Disc Details
Special Features:	Widescreen and standard formats. Chapter selection. Theatrical trailer.
Video Format:	Anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1) and full fram pan and scan formats [DS-SL]
Languages:	English (Dolby Digital mono)
Subtitles:	English, Spanish, French.
Captions:	No
Casing:	1-Disc Keep Case

Melissa (Susan Sarandon is the hippie daughter of wealthy advertising exec, Bill Compton (Denis Patrick). Melissa lives with Frank (Patrick McDermott) a junkie/painter/drug dealer. When Melissa OD's, Bill goes to the couple's apartment to get his daughter's things. Dope boy comes home and in a fit of rage, Bill murders him. Bill steals Frank's drugs, takes his daughter's things and leaves. On his way home, Bill stops in a local bar to cool off.

At the bar is Joe Curran (Peter Boyle), a blue-collar worker letting of steam after work. Joe is ranting about Blacks, hippies and everything else you might imagine a drunken bigot would shout about. Joe is an uncensored version of Archie Bunker. When Joe says he would like to "kill one of them hippies" Bill, who is in shock because of the murder, whispers "I just did." Joe gives him a look. Bill plays it off as a joke and leaves quickly.

Several days later, the murder hits the news. Joe puts two and two together and gives Bill a call. Joe blackmails Bill into becoming his friend. Joe admires Bill for killing the doper. Meanwhile Melissa has recovered and moved home. She to finds out about her father's actions, and runs away. Joe and Bill search for her and use the drugs that Bill stole to gain entry into the hippie sub-culture of New York. I'll stop there.

"Joe" was hyped as a very significant movie when it was released. Seen today, "Joe" is a curiosity. Peter Boyle's performance is the drawing card. This film launched his film career into high gear. Peter Boyle's character in "Monster's Ball" could very well be a bitter older version of "Joe." "Joe" is worth seeing for Peter Boyle's performance, Susan Sarandon's young firm body and the time-capsule view of 1970. It has a shocker of an ending. Unfortunately, "Joe" has one of the worst scores you will ever hear. "Joe" was an independent effort from director John G. Avildsen who later did "Rocky."

Picture Quality: 7/10
"Joe" was a very low budget film. The film has a gritty look. While there are no artifacts or pixilation present, the film looks pretty much as it did on its original release.

Sound Quality: 6/10
The sound track is mono. The sound is flat. The music sucks, and would still suck in stereo. You don't miss any of the dialogue though, as the recording levels are very even.

Menu: 8/10
Simple menu design incorporating the "peace, love, dove" icons of the era. Easy to navigate.

Extra Features: 2/10
The only extra is the trailer. The trailer is interesting as it reflects all of the critical praise this movie garnered back in the day.

The Final Word:
I'm a big fan of films of the 70s. I'm very happy to have this DVD in my collection. It is worth the price of a rental to those who are curious. Fans of the era will want to own it. The price is very reasonable for a vanilla DVD.

Rusty White