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The Movie: One of the brightest spots in network TV drama, "The West Wing" has been the recipent of multiple awards and nominations over its several seasons. The powerhouse drama stars Martin Sheen as president Jed Bartlett, who we watch face everything from minor decisions to massive actions that could mean massive changes for the country and the world. Continuing their roles as assistants are Dule Hill as Charlie Young, the president's personal aide; Allison Janey also returns in her highly-regarded role as press secretary CJ and Richard Schiff also continues his role as Communications Director Toby. Rounding out the cast are Bradley Whitford as Deputy Chief of Staff Josh, John Spencer as Chief of Staff Leo and Joshua Malina as Deputy Communications Director. The fifth season of the series saw some changes with the series, with creator/executive producer Aaron Sorkin leaving the show before the season began, with "ER" co-creator John Wells stepping in, which was met with a mixed reaction by the show's fans. The opening episodes also saw Sheen's President Bartlet stepping down temporarily after his daughter was kidnapped at the end of last season and being replaced by the Speaker of the House (John Goodman). One of the conflicts early on is having the staff not quite know how best to handle the change and whether they agree with it. The season also sees the search for a new Vice President, eventually ending up at Bob Russell (Gary Cole). A couple of highlight episodes this season are: "Shutdown", where lack of operating budget results in a shutdown of the federal government and Bartlet won't compromise, and "The Supremes", which features Glenn Close as a potential Supreme Court nominee. Other good episodes include: "The Benign Prerogative", "No Exit and "Separation of Powers". Once again, the show provides a fast, well-edited and involving look at the day-to-day work at the White House. The show's editors smartly cut back-and-forth between the usual multiple storylines that each episode offers. Well-written, each episode gives many of the characters a chance to shine, and the character remain superbly realized. The cast also deserves their praise, as each provides an excellent portrayal of their characters, and the cast has terrific chemistry. Janney, Sheen, Spencer, Whitford and Schiff are definite highlights. 89. 5- 1 24 Sep 03 7A WF 83429 90. 5- 2 1 Oct 03 The Dogs of War 91. 5- 3 8 Oct 03 Jefferson Lives 92. 5- 4 22 Oct 03 Han 93. 5- 5 29 Oct 03 Constituency of One 94. 5- 6 5 Nov 03 Disaster Relief 95. 5- 7 12 Nov 03 Separation of Powers 96. 5- 8 19 Nov 03 Shutdown 97. 5- 9 3 Dec 03 Abu el Banat 98. 5-10 7 Jan 04 The Stormy Present 99. 5-11 14 Jan 04 The Benign Prerogative 100. 5-12 4 Feb 04 Slow News Day 101. 5-13 11 Feb 04 The Warfare of Genghis Khan 102. 5-14 18 Feb 04 An Khe 103. 5-15 25 Feb 04 Full Disclosure 104. 5-16 3 Mar 04 Eppur Si Muove 105. 5-17 24 Mar 04 The Supremes 106. 5-18 31 Mar 04 Access 107. 5-19 21 Apr 04 Talking Points 108. 5-20 28 Apr 04 No Exit 109. 5-21 12 May 04 Gaza 110. 5-22 19 May 04 Memorial Day The DVD VIDEO: "West Wing" is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen by Warner Brothers on this fifth season set. The image quality is terrific; sharpness and detail remain excellent throughout, and the image retains very fine definition. This looks better to me than the episodes I've seen on TV. The presentations only showed a few minor faults here-and-there, including a little bit of edge enhancement and a couple of trace instances of pixelation. The elements used here are in excellent condition, with no faults. Colors remained natural and vivid, with fine saturation and no smearing or other faults. SOUND: "West Wing" is presented in Dolby 2.0, with crisp and clear dialogue/effects. EXTRAS: Commentary by John Wells and Alex Graves on "7A WF 83429" Commentary by John Wells and Christopher Misiano on "The Dogs of War" Commentary by Alex Graves, Jessica Yu, and Debora Cahn on "The Supremes". On the last disc, we get "Anatomy of An Episode: Gaza", which is a 15-minute look at the creation of the episode, with discussion of both the story and filming issues. There's also "In POTUS We Trust", a nearly 14-minute look at Sheen's character. Additionally, the set offers deleted scenes for "Slow News Day", "Memorial Day" and "Eppur Si Muove". Final Thoughts: The fifth season of "West Wing" did lose some ground when Sorkin left after the fourth season, but the fifth round still sees the series continue to look into issues both global and local with intelligence. The DVD provides very good image and sound quality, along with a nice helping of supplements. Recommended. |