For Pete's Sake DVD in Stores April 3

Review:  Barbra Streisand's third film to appear on DVD is her zany 1974 farce, For Pete's Sake (Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment, #05814, 4/3/01, $19.95 list). You know the story, right? Barbra plays Henrietta (Henry) Robbins, who borrows $3,000 from a loan shark for her husband's pork bellies futures investment, unbeknownst to cab driver hubby Pete (Michael Sarrazin), of course. He also doesn't know about the men visiting Henry courtesy of Mrs. Cherry (the marvelous Molly Picon), Henry's bomb-delivery gone bust, and her cattle rustling via motor home. Barbra sings the opening title song, "For Pete's Sake (Don't Let Him Down)," but this movie really serves to showcase her underrated comedic acting talents. As director Peter Yates admits in his running audio commentary, "Enjoy it for what it is." The movie is just a fun comedy, not to be taken very seriously.

Most of us haven't viewed the film in its original theatrical aspect ratio (1.85:1) for 25 years, which is what makes the DVD's digitally mastered widescreen presentation so refreshing and pleasing. Needless to say, you can see everything filmed, including Barbra's beautiful bare legs when she's lying in bed discussing pork bellies with Pete. The reverse side of the disc offers the full-screen pan & scan format. 

Like the keep case art design, the on screen menus employ eye-grabbing psychedelic graphics in purple, red, orange, and yellow. Navigation is simple. While not recorded in stereo, the Dolby Digital mono soundtrack is as good or better than you would have heard in the theaters. Speaking of theaters, the For Pete's Sake theatrical trailer appears full-screen, along with original trailers for three other Streisand films for Sony Pictures - The Mirror Has Two Faces, The Prince Of Tides, and The Way We Were. Other special features include Talent Files, which are more abbreviated than usual, perhaps in keeping with the light tone of the film and packaging. 

Relying on 25-year-old memories, director Peter Yates presents his recollections of the film's production in Brooklyn, New Jersey, and Hollywood through a running commentary on audio track 3. Although he typically allows a few scenes to pass before adding a remark (which actually makes it possible to watch the film and hear much of the dialogue at full volume), Yates does have some interesting observations. He had been impressed with Barbra's comedic timing in What's Up, Doc? (1972) and pushed for her short haircut, which he adores, since she appears so "young and modern." A special motorcycle was built, he explains, so Barbra could perform the wheelie at the beginning of the film. He praises production designer Gene Callahan's apartment design, which facilitated the character movement as in French farce. Since it's just a movie, he doesn't think viewers should waste time questioning whether Henry and Pete could really afford it. Yates calls attention to the special optical transitions between scenes, as they suit the story. He also calls attention to his "extremely distinguished" cast, many coming from the theater. Because the director had become famous for car chases in earlier movies like Bullitt, he added the car chasing Pete down the street. He explains that the film's "comedy comes from knowing how closely people are missing each other, and how easily the whole thing could be given away." Part of the chase sequence with the "beautifully trained" dog, Yates admits, was stolen from The French Connection. Speaking of stealing, the cattle rustler's place was shot on the old Gilligan's Island outdoor set. Did you know that Barbra was terrified of the driving scene with the bull in the motor home? Well, Yates explains this and how she finally felt more comfortable, finding the tongue-licking quite humorous. Defending Barbra's manager and the film's producer Marty Erlichman's cameo role, Yates says, "After all, Marty Erlichman found the script. If he wants to be in his own movie, why not?" Add Peter Yates' commentary to the ongoing Streisand film history. - MJI, 3/31/01  © 2001 Mark J. Iskowitz

For Pete's Sake (1974)
Release Date: April 3, 2001
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment
List Price: $19.95
Catalog Number: 05814
UPC: 0-43396-05814-9
Features: Director Peter Yates' Feature Length Audio Commentary, Talent Files (Barbra Streisand, Michael Sarrazin, Estelle Parsons, and Peter Yates), Trailers (For Pete's Sake, The Way We Were, The Prince of Tides, and The Mirror Has Two Faces), Interactive Menus, Scene Access, Booklet Containing "Barbra's Pot Roast Recipe," Anamorphic Widescreen and Full Frame Formats, English - Dolby Digital Mono, French - Dolby Digital Mono, Subtitles: English, Chinese-Traditional, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, and Thai
Running Time: Approx. 90 minutes
Region Code: 1
VHS videotape previously released

Listen to Barbra's catchy title song, "For Pete's Sake (Don't Let Him Down)"

Barbra Streisand films on DVD: