Big

As a person who loves extras on DVDs, this product is a real winner. It has both a Blu-ray and DVD disk. The DVD only has a trailer as an extra as all the other bonus items are on the Blu-ray copy. These disks come in the normal smaller Blu-Ray keepsake box and each has its slot to fit into. I had absolutely no play issues with either disk. The movie, of course, is wonderful. It's a great comedy and pretty much my type of movie. There's not much I'd change, except for a line of profanity that I never like. Regardless, my review here is focused on the bonus material and the set itself. The one thing I really disliked about the set up of the extras was that instead of utilizing the entire screen to show a list of the extras, there is just a small box near the bottom that had two lines only of description. You have to use the down arrow to move from item to item and sometimes from left to right to make a selection. This was not user friendly in my view. Also, while they had a wonderful play all option for deleted scenes that even included the option of whether or not to include director Penny Marshall's comments, they did not include a play all button for all of the trailers and TV spots. The rest is pretty much all good. There are several featurettes on how the movie came to be with Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg being interviewed. As mentioned, there are several deleted scenes, including some with the Marshall intros. Frances Fisher is included in one of those. There is a featurette that deals with the real life toy makers, like the ones depicted in the film. An episode of Hollywood Backstories focused on Big is included. There's also a short piece on a carnival that was part of the premier with Tom Hanks. The Blu-ray disk contains both the original theatrical cut and the extended version that has all of the deleted scenes included in the movie. In addition, there is commentary by Ross and Spielberg. However, the commentary is not like what is normally found. In the features, you hear a lot about audiotapes that Spielberg made while she and Ross were brainstorming and developing Big. In the commentary, they actually play several large sections of the tapes. Then they talk about it. It is not a case of them watching the movie and then talking about what is happening; rather, it's the playing of the tapes and then talking about how things happened. It's pretty fascinating if you enjoy really learning about the evolution of a project. Finally, there are a couple of Zoltar Speaks cards included. My only regret about the extras is that apparently Tom Hanks did not participate at all. He's seen in vintage clips from the day, but he did not do any of the updated clips from when the disks were released. I did enjoy seeing the two young boys featured as Josh and Billy, now grown up, in the extras. The extras were well done and made me a happy one for adding this movie to my collection. Even with my frustration at the special features set up and the lack of Hanks' participation, I'm still giving it 5 stars.

It's a great humorous movie that depicts the version of childhood and adult life with its added responsibilities. Great movie!!

This is classic, a great movie for relaxing. The puns and the just the silly things that Josh (Tom Hanks) did made the movie really enjoyable. The character interactions between Josh and Susan (Elizabeth Perkins) was what made me laugh. Though it was slightly awkward for a 13 year old boy and a women to be having an affair, I think love is a experience that you only get when you're older. I believe that if Josh only chose to go back to being a 13 year old because he was afraid of working, his character wouldn't be as well developed. From the beginning to the end of the movie, clearly Josh turns from a child who wishes to grow up faster to one who faces the adult world and learns to cherish his youth. This character development that adds much value and makes the movie more meaningful. The message that I got from this movie is that we need to cherish childhood before it slips away and we become burdened by the responsibilities of adulthood.

Great movie

When it was first released in 1988, "Big" instantly became one of my favorite films. 20 years later, I can still say the same thing. This film not only "holds up" well, it is still a timeless classic. It is the story of 12 year old Josh Baskin, who wishes he were "big" after being humiliated at a carnival for not being tall enough to ride an attraction in front of the classmate that he has a crush on. His wish is granted by the arcade machine, Zoltar, and the next morning, he wakes up as a 30 year old (Tom Hanks). He's kicked out of the house by his mother, who thinks he is a pervert who has broken in. To make matters worse, he can't reverse the wish for at least another 30 days. On the advice of his best buddy, Billy (Jared Rushton), he gets a job in New York City to pass the time and earn some money to live on. Josh quickly moves up the ladder at MacMillan Toy Company, and also attracts the attention of Susan Lawrence (Elizabeth Perkins), who has made a habit of sleeping with the new up-and-coming executives. The longer he inhabits his 30-year old body, the more he grows away from his childhood buddy, Billy. However, the day of reckoning eventually comes when he must make a choice. Hanks & Perkins give outstanding performances; instead of "playing" a 12 year old, Hanks actually becomes one. His innocence is totally believable. Perkins plays the part of the ambitious Susan to perfection, and she is the perfect love interest for Hanks. Talk about chemistry! This 2-Disc Edition gives you 2 versions of the movie; one is the theatrical version, and the other is an Extended Cut (note: NOT a director's cut...just an extra 20 minutes or so added back in). Skip the extended version; it adds nothing, and if anything slows the pacing down and adds sub plots that are meaningless (example: Billy's shrewish mother, played by Frances Fisher). The picture is wonderful; good detail and color. The sound is extremely disappointing. A 2 channel stereo mix? Where's the 5.1? In this day and age, hard to believe they couldn't have put together a nice surround mix for this one. It would really be fantastic in the Billy Idol limo scene! There is an interesting "commentary" track by the writers/creators of "Big," Gary Ross & Anne Spielberg. Although extremely interesting, this would have been better as an audio-only supplement. A nice commentary that corresponds with the picture by director Marshall or Hanks would have been better. The track consists of current interviews with Ross & Spielberg (yes, Steven's sister) who introduce vintage audio tapes that they made while they brainstormed the idea of what would become "Big." The tapes do not correspond to what you see on your screen. Yes, it is interesting, but after awhile, it gets somewhat annoying having to listen to Gary continually talk over Anne and not letting her ideas be heard. It does appear that much of the movie that we know and love came from Anne, who quietly (and thankfully) persisted with her vision. Disc 2 includes deleted scenes with commentary by director Penny Marshall. For one of her first movies, she does an excellent job. As did Anne, she had a vision of what the film and especially Hanks' performance should be and she stuck with it, despite the risks (example: at least 3 other age-change movies were ready for release before "Big" would be finished). There are a number of featurettes: "Big Beginnings", "Chemistry of a Classic", AMC Backstory, "The Work of Play," and "Carnival Party Newswrap" (a vintage film showing the wrap party for "Big."). There is a fair amount of overlap in all the extras, as Marshall, Ross, and Spielberg are the main contributors. Still, plenty of interesting tidbits; we came this close to seeing Robert DeNiro in the lead role. It is also interesting to hear the young stars of the film, David Moscow (young Josh) and Jared Rushton, discuss the filming. Perkins also gives some fun insights as well. Theatrical trailer and TV Spots round out this edition. Overall, a nice set, but there is definitely room to grow for the next outing of this classic film.

One of Tom Hanks best movies. Makes you want to own a giant keyboard.

A whimsical fantasy in the early career of Oscar Winner Tom Hanks. First of all it is very entertaining, and the supporting actors are superb, especially Robert Loscia who dares to tap dance the piano keys with Tom. A delightful sequence. The crux of the movie is a young boy wishing to grow up...so he grows up, but has to deal with all the boy-man issues too early. Eventually the spell wears off and shrinks back to reality in his big suit. Hanks did a lot of comedy movies early including The Burbs, and Money Pit, until he got serious about acting. A must have for your Tom Hanks library.

Commande bien reçue avant la date

Excelente. Es un SÍ absoluto tenerla en la colección. Tom Hanks siempre te mostrará una buena interpretación; prueba de ello es esta película de su juventud. Buen trabajo con el bluray, se nota en la calidad de audio e imagen a pesar de ser filmada en el '88. Viene en idioma original en Inglés con subtítulos en español y también tiene el doblaje en español latino.

I think buying this film was one of the best decisions I ever made to be honest! It's great for all ages I think because my teens got all the humour and understood it all, and they really enjoyed it, and my little ones loved it too, they didn't get some of the older humour but that was good! So really a great buy, so much enjoyment as a family film. We have watched it loads, and it's often a top choice with cousins, friends etc. Essential dvd cupboard staple - extremely popular. Only con is I didn't get it sooner!