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"LAS VEGAS: The City of Excitement!" (2001)
A classic DVD release looking back at Las Vegas in the early 2000s decade.
Kris Caballero • Nov 19, 2017 • 0 comments • DVD Reviews



I can't help but rave about Las Vegas. Yeah, it has had its share of mishaps, craziness, outrageous stories and crimes, but all that negative energy still isn't enough to bust the city's knee caps, yet continues to evolve and improve. Along with keeping up with the demand, sometimes it's nice to look back at the time when you visited Vegas but wished you fully grasped everything, now that you've got the chance. Maybe that's just me.
Off the bat, you can tell this DVD is a very old release, dating back during the time when DVDs and DVD players were the hottest commodities and must-haves during the holiday season. Those were one of the moments in modern history that many kids today will never understand, given that our media has gone digital. This DVD was released around 2001-2002.
Given it's age, it features some casinos that aren't in Vegas anymore. Examples are Barbary Coast, Aladdin and Sahara to name a few. What I do like is the gentle introduction and overview of each attraction/casino. Reviewers of this DVD say it's too brief and not enough information to say what other features are in that casino/attraction. Give that there's a lot to cover, perhaps I can understand why they didn't spend too much time since it's a quick tour and overview of the popular destinations in Vegas. After all, it's not really a history documentary. Also, even if I agree on wanting more, remember that a DVD can only accommodate up to 4.7 GB of video information. Some are automatically occupied for the menu artwork and soundtrack. This is 2002 we're talking about.
The background music on the main menu screen is actually quite good. Recently, I've taken part into listening and digging into the classical music radio stations (I've grown sick and annoyed of all the political talk on sports radio, and the excessive commercials and repetitive songs played on the radio). I couldn't find what the track is from, but trust me, the soundtrack is a good listen.
I understand more could've been shot on some casinos, but you also don't want to get drifted away and stuck in one casino when there are plenty of other destinations you can check out and visit. Some are shorter than others, thus agreeing with the critics who say so, but some are covered more in depth because there's more backstory to them. Examples are Oatman, AZ, which is a destination I've never heard of growing up but makes me very eager to visit. I've heard a lot about Laughlin but I never visited as well. Adding them on this DVD really helped and truly appealed to me, as I know briefly about them enough to make me want to make plans.
"Up to date?" Being that this DVD is fifteen years old, a ton has changed so don't be fooled it's an updated look of Vegas today.
There are no bonus features on this DVD, with the feature presentation running at roughly less than fifty-six minutes. Like I mentioned on our review of the 2013 FANTASY Calendar DVD, this is one of those DVDs you see at gift shops being played on a loop over and over again, everyday to welcome those shopping in the store. When I was young, especially since we took frequent family trips to Vegas to hang out with our grandma, I always wondered was those awesome videos of Vegas came from. I used to think they were exclusive productions only aired at that very casino. You know when you scroll through the TV channels in the hotel room, and find a channel that replays an introductory video about the casino and/or Las Vegas in general? Yeah, this video is an example of that, and videos like this is only thing they show on that exclusive channel and it never goes off air or anything. You can watch it at anytime, literally.
While the DVD seems packed filled with excellent, simply introduced presentations with good narration, it'd be nice to see more included in the DVD. Now, yes, this is a DVD created back in the early 2000s so DVD production was completely different, and demands for behind the scenes and bonuses weren't a thing, at least not immediately. Perhaps once people realize how much you can stuff into a DVD, and how much features you can include, perhaps it was time to jump into fulfilling that demand.
Now with the advent of Blu-Ray, 4K and digital HD downloads, a full, complete updated version would be nice to see. We're not running away anyway, so we'll still be here. If any production company is currently working on one, let us know, and we'll review it! I'll sum this review up with screenshots taken direct from this DVD. Ahh, I was only 14 years old when this DVD was released. My, how time flies....
FEATURE PRESENTATION5/5
ARTWORK4/5
CONTENTS3/5
QUALITY4/5
- A fun look-back at Las Vegas' hot spots.
- Makes you want to travel to the City of Lights.
- No narration, just pure video clips of Las Vegas.
- Includes shots of casinos that are no longer in business.
- Cover art could use a better presentation.
- There hasn't been an updated version of this release.
PROFILE |
|
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Title | LAS VEGAS: The City of Excitement! |
Description | THE MOST COMPLETE & UP-TO-DATE LAS VEGAS TRAVEL VIDEO AVAILABLE! TOUR THE STRIP'S GREATEST HOTELS Aladdin - Venetian - Caesars Palace Mandalay Bay - Luxor - MGM - Mirage Treasure Island - Bellagio - Excalibur & More! SEE EVERYTHING LAS VEGAS HAS TO OFFER Forum Shops - The Big Shot - Desert Package - The Grand Canyon - Hoover Dam - Fremont St. Experience - Madame Tussaud's - Las Vegas Motor Speedway plus much More! GRAB A FRONT SEAT FOR THE BEST SHOWS IN TOWN Folies Bergere - Jubilee - Blue Man Group - Legends in Concert Splash - Rockettes - Magician Steve Wyrick - Chapter points for all Hotels & Attractions. - Plays in all DVD set-top players with NTSC TV's. CRITICS ARE RAVING! TOURISTS LOVE IT! |
ISBN / Bar Code number | 8 01273 00019 9 |
Video Format | 1.33:1 (4:3) / Full screen |
Audio Format | Dolby Digital |
Disc Count | One (1) |
Language(s) | English |
Genre | Documentary |
Subtitles | None |
Rated | Not Rated |
Region | Region 1 - NTSC |
Specification | Color |
Features | [MAIN MENU]: (1. Play Entire Video, 2. Aladdin, 3. Ballys, 4. Barbary Coast, 5. Bellagio, 6. Bonnie Springs Ranch, 7. Caesars Palace/Forum Shops) [PAGE 2]: (8. Circus Circus, 9. Desert Passage, 10. Excalibur, 11. Flamingo Hilton, 12. Fremont St. Experience, 13. Grand Canyon, 14. Harley Davidson Cafe, 15. Hoover Dam/Lake Mead) [PAGE 3]: (16. Imperial Palace, 17. Las Vegas Hilton, 18. Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 19. Laughlin, AZ, 20. Luxor, 21. Mandalay Bay, 22. New York New York, 23. MGM Grand) [PAGE 4]: (24. Mirage, 25. Mt. Charleston/Lee Canyon, 26. Oatman, AZ, 27. Paris, 28. Rio, 29. Riviera, 30. Sahara, 31. Stratosphere) [PAGE 5]: (32. Thomas & Mack Center & National Finals Rodeo, 33. Treasure Island, 34. Tropicana, 35. Wedding Chapels, 36. Venetian) |
Production | Spectra Video Productions, Inc. |
Company | Spectra Video Productions, Inc. |
Item / Product Number | ???? |
Closed Captioning | -- |
DVD Release | September 1, 2001 |
Run Time | 56 minutes (WARNING - 00:05, Menu Screen - 00:34, Feature - 55:46. Total DVD time: 56:25) |
Copyright | 1998-2001 ©2002 Spectra Video Productions, Inc. |
Other Formats | ???? |
Quoted Reviews | -- |
Other |
"There is no comparison...this is the best one!" Beth Shea - National Tourism Review "The quality of the DVD is awesome... It made me feel like I was still in Las Vegas!" Angie D. - Houston, TX "The video is great! - It covers all the latest hotels and attractions!" Mark M. - Miami, FL "I loved the shows and the great aerial shots!" Noelle W. - Shelbyville, IN |
Aladdin Hotel & Casino
Ballys Hotel & Casino
Barbary Coast Casino
Caesars Palace Hotel & Casino
Desert Passage
Excalibur
Flamingo Hotel & Casino
Forum Shops
Fremont St. Experience
Harley-Davidson Cafe
Harrah's
Imperial Palace Hotel & Casino
Donna & Dave Krieger
Las Vegas Hilton Hotel & Casino
Luxor
Mandalay Bay Resorts
Emmanuel Martinez
Oatman Ghost Riders
Sain O'Neal
Paris Hotel
Andrew Pernick
Riviera Hotel & Casino
Sahara Hotel & Casino
Rodney Schumacher
Stratosphere
Chuck Thompson
Tropicana Hotel & Casino
The Town of Oatman, AZ
Venetian
Kris Caballero
Founder of KCU Network and KCU Plus, Kris has been writing since he managed a personal blog made back in late 2005. Officially back to doing computer programming (software development) and video production, Kris enjoys reading books on Mathematics, Quantum Computing, Philosophy, playing old video/DOS games, digital video archiving, and listening to sports, public radio and classical music.
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