The Shadow (1994)

...though how in the (blank) could Universal have released this on DVD and NOT done WIDESCREEN? The DTS transfer is as crisp and clear as you'd ever want, but this is a movie of astounding visual scope that cries out for a widescreen version. (I have this movie on VHS, DVD, and Dolby Digital Laserdisc, and the DDLD is by far the best of the three, because it's widescreen and the DD is amazingly crisp for LD.)

Still, though, there's a lot to like about this movie: Alec Baldwin is dead-on perfect as Lamont Cranston and his darker side, The Shadow; Baldwin can go from charming to chilling with one flex of his facial muscles, and that ability is nicely on display here, even if The Shadow is buried under a hat and cloak and heavy makeup. Penelope Ann Miller looks gorgeous as Margo Lane, the blonde bombshell with a brain to match, but isn't challenged much by the material. John Lone chews up scenery as Shiwan Khan, last descendent of Genghis Khan and darker reflection of The Shadow's edgy goodness. The art deco sets are terrific; the music is rich and moody; the visual scope of 1933 New York City is breathtaking.

I recommend this one with qualifications: If/when a widescreen version comes out, get it instead of the other DVD or VHS versions. But the movie itself is well worth seeing, particularly if you're an old-time radio fan.

I saw the movie in the theater and enjoyed it very much! The ending was a bit abrupt but the ride was great. Baldwin played the part just right and the whole world of The Shadow was very well done. The only problem I have with the DVD is that, to my knowledge, it has never been released in wide screen format. How Universal could release such a good movie in pan-and-scan only is a mystery. Even the DTS version isn't in wide screen! Aside from that, I think this movie would be a pleasent suprise to sci-fi fans.

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This is probably my choice for "most underrated movie" ever.

I love the premise, characters, casting, and especially the score. It will be old news to Batman Begins fans, due to similarities in origin (rich man loses his identity in Asia to return a transformed crime-fighting force)... but keep in mind, this movie came out a decade earlier, and the Shadow is older than the Batman in general. Also, Cranston (a.k.a. the Shadow) is darker than Batman.

Baldwin is great as the gravelly-voiced Shadow, but belts out a good maniacal laugh when he needs too. You can't stop looking at the Shadow. Penelope Ann Miller also turns in a very good performance, as does John Lone as the villain.

The DOWNSIDE to this disc is that it very much lacks in transfer and aspect ratio. It's presented in 4:3 (1.33: 1), for boxy old TV... a real letdown for a great film. The transfer is also very poor... dirt and scratches appear obviously in the opening titles.

Still, it is very much worth seeing a lot of fun and an absolute MUST for anyone who enjoyed Batman, but it will not live up to your system if you have a top of the line audio/visual setup.

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Let's say the movie deserves 4 stars at least. It's beautiful and the plot stays true to the original characters. Whatever you may think of Alec Baldwin's acting ability it's still a good movie. But the DVD is an old style, barebones, FULL SCREEN version. It's crap. The only reason you should buy this is that you can't wait to see it one more time and it's cheap...otherwise get the even cheaper serials like the Invisible Avenger and wait for the Special Edition.

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My wife & I viewed this movie for the second time & enjoyed it as much as when we viewed it the first time on our laser disc widescreen version; however, this DVD was in FULL FRAME & we were disappointed that it was not presented in the original widescreen version. The amazon add states that the format for this DVD cited both FULL SCREEN & WIDESCREEN, but unfortuneatly, was not the case as our DVD only came in full screen. I did notice that the ratio was 1.33:1 which is the full screen version which should have alerted me. I suggest that the widescreen be deleted in the add as it is not available in DVD. As a Laser Disc owner, we have the Shadow movie (as mentioned above) in the widescreen version, so I can't imagine why the DVD is not in widescreen too. The widescreen shows much more movie than the fullscreen version, which makes the movie even more enjoyable as you see the entire picture as it was made to look in the theaters. As with all films made of comic book & radio heros, this film is definitely worth viewing. All aspects of the time period were done very well, similar to the movies of Dick Tracy, Batman, Superman, etc., which were all done in widescreen.

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