Go to main content

Return To Splendour

September 16, 2004 | Video
This famous video release from 1994 is made available on DVD by Elvis Unlimited 10 years later. Can we live without it?

Design

The cover has straight tasteful design, with a great picture of our man. The texts are all clearly readable because of the chosen font and colours. There is a very clear statement that the DVD does not feature the singing voice of Elvis, something others could learn from. The chapter list clearly describes what can be expected. Unfortunately the chapters on the DVD itself are just numbered, so you need to memorize or use the cover to jump to the right one. Some keywords might have been useful. But what are we complaining? At least the disc has chapters.

Content

Probably the many that are familiar with the content of the original are only interested in the image quality. We can be short on that: it isn’t improved. That was hardly to expect anyway, regarding the 8mm source of the material. But we have it on a Silver disc now that will last much longer than a video tape. Too bad the DVD has no extras either compared to the video.
For those that do not know the original: prepare for a treat. Although the quality of the image varies from pretty poor to very good, the whole is very enjoyable. The sometimes marvelous 8mm footage is well put together in documentary format.
Right from the start some VERY dynamic footage from Las Vegas, 1969 (unfortunately in the lesser image quality) catches you. Basically the DVD brings you into the seventies chronologically, up to 1975 on stage. Footage made in Detroit, Kansas City, Wichita, Las Vegas, Houston and New York (to name a few) brings you criss-cross the States too. Furthermore there is a chapter with candid footage of Elvis leaving houses, hotels and planes. The narrator tells some interesting details about the various shows and tours, put together by Anne Nixon. Somehow this documentary format makes the footage much more interesting to watch than an irritating country tune.

Conclusion

Whether you can live without this DVD or not you have to make up yourself. We think that every fan should have seen it at least once. The dynamic fan footage brings much more “feeling” about Elvis on stage than the official, professional material available.

Related links

Wiebe wrote on September 17, 2004
Actually it's not the 8mm source only that sets the quality of this DVD. If you look at the same piece of film (the 69 stuff) on the DVD "Adrenaline" it looks ten times sharper You can see all of his lims now and read his lips. (I hope these people will one day release the whole film (20 minutes +)). So they could have improved the quality a lot, I just think it would have been too expensive for them, they would have had to remaster everything from the 8 mm source. It's still very good compared to your average rip off bootleg video. It's just that the "behind the image" people have shown us how well one can master from 8mm. I just hope more footage will come out in the quality of BTI. I don't know why they decided to speed the film footage up in Return to Splendour. I really like the airplane footage, that old smokey 880.
Paul Sweeney wrote on September 28, 2004
I only rate this DVD one star because it isn't a region free DVD. I live in Canada, and got my DVD today, only to put it in my machine and it said "wrong disc format". The DVD will only play on a DVD on your computer in Canada or the US. To make a long story short, to pay for a DVD that you cannot play on your system is a hugh mistake that Elvis Unlimited had better fix in a flash if they want people to continue to buy from them.
Gladyslove wrote on October 25, 2004
I´m happy to have this one in my collection. I nearly have all the products from ELVIS UNLIMITED. They really make a good job for us fans out there. I hope there will be more to come!! Bravo!! Elvisly yours
dirklandwehr wrote on July 19, 2005
I have bought the vhs-tape in the 1990's and I got the dvd, too. The clips are just great,although not as properly remastered as the ones on some other releases. But still this dvd is a must for every collector!