6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
During WWII, a platoon of American soldiers trudge through the Italian countryside in search of a bridge they have been ordered to blow up, encountering danger and destruction along the way.
Starring: Dana Andrews, Richard Conte, John Ireland (I), Lloyd Bridges, Sterling HollowayWar | 100% |
Drama | 4% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: LPCM 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 16-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Richard Attenborough's 1969 film Oh! What a Lovely War isn't overly well remembered these days, but it was a curious entry in Attenborough filmography which attempted to blend a musical comedy revue element with a depiction of World War I. "Musical" and "war film" may seem like awfully strange bedfellows, and that may be one reason why, some two decades plus before Attenborough's film saw the cinematic light of day, A Walk in the Sun evidently removed several songs that had been expressly written for the film about World War II, albeit as part of the "underscore", rather than tunes sung by characters in the actual story. As commentator Alan K. Rode gets into in his really interesting dissection of a laundry list of issues this film faced both before, during, and after production, the removal of some of the songs (after preview audiences gave them a big "thumbs down") was just one hurdle the creative staff had to overcome to adapt a best selling book by Harry Brown. Bankruptcies, newly forged partnerships, lawsuits and a whole litany of other potential disasters beset this production almost from the get go, and a less than fulsome budget kept this "war film" from ever really exploiting the kind of epic battle scenes that typically inform this genre. The result is therefore something of a "talk fest", but it's an interesting character study nonetheless, and it features a host of remarkable actors giving some memorable performances.
A Walk in the Sun is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Kit Parker Films and MVD Visual with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. The back cover of this release touts a "4K master from the UCLA Film and Television Archive 35mm photochemical restoration funded by The Film Foundation. The British Film Institute also receives a text card at the beginning of this presentation. This is a beautifully organic looking presentation, one with a healthy, but typically quite tightly resolved, grain field, and with a nicely solid accounting of contrast, black levels and overall gray scale. Due to the prevalence of extreme close-ups mentioned above, there's very nice fine detail on display, offering precise renderings of facial features and things like scuffs on helmets. There are still a few minor signs of age related wear and tear, especially in and out of optical dissolves, and a few prominent scratches can be spotted (see screenshot 18). The stock footage is at times almost hilariously at odds with how the rest of the presentation looks (see screenshots 17 and 19).
A Walk in the Sun features an LPCM 2.0 Mono track that has occasional boxiness in some of the musical elements, as well as the admittedly few outbursts of things like explosions and/or gunfire. But there's really no issues whatsoever with regard to the film's most prominent element, its dialogue. There are also no real issues with regard to any outright damage, distortion or dropouts. Optional English subtitles are available.
Disc 1 - Feature Film (Blu-ray)
A Walk in the Sun may not be a "typical" war film, but that in fact may be one of its chief assets. This isn't a film for those who thrive on battle scenes, but it's an often chilling assessment of both the kind of random mortality of being in a war as well as what everyday "grunts" experienced . Technical merits are generally solid, and while some may wish the supplements were in high definition, they're also excellent. Recommended.
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