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The Freshman (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray + DVD]

Harold Lloyd (Actor, Producer), Jobyna Ralston (Actor), Fred Newmeyer (Director), Rated:
NR
Format: Blu-ray
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 89 ratings
IMDb7.5/10.0
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March 25, 2014
Criterion Collection
3
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Genre Comedy, Classics/Silent Films
Format Criterion Collection, Blu-ray, DVD
Contributor Harold Lloyd, James Anderson, Pat Harmon, Sam Taylor, Charles E. Stevenson, Oscar Smith, Hazel Keener, Joseph Harrington, Charles Farrell, Jobyna Ralston, Fred Newmeyer, Brooks Benedict, Grady Sutton See more
Language English
Runtime 2 hours and 19 minutes
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Product Description

Harold Lloyd's biggest box-office hit was this silent comedy gem, featuring the befuddled everyman at his eager best as a new college student. Though he dreams of being a big man on campus, the freshman's careful plans inevitably go hilariously awry, be it on the football field or at the Fall Frolic. But he gets a climactic chance to prove his mettle-and impress the sweet girl he loves-in one of the most famous sports sequences ever filmed. This crowd-pleaser is a gleeful showcase for Lloyd's slapstick brilliance and incandescent charm, and it's accompanied here by a new orchestral score by Carl Davis (NAPOLEON).

Product details

  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 4 ounces
  • Item model number ‏ : ‎ CRRN2346BR
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ Criterion Collection, Blu-ray, DVD
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 2 hours and 19 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ March 25, 2014
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Brooks Benedict, James Anderson, Hazel Keener
  • Producers ‏ : ‎ Harold Lloyd
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ Criterion Collection
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00HE010LC
  • Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 3
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 89 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
89 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

frankebe
5.0 out of 5 stars Now THIS is how restorations should be done!!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2016
Verified Purchase
Not only are the prints pristine, I suppose largely thanks to Lloyd having kept so many of his own films safe and sound; BUT, here they are fully restored. Scratches, blotches, blemishes—all gone. Those involved took time to find alternative camera negatives that were the best to view. And the film-to-digital scans are perfect! Wow! Crisp, clear and full of detail. You can read the street signs down the block from the actors!

To match the images, the musical accompaniments are fantastic! One film has only a piano, the others have full orchestra. They are ALL full of whimsy, imagination, and highlight the visual activities without fear of being castigated for momentary “Mickey Mousing” (matching the action exactly with the music). AND all the soundtracks are recorded ABSOLUTELY perfectly IN SYNCHRONIZATION WITH THE MOVIE! FOR A CHANGE!

Finally, someone did it right!

I have Kino’s THE HAROLD LLOYD COLLECTION and I was unimpressed with the short movie “An Eastern Westerner”. But the same movie in THIS collection was riveting! When you have a truly first-rate, gorgeous print like this, it makes it MUCH easier to watch! AND, Carl Davis is at his finest as a composer for comedies. In the past, his music did not always work, like his soundtrack for Buster Keaton’s “The General”, which is WAY WAY WAY too valiant and noble and regal with soaring rich horns and full orchestra… blah blah blah. No whimsy at all. None. But HERE, for this movie, Davis composed the perfect soundtrack. I’ll watch the movie again soon just because the music is so great.

(ASIDE: Incidentally, why are so many people offended by sound effects? In this compilation is a selection from Harold Lloyd’s Funny Side of Life (1966). Lloyd used orchestral music (his preference over a piano or even an organ), AND he put in sound effects FOR EVERYTHING! Often the sound effects actually cover over the music for long periods of time. Well, if sound effects were good enough for Harold, they’re good enough for me! They really bring the film to life and make the movie seem less “antique” (less ‘silent’). Fortunately, Carl Davis actually does add some sound effects in some of his scores. The more better, I say!)

((ASIDE TO THE ASIDE: By the way, I do not mean “funny” sound effects. All the sound effects that Harold liked were realistic and made the movie seem more natural, heightening the dramatic effects (of falling through a glass windshield, a car hit by a train, doors shutting, etc.). Carl Davis mostly follows this principle and his modest sound effects are always appropriate.))

Now about THE FRESHMAN itself: “The Freshman” is not at all my favorite Lloyd picture and not a movie I can watch more than once a decade (except for the brilliant tuxedo routine); nor is this my favorite Carl Davis score (I wish Davis were less repetitious, more witty, and used some imagination to highlight the action in the football game! [Robert Israel's score is MUCH better.]). However, Harold would probably have strongly approved the full orchestral treatment (and added complete sound effects to cover up the music’s deficiencies).

And really, considering the incredible restoration of the image, the marvelous sound of a full orchestra accompaniment, and the film as an excellent example of superb character-development script-writing… …well, these are all such grand accomplishments that any criticism is petty. I swear that the picture looks like it was shot yesterday. On Blu-ray the details are startling. When the actors smile, even in many of the extreme far shots you can see the lines of cheek bones and you can see the characters’ teeth; you can see the irises of their eyeballs.

(ASIDE: 35mm film was quite an invention, and captured an astonishing amount of detail even in the earliest Méliès movies. How I wish THEY were available in true high-definition!).

So… David Shepard, Flicker Alley, Serge Bromberg and Lobster Films, Kino Lorber—all you guys, pay attention!!! Criterion does it right! You could, too; but your Chaplin Mutual series, much of Kino’s Keaton and Langdon anthologies, some of Lobster’s/Flicker Alley’s Méliès films, and even many early SOUND movies (Kino’s “Lost Keaton”) have sound that is all out of sync to the picture.

How in the world do you spend so much of your time and energy and money restoring a film, and hiring the best composers in business to sensitively match sound-to-image, and then RUIN

RUIN

your whole product by being so sloppy with the final editing that the sound is not even in sync with the picture?

And it happens ALL THE TIME! Why? How can this be??? How can you DO that to your product??? After all that work??? I would be a screaming maniac if that happened to a movie of mine! Follow Criterion’s example—or whoever did this work! Holy crap, even cheap-o GRAPEVINE VIDEO has soundtracks in sync with the picture (example: their Larry Semon movies)!

My only complaint about this release is that I do NOT need 2 DVDs AND a Blu-Ray. THREE DISCS! What can I do with all these disc? I guess I’ll give away the DVDs…
9 people found this helpful
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M. Britton
5.0 out of 5 stars Harold LLoyd is the greatest!! Criterion did justice with this awesome 4K transfer!
Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2014
Verified Purchase
Another great winner from our friends at Criterion! This may just be the release of the year!! Harold Lloyd fans rejoice at this amazing blu ray/DVD set Criterion has released onto the world (at least the region A world). Have loved Harold Lloyd since discovering his films on Turner Classics and New Line's massive box set of his amazing work. All his films are preserved and in great condition from seeing these in the New Line box set. And Criterion did an awesome job on releasing our favorite THE FRESHMAN onto blu ray coming from a 4K master. This is the time I crave that the 4K technology catches up, because blu ray upconverted to 4K is not the same as real 4K. And this great film should be seen in real 4K. It is hard to believe this film was released in 1925! The beauty that lies within this masterful work is a sight to be seen. I don't care how old this movie is, but blu ray brings out more detail and sharpness that the DVD (even upconverted) cannot come nowhere close to the blu ray's resolution (although the DVD in this set looks good).
There are tons of special features that we come to expect from Criterion. Several short films in HD among others. I am still impressed on how great this set represents the brilliance of Harold Lloyd's masterpiece. Criterion once again proves why they are the best when it comes to releasing classics onto blu ray. Even if you are not a fan of silent films, this is one funny movie. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
6 people found this helpful
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The Other Eccles
5.0 out of 5 stars The Freshman: as fresh and funny as ever!
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2014
Verified Purchase
It's not remarkable that one of the most popular comedies of the 1920's is still tremendously funny. (Some would say funnier than anything made today. In fact, I would say that.) The amazing thing is that it doesn't look old. Once in a while there are a few slight indications that original elements had seen plenty of service, not that most people would notice while absorbed in the story. But never are there any signs of forced restoration. The image could not be this sharp and crisp if the preservation elements had been highly compromised by film condition or inferior lab work. The viewer need not make allowances for the extreme age of this film. It plays as well now as when new, and looks it. I highly recommend it as an eye-opener for anyone who thinks that silent movies creak.
10 people found this helpful
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Ladybug
4.0 out of 5 stars ) are laugh out loud funny. I really like the innocent and guileless character ...
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2015
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Plot is somewhat predictable but still the comedy bits and situations (Lloyd's "dance" of introduction, call me Speedy, etc.) are laugh out loud funny. I really like the innocent and guileless character Harold Lloyd plays. One of my favorite silent films.
2 people found this helpful
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Rocketeer
5.0 out of 5 stars Touching masterpiece
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2021
Verified Purchase
Harold Lloyd goes to college, and because he tries So Hard to be popular, ends up a bit of a laughingstock. But he gets his act together, becomes genuinely respected, and saves the Big Game. Comedic and poignant. Lovely movie.
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Cesar Diaz
5.0 out of 5 stars IF YOU WATCHED "SAFETY LAST!", YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS
Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2014
Verified Purchase
Everytime I have to explain why I spend more than 30 dls on a movie, I explain that Criterion is the home video equivalent of an "annotated" edition of a classic book, And sometimes, even the best possible edition, plus the "Cambridge Companion" in a bundle. That holds true for this film, that blu-ray.com reviews this way: "So far, this is one of the year's very best releases" ([...]). And that kind of praise is reserved only to stuff like the beautiful Zatoichi box-set, the indisputable champion of 2013.
6 people found this helpful
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Alwyn L. Featherston
5.0 out of 5 stars Lloyd was one of the three great comic geniuses of the silent era -- and my ...
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2015
Verified Purchase
Lloyd was one of the three great comic geniuses of the silent era -- and my favorite (although Keaton is a close second; I was never quite as enamored of Chaplin). This is one of his best (maybe second best to Safety Last),

I always wanted to see this movie ever since I saw The Sin of Harold Diddlebock (aka Mad Wednesday) -- that filnm begins with a short segment from The Freshman.

This is a typically superior Criterion release.
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TwentySmallCigars
5.0 out of 5 stars You can download andwatch nearly every movie ever made for free if you're ...
Reviewed in Canada on June 16, 2015
Verified Purchase
bob appears to be a moron. You can download and watch nearly every movie ever made for free if you're not fussy about the quality or the bonus features, not just movies from 1925.

This is a beautifully restored version with great bonus features.

bob, why are you even browsing amazon if you're too cheap to spend money on a quality movie. Why don't you stick to cat videos on youtube?
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s_watanabe
5.0 out of 5 stars ハロルド・ロイドの若者讃歌の傑作が米Criterionから登場！
Reviewed in Japan on March 16, 2015
Verified Purchase
邦題『ロイドの人気者』

ハロルド・ラム(ハロルド・ロイド)は、大学へ行き、学内一の人気者になることを夢みている。お金を貯めて、念願のテート大学に入学したハロルドは、いかにも純朴で田舎者な感じから、意地悪な上級生たちに目をつけられ、入学式の壇上で、学長の代わりに演説をするはめになってしまう。珍妙な演説で、学生たちから喝采を浴びた彼は、すっかり自分が学内の人気者になったと勘違いしてしまい…。

サイレント期の喜劇王の一人、ハロルド・ロイドによる傑作カレッジ・コメディ。ロイド作品の中でも人気の高い一本で、プレストン・スタージェス監督が、本作公開から22年後に、主人公ハロルドのその後を描いた" The Sin of Harold Diddlebock "を作ったことも有名だ。1990年には、アメリカ国立フィルム登録簿に登録された。

明るく清々しいロイド・コメディにぴったりの題材として、今回、ロイドが選んだのが、大学を舞台にしたもの。根拠のない自信やめげることのない前向きな精神など、若者だけが持つことを許された特権の素晴らしさを高らかに謳っているあたり、まさに、ロイド作品に相応しい。素朴でナイーブ、そして若干、空気の読めない大学新入生を演じるには年が行っているということで(当時31歳だった)、ロイド自身は主役を演じることに不安を抱いていたということだが、何、あの曇りのない笑顔と滑稽な身振りがあれば、途端に、溌剌とした大学生に見えるという具合で、何ら問題はない。本作の2年後に、バスター・キートンも、32歳という年齢で、大学もの『キートンの大学生』(北米盤Blu-ray" College ")を撮ることになるが、ロイドの大学生像に、ずいぶんと励まされ、感化されたに違いない。

そんなロイドが演じる大学生は、とにかく前向き。学内一の人気者になるために、フットボール部に入るものの、選手として全く才能がないことをいささかも疑うことなく(ウォーター・ボーイとして入部を認められる)、レギュラー選手たちのタックルの練習台としてボロボロになるのだが(このあたりは、コミカルに描写され、ロイドの独壇場といった感じ)、決してへこたれるということがない。名門ノートルダム大学のフットボール部に入るために、何度も入学試験を受け、ついには試合に出場した『 ルディ 』のルティ・ルティガーのように、強い意志の持ち主なのだ。もちろん、ハロルドも、自分が人気者などではなく、実は、ただの笑い者でしかないということに気付き、「青春の蹉跌」を味わうことにはなる。しかし、そこからの切り替わりが早い。落ち込んでる間もなく、実際の試合に出て、人気者であることを証明しようとするのだ！ごく平凡な人間でも、本気で物事にぶつかれば、困難は打破できるというロイド作品のテーマは(映画評論家の淀川長治氏は、ロイド作品の精神を"Come and get it"＝「やったらやれる」と表現していた)、ここでも健在なのだ。

映画史上あまりに有名なクライマックスのフットボール・シーン―ロイドへのオマージュを込めて、『ご冗談でショ』では、ハーポ・マルクスが、よりおちゃらけたフットボール試合を披露した―は、ベンチを温めていたロイドに急遽、出場機会が与えられて…という展開で、およそ予定調和で、誰もが予想する通りの結末を迎えるのだが、そのハッピー・エンドが決して安直に感じられず、むしろ清々しさと幸福感に満ち溢れているのが、衒いのない素直なロイド作品ならではの美質なのだろう。ロイド作品の中で、一番愛された一本と言われるのにも頷ける。

笑いとユーモアに浸りながら観終わった後、何とも言えない心地良さが残り、そして、ムクムクと元気が沸いて来る傑作だということに異議を唱える映画ファンなどいないだろう。

本Blu-rayは、2013年の『要心無用』(" SAFETY LAST! ")に続き、米Criterionから発売されたもの。1998年に、米UCLA Film & Televisionがレストアした35mmネガ(染色版)を4Kフィルム・スキャンして、丁寧にカラコレ、レストアを施して作られたHDマスターを使用。もちろん、細かいキズが少し残ってはいるものの、深みを感じさせる白黒諧調の良さ、ディテール表現(フィルム・グレインも適度)の精細さなど、とても90年前の作品とは思えない、目の覚めるような極上の画質だ。

伴奏音楽は、カール・デイヴィスが新規に作曲したもの(2.0ch リニアPCM)。繊細かつ表現豊かで、作品にぴったりだ。

特典には、以下のものが収録。例によって、米Criterionらしい気合いの入った特典が盛りだくさんだ。もちろん、すべてHD収録だが、短編3本は、59.97iで収録されている(サイレントの適正な上映スピードに合わせるため)。

●アーキヴィスト、リチャード・コレル、映画史家リチャード・バン、映画評論家レナード・マルティンによるコメンタリー(2005年に、米New Lineから発売された盤に収録されていたものの再録)
●1966年製のTV番組"Harold Lloyd’s Funny Side of Life"からの抜粋映像 (29分37秒)
●短編3本 *すべて新しくレストアされたもの
・"The Marathon" (13分58秒)
・"An Eastern Westerner" (27分38秒)
・"High and Dizzy" (27分15秒)
●ジョン・ベングストンがロケ地を解説するドキュメンタリー"Harold Lloyd: Big Man on Campus" (16分27秒)
●アーキヴィスト、リチャード・コレルと映画史家ケヴィン・ブラウンロウによるロイド作品解説 (39分48秒)
●スティーブ・アレン、ジャック・レモン、デルマー・デイヴィスが司会を務める1963年Delta Kappa Alphaでのロイドの業績を讃える式典の模様 (29分21秒)
●ロイドがゲスト出演した1953年製CBSのTVクイズ番組"What’s My Line?" (6分31秒)

本Blu-rayは、米Criterionが、2013年11月から、パッケージ制作コストを抑えるために始めたDVDとのデュアル・フォーマット(2014年9月発売タイトルから、通常のBlu-ray、DVDそれぞれのパッケージに戻した)。スリーブ・ケース付きのデジパック仕様で、ケースを開くと、左側にDVD2枚、右側にBlu-ray1枚が収納されている。個人的には、観ることのない不要なDVDが同梱されていることは嬉しくないが、それでも綺麗なパッケージだと思う。

読み応えのあるスティーブン・ウィナーによるエッセイが掲載されたブックレットが同梱。

本Blu-rayは、北米盤ながら、日本と同じR-Aなので、日本のBlu-rayプレーヤーで問題なく視聴可能だ。DVDは、R-1仕様なので、R-1のプレーヤーかリージョン・フリーのプレーヤーでないと視聴出来ないのでご注意を。

IVCからも、出処不明のマスターを使った日本盤DVDが出ているが、全く次元の違う質なので、本作のファンは迷わず本盤を買うべきだろう。映画ファンを唸らせる米Criterionならではの一枚だ。当然、星5つ！
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