HradwareWarsDVD.jpg
Visual Entertainment
Cast:
Extras: Commentary Track, Interview Featurette, Gallery
Rating:
With the impending release of the latest entry in the ’Star Wars’ saga and the hype that accompanies it, it is no surprise that many of the spoof that were created over the years are also making their DVD showing. One such endearing piece of fan passion is ’Hardware Wars, ’ a spoof on the films that is now available from Tapeworm Distribution.
’Hardware Wars’ is essentially a trailer for a fictitious movie called ’Hardware Wars,’ that resembles ’Star Wars’ very much. The characters, the locales and even the hair-dos do remind us of the films we have come to love so much. It is a fun piece of work, although a bit disjointed and superficially humorous at times.
The DVD contains a fullframe transfer of the film that is appropriate given the origins of this short film. It is grainy and soft for the most part, but it is certainly watchable and enjoyable. Colros are soft and appear unnaturally washed out at times, no doubt also a result of the film’s technical limitations and age. The compression has been done adequately and is mostly free of artifacts.
The publisher of the DVD touts it quite loudly as a one-hour presentation – which it is not. The film itself is no longer than 15-minutes or so. The rest of the promoted running time is made up by a few extras found on the disc, which makes the labelling a bit misleading. As extras we find a good director’s commentary that is informative and enjoyable. An interview featurette is also part of the disc, but be warned – the presentation quality is very poor, though the content is not. A slideshow is also there and some producer’s comments. The menu system of the disc is a flat-out mess making it impossible to figure out what is supposed to be the feature presentation and for the longest time I found myself wondering where it is until I realized that the trailer actually IS the feature presentation.
Overall ’Hardware Wars’ is a release that will cater to the fans of ’Star Wars’ spoofs. While I personally have enjoyed others like ’Thumb Wars’ and especially ’Troops’ much more, this release is certainly a welcome asset.