Jesus Christ Superstar (Special Edition) | 
 enlarge | Director: Norman Jewison
Actors: Ted Neeley, Carl Anderson (ii), Yvonne Elliman, Barry Dennen, Bob Bingham
Studio: Universal Studios
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy New: $9.99
You Save: $4.99 (33%)
New (45) Used (18) Collectible (1) from $5.99
Rating:  315 reviews
Sales Rank: 1702
Format: Ac-3, Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Dvd-video, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Dubbed)
Rating: G (General Audience)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 107
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: D25786D
ISBN: 1417015772
UPC: 025192578625
EAN: 9781417015771
ASIN: B00028HBIO
Theatrical Release Date: August 15, 1973
Release Date: August 31, 2004
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Ted Neeley makes for a wimpy looking Jesus in Norman Jewison's screen adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice "rock opera," which was a smash on stage in the early '70s. Jewison (Other People's Money) adds some good exterior settings in the desert, but Lloyd Webber and Rice's dialogue-free story (everything is sung, as in a real opera), with its quasi-profundities about the inner demons of principal figures in the life of Christ, is the real hook. Yvonne Elliman sings the show's best-known song, "I Don't Know How to Love Him." --Tom Keogh
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| Customer Reviews: Read 310 more reviews...
 Superstar review July 26, 2008
I have been a fan of this musical and movie for a very long time. I was very pleased to find it at a very good price. In spite of what some people say,Ted Neely did a fine job of portraying Jesus. Carl Anderson as Judas and Yvonne Elliman as Mary were wonderful in their supporting roles.Yvonne's vocal had the feeling of wonder and pain in her uncertainty. Overall a very good experience.
Excellant July 12, 2008
I don't agree with the Editorial Review's of Ted Neely's performance as "wimpy". I would say "humanistic" is the better choice.
The scene of Judas's betrayal is both poignant and wrenching as two men are torn between loss of friendship and their belief of what is right.
Yvonne Elliman's portrayal of Mary Magdalene is also very moving as she struggles with understanding and loving Jesus the man in a world of upheavel and contention that surround them.
Best story ever! July 5, 2008
This was the BEST depiction of the Jesus story I have ever seen. The music is phenominal, the cast of characters are perfect for their parts -anointed even. The lyrics cut to the bone.
My children, 4, 5, and 8 all LOVE it as much as my husband and I do. You will not be sorry! It's fascinating.
Jesus Christ Superstar July 2, 2008
Have admired Andrew Lloyd Webber's music for years and purchased the CD of Superstar when it first came out. Having seen the movie in the 1970's plus the stage performance twice over the years, I wanted to add it to my DVD library. The music never became dated and the movie's keen direction is indicitive of the genius of Norman Jewison. The story is beautifully told in a manner that does not offend those of faith and should be rated as one of the world's rock/musical classics.
Holds up well even after all these years June 24, 2008
I came across this on cable HD on demand and chose it out of curiosity. At first, the elements that are dated (and there are some) had me smiling (and sometimes cringing), but the music kept me watching and listening. It had been years since I'd listened to any performance at all, and I had never seen the film and had never listened to the movie soundtrack. I was familiar with the original London studio recording, but that was it. Three or four songs into the movie, I was hooked and watched it straight through. In spite of what one reviewer here called the film's "hippy dippy" traits, I ended up enjoying it enough to watch it again...and then proceeded to watch it many more times.
Overall, I think it's extremely faithful to the original studio concept performance (as all fans of "Jesus Christ Superstar" know, it appeared as a studio recording before it ever appeared on stage or screen). Several of the performers from the studio version appear in the film, most notably Yvonne Elliman and Barry Dennen. Ted Neeley plays Jesus, and reviewers tend to either love his performance or hate it. I ended up really liking him in this role. He looks the role, at least based on the visual images of Jesus that many of us grew up with, and he uses his voice to show the change from a rather naive character to one who feels the supreme disappointment and anger of betrayal, not just by Judas but by his own God. I'm not discussing the accuracy of any of this from a theological or Biblical standpoint, but strictly from a dramatic perspective of what makes sense theatrically.
The soundtrack (on the DVD, not the CD recording) sounds great. The remastering is very clear and well balanced. This is based on my HD cable reception, but I found that for a 2-channel stereo soundtrack, it was surprisingly dimensional and realistic. I have downloaded the audio CD and there is a huge difference between the audio quality of that and the sound you'll hear on the DVD, with the DVD being much better. The video image is excellent for a movie that was filmed in 1973 (again, based on my HD cable signal). I expect that the DVD itself is probably even better.
There are some elements of the film that date it, and the first time you watch the movie, they can be distracting, annoying, or even laughable. But it's worth watching a second time, because they tend to fade into the background and are overpowered by the other elements that have aged very well. The first time I watched, I was put off by the opening and ending with the entire cast showing up on a bus, unpacking their gear, and going into rehearsal mode. But the music is so beautiful that this contrived set-up becomes not only acceptable but you can even see why the director chose to start and end this way. Some of the costumes do look "hippy dippy", but I came to overlook that, too. There are several brief scenes with fighter jets and tanks....again, just listen to the music and forget about the visual imagery.
You can see that the filmmaker tried to keep the setting as authentic as possible, in spite of the jets, tanks, and some other modernisms. There are some stunningly beautiful scenes, others that are good but not great, and still others that fall flat, but overall, it's successful.
As anyone who has read about the various versions of "Jesus Christ Superstar" will have already discovered, people have very strong opinions about the wide variety of performances that are available. I have grown to appreciate and enjoy this movie in a way that I would never have guessed the first time I saw it, which was just a couple of weeks ago. Not only that, the movie has re-ignited my interest in the music, which I find that I am listening to over and over again. For those reasons, I highly recommend this film.
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