donutsweeper | Commentary tracks- love them or hate them?

So in my goal to use my LJ for more than just ficcage postings here is a rambling thinky thought post on commentary tracks on movies and tv shows, due mostly to the fact the Merlin one (which I haven't listened to, but is flooding my tumblr) has just been released.

There's a number of things about the commentary that can really add to my enjoyment of the show/movie (of the 'oh wow, I never thought about it that way' manner), but I've also had times when it's made me question things and even outright hate people. There's also the issue that once actors/directors/writers say that 'this scene is supposed to show X' it's hard to then later not see X when watching it.

I've listened to some GREAT commentary- Fight Club and Daredevil both come to mind movie-wise and for TV John Barrowman on Doctor Who's 'Empty Child' and Joe Flannigan on SGA's 'Rising' are both wonderful. But then there's some that just come off as boring or as if you're missing a joke (like SGA's "38 Minutes") and then there's the OH NO WHY DID I WATCH THIS (seriously, never watch the commentary and BTS stuff for Highlander Raven, you will never see Elizabeth Gracen in the same light again).

Thoughts, anyone?

And, btw, a hearty welcome to anyone stopping by my journal for the first time, have a donut and enjoy your stay!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Commentaries depend entirely on who is doing them. It has to a person who understands what they are doing them for. There are people who think they are there to recap what is going on on the screen, which is stupid. There are people who think you want to know the reason for every angle and colour. And then there are the really great ones, who know you're there for humour, camaraderie between the cast, funny anecdotes and just the the right amount of trivia. But I mean, Kenneth Branagh's Thor commentary is just him talking for 90 minutes, but it's really interesting, even if it isn't funny. So I guess it varies and also depends on what you're looking for. I both love and hate them, but pretty much always give them a try and if I have a choice between getting a DVD with or without a commentary track, I always get the commentary track. I love behind the scenes stuff.

The Lord of the Rings commentaries are probably my favourites ever. They were the first DVDs I owned so the first commentaries I listened to and they are perfect. If you can get Bradly, Anthony and Colin on a Merlin commentary, it's wonderful. Katie is annoying. The SGA commentaries are usually good, but can veer into boring monotone, especially if some poor person has been left on their own to do it. The Sherlock ones are really great as well, though Russell Tovey is a bit of an ass on the Baskerville ep. Doctor Who has been good up until the newer series. It seems that only Karen likes to record them and she's too giggly for my tastes. I definitely prefer it when a member of the cast is on hand. The Firefly commentaries are also pretty awesome.

/rant

Very good points! Yeah, knowing *why* they're doing them is important. Oooh, I haven't watched the Thor one, but we do own the DVD, I might do that sometime. Of late I've been watching a lot of DVDs streaming through Netflix so there hasn't been the option of the commentary track but if I get the DVD and I have time I do try to give it a listen.

Do you find it weird when the commentary is done by someone who uses a different accent on the show/movie than in real life? I wonder if hearing Colin's Irish brogue would make listening to Merlin a bit odd or something.

I like to put them on when I'm cross stitching, because I don't have to pay too much attention to what's going on on screen.

I guess it would depend on how much you want to believe the actor is the character. It's a bit jarring to hear Colin being so Irish, but it doesn't' affect how I view him as the character, or anything. I just find him a bit hard to understand sometimes. Especially since he's quite mumbly on top of things. :D

I haven't been crafting as much lately, you're right, that's always a good time to listen to things like that.

good point re: colin. The mumbly aspect worries me though, I sometimes have problems understanding people then.

I don't find him too hard to understand, but I'm pretty good with accents. Bradley sort of takes over, anyway, so Colin didn't get much in when they're together anyway. :p

Oh, that's good to know. Maybe I'll look for the DVDs at the library then

Commentary tracks- love them or hate them?

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