Customer Rating: 
Summary: Disapointed!!
Comment: I just bought this video, and I was greatly disapointed! I saw the original footage on TV and they edited this thing so much it is rediculous! My greatest disapointment came in the Exhibition Tape. True it shows all of the performences wow, but not as they were shown on the original broadcast! I remember that when Michelle Kwan took the ice, before she the music started, before she stood still, people gave her a standing ovation!! I also remember how Scott Hamilton and Roslynn Somners could barely contain their tears when they saw Michelle skate and cry at the same time! I bought this tape wanting to relive that moment, and it was not there! Not to mention that you don't get the short programs which were outstanding specially Yagudin's! Perfect 6.0 if you ask me! But I guess this will do!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Disapointed!!
Comment: I just bought this video, and I was greatly disapointed! I saw the original footage on TV and they edited this thing so much it is rediculous! My greatest disapointment came in the Exhibition Tape. True it shows all of the performences wow, but not as they were shown on the original broadcast! I remember that when Michelle Kwan took the ice, before she the music started, before she stood still, people gave her a standing ovation!! I also remember how Scott Hamilton and Roslynn Somners could barely contain their tears when they saw Michelle skate and cry at the same time! I bought this tape wanting to relive that moment, and it was not there! Not to mention that you don't get the short programs which were outstanding specially Yagudin's! Perfect 6.0 if you ask me! But I guess this will do!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Skating, but Poor Production Values
Comment: This offering consists of two video tapes. The first is the figure skating competition from the 2002 Olympics, and the second is the exhibition skates that occurred afterwards. Each of these tapes is also for sale individually.There was a lot of controversy surrounding the final results of the pairs competition, but I've found over the last year that I've watched and enjoyed the performances of the Russian pair, Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze (EB&AS), more than any others. For their short program, they skated to music from the "Lady Caliph" soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. The emphasis during this part of the competition is placed upon the technical performance of eight required elements.
One notable feature is the sophistication of their choreography. Sometimes with figure skaters, you can sense that a jump is coming from half the ice rink away from where it actually occurs, but all of the required elements are so nicely integrated and well disguised in this routine. For instance, on the entrance to their side by side triple toe loops, they are doing a number of stylish turns when they suddenly perform the jump. Next, they perform a beautiful spiral just before the throw triple loop. There are no telegraphed moves in this routine.
Their side by side triple toe loops are also notable because they took off, rotated in the air, and landed in such excellent unison. This awareness of one another helps them skate, spin and jump as if Elena was Anton's shadow. Their technical abilities are also displayed in the throw triple loop, where she gets great height, a tight air position, pointed toes, and a smooth landing.
Other notable things about the performance include the great split on the double twist, the beautiful aesthetics during the pair lift, and the amount of revolutions on the pair spin and the death spiral. I have a large collection of skating tapes, and I very much value having this performance in my collection.
During the free skate portion of the competition, the emphasis was on artistry. EB&AS skated to "Meditation from Thais" by Jules Massenet. They had debuted this performance a couple of months earlier during the 2001/2002 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating competition that was shown on ABC. Because I feel that the NBC announcers did a poor job of appreciating the Russian's performance, I'd like to quote a few general things said by one of the ABC announcers, Dick Button, during the Grand Prix Final. He remarked "what a beautiful romantic flair this program has" and exclaimed that "the elegance of this couple is really sometimes mind-boggling."
The "Meditation" routine was inspired by an Auguste Rodin statue called "Eternal Embrace." There are many gorgeous positions held throughout during the lifts, spirals and spread eagles--as if they were the statue. Elena has one of the most flexible backs I've ever seen in a figure skater. The costume designer understood this particular strength, as her costume is very flattering with an open back to accentuate this aspect of her skating.
EB&AS do not rely upon charisma to sell their program. From a performance aspect, the mood of their free skate is apollonian: restrained, temperate and meditative. The general skating public's tastes trend toward the dionysian, as evidenced by professional ice shows such as Stars on Ice; consequently, for the typical skating fan and the media to value the full worth of a skating pair in low-key, non-flashy moments takes more careful observation than it does with those skaters whose artistic style relies more heavily on photogenic entertainment. EB&AS are pure skaters, and I enjoy them immensely.
I'd also like to talk a little bit about the Ladies competition. I'll admit that I'm first and foremost a Sasha Cohen fan, but I very much appreciate what Sarah Hughes accomplished in winning her Olympic gold medal. The Olympics are the biggest prize in the sport of figure skating, and I respect it when competitors go all out to win. Sarah was in fourth place after the short program, but pulled out all the stops with two triple-triple jump combinations to win convincingly.
One of the things that I don't appreciate about this tape is the favoritism that NBC shows in the edited product. As far as I'm concerned, when you win the Olympics, you are the best. But, for whatever reason, NBC gives top billing in the promotional copy to Michelle Kwan, despite her finishing in third place behind Sarah. The tapes have been edited throughout to be much more temperate in their accolades to Sarah than I would have expected. Here's an example of a live interview by Beth Ruyak with Sarah that didn't survive NBC's editing process, and I'll let it have the final word about the ladies competition. Sarah commented about her attitude in taking the ice: "I just said, 'This is the Olympics; I want to be the best.'" Ruyak concluded: "Sarah Hughes: you beat all the best in the world. You are [with emphasis] the best in the world now at the Olympics. Congratulations."
NBC owned the broadcast rights to the Salt Lake '02 games, and I have some major issues about their live broadcast, as well as the final edited product that's for sale here. While I very much enjoy the skating on these tapes, I cannot give this product a higher star rating because of its production values. Reviews on amazon.com are limited to one thousand words, and my criticisms of these two tapes require considerable context. I have already published these thoughts in critical reviews of both individual items on their respective product pages, which I would encourage prospective customers to read in addition to this review.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Less Scandal, More Skating
Comment: I can't wholeheartedly recommend this tape set. If you just want severely edited highlights of the skating events with the usual inane commentary, this will be just fine for you. Medal winner long programs are reasonably intact. If you want to see all the dramatic grisly bits, skate on to skate off, you will be disappointed. If you are expecting to see medal winner short programs in their entirety, you will be deeply and bitterly disappointed. I was hoping to see Sarah Hughes' abysmal short program again, because that's what made her win so exciting. I wanted to see Alexei Yagudin's short program because my life has been fraught with a series of freakish, near Biblical disasters wherein I have missed it every single time he has performed it. I understand it is rather good. Beyond the fact that everything he does on ice looks like it is based on a dare, this routine is also regarded by some as the best men's short program. Ever. This is why I ordered this tape set. Imagine my annoyance. You can't.
If, however, you want to see the half-naked happy-dance that ensued after an intrusive cameraman followed Yagudin off the ice for a costume change during his exhibition skate, we've got that. It should hardly be necessary to point out that things would have gone very badly for that cameraman if his subject had neglected to wear underpants that day. If you want to see Yagudin and Plushenko circle each other like a pair of rabid weasels on the practice rink, we've got some of that. If you want ot see an appallingly drippy and funereal tribute to Todd ("Hey, I'm not dead") Eldredge, we've got one of those. If you want to see the long and short programs of both pairs gold medalists, we've got that. If you want to hear way too much about the judging scandal; well, boy howdy, have you come to the right place. This is all fine, whatever, I'm just saying I could have seen the short programs. Including Plushenko's, although admittedly for the sake of humor.
Okay, okay. I'll wrap this up: Yagudin's exhibition skate is amazing; you have to see it to believe it, if you see it you won't forget it, and if you have a young niece asking you uncomfortable questions about it, she can be easily distracted with a hand-puppet. It has an "Ages of Man" motif; birth, life, death, resurrection, and there WILL be dancing in the afterlife. Be so advised. Sensitively interpreted, intelligent and sophisticated choreography which is well worth the price of admission, even by way of the VHS back door. In my estimation, it's not the judging scandal and it's outcome that is historically important, but an exceptional skater who has propelled the sport forward by light years and has singlehandedly dragged me, kicking and screaming, back to the never ending soap opera that is figure skating.
Mandatory two star deduction for sins of omission.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A good tape that could have been a lot better
Comment: This is a good compilation tape of the 2002 Olympics, but it could have been a lot better. The tape does a great job capturing the pairs event, showing the complete short and long programs of the top two couples, and the ensuing controversy and double gold medal ceremony that follow. Unfortunately, things only go downhill from here. The tape does not show any short programs from the men's event, ice dancing, or ladies. I was stunned that Michelle Kwan's brilliant short program was not included, nor was Sasha Cohen's. It would also have been nice to see the short programs of Yagudin and Goebel, which were first rate. Also surprisingly, the gold medal winning dance of France's Anissina and Peizerat is edited to exclude the voice-over of Martin Luther King. The music and possibly the routine itself are somewhat awkwardly re-edited. Apparently, NBC decided to change history rather than risk offending viewers with the skaters'somewhat controversial choice of material. Overall, NBC could have done a lot better. Better luck in 2006.
