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| Catherine the Great | 
 enlarge | Directors: Marvin J. Chomsky, John Goldsmith
Actors: Catherine Zeta-jones, Paul Mcgann, Ian Richardson, Brian Blessed, John Rhys-davies
Studio: A&E Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $3.66
You Save: $16.29 (82%)
New (50) Used (20) from $3.19
Avg. Customer Rating:  22 reviews
Sales Rank: 31237
Format: Color, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 100
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.6
MPN: AAED70154D
ISBN: 0767032713
UPC: 733961701548
EAN: 9780767032711
ASIN: B0000524FG
Theatrical Release Date: 1995
Release Date: February 27, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Authentic, U.S. Retail Released DVD Product. Quick International & APO/FPO AIRMAIL! #ds(min=$2.95)
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| Customer Reviews:
Could have been so much better April 17, 2005
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
What a waste of money and talent! To begin with, Catherine Zeta-Jones should never have been cast as Catherine. She may be pretty and nice to watch in the campy sex-scenes but that's it. She couldn't handle this complex and GREAT character but reduces her to a slutty bitch in corsets. (Pardon my language) Maybe it's the script, the actress or the director but with the leading lady of this movie being so horribly miscast the entire movie goes downhill. The script is campy and not based on the real facts, romping between the sheets seems to be the single focus here. If you want to see Catherine played by a beautiful woman who CAN act, get "Young Catherine" with the wonderful Julia Ormond instead.
 It...doesn't make her seem that great... January 26, 2004
13 out of 15 found this review helpful
Catherine the Great was known as Catherine the Great for a reason. She helped raise the standards of living in Russia, attempted to modernize it, and it was during her reign that the long dream of Russia was realized: they ruled all sides of the Caspian Sea.They tell you this in the movie...but only in the last five seconds of the film. Most of the movie is spent concerning Catherine the Great's supposedly promiscuous sex life (although many historians think that is just anti-Catherine - and antique - propoganda). Oh sure they give you five seconds of a peasant rebellion, five seconds of some guys that strangle jailors, and five seconds of a Turkish battle...but the rest is pretty much Catherine Zeta-Jones stripping down in corsets. I mean don't get me wrong, she's cute and all...but I saw the film to see her attempt acting, not cleavage. I would have liked to have known what made Catherine so "the Great." This accompanied with "The Scarlet Pimpernel" really made me lower my standards for A&E's productions. I really expected better.
Great acting...but lacking in the edit department. November 25, 2002
4 out of 7 found this review helpful
The costumes and acting was great...however Catherine's character was made out to be a very sensual character. This isn't a movie for kids under 13 years old, so be forewarned.
 Yet Another Plea Against Editing! March 11, 2002
11 out of 11 found this review helpful
My main problem with this A&E production was the fact that they cut about half of the original mini-series that this "presentation" was taken from. As a result the film as A&E showed it is EXTREMELY choppy (particularly the ending, where you can tell they skipped about an hour of the action). The only redeeming thing about this is that at least they kept a lot of Paul McGann (Potemkin), who is one of the best English actors of his generation. Look for the scene were the Orlov brothers beat Potemkin; the Orlovs are played by Paul's real-life brothers, Mark & Stephen McGann. Great if you are a McGann fan; stay away if you have any real interest in Russian history.
Should have been a lot better February 16, 2002
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
I usually like period pieces, especially A&E ones like Pride and Prejudice and Emma but I really thought that this movie should have been a lot better. This movie is more historically accurate than Young Catherine but the acting in this movie is so wooden and the guys in the movie are not as attractive in Young Catherine. I am giving this movie away and keeping my edition of Young Catherine because it is better acted, better everything.....
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