Top 20 The Intellectual Biographies on DVD or VHS

Top 20 The Intellectual's Biographies on DVD or VHS is taken from The Intellectual's Top 26 Biographies on DVD or VHS list that created by Gerard D. Launay , top 1000 Amazon Reviewer from Berkeley, California.

1. The Jesse Owens Story DVD ~ Tom Bosley

The list author says:
	"This is the black athlete who broke racial barriers before Joe Louis, before Jackie Robinson. Mr. Owens gave the world speed, grace, and dignity. As a film it touched me in ways that "Chariots of Fire" did not...although both are impressive cinematic events."

$19.38 Used & New from: $5.43
(9 customer reviews)

2. A Touch of Greatness DVD ~ Leslie Sullivan

The list author says:
	"During 1955-1965, a brilliant New York school teacher, Albert Cullum, developed revolutionary techniques to turn his 5th graders into great learners and humanists. This is the real thing - not fiction like "The Paper Chase" or "To Sir with Love." Elsewhere, the critical need for money to fund education in 3rd world countries is the subject of the inspirational biography titled "A Small Act."

$19.93 Used & New from: $10.59
(15 customer reviews) | 1 customer discussion

3. American Experience: Around the World in 72 Days DVD ~ David Ogden Stiers

The list author says:
	"By age 25, a woman was the nation's first stunt journalist and crusading reporter. Other movies about courageous female reporters: "Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice" - exposing widespread southern lynching of black men; Louise Brooks - documenting the Russian Revolution in "Reds"; Ruth Gruber - assisting Jewish World War II survivors enter America in "Haven."

$12.99 Used & New from: $8.72
(3 customer reviews)

4. The Agony and the Ecstasy DVD ~ Charlton Heston

The list author says:
	"People will quibble that the movie takes liberties with the facts...yet, the epic battle of egos between the Pope and Michelangelo was real and dramatic. [Those who usually associate Charlton Heston as Moses in "The Ten Commandments" will be surprised how good he is in playing the greatest artist of the Renaissance]"

$7.31 Used & New from: $3.70
(103 customer reviews)

5. NOVA: Einstein's Big Idea DVD ~ John Lithgow

The list author says:
	"A study of Einstein's genius and his E= MC2 equation by exploring his idea in light of the contributions of the physicists that preceded him: Faraday for the electromagnetic theory, Maxwell for his principle of the constancy of the speed of light, Lavoisier for the idea of conservation of mass, and others."

$9.46 Used & New from: $4.81
(23 customer reviews)

6. The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl DVD ~ Leni Riefenstahl

The list author says:
	"She was the world's most "controversial" filmmaker. Brilliant in the field of aesthetics, camera technique, and ethnography, she allowed her talents to be usurped by the 3rd Reich. A thought provoking essay on the relationship between art and the values it promotes."

$29.95 Used & New from: $14.50
(41 customer reviews)

7. Patton (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) DVD ~ George C. Scott

The list author says:
	"A brilliant portrayal of the American World War II general who terrorized the enemy as well as his own troops. Many consider this the best war biography ever placed on the screen and it is hard to disagree. [My second favorite World War II film of the American experience in Europe, based on a journalist's eye-witness reports, is "The Story of G.I. Joe"]"

$14.69 Used & New from: $4.36
(346 customer reviews) | 3 customer discussions

8. Ishi - The Last Yahi [VHS] VHS Rayna Green

The list author says:
	"An incredible documentary. This is not only the story of a deeply intelligent Indian and an impressive anthropologist but an indictment of the white man's treatment of Native Americans."

$9.99 Used & New from: $1.00
(6 customer reviews)

9. Birdman of Alcatraz DVD ~ Burt Lancaster

The list author says:
	"One of my favorite movies when I was growing up. It's a story about a man who takes life - who later in his jail experience learns to respect it. (Disclaimer: important facts have been changed from the true life history of the prisoner]. For prison biographies that involve the death penalty, choose "Dead Man Walking", "In Cold Blood", or "I Want to Live."

$8.58 Used & New from: $2.76
(49 customer reviews)

10. Beowulf DVD ~ Benjamin Bagby

The list author says:
	"If you have ever wondered what a minstrel sounded like, as he weaves his story of the epic heroes of yore...this is it! Spellbinding oral literature on DVD? Try "Charles Dickens - featuring BBC Television's David Copperfield" with Anton Lesser's fabulous narration of Dickens "Christmas Carol"...then James Mason's reading of the horror short story "Tell-Tale Heart" in the DVD "UPA Collection."

$21.93 Used & New from: $18.00
(35 customer reviews)

11. Gorillas in the Mist DVD ~ Sigourney Weaver

The list author says:
	"The mountain gorilla is among the rarest of species. Scientist Dian Fossey gave her life (literally) to save these especially intelligent beings. ApesRUs: "Jane Goodall's Return to Gombe" (or) "Disneynature Chimpanzee" (or) the mini-series "Dark Days in Monkey City." Even the sci/fi - "Rise of Planet of the Apes" - underscores the similarities to our primate cousins."

$8.99 Used & New from: $2.99
(49 customer reviews) | 1 customer discussion

12. Good Night, and Good Luck (Widescreen Edition) DVD ~ David Strathairn

The list author says:
	"An extraordinary likeness, David Straithairn is amazing as Edward Murrow who launches a journalist's attack in the 1950's against Senator McCarthy's abusive labeling of enemies as communists. On blacklisting, also watch "The Front", "Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg", and "Hollywood on Trial." In this light reconsider Elia Kazan's (disguised) apology for testifying to the HUAC - "On the Waterfront."

$5.95 Used & New from: $0.01
(337 customer reviews) | 2 customer discussions

13. Paris Was a Woman DVD ~ Juliet Stevenson

The list author says:
	"Cinema fans of "Midnight in Paris" should check this out - a composite biography of Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Beach, and other remarkable American women who relocated to the left bank of Paris in the 1920's to explore alternative life-styles, literature, and art. For in depth information, I recommend two books by or about these individuals: "Shakespeare & Company" and "The Steins Collect."

$22.38 Used & New from: $16.57
(6 customer reviews)

14. Sins of Our Mothers [VHS]

The list author says:
	"The tale of Oedipus is Greek Myth. But a similar tragedy really took place...in 19th century New England. If you can't find this rare movie, you can learn most of the story in a historical novel by Judith Rossner called "Emmeline. [This is part of the outstanding American Experience series which covers topics as diverse as "The Fatal Flood", "Eugene O'Neill", or the "Transcontinental Railroad"]"

15. Spartacus (The Criterion Collection) DVD ~ Kirk Douglas

The list author says:
	"The human thirst for freedom explodes in this story of the great slave revolt against Rome. It's certainly the best film of gladiator combat I know of...and yet there is something to be said for the film "Barabbas" - even though he - unlike Spartacus - may be a fiction."

$28.67 Used & New from: $11.32
(245 customer reviews) | 6 customer discussions

16. The Great White Hope DVD ~ James Earl Jones

The list author says:
	"James Earl Jones' powerful physical performance makes us feel the triumphs and pain of the first Black heavyweight of the world - a boxer, a champion who lived his own definition of manhood despite what blacks and whites expected of him. You must, absolutely must, compare this film with Ken Burn's outstanding documentary of the same boxer entitled "Unforgivable Blackness."

$9.99 Used & New from: $4.02
(15 customer reviews)

17. A Man for All Seasons (Special Edition) DVD ~ Paul Scofield

The list author says:
	"Paul Scofield gives an immense performance as Sir Thomas More who would not despoil his Catholic values to appease his king Henry VIII. Gorgeous historical dramas of other deeply spiritual dissenters of the Renaissance are the mini-series "St. Theresa of Avila" and "John Wycliffe - The Morning Star."

$10.36 Used & New from: $4.98
(244 customer reviews) | 1 customer discussion

18. The Lion in Winter DVD ~ Peter O'Toole

The list author says:
	"Bitter family quarrel between King Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine. Katherine Hepburn's performance defines what great acting should be like. It's the best film on the Middle Ages in England."

$10.43 Used & New from: $3.81

(233 customer reviews)

19. Reilly - Ace of Spies DVD ~ Sam Neill

The list author says:
	"Sidney Reilly was a brilliant espionage agent who redefined the rules of spying. He nearly succeeded in putting himself at the top of the Russian government to replace Lenin and the Bolsheviks. He was suave, handsome, clever, and at times inexcusably ruthless."

$18.49 Used & New from: $13.99
(75 customer reviews)

20. Vision - From the Life of Hildegard von Bingen DVD ~ Barbara Sukowa

The list author says:
	"Mystic, nun, musician, herbalist - Hildegard was a profound thinker during the Middle Ages centuries ahead of her time. [See it alongside "Hildegard Von Bingen in Portrait"]. One of the film's strengths is that it avoids overly sentimental treatment in the style of "The Reluctant Saint" or "Song of Bernadette." On women herbal healers, check out "A Midwife's Tale" or "Juliette of the Herbs."