2/5 Remastered ruined a good movie
  by
I remember seeing Brainstorm in the theaters and loved it. The VHS was OK, and the first DVD was an OK transfer as well. Then again, the TV I was watching it on was a knob-tuner 19". Again I enjoyed the movie though the heart attack/death scene gave my ex some bad nightmares. Now I have a 50" plasma and wanted a better DVD. This one looked promising but failed. Hopefully they'll bring out a blu-ray and just leave the original movie alone. As some have mentioned, not the greatest of acting but a good story and great effects (remember it was done in 1983).
What I can't understand is why they stripped out scenes for this "remastered" version. The sound is improved but they had no need of removing anything. Not as bad as what happened with the 'Director's Cut of 'Bladerunner', but nearly so. I'm almost sorry I trashed my VHS.

4/5 Above average
  by Psychiatrist (Alabama)
Overall well-done science-fiction for it's time, though seemed pieced together at the end. Good quality DVD & picture.

5/5 How can it be bad, it's got Christopher Walken in it!
  by Thom Carey (Yonkers, NY United States)
The concept of this movie is great, although it plays through with a normal storyline; genius' invent something, government takes it, genius' get revenge. Christopher Walken, Natalie Wood, Louise Fletcher and Cliff Robertson are fantastic actors, one and all, and make this movie believeable. The ending will remind you of a Stanley Kubrick epic but how else would you put it? This is a fun movie and worth watching a couple of times to get everything.

5/5 Brainstorm - Revisited
  by John H. Dodd
This movie came out in 1983. I have been wanting to see and own this movie again for years. Had a copy on Beta but no longer have a functioning Beta player. Ordering old movies (on DVD) online has not always been the greatest experience especially with respect to quality. Apparently, in many cases, either the DVD was made from a VHS copy of the movie or a VHS recording of the over the air presentation. Finally found it from a source I could trust ... Amazon.com! Apparently remastered for DVD, the quality is excellent and it is a joy to watch! - John Dodd

2/5 Movie A+, Remastered Version D-
  by J. C. House (Kansas)
Not criticizing the movie, which has been a favorite of mine since I was a teen, but just the Remastered DVD that was recently released: When the point-of-view goes to that of the Brainstorm machine, the film looks and sounds fantastic (2.35:1 widescreen and 5.1 Dolby Digital surround) - Unfortunately, that's only about 15% of the movie. The rest of the time there is a serious cropping issue in which your viewing screen becomes 1/3 smaller, maybe more, and the sound is nothing spectacular. I watched this on a 40" HDTV and a 27" analog set, same disappointing effect. I'm sticking with my original 2000 version, which is shown mostly in 1.85:1 ws, then switching to 2.35:1 for the point-of-view special scenes. A little lower video quality, but much more enjoyable to watch, and the stereo soundtrack sounds almost the same.