Billy Jack Appreciation Thread

[Mr.White]

One of the great 70's classics, "Billy Jack" is getting the Blu-ray treatment on Sept. 29th from Image Entertainment! I being a huge Billy Jack fan went and bought the new 4-DVD set (Also from Image)for $20.99 + tax(I found a coupon for 30% off the 29.99 list price online!) at a Borders B&M store yesterday. I like the packaging of the 4-DVD set much better than the OOP 5-DVD 35th Anniversary set from 2005 from Ventura Entertainment, each DVD comes with it's own slim line case, the artwork on the DVD's is also cool! Here's the funny part, the DVD's are exactly the same ones that were included with the Ventura 2005 set,(the menus still say 35th Anniversary and everything and include 2 Laughlin commentaries(2000 and 2005) on each film!) the new set DOES NOT include the bonus disc that the 2005 set had, so that set is now a valuable collector's item, the only differencess is the Image logo at the beginning! The DVD's have great transfers let's hope the Blu-ray get even a better treatment! I was hoping that Image would release a Blu-ray set as well but I guess they want too see how the "Billy Jack" will sell first!

[PowellPressburger]

How come Warner Bros just released a DVD version of this film and now Image is doing the BD? Just seems odd so close together - Does this film have no copyright, or something.

[Mr.White]

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

How come Warner Bros just released a DVD version of this film and now Image is doing the BD? Just seems odd so close together - Does this film have no copyright, or something.

NO NOT get the Warner Bros release, it is in FULL FRAME and the Laughlin Family might also not be getting any royalties, get only the Ventura/Image Entainment DVD's or Blu's, the are licenced from "Billy Jack Enterprises" and the Laughlin family is directly involved with these, so that mean some well desearved royalites/money in the pocket of the creators of these films! Plus these are in Anamorpic Widescreen, have BOTH Original MONO and new 5.1 soundtracks plus two commentaries on each film!!!!

[owa]

I'm looking forward to checking out the blu-ray release. It has been many, many years since I've seen the movie.

[bluskies]

Originally Posted by Mr.White

...so that mean some well desearved royalites/money in the pocket of the creators of these classics!

Ummm, the Billy Jack film was good and deserves its part in film history. But to use the words "these classics" is definitely not correct. "Born Losers," which came out prior to BJ, and the sequels to BJ are hardly "classics." And "Billy Jack Goes to Washington" was one of the worst movies ever made. Trust me, I've seen it. It was just a horrible remake of a true classic, "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."

[Wdm81]

Billy Jack was a good friend of mine we went to seperate schools together

[Sixx]

I remembered the movie as a kid. Such an awesome one liner in that movie. Sadly, I watched it a couple years ago again. I wished I didn't.....it's actually a pretty bad movie IMO.

[Mr.White]

Some trivia, look for a young Howard Hesseman, future star of "WKRP In Cincinnati" and "Head of the Class" billed as Don Sturdy in "Billy Jack". He was a member of "The Commitlee" (A comedy group from California)

[Mr.White]

Originally Posted by bluskies

Ummm, the Billy Jack film was good and deserves its part in film history. But to use the words "these classics" is definitely not correct. "Born Losers," which came out prior to BJ, and the sequels to BJ are hardly "classics." And "Billy Jack Goes to Washington" was one of the worst movies ever made. Trust me, I've seen it. It was just a horrible remake of a true classic, "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."

Sorry Mr. Blu Sky, I meant "Billy Jack" when I said the word classic, plus Born Losers is a great biker film that introduced thetitle character, TOBJ was not that good but I thought that BJGTW was a great update of the classic, but to each their own!

[Wdm81]

Originally Posted by bluskies

Ummm, the Billy Jack film was good and deserves its part in film history. But to use the words "these classics" is definitely not correct. "Born Losers," which came out prior to BJ, and the sequels to BJ are hardly "classics." And "Billy Jack Goes to Washington" was one of the worst movies ever made. Trust me, I've seen it. It was just a horrible remake of a true classic, "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."

Hahahaha...BJ!

[Dubstar]

at my Jr. High they screened this, I remember the rape scene was pretty brutal - I found it disturbing at such a young age

[Mr.White]

I just watched the new remastered and restored "Billy Jack" print on DVD, and it's really good news for fans that really know the film! There used to be a really bad visible spice on the film during the "ice cream parlor" scene(does anyone remember that?), It's been fixed/restored and no longer there! It even has the classic original "Warner Kinney" logo at the beginning! This film looks better than ever on DVD and the upcoming blu-ray should even be better!!! 22 days till I get MY copy!

[Weirded Wonder]

Originally Posted by Wdm81

Billy Jack was a good friend of mine we went to seperate schools together

huh?

[Mr.White]

Originally Posted by Dubstar

at my Jr. High they screened this, I remember the rape scene was pretty brutal - I found it disturbing at such a young age

And this film is rated GP/PG! It's really more like "R" material, considreing the brutal rape,violence and language!

[edo9125]

I've never seen the film. I just saw the trailer on Youtube and it actually looks pretty good, I will probably get when comes to blu-ray.

BTW around the 1:40 in the trailer there is a guy who looks exactly like JK Simmons. I looked it up on imdb and its not him, Simmons would have only been 14 in 1969. But the resemblance is huge.

[Mr.White]

Originally Posted by edo9125

I've never seen the film. I just saw the trailer on Youtube and it actually looks pretty good, I will probably get when comes to blu-ray.

BTW around the 1:40 in the trailer there is a guy who looks exactly like JK Simmons. I looked it up on imdb and its not him, Simmons would have only been 14 in 1969. But the resemblance is huge.

I Just saw the same trailer,that's Howard Hesseman you're talking about, future star of WKRP in Cinncinati! FYI he went by a fake name "Don Sturdy" in "Billy Jack" and in an episode of "Dragent 1969" as Jesse Chaplin, I'm sure nobody remembers that one!

[edo9125]

Oh cool.

I like WKRP, a really funny show, I never put the two together. In-fact I was watching an episode a month ago and was thinking that one of the characters looks exactly like JK Simmons. So I guess it comes full circle now.

[Mr.White]

Billy Jack also had a great cast of supporting actors, Ken Tobey(he's was in Davy Crockett and many of Joe Dante's films),Clark Howat(Dragnet),Bert Freed(Paths of Glory),the formentioned Howard Hesseman(WKRP,Head of the Class), Vic Izay(Young Guns,Employee of the Month), these were the most well known of the cast besides the two leads. Some more trivia, actor David Roya while played the main villian Bernard Posner sued the Laughlins for $250,000 after the film became so successful wanting more money and higher billing,but the fact is everybody was payed "scale", he lost the case and really was'nt seen much ever again(I do remember seeing him in an episode of The Rookies from the 70's but that pretty much it)

[Mr.White]

Anybody gonna this on blu come Tues? Seem like nobody's running a sale on it though.

[Waiterguy]

I will be picking it up first thing Tuesday morning!