How did ”Apocalypse Now” survive the chaos of its production? How did
”Miss Saigon” evolve into a worldwide theatrical sensation? How did Charlie Chaplin create his classic gags?
You`ll find the answers on home video, your backstage pass to the triumphs and tribulations of the creative process.
What goes on behind the scenes can impress even Michael Jordan. In ”The Making of Michael Jordan`s Playground” (1992), a companion tape to his best- selling video, Jordan said: ”You never know what`s encountered in putting together a series or TV show or a movie. It really gives an appreciation for what these people do.”
These documentaries vividly illustrate that what goes on before the cameras roll or the curtain rises can be more dramatic than what appears on the screen or stage.
”Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker`s Apocalypse” (1991): ”Every day the project seems to get bigger.” So complains director Francis Ford Coppola in this compelling chronicle of the making of his Vietnam War epic, ”Apocalypse Now.”
Coppola`s wife, Eleanor, captured on film (and in private conversations recorded without her husband`s knowledge) the hostile conditions under which cast and crew were forced to work. Memorable outtakes include an overweight and underprepared Marlon Brando dismissing the cameras with, ”I can`t think of any more dialogue today.”
”The Making of Miss Saigon” (1991): Before this Tony Award-winning musical lands in Chicago in the fall, see how the creators of ”Les Miserables” made a hit out of ”Miss Saigon.”
Cameras were present at each crucial stage of the production, from writing the score to reading the opening night reviews.
”Voices of Serafina” (1989): Go backstage with the director and cast of the musical that bears witness to life under apartheid. Scenes from the original production of ”Serafina” are juxtaposed with the real-life experiences of the young South Africans.
”Unknown Chaplin” (1990): James Mason narrates this three-volume TV series, a treasure trove of discovered footage that offers rare glimpses of Chaplin at work.
”Private Conversations on the Set of Death of a Salesman” (1986):
Eavesdrop on director Victor Schloendorff, actor Dustin Hoffman and playwright Arthur Miller as they adapt their Broadway production of Miller`s American classic to television.
”The Making of a Legend: Gone With the Wind” (1989): The story of how Margaret Mitchell`s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel became one of the most beloved films of all time is the stuff of Hollywood folklore. This documentary features interviews with cast and crew members, rare on-site footage of the
”burning of Atlanta” sequence, and the screen tests of the women who would be Scarlett O`Hara.
”John Huston and the Dubliners” (1987): This rare glimpse of a master filmmaker at work was filmed on the set of Huston`s last film, ”The Dead,” a labor of love that marked his only collaboration with both his son, Tony, and his daughter, Anjelica. Huston is also profiled in ”Observations Under the Volcano,” which roams the set of one of the best of his later films, ”Under the Volcano.”
”The Making of Fanny and Alexander” (1983): Another of the world`s great filmmakers, Ingmar Bergman, is seen at work on the Oscar-winning family saga that capped his film directing career. This program contains rare clips of Bergman`s original five-hour Swedish television version.
”The Making of Raiders of the Lost Ark/Great Movie Stunts” (1981): For everyone who marveled at how ”Raiders` ” awesome special effects and daredevil stunts were executed, this video contains two made-for-TV specials inspired by Steven Spielberg`s spectacular adventure.
To lure die-hard collectors, savvy video manufacturers are adding newly produced film histories to commemorative editions of classic titles. A
”Making of . . .” documentary is included on a digitally remastered 45th anniversary edition of Frank Capra`s ”It`s a Wonderful Life.”
Similarly, ”The Making of Alien3” is being packaged by Fox Video with re-releases of the first two ”Alien” thrillers.
