Disc Details
Special Features:	Widescreen anamorphic format. Chapter selection. Theatrical trailer. Cast and crew list. Selected director filmography. Award list. Featurette "Behind the Scenes with Blake Edwards's The Great Race."
Video Format:	Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1) [SS-DL]
Languages:	English (Dolby Digital 5.1) French (Dolby Digital 1.0)
Subtitles:	English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Thai.
Captions:	Yes
Casing:	1-Disc Snap Case

Edwards' film is set at the turn of the century. Two daredevils vie for the public's attention. There is the debonair and dashing "Great Leslie" (Tony Curtis) and the dastardly, villainous "Professor Fate" (Jack Lemmon). Professor Fate is accompanied by his loyal but befuddled assistant Max (Peter Falk), while Leslie is aided by the Mr. Clean-looking Hezekian Sturdy (Keenan Wynn). Professor Fate tries unsuccessfully to sabotage Leslie's public performances. Fate himself always seems to have a near fatal mishap when he performs in public. Leslie proposes that a prominent auto manufacturer build the greatest car ever. Leslie wants to show how great a car it is by racing it from New York to Paris.

Maggie DuBois (Natalie Wood) is an emancipated woman in the days before suffrage. She is determined to be a reporter for the New York Tribune. Editor Henry Goodbody (Arthur O'Connell) won't hear a word of it, but his strong willed wife Hester (Vivian Vance: I Love Lucy) over-rules him. Ms. DuBois enters the race and will send back daily reports.

What follows is a series of grand episodes as the contestants make their way across the untamed American West, the North Pole, Asia and Europe. Some of the bits still work. The emphasis is on slapstick. The sexual tension between Ms. Wood and Mr. Curtis is tamer that when the film was first released. Peter Falk provides the film's funniest moments. The famous pie fight still works. Natalie Wood still looks great in a bustier covered with whipped cream. Jack Lemmon's loud shtick becomes unbearable by the end of the first hour.

I wanted to like this movie. It had a lot of nostalgic value for me. I guess you can't go home again. "The Great Race" was made during the dying days of the studio system. It is a throwback to a more old-fashioned form of entertainment. It rings of innocence, which has long since been lost.

Picture Quality: 10/10
Warner Brothers put great effort into restoring this movie. The grand widescreen transfer is beautiful. This was a big-budget movie, beautifully shot. The lush technicolor photography holds up fine. No artifacts or pixilation. no delineation problems. Flesh tones are excellent.

Sound Quality: 10/10
The soundtrack was restored and remastered. "The Great Race" won an Oscar for Best Sound Effects. The 5.1 soundtrack is great. Each car has its own unique sound. My living room was filled with the various cars racing from speaker to speaker. Nice job. No distortion.

Menu: 7/10
OK design. Easy to navigate. No Easter Eggs.

Extra Features: 7/10
The featurette was a 14-minute promotional film made by Warner Brothers at the time of the original release. No interviews with actors or crew. Just the studio narrator explaining what genius went into the film. It is interesting as a historical look at the way films were promoted 37 years ago.

The trailer is fine. The filmography and cast list is so-so.

The Final Word:
Some may look back on this film with more fondness than I. Fans of the film will like this DVD. It will also appeal to those who want more wholesome entertainment. I found it stale.

Rusty White