Robert Mitchum stars as Raymond Chandler's tough detective in "Farewell My Lovely".  Mitchum does a fine job, but the direction is sluggish and even at 98 minutes the film feels very long.  The transfer looks fine in its color values and contrast, but the 1.33:1 framing feels a little tight, suggesting part of the picture was cropped.  The stereo sound offers no real separation effects, playing mono through both speakers.

Ju Dou is a wonderfully made film, similar to "The Postman Always Rings Twice".  When an overworked mill worker and the mill owner's abused wife fall in love, the idea of murder leads to many unsettling moments until the dramatic conclusion.   While the basic plot feels similar to many films of the past, it's skillfully done and innovative in its execution.  The dvd transfer is extremely sharp, with fine contrast and great detail.  The stereo sound offers little in the way of separation.

Kevin Bacon, Jamie Lee Curtis and Joe Mantegna lead an outstanding cast in "Queens Logic", a comedy/drama about friends dealing with the pains/joys of revisiting their past after coming together for an uncertain wedding.  The transfer is extremely sharp with great color values, contrast and detail.  Unfortunately, ARTISAN/PIONEER didn't elect to offer this title in its 1.85:1 theatrical ratio.  Nothing appears to be missing, but it would've been great for such a fine film to get the high quality treatment.  The stereo sound offers no real separational effects, other than in boosting the wonderful music soundtrack.

Director Ken Russell offers an unusual commentary along with the ARTISAN/PIONEER presentation of "Salome's Last Dance", but then nothing about Russell is usual!   The plot(???) involves Oscar Wilde inside a brothel viewing his play "Salome" being acted out by prostitutes.  Russell has a trademark for semi-hallucinogenic production design, and the dvd transfer perfectly compliments his vision.  Many scenes are shot with difficult lighting scenarios, but in this transfer, everything is sharp and defined.  Color values are fine.  The stereo sound offers some powerful moments, but offers no real directional effects.

A science fiction film about a killer robot and an insane space captain may seem like a bizarre choice for the director of "Singing in the Rain" and many other great films, but "Saturn 3" succeeds on many levels due to the great skill of   Stanley Donen.  Most of the special effects seem extremely dated by today's computer generated standards, but Farrah Fawcett looks better than ever and it's gret fun watching Kirk Douglas here.  The dvd transfer is generally sharp, although there are a few brief moments wherein artifacts quickly appear and vanish.  The stereo sound offers a nice score, but nothing else.