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24 | Year: 2001- Classification: Action Directed: - Robert Cochran Actors/Actresses: - Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer - Leslie Hope as Teri Bauer - Sarah Wynter as Kate Warner - Sarah Clarke as Nina Myers - Xander Berkeley as George Mason - Carlos Bernard as Tony Almeida - Elisha Cuthbert as Kim Bauer - Penny Johnson as Sherry Palmer - Dennis Haysbert as David Palmer - Zach Grenier as Carl Webb - Karina Arroyave as Jamey Farrell - Reiko Aylesworth as Michelle Dessler - Eric Balfour as Milo Pressman - Richard Burgi as Alan York/Kevin Carroll - Billy Burke as Gary Matheson - Timothy Carhart as Eric Rayburn - Jude Ciccolella as Mike Novick - Misha Collins as Alexis Drazen - Megalyn Echikunwoke as Nicole Palmer - Michelle Forbes as Lynne Kresge - Sara Gilbert as Paula Schaeffer - Laura Harris as Marie Warner - Dennis Hopper as Victor Drazen - Zeljko Ivanek as Andre Drazen - Max Martini as Steve Goodrich - Michael Massee as Ira Gaines - Skye McCole Bartusiak as Megan Matheson - Tracy Middendorf as Carla Matheson - Douglas O'Keeffe as Eddie Grant - Phillip Rhys as Reza Naiyeer - Paul Schulze as Ryan Chappelle - Vicellous Shannon as Keith Palmer - John Terry as Bob Warner - Tamlyn Tomita as Jenny Dodge - Tamara Tunie as Alberta Green - Tanya Wright as Patty Brooks - Kara Zediker as Elizabeth Nash - Innis Casey as Miguel - Daniel Bess as Rick - Matthew Carey as Dan - Kevin Beard We're hooked When I first saw the commercials for 24 I knew it would be a good show, but I never watched it because I didn't want to get hooked. One night in the middle of season 2, I was home with nothing to do when 24 came on. Well, after seeing just 1 episode in the middle of the season, I ordered season 1 on DVD. My wife and I popped in disc 1 late one Friday night, but, having a 2 month old baby, we soon were tired and only got through 2 episodes. That wasn't going to stop us though. The rest of the weekend was devoted to 24. (No we didn't neglect the baby). We finished off the entire season by Monday night. Needless to say we love it and are hooked. I will be buying season 2 the day it comes out on DVD. Everyone probably knows the premise by now, so I won't get into that. I'll just say that the production, acting, editing, writing and everything else are done at blockbuster movie quality. The time aspect makes the show just that much more intense and suspenseful. I'm glad that I watched the entire season on DVD because I'm not sure I'd be able to watch just one episode per week. I guess I'll have to learn since season 3 will be starting this fall. In short: Highly recommended, but set aside some time because you'll be hooked. Great show - but with missing scenes!. The show itself is of course magnificent for the most part. Innovative, exciting and very well acted. A landmark in modern TV drama, despite a brief drop -off in quality in some of the late afternoon episodes. The DVD picture quality is wonderfully sharp, and the sound is nicely crisp. Important to note if you are buying this package having not seen the show before (having heard about it from others but too late to join in watching it on TV) that there are spoilers all over the presentation. the enclosed booklet includes short summaries of every episode and not much else, so don't look at it until you've seen the whole show. Similarly the menus feature clips from the show which is nice to watch if you aren't worried about information being given away, as the clips on the menu for each disc tend to reveal major plot points. Also, the DVD extras are actually pretty poor. The alternative ending is dull and obviously only shot to keep the true ending secret. The teaser for season 2 comprises only Kiefer Sutherland talking in very vague terms about the general concept of 24, with no real information about the second series. Worst of all is the fact that the footage on the discs is only the footage that was originally broadcast IN THE US. In the UK the broadcast footage included an extra couple of minutes for each of the episodes 7pm - 12pm. This footage contained scenes that was cut from the US broadcast for adverts, whereas in the UK 24 was shown on the BBC where there are no adverts. These scenes ranged from nice additions to important points: one cut scene had a major impact on the crucial events in the final episode and another even greatly improved the climactic battle between Jack and the bad guys. Fox haven't included this footage on the DVD versions in either the UK or the US, meaning that us poor Brits have scenes that we miss and this has led to calls for a recall and replacement with the full footage. For the US viewer, this is actually worse, in that you are never going to see these great scenes. There are no running time issues on DVD, unlike on TV, so why not let those fans willing to pay for the box set have bonus footage integrated into their box sets? Bizarrely, this doesn't affect the VHS British release of 24, only the DVD, so if you want those extra scenes you'll need a PAL compatible TV and VCR. Why not drop Fox an email congratulating them on making such a great show and asking for them to include the full footage as was broadcast on the BBC? One of the most inventive, incredible series on television RELENTLESS! If there is one word that can describe what watching "24" is like, it's relentless. There are few TV shows on the air today or that have aired throughout history that have the ambition to try what "24" tried and the skill to pull it off so seamlessly. For those who have been living under a rock for the past two years, Season 1 of "24" tells the real time story of the events surrounding an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate. The caveat is that this is no ordinary candidate. David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) is the first African-American candidate with a legitimate chance to win the White House. His potential presidency is of paramount importance to the country. His assassination would prove disastrous. To compromise Palmer's security, the terrorists have managed to infiltrate Los Angeles Counter-Terrorism Unit (CTU) on the day of the California primary. The security breach allows the terrorists access the man whose responsibility is to weed out the terrorist threats and keep Palmer alive, Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland). The terrorists kidnap his family and keep Jack jumping through hoops in a dual-pronged effort to save his family and protect Palmer. All of this occurs over the course of one 24-hour period. It's the longest day of Jack Bauer's life. <BR><BR>The concept of "24" seemed very difficult to buy into at first. As a result, I did not watch any of Season 1 when it was broadcast and have not watched any of Season 2 so far. Yet, glowing reviews and recommendations led me to get this DVD collection and watch it from start to finish. It is an incredibly well-produced and well-acted show. Most big-budget movies are not as well-crafted as "24". The concept of telling the story in real time presents many difficulties and is rarely attempted as a thematic device (see 1995's Johnny Depp movie "Nick of Time" for a big screen example of this device). It does add to the suspense and drama, however, because every event must happen in a realistic time period. For example, you couldn't very well have a character hop in a vehicle one side of Los Angeles and be completely on the other side by the time a commercial break is over. So, even the smallest of details, like a long red light, play a major role in impacting all developments in this ongoing story. The production team for "24" doesn't miss a trick, though. The real time element is kept as honest as possible and not one single episode feels as though it's filler that is just using time to get from one point of the plot to the other. <BR><BR>Excellent storytelling and tight plotting aside, "24" would not be able to work if it were not for the outstanding performances of a highly skilled cast. Kiefer Sutherland is the most well-known of all the actors and he brings his own special brand of harried desperation to the role of Jack Bauer. Sutherland is the perfect actor for this role because he brings the perfect blend of sympathy and uncertainty to his role. The audience truly feels for Bauer as he deals with the events of this day, but they also feel on edge because they don't know how far over the line he is willing to go to achieve his objective (he shoots one of his superiors in the leg with a tranquilizer in the first episode just to get some withheld information from him. Haysbert brings a true sense of presidential bearing to his role as Senator Palmer. He's a good man that the audience can easily believe is presidential material. (Heck if David Palmer were a real candidate, I'd vote for him). Leslie Hope (Teri Bauer) and Elisha Cuthbert(Kim Bauer) demonstrate the appropriate level of terror one would espect them to feel as the captured wife and daughter of Jack Bauer, respective. Sarah Clarke is also quite good as Jack's second in command at CTU, Nina Meyers. Even smaller players like Tony Almeida (played by Carlos Bernard) and George Mason (played by skilled character actor Xander Berkeley) provided added weight to the already strong story. <BR><BR>It's important in this review not to reveal any of the twists and turns that take place throughout the 24 hours. If you haven't seen the show yet (as I hadn't before seeing it on DVD), the story developments will blow you away. "24" is truly a masterful piece of work and I cannot wait until Season 2 is available so I can watch that from start to finish, too Buy 24 at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on 24 Search with the Priority Search Engine on 24 This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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