Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7805 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-02-21
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Romanian, Arabic, Bulgarian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 102 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Wild Wild West, directed by Barry Sonnenfeld (Men in Black, Get Shorty), was one of the box-office smashes of the summer of 1999 but was raked by critics and embraced by audiences. Based on the 1960s TV adventure show that starred Robert Conrad, this film re-imagined Secret Service agent James West as Will Smith, adding Oscar-winner Kevin Kline as his sidekick, agent-inventor Artemus Gordon. President Ulysses S. Grant puts West and Gordon on the trail of malign genius (and former Confederate soldier) Dr. Arliss Loveless (Kenneth Branagh) in a story about racism, partnership and world domination. The special effects are lavish, even garish, but not all that special; they're not enough to elevate a mundane and familiar plot. Even Branagh, playing a man who only exists from the waist up--literally--can't find the juice in this lumbering affair. Still, the fast-talking team of Smith and Kline is a nimble one. Smith's affable charm and Kline's subversive wit win many points, though not nearly enough.--Marshall Fine

Video Description
DVD Special Features

Full Arsenal of Behind-the Scenes Documentaries
Will Smith and Enrique Iglasias Music Videos
Stills Gallery
Interactive Menus
Theatrical Trailer
Scene Access
Language in Dolby Digital 5.1: English
Subtitles: English/Arabic/Romanian/Bulgarian/English for the hearing impaired

Sharpshooting Enhanced Features For Your DVD-ROM PC

Artemus Gordon's Mind-Projection Theatre Reveals A Trainload of Behind-the Scenes Clips
Two Genre Essays
The Steel Assasin Interactive Game
Web Events and Chat Room Access
Original Theatrical Web Site

Synopsis
Barry Sonnenfeld is reunited with his MEN IN BLACK star Will Smith in this gadget-soaked romp based (loosely) on the 1960s television show. WILD WILD WEST supplies many impressive visuals (thanks to brilliant production designer Bo Welch) and some hearty laughs. Will Smith is James West, a Civil War hero and U.S. marshal inclined to shoot first and ask questions later. His partner is the wacky inventor and pseudointellectual Artemus Gordon (Kevin Kline). The team is created when the world's leading scientists are kidnapped by a diabolical madman named Dr. Arliss Loveless (Kenneth Branagh), and President Ulysses S. Grant (also played by Kevin Kline) wants his two best men on the job. Loveless's machines have the creepy fun feeling of EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (Welch again)--many of them have a spider motif--and Artemus Gordon rivals him with his own fun inventions. An odd but enjoyable blend of science fiction and old-school Western, WILD WILD WEST is packed with cool images and slick action sequences.

Customer Reviews

The first 'steampunk' film?
Oh dear, oh dear - could it be that, yet again, the closeted community of film critics has missed the point entirely? Fulminous rumblings about historical innaccuracy are magnificently irrelevant when applied to this film, which seems not so much a Western or a straightforward action movie as an earnest attempt to create the first true 'steampunk' film. For those who don't know, or simply don't care, about science fiction (and shame upon you, you staid stay-at-homes), 'steampunk' is a label popularly applied to recent works of fiction that take the essence of 'cyberpunk' (outlandish hi-tech, meganational companies and conspiracies, and hard-as-nails streetwise lead characters) and transplant it into the latter half of the nineteenth century. It's often a joy to see how 'steampunk' writers rise to the challenge of rebuilding (or is that prebuilding?) technology that we take for granted today with the science and resources available a century ago. 'Wild Wild West' satisfies. The trick of using Leonardo daVinci's sketches is an old one, but a particular delight is the scene in which Artemus Gordon makes literal use of the old adage that a dead man's retinas will retain the last image he sees. And if you were expecting the plot to be given to you on a plate, why didn't you buy one of the swathes of dreary romantic comedies or monotonous 'hi-octane' thrillers that pollute the shelves of your local video store? 'Wild Wild West' is for thinkers, dreamers, and above all those who can appreciate a little imagination.

Wild Wild West
Look, let's get one thing straight, this film was never meant to be a serious attempt at an accurate historical piece or even a believable, credible thriller. It's a pantomime on film with wonderful costumes, fantastic sets, a baddie you can hiss and boo and goodies you can cheer on to their final victory.

I was quite surprised to see the "12" rating of the film as I watched it with my children (11 and 9) and felt there was no excessive violence or extreme foul language. Indeed the fight scenes are so staged and comical the opposite is true.

OK, Will Smith is never going to be cast in Shakespeare, but he does pull of a mean cool hero, Kevin Klein is good but never reaches his true comic potential in his role, but stealing the show has to be a brilliant Kenneth Branagh hamming it up to the ultimate. The comedy isn't side splitting, but it is jolly and is never far away and there are some pretty snappy one-liners.

A mention has to be made about the sets and props also, futuristic yet antique they are incredibly fantastic and suit the mood of the film perfectly. It's like the industrial revolution gone mad and a wonderland for the lovers of gadgets.

As I say, even if you hated the film for its dubious storyline, it did feature a bevy of beautiful women in tight corsets, which can't be a bad thing can it?

Despite the bad reviews, it is excellent.
If you couldn't give a damn about accuracy and just want to watch a film for a good laugh, this is the one for you. Packed to the brim with wacky inventions and stupid ideas this film is one of the greatest i have seen in a good number of years