directed by Emir Kusturica
USA/France 1993
"Arizona Dream" is one of those movies that slips through the cracks. Hollywood bureaucracy has been established precisely to prevent films like this from being made. And yet it was made, and it is goofier than hell - you can't stop watching because nobody in the audience, and possibly nobody on the screen, has any idea what's going to happen next.

The movie was directed by Emir Kusturica, a Yugoslavian (if such a place still exists), whose "Time of the Gypsies" (1989) won the best director award at Cannes. In his world, strange magic happens. People want to fly, and sometimes they can. Eccentricity is prized. That earlier film followed a gypsy family as it traveled through Yugoslavia and Italy, taking its occult knowledge with it.

Now Kusturica has come to Arizona, which he sees as a similar land of enchantment.

The story involves Johnny Depp as a fish-counter who works in New York harbor: "Most people think I count fish, but I don't. I listen to their dreams." He is summoned west by an uncle (Jerry Lewis), who runs a Cadillac dealership near Tucson and wants his nephew to continue the family business. Depp arrives reluctantly, uninterested in cars, fascinated by the dreams of fish, to find his uncle preparing to wed a young girl (Candyce Mason). "He's trying to teach me to stop crying," she helpfully explains to Depp, during a fitting for a wedding gown.

Excerpt from Roger Ebert's review at the Chicago Sun Times located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: January 6, 1993 - France

Reviews      More Reviews      DVD Reviews

DVD Comparison:

Twister - Region 5 - PAL vs. Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL vs. Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman and Donald Brown for the DVD Screen Caps!

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL LEFT
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT

 
DVD Box Covers

 

Distribution

Twister

Region 5" - PAL

 Momentum Pictures
Region 2 - PAL		 Universal Studio Canal Video
Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime 2:14:32 (4% PAL speedup) 2:14:36 (4% PAL speedup) 2:20:23.540
Video

1.83:1 Original Aspect Ratio

16X9 enhanced
Average Bitrate: 5.69 mb/s
PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s

1.83:1 Original Aspect Ratio

16X9 enhanced
Average Bitrate: 5.44 mb/s
PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s

1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 34,630,865,578 bytes

Feature: 28,303,933,440 bytes

Video Bitrate: 21.97 Mbps

Codec: VC-1

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:

 

Twister

 

Bitrate:

 

Momentum Pictures

 

Bitrate:

 

Blu-ray

Audio English (Dolby Digital 5.1), DUB: Russian (Dolby Digital 5.1) English - Dolby Digital 2.0, German dub, Spanish dub

DTS-HD Master Audio English 1699 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz /
1699 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 16-bit)
DUBs: DTS Audio French 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz /
768 kbps / 16-bit
DTS Audio Spanish 768 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz /
768 kbps / 16-bit
Subtitles Russian, Ukrainian, None English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, none French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, none NOTE: Can't choose English audio and NO subtitles.
Features Release Information:
Studio: Twister

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.83:1

Edition Details:
• Biographies
• Filmographies
• French promo trailer (dubbed in Russian)
• Documentary (dubbed in Russian)
• Deleted scene (dubbed in Russian)
• Interview with Johnny Depp

DVD Release Date: October 2, 2002
Keepcase

Chapters 24

Release Information:
Studio: Momentum Pictures

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.83:1

Edition Details:
• Deleted scene
• Interview with Johnny Depp
• Promo reel
• Trailer
• Teaser
 

DVD Release Date: August 30, 2004
Keepcase

Chapters 18

Release Information:
Studio: Universal Studio Canal Video

 

1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 34,630,865,578 bytes

Feature: 28,303,933,440 bytes

Video Bitrate: 21.97 Mbps

Codec: VC-1

 

Edition Details:
• Interview with Depp (French) 37:00

• Trailers
 

Blu-ray Release Date: June 17th, 2009
Standard Blu-ray case

Chapters 18

 

Comments

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were ripped directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Universal Studio Canal Blu-ray June 09':  Oy vey! It's 1080P, dual-layered but again English un-friendly. This is like the old RusCiCo discs - you can watch this with French audio or French subtitles, Spanish audio, Portuguese or Japanese subtitles but NOT original English with NO subtitles. The least offensive option seems to be the English audio with the Japanese subtitles but it doesn't look like the move to hi-def has drastically benefited the image. Most of the interior shots have poor lighting and this effects the overall visuals. Outdoor scenes improve and look decent enough in Blu-ray. Grain is quite visible at times. The higher resolution produces the best image of the film that I've seen but I doubt this film will ever be overwhelming as the transfer is limited by the grassroots feel of the production.

NOTE: Those with some form of macro-blocking device or those who use HTPC may very well be able to avoid the forced subtitles.

Audio options are all DTS 2.0 channel with the English option being HD lossless. My Momitsu tells me this release is indeed region FREE!

Extras include a 37-minute interview with Johnny Depp in French - although he responds in English but appears to understand verbal French well enough.

It's a beautiful, very human, film - notable for Depp and Gallo but all the performances are superb. Shamefully, this still has no Region 1 DVD release.  

 -Gary Tooze

***


 

ON THE DVDs: Looks like the print and extras are the same, provided by Studio Canal.

Yes, the transfers are identical, but the Momentum disc preserves the original 2-channel soundtrack, while the Twister edition only has artificial surround tracks. Creating phony 5.1 mixes seems to be all the rage in Russia (cf. Ruscico). Momentum also provides the original English soundtrack for all the extras, plus English subs for the Depp interview.

The deleted scene is a lengthy single take that provides an interesting alternate ending for the film.

Both DVDs look superb, but the R2 is the one to get for anyone who doesn't speak Russian only. Momentum has also included numerous subtitle options for the feature itself.

 -Donald Brown

 

DVD Menus

(Twister - Region 5 - PAL - LEFT vs. Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL - RIGHT)
 

 

 

 

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

Screen Captures

 

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL TOP
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

 

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL TOP
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

 

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL TOP
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

 

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL TOP
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

 

1) Twister - Region 5 - PAL TOP
2) Momentum Pictures - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE
3) Universal Studio Canal Video - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

More Blu-ray Captures

 

 

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