The late great Dudley Moore’s loveable drunk Arthur arrived on high-definition Blu-ray on April 5, 2011, in a double-feature from Warner Home Video.
Both the 1981 original comedy Arthur and 1988’s Arthur 2: On the Rocks are included on the Blu-ray disc. In both movies, Moore plays the titular rich man, who gets drunk as a way to escape his spoiled and controlled life. In the first movie, he’s destined to inherit a fortune if he marries Susan (Jill Eikenberry, TV’s L.A. Law), the daughter of a family friend and someone he doesn’t love. He goes along with it, but then meets Linda Marolla (Liza Minelli, Lucky Lady), who’s poor but happy. Arthur falls in love with her, despite knowing he’ll lose all his money. The second movie follows their love story through financial troubles.
As well as Moore and Minelli, the Arthur films feature the great British actor John Gielgud (Ages of Man) as Hobson, Arthur’s butler and best friend.
The original movie won two Academy Awards (best supporting actor for Gielgud and best song “Arthur’s Theme, Best That You Can Do”) and was nominated for two others (best actor for Moore and best screenplay). Not nearly as successful as the first film, Arthur 2 also won an award: a Razzie for Minelli as worst actress — which is no doubt why these films aren’t being released separately. But the first one is worth the price all by itself.
The Blu-ray release doesn’t have any special features, but the pair of movies are available for a fair $19.98.
Arthur is available separately on DVD
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Buy or Rent Arthur/Arthur 2
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