Which DVDs were pleasant surprises?

I'm starting this one as sort of an antidote to the "Which DVDs do you regret buying?" thread. If you have bought any DVDs without having seen the film beforehand (and I hope I'm not the only person who does this), name those (and hopefully there were some) which knocked your socks off, blew you away, etc.
For bonus points explain why you paid good money to buy a movie you had never seen in the first place!!

I have an ulterior motive here - I hoping some of you will point me to some great disks I wouldn't have seen otherwise!

I'll start it off with my most pleasant surprise, Atom Egoyan's The Sweet Hereafter. I had seen Exotica in the theatre and found it intriguing, though I wouldn't call it a favorite. But the reviews for The Sweet Hereafter were outstanding, the price was right, being a New Line SE there were some interesting-sounding supplements, and I hadn't bought any disks in a couple of weeks!!

The Sweet Hereafter is about a school bus accident in a small Canadian town and its aftermath. I am so glad I bought this disk. It features outstanding performances, a complex plot, and lots of atmosphere. This is a film that rewards multiple viewings (it is told in non-linear fashion) and will haunt you for days after each one. Plus it's another fine New Line Special Edition, with a great transfer. Highly recommended.

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Too many DVDs, too little time...

[This message has been edited by Craig S (edited 11-30-1999).]

DVDs I've bought before having seen the film:

Casablanca
Great movie. Really glad I bought it. Only watched it twice, but I'm sure I'll watch it again. The documentary is wonderful, as well. Anyone that doesn't have this disc should.

Vertigo
Haven't watched all of it yet, but I've liked what I've seen. I was really tired when I was watching it and I fell asleep. I get so many new discs, I don't often have the chance to go back and watch old ones.

Young Frankenstein
Damn, this is one funny movie. The musical number is a fricken riot. My friends and I frequently joke about it. Every time someone comes over and says that they haven’t seen the movie, I put on that one scene.

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
Supplements rock, but it's just not as funny as the first one. I admit I was a bit disappointed. A few things were great (like Dr. Evil's musical numbers), but so many of the gags were just reused from the first movie, and Heather Graham (while hot) is not a wonderful actor.

Apocalypse Now
Just last week. Can't say I was much more than weirded out by this film on first viewing, but I'm sure I'll watch it again. I think this film takes a few viewings to really appreciate it. The camera work is incredible, but the movie's just so damn weird...

That’s all I can think of right now… I’m sure there are others, tho…


[This message has been edited by Rorschach (edited 11-30-1999).]

Oooh... just thought of a few more...

Muppets from Space
I love the muppets, and figured with the live commentary that it had too much potential to pass up. Good choice. Very funny movie and the commentary rocks, too.

Patton
I know, I know... no one has a valid excuse for not having seen this movie, but I hadn't. I absolutely loved it, though, and I've not looked at the special edition stuff yet. Not enough time (anyone else have this problem?). Great great disc, tho. Very powerful film and MAN can George C. Scott act!

[Miggy]

I've bought several without having seen them, but all but one were movies that I knew my wife liked. So, I bought those for her. The one I bought for myself without having seen it was Cube. I had never even heard of this movie. But, just from reading the description on the back of the box, I couldn't resist buying it. It looked like such an unusual concept. I'm glad I bought it, too, 'cause I ended up liking the movie.

Miggy, the Thief

I'd have to say the most pleasant surprise was Go! Hadn't seen the film or heard much about it. Loved the movie and it was also packed tons of extras.

Also Blade - thought it was just another horror flick but found it to be a great film and well packaged DVD.

~~Lisa

[salange]

Bought without having ever seen:
Pi Too deep for me I am afraid, but maybe if I get a chance to watch the commentary track I will get more out of it.
Election Still haven't watched it. Bought it because it was compared favorably to one of my favorite movies, Rushmore, and came with some nice-looking supplements.
To Kill a Mockingbird I have no excuse for not having seen it before, but the movie is marvelous and comes with a good commentary track and a spectacular retrospective documentary.
Dark City Heard Ebert touting it so I bought the disk. Pleasantly surprised both by the movie and the neat Ebert commentary track.

[Will Munney]

Dead/Alive: I bought because of all the ravings I'd read on the internet about all the blood and gore. Plus I'm a huge zombie movie fan anyway so I figured it was a good risk. Of course I ended up loving it.

The Yellow Submarine: I'm a big Beatles fan but had never seen the movie. But with remastered songs, and all the extras on the disc, plus Roger Ebert put up a raving review about it, so I figured I'd like it. Of course I loved it.

That's it, I usually rent movies before I buy them, to avoid getting stuck with duds. I do have another movie on preorder that I've never seen. I ordered Even Dwarfs Started Small because I've loved the 3 Herzog movies I've seen (Aguirre, Fitzcarraldo, Nosferatu:The Vampyre) and this one has a commentary. Hopefully it won't disappoint me. If it doesn't I'll probably be buying other Herzog disc's sight unseen when Anchor Bay releases them.

[micahp]

Existenz.
I knew I'd probably like it, but I didn't expect to like it more than the Matrix and Thirteenth Floor combined.

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Resident Me,
Micah P.
Digital Dreams