Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5100 in DVD
• Released on: 1998-06-09
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 178 minutes

Amazon.com
Falling from the Oscar-winning glory of Dances with Wolves to the opposite end of the critical and box-office scale, Kevin Costner must have been deeply humbled when this three-hour postapocalyptic tale--his sophomore effort as a director--was greeted with a critical thrashing and tepid audience response. One of the most conspicuous flops of its decade, the 1997 release must have seemed like a sure thing on paper: a kind of futurist Western starring Costner as a charismatic drifter-turned-hero who leads the resistance against a military tyrant (Will Patton) by reviving the long-dormant postal system to reunite isolated communities in their fight for freedom. The movie bombed, but, like many audacious failures, it's got qualities that make it at least partially endearing, and its earnestness (although bordering on corny) keeps it from being entirely silly. Faint praise, perhaps, but Costner's ode to patriotism is occasionally stirring and visually impressive. The dual-layered, widescreen DVD includes a documentary segment about the creation of the film's special effects sequences, featuring a running commentary by the special effects creators. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Worse than Waterworld
Its baffles me that anyone could think this a 3 star movie, but 5 stars? This plays like a hodge-podge assembled from two or three different scripts based on different short stories, with casting giving it a PC spin, probably done to try to deflect the deserved harsh criticism. Of course, the entire story of the savior postman is enough to make most sane people embrace the apocalypse.

Perhaps if Tom Petty had starred as the singing postman it might have worked better as an intentionally funny send up of pop culture fashioning new messiahs.

The film's length is it's legacy
The Postman is a long movie, but it is that length which helps to create the desperate tone of the movie and bring you into the world of the characters.

The post-apocalyptic reality which the film presents appears somewhat plausible, but really is brought to life by the individual characters the Postman meets along the way.

From the townspeople who he deceives into thinking he is a postman, to his fellow Holenest recruits, to Mayor Tom Petty, each character is unique and teaches him something about being an inspiration, a hero.

Of course the most memorable moments are those featuring copy salesman turned military leader General Bethlehem. The most moving being the final battle scene, where the war is settled by a one on one fight between as the Postman describes them, "the a** holes who started it".

The only time the length of the movie is evident is during the scenes with the love interest, which really don't add up to much by the conclusion of the film.

Again the best part of this movie is its length, which allows the viewer to understand the back story of the characters and in turn appreciate the point of view and needs of each.

While not acheiving the status of an epic film, there are some emotional moments and characters you care about.

Give it a watch.

Guaranteed to shed a tear!
The Postman brings to the screen the story of a drifter in a post-apocalyptic United States where the government has collapsed, bandits are roaming the land terrorizing survivors, and hope is at an all time low.
It is a film about love, hope, and inner strength, but also about patriotism, duty, loyalty, devotion and integrity; qualities that sadly seem to have all but vanished from every day life.
The Postman was a very pleasant surprise considering how the "professional" critics, once again being completely out of touch with the people, gave the film low marks and reviews.
Kevin Costner, Olivia Williams, Will Patton, Giovanni Ribisi (!), Tom Petty (!), and the rest of the cast, have truly outdone themselves with their performances, which are outstanding to say the least! All the actors, without exceptions, give it their 100% and it really shows (the chemistry is AMAZING)! Very well written and very well presented, it combines drama, action, and adventure, making it one of the best films of its kind. The movie is without a doubt guaranteed to provide more than just a few thrills, not to mention a few tears.
The setting, the plot, the dialogues and the music are all wonderful!
In short, The Postman is a movie definitely worth watching and one to seriously consider adding to your movie collection!
Strongly recommended along with post-apocalyptic Waterworld, also starring Kevin Costner!