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ASTWOOD AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL
As I stated above, EASTWOOD AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL is an undiscovered gem. If you love jazz, the movies or Clint Eastwood, you really should check out the wonderful little DVD. |
This DVD review 
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DVD
reviews are Copyright © 2002 THE CINEMA LASER and may not be copied
or reprinted without the written consent of the publisher. |
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EASTWOOD
AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL ($20) is an undiscovered gem of
a DVD that has the potential to go unnoticed by jazz fans, as well as
movie buffs. I am sure that there is a large number of both jazz aficionados
and movie fans that don’t know that actor/director/producer Clint Eastwood
is a lifelong jazz fan. The more perceptive out there would have picked
up on this by a number of choices that Eastwood has made in his career-
his decision to direct and produce BIRD, a biography of jazz great
Charlie Parker should have been a dead giveaway.
Anyway,
EASTWOOD AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL is both a concert and
tribute to the films of Clint Eastwood, in which jazz music is prominently
featured. The program features performances from prominent jazz artists,
as well as the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band and is interspersed with vintage
photos, clips from Eastwood movies, as well as comments from Eastwood
himself. Some of the headliners performing live at this October 17, 1996
include Jimmy Scott, Christian McBride, Joshua Redman, Jay McShann, James
Carter, Thelonious Monk Jr., Kenny Mahogany, James Rivers. Also appearing
and serving as musical director is composer Lennie Niehaus, The Kyle Eastwood
Quartet (featuring Clint’s son) and Eastwood himself makes an appearance
on stage- how could he pass up the chance to play piano at Carnegie Hall?
Warner
Home Video has made EASTWOOD AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL
available on DVD in a full screen presentation that would be appropriate
to the original broadcast. The concert was captured on videotape and reproduces
with a clean stable image. Colors have the strong saturation one associates
with well-lit videotape sources. Overall, the DVD produces a nice looking
image, equivalent to what broadcast video can produce. Film clips appear
to come from broadcast masters- lacking their proper aspect ratios and
having a somewhat fuzzy quality. There are no signs of digital compression
artifacts to mar the presentation
EASTWOOD
AFTER HOURS: LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL
is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo surround. While 5.1 would have
been nice, the soundtrack proves that matrixed surround was a capable
format that could produce very good sound. The audio mix has a wonderful
sense of depth and character, which goes far to place one inside the Carnegie
Hall venue. The music comes from in front of the audience; with the rear
channels producing the reflected sound one hears when live music is played
in a concert hall. On the whole, the music has a warm, open sound that
benefits from the high fidelity of the original recordings. Subtitles
have been provided on the DVD in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.
The
basic interactive menus provide access to the standard set up features,
as well as individual tracks performed during the concert. A ten-minute
program entitled Eastwood After Dark has been included on
the DVD to supplement the concert. The program features brief interviews
with Clint, as well as some of the performers, plus brief look at the
actor/director/jazz fan’s career.