There’s an argument that 1982 wasn’t just a great year for genre films but it was the greatest year of cinema period. Many would argue that 1999 was the best year of cinema as well. Have lived through both their highs and their lows – I would edge to 1982 for the sheer volume of films that would eventually change the landscape of cinema and inform on years like 1999.
1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever running at a surprisingly brisk 162-minutes is a deep dive into that very thesis. The documentary isn’t merely a rattling off of talking heads pontificating on how great a film is. Director Roger Lay Jr.’s film adroitly looks at each of the 40+ films it focuses on from their own relevance in terms of film history, culture, and esteem. The film doesn’t just go into the major touchstones of the year (ET, Star Trek 2, The Thing, Poltergeist, Blade Runner) but manages to make time for the films that are constantly short-shifted in the discussion (Night Shift, My Favorite Year, Diner, The Verdict, Firefox) to the truly wild (we’re looking at you Megaforce you sexy little thing).
Part of the lengthy runtime is because of how deep the roster of films is in 1982 that stretches beyond genre and the discussion of why and how this happened. The film smartly and very entertainingly gives us context to the world that was in ‘82. A world where the home video market was still in its infancy stages. The internet was science fiction, and everyone thought was going to be Tron (another 1982 film covered in the doc). How information about films was found and consumed – usually by magazines like Fangoria and Starlog. How films were consumed – the lack of reserved seating and standing in line for hours and hours on end. All of it wonderfully recounted by both the creatives that made the films and critics who were there and the creatives that were inspired by the films.
Like Not Quite Hollywood, Z Channel, In Search of Darkness, and Electric Boogaloo, 1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever is a deep dive into film culture and a moment/era that is bound to spark a rewatch of some truly wonderful films.
The Transfer
The transfer is a wonderful example of how to transfer a documentary with trickier elements. Much like the recent documentary covered for the site, Made in England: The Films of Powell & Pressburger, MVD Entertainment’s transfer handles this hurdle wonderfully. The transfer is always sharp and pleasing image that colors pop. Even the archival material and film footage looks wonderful having been pulled from the best possible sources. The result is a truly great transfer. MVD Entertainment continues to surprise and delight with its archival work with film elements.
The Extras
They include the following;
Audio commentary with Director/Producer Roger Lay, Jr. and Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman
Audio commentary with Producers Scott Mantz, Thomas P. Vitale & Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman
Deleted / Extended Scenes
The Fans Speak: Fans Favorite Films Featurette
2022 San Diego Comic-Con Panel
Trailer
The first of two audio commentaries is with Director/Producer Roger Lay, Jr. and Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman. The track opens with the duo discussing the opening credit sequence and the infographics made by Mark and Denise Okuda (who have worked on many a Star Trek disc and production) and the other various graphic assistance throughout. Some of the other details include the origins of the documentary – which leads to a larger discussion of how both came together and the other projects that lead to this; a discussion how much has changed in consuming films in the 40 years since 1982 – and how to show it in the documentary; setting the political, cultural landscape in 1982 for an audience; the challenges of shooting during COVID; a discussion of the use of the non-specialized versions of various films that footage appears; their original concept that they were going to discuss TV, comic books, and Music but how unruly it became; a larger section about the various magazines that covered film and how they could not find a place for it; a larger discussion of what was cut within certain sections of the documentary; a larger discussion the six hour cut of the film and the editing process – losing certain films like Liquid Sky, An Officer and a Gentleman, why they were cut; a discussion of how they got the various big names and critics to appear on the documentary; a larger discussion of the TV Episode version of the film; and much more. Lay and Altman deliver a fascinating commentary track on the making of the documentary giving us a wealth of anecdotes on how it all came together that never feels like there is a lull in the almost three-hour runtime. Note there is a slight hiss in the audio which is only present where there is a silence in the track.
The second audio commentary is with Producers Scott Mantz, Thomas P. Vitale & Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman begins with introductions and diving into the opening sequence and all of their personal and professional discussion before making the documentary. Some of the details include a discussion of “why 1982” and the other contenders for “greatest geek year ever”; the experience of seeing films in 1982 and how much different it is in the current era; their favorite movie from 1982; the influence of Starlog during this era; the influence of 1982 and the 1980s in general on all of their work moving forward; the trouble with some of the more famous films have other documentaries specifically about them (many DVD/Blu-ray features) and how they approached those films and also the ones that were not well documented; a larger discussion of the various creatives, critics, et. al. that appear and were cut from the film and some great details that were cut; a larger discussion throughout of where and how they saw the various films that are discussed for most of the commentary track that leads to wonderful dissections, anecdotes, and facts about the various film; and much more.
Deleted / Extended Scenes (41:01) – The deleted and extended scenes unfortunately do not have chapter stops so one will have to watch all or fast forward through sections. The deleted/extended scenes include Homevideo; Megaforce vs. GI Joe; Fantasy at the Toy Store; Fight on the Rambo set; Liquid Sky, Smithereens and Gender Stories; Fast Times; The Toy; Officer and a Gentleman goes to video
The Fans Speak: Fans Favorite Films Featurette (16:51) – The featurette looks at various fans (or super fans) discussing their recollections of the first viewing of the film. The films discussed are Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; ET; The Last Unicorn; The Secret of NYMTH; The Dark Crystal; The Thing; Cat People; Slumber Party Massacre; Basket Case; Friday the 13th Part 3D; Megaforce; and many more.
2022 San Diego Comic-Con Panel (28:17) – hosted by Scott Mantz and including producer Mark A Altman, executive producer Thomas P Vitale, and screenwriter Steve Craizer. They cover some of the topics discussed in the commentary track as this is the big sell for the documentary that was about to debut. Some of the films they covered during the panel are Megaforce, Star Trek II, Beastmaster, Conan, Sword and the Sorcerer, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Night Shift, and much more. They recount some of the anecdotes they got from the documentary, the origins of the documentary, and more. Note: there’s a slight issue with the audio. Because it’s a con the levels are slightly lower but is compounded by a music track that’s playing at the same time that sometimes interferes with the participants speaking.
Trailer (0:58)
The Final Thought
MVD Entertainment has stacked this edition with some truly great features and of course, the documentary itself which is truly wonderful. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATIONS!!!
1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever the wonderful, entertaining, and thorough documentary on the epic year of cinema that was 1982 comes to Blu-ray loaded with special features thanks to MVD Entertainment.
The Film
There’s an argument that 1982 wasn’t just a great year for genre films but it was the greatest year of cinema period. Many would argue that 1999 was the best year of cinema as well. Have lived through both their highs and their lows – I would edge to 1982 for the sheer volume of films that would eventually change the landscape of cinema and inform on years like 1999.
1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever running at a surprisingly brisk 162-minutes is a deep dive into that very thesis. The documentary isn’t merely a rattling off of talking heads pontificating on how great a film is. Director Roger Lay Jr.’s film adroitly looks at each of the 40+ films it focuses on from their own relevance in terms of film history, culture, and esteem. The film doesn’t just go into the major touchstones of the year (ET, Star Trek 2, The Thing, Poltergeist, Blade Runner) but manages to make time for the films that are constantly short-shifted in the discussion (Night Shift, My Favorite Year, Diner, The Verdict, Firefox) to the truly wild (we’re looking at you Megaforce you sexy little thing).
Part of the lengthy runtime is because of how deep the roster of films is in 1982 that stretches beyond genre and the discussion of why and how this happened. The film smartly and very entertainingly gives us context to the world that was in ‘82. A world where the home video market was still in its infancy stages. The internet was science fiction, and everyone thought was going to be Tron (another 1982 film covered in the doc). How information about films was found and consumed – usually by magazines like Fangoria and Starlog. How films were consumed – the lack of reserved seating and standing in line for hours and hours on end. All of it wonderfully recounted by both the creatives that made the films and critics who were there and the creatives that were inspired by the films.
Like Not Quite Hollywood, Z Channel, In Search of Darkness, and Electric Boogaloo, 1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever is a deep dive into film culture and a moment/era that is bound to spark a rewatch of some truly wonderful films.
The Transfer
The transfer is a wonderful example of how to transfer a documentary with trickier elements. Much like the recent documentary covered for the site, Made in England: The Films of Powell & Pressburger, MVD Entertainment’s transfer handles this hurdle wonderfully. The transfer is always sharp and pleasing image that colors pop. Even the archival material and film footage looks wonderful having been pulled from the best possible sources. The result is a truly great transfer. MVD Entertainment continues to surprise and delight with its archival work with film elements.
The Extras
They include the following;
The first of two audio commentaries is with Director/Producer Roger Lay, Jr. and Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman. The track opens with the duo discussing the opening credit sequence and the infographics made by Mark and Denise Okuda (who have worked on many a Star Trek disc and production) and the other various graphic assistance throughout. Some of the other details include the origins of the documentary – which leads to a larger discussion of how both came together and the other projects that lead to this; a discussion how much has changed in consuming films in the 40 years since 1982 – and how to show it in the documentary; setting the political, cultural landscape in 1982 for an audience; the challenges of shooting during COVID; a discussion of the use of the non-specialized versions of various films that footage appears; their original concept that they were going to discuss TV, comic books, and Music but how unruly it became; a larger section about the various magazines that covered film and how they could not find a place for it; a larger discussion of what was cut within certain sections of the documentary; a larger discussion the six hour cut of the film and the editing process – losing certain films like Liquid Sky, An Officer and a Gentleman, why they were cut; a discussion of how they got the various big names and critics to appear on the documentary; a larger discussion of the TV Episode version of the film; and much more. Lay and Altman deliver a fascinating commentary track on the making of the documentary giving us a wealth of anecdotes on how it all came together that never feels like there is a lull in the almost three-hour runtime. Note there is a slight hiss in the audio which is only present where there is a silence in the track.
The second audio commentary is with Producers Scott Mantz, Thomas P. Vitale & Writer/Producer Mark A. Altman begins with introductions and diving into the opening sequence and all of their personal and professional discussion before making the documentary. Some of the details include a discussion of “why 1982” and the other contenders for “greatest geek year ever”; the experience of seeing films in 1982 and how much different it is in the current era; their favorite movie from 1982; the influence of Starlog during this era; the influence of 1982 and the 1980s in general on all of their work moving forward; the trouble with some of the more famous films have other documentaries specifically about them (many DVD/Blu-ray features) and how they approached those films and also the ones that were not well documented; a larger discussion of the various creatives, critics, et. al. that appear and were cut from the film and some great details that were cut; a larger discussion throughout of where and how they saw the various films that are discussed for most of the commentary track that leads to wonderful dissections, anecdotes, and facts about the various film; and much more.
Deleted / Extended Scenes (41:01) – The deleted and extended scenes unfortunately do not have chapter stops so one will have to watch all or fast forward through sections. The deleted/extended scenes include Homevideo; Megaforce vs. GI Joe; Fantasy at the Toy Store; Fight on the Rambo set; Liquid Sky, Smithereens and Gender Stories; Fast Times; The Toy; Officer and a Gentleman goes to video
The Fans Speak: Fans Favorite Films Featurette (16:51) – The featurette looks at various fans (or super fans) discussing their recollections of the first viewing of the film. The films discussed are Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; ET; The Last Unicorn; The Secret of NYMTH; The Dark Crystal; The Thing; Cat People; Slumber Party Massacre; Basket Case; Friday the 13th Part 3D; Megaforce; and many more.
2022 San Diego Comic-Con Panel (28:17) – hosted by Scott Mantz and including producer Mark A Altman, executive producer Thomas P Vitale, and screenwriter Steve Craizer. They cover some of the topics discussed in the commentary track as this is the big sell for the documentary that was about to debut. Some of the films they covered during the panel are Megaforce, Star Trek II, Beastmaster, Conan, Sword and the Sorcerer, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Night Shift, and much more. They recount some of the anecdotes they got from the documentary, the origins of the documentary, and more. Note: there’s a slight issue with the audio. Because it’s a con the levels are slightly lower but is compounded by a music track that’s playing at the same time that sometimes interferes with the participants speaking.
Trailer (0:58)
The Final Thought
MVD Entertainment has stacked this edition with some truly great features and of course, the documentary itself which is truly wonderful. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATIONS!!!
MVD Entertainment’s Blu-Ray edition of 1982 Greatest Geek Year Ever is out November 5th
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