Reds: 25th Anniversary Edition

The term "sprawling epic" was coined long before Warren Beatty produced this ambitious, richly detailed historical drama—nominated for 12 Academy Awards—about the tumultuous days leading up to the 1917 Russian revolution. But Reds, which was released theatrically in 1981 and bows on DVD in a freshly spiffed-up 25th anniversary edition, is nothing if not sprawling. Beatty, who also co-wrote and directed (winning an Oscar for Best Director), stars as radical American journalist John Reed, a part of New York's flourishing, Greenwich Village-based community of bohemians in the early 20th century. Although Reed loves aspiring feminist writer Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton), he feels it is more important to traipse off to Russia to cover the Czar's overthrow at the hands of the newly minted Communist movement. Once there, the idealistic Reed embraces many of Communism's principles and hopes to bring them to America, but on a personal level things have changed, and Louise is now romantically involved with playwright Eugene O'Neill (Jack Nicholson). The chemistry between Beatty and Keaton is immediately evident (no surprise, since at this time they were off-screen lovers as well), but Reds—while lavish and meticulously well-crafted, and scrupulously accurate in its period details—is not a perfect film: it's overlong, self-indulgent, and occasionally ponderous. Still, the movie is quite powerful at times, and merits revisiting if only on the basis of its sheer size and spectacle. Boasting a beautiful transfer, DVD extras include the seven-part, hour-plus documentary “Witness to Reds,” chronicling the film's creation and reception. Recommended. (E. Hulse)