Jazz Singer

Pros: Interesting mostly to see famed singer Al Jolson at his height
Cons: Creaky story, astounding racial stereotyping

Despite its place in movie history, The Jazz Singer (1927; DVD release, 10/16/07) must be approached with a caution usually reserved for radioactivity. Definitely rent this one before you invest in the three-disc DVD set. The backstory is ...

Pros: Interesting in historical context of sound in film
Cons: Not suited to modern audiences

The Jazz Singer is a 1927 Warner's Brother film which is essentially a silent film with bits and pieces of recorded sound, dialogue, and sound.  Al Jolson improvised the words, "You ain't seen nothing yet" and the talkie was the most popular ...

Pros: Historically important movie
Cons: Overly melodramatic, horribly dated...

When reviewing films from the past it's always a good idea to put yourself in the mindset of the era in which it was produced.

It would be impossible to review, for instance, the original "Flash Gordon" movie serials of the 1930's if one was...

Pros: musical numbers, story, historical importance
Cons: melodrama, characters

"The Jazz Singer" is of great historical importance, as it was the first feature to incorporate dialogue and sound. Although primarily a silent, the musical numbers all have sound, and there are brief snippets of dialogue. The ad-libbed...

Pros: The extras are better than the feature. Great historical DVD.
Cons: Might be too long and boring for today's DVD audience.

Some movies are epochal, and now thanks to DVD, they do not become apocryphal. When the Brothers Warner - pushed by Harry - jumped into the production of sound features, the technique was widely regarded as a novelty. The Vitaphone process had been used ...

Pros: Great classic movie in its original making
Cons: Not for those who do not like silent movies as the talking is limited

The Jazz Singer was the first feature length movie to have talking sequences (i.e. talkie), which were done using the Vitaphone technology. Most of the dialogue is done in the silent movie style of frames with the lines written on them, while most of the ...