's one of the few modern filmmakers who has the visual fluency to be capable of making a great silent film, took a melodramatic, D.W. Griffith-inspired approach to filming Alice Walker's novel. His tactics made the film controversial, but also a popular hit. You can argue with the appropriateness of Spielberg's decision, but his astonishing facility with images is undeniable--from the exhilarating and eye-popping opening shots of children playing in paradisiacal purple fields to the way he conveys the brutality of a rape by showing hanging leather belts banging against the head of the shaking bed. In a way it's a shame that Whoopi Goldberg, a stage monologist who made her screen debut in this movie, went on to become so famous, because it was, in part, her unfamiliarity that made her understated performance as Celie so effective. (This may be the first and last time that the adjective understated can be applied to Goldberg.) Nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including best picture and actress (supporting players Oprah Winfrey and Margaret Avery were also nominated), it was quite a scandal--and a crushing blow to Spielberg--when it won none. --Jim Emerson

• Movie Genre: Drama
• Running Time: 2 minutes
• Release Date: 01 Jan, 1985
• Format: DVD
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer: No
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.38 x 0.6 inches; 1.6 ounces
• Media Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Full Screen, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen, Anamorphic
• Subtitles:: English, Spanish, French
• Language: English, French
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• ASIN: 0790729717
• Writers: Alice Walker, Menno Meyjes
• Best Sellers Rank: See Top 100 in Movies & TV
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Full Screen, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen, Anamorphic
• Contributor: Rae Dawn Chong, Steven Spielberg, Bennet Guillory, Dana Ivey, Willard E. Pugh, Desreta Jackson, Danny Glover, Leonard Jackson, Whoopi Goldberg, Akosua Busia, Menno Meyjes, Margaret Avery, Oprah Winfrey, Alice Walker, Adolph Caesar See more
• UPC: 085391153429
• Region Code: Region 1 - Canada, the United States and U.S. territories.
• Video Format: NTSC