I couldn't believe it when this came out on DVD. This film, to my knowledge, was never even released commercially on VHS. So, a couple of years ago, wanting to view the movie again (which I hadn't seen since the mid 1970s), I bought a bootleg VHS copy off of e-bay. It was a crappy copy (the movie is sort of grainy looking anyway, like a lot of early 70s movies) but I was grateful to re-live the experience, and it pretty well lived up to my expectations (especially the "one-armed piccolo player" scene, which must be one of the most hilarious things I've ever seen). Anyway, when it came out on DVD, needless to say I nabbed it pretty quickly. However, upon watching it on DVD, I noticed at least one discrepancy from the original version - the absence of Phyllis Shotwell's rendition of "Kansas City". Does anybody know why this was left out? I personally have no idea. I have not listened to the audio commentary yet, but perhaps they might mention it. Anyway, this minor criticism aside, this is a great, funny movie with possibly the most naturalistic-feeling acting and dialogue ever achieved; and personally I find it better than M.A.S.H. in terms of humour and character depth. I don't know why this movie is so under-rated. I admit, I would have preferred a more upbeat ending, but you can't have everything.
Review of California Split
