Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Action of the Tiger Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Randy Miller III April 13, 2020

"Action! Action! Action!" promises the bold poster-themed cover artwork for Terence Young's Action of the Tiger, and it sure enough delivers by 1957 standards. This CinemaScope production can now be viewed a dry run for the director's own Dr. No five years later, sharing a few similarities with that long-running franchise of international spy thrillers... including a notably less suave Sean Connery. But he's not even the lead -- that would be Van Johnson as rogue boat captain Carson, a proto Han Solo who helps people out for the right price. After wealthy French heiress Tracy (Martine Carol) requests passage into dangerous Albanian territory to rescue her blind brother Henri (Gustavo Rojo), a political prisoner, Carson reluctantly sets sail with the blonde beauty. It's a rough job, but someone's got to do it.

Action of the Tiger has a few things in common with another film from the 1960s: The Sound of Music. While there aren't any singing nuns to be found here -- a disappointment, I'm sure -- there is an awful lot of sneaking past armed guards while hiking though beautiful European villages and mountaintops with kids in tow. After Carson and Tracy are inside Albanian borders and locate Henri, their humble three-person party quickly balloons as they encounter more and more children seeking a way out of the war-torn country. The rugged captain's hard heart grows a little bit softer with each one, as do his feelings for the assertive and charming Tracy. Luckily, Action of the Tiger doesn't devolve into a sappy family flick or all-out romance, instead shifting gears later to introduce the charming bandit Trifon (Herbert Lom) during an unexpected detour that impacts the remainder of their dangerous journey back home.

There's a lot to like about Action of the Tiger, not the least of which is its stunning location footage. Filmed in Spain and Greece, the cinematography by Desmond Dickinson (Hamlet, Konga) emphasizes attractive wide shots highlighting the terrific architecture and historic landmarks when it's not focusing on our attractive leads. The CinemaScope format and tight compositions add to its wide-open atmosphere, giving the film a surprisingly large framework that's contrasted nicely by its close-knit characters. Although several aspects of the film have aged a bit poorly in hindsight (not just from a cultural perspective, either -- some of the sexual innuendo is lamer than a TV sitcom), as a whole Action of the Tiger is still very entertaining and contains more than a few memorable sights and moments.

One of these is a rather risqué swimming session with Tracy; most theatrical audiences saw her board Carson's boat in a black one-piece, but the topless "uncensored" version (probably not the most accurate phrase) likely shown in Europe is the one featured on Warner Archive's new Blu-ray. As usual, its bonus features are slim but the A/V specs are top-notch, highlighted by another outstanding 1080p transfer that plays to Action of the Tiger's visual strengths.

Action of the Tiger Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sourced from a recent 2K scan of the interpositive, this brand-new and exclusive 1080p transfer of Action of the Tiger pays tribute to the film's stunning CinemaScope location footage. Dozens of historic, centuries-old landmarks and other interesting architecture dot the landscapes, allowing for plenty of eye-catching wide shots that help to establish and maintain a refreshingly wide-open atmosphere. Image detail and textures are top-notch, especially in foreground details including costume design close-ups and facial features. The Technicolor palette looks quite impressive as well, with plenty of distinct (not drab) Earth tones that are punctuated by occasionally primary flourishes, not the least of which are stunning blue skies, ever present during so many of the sun-baked outdoor locales. Film grain levels remain strong and steady with no obvious signs of edge enhancement, compression artifacts, or unsightly banding; as usual, this Blu-ray is perfectly authored and runs at a consistently high bit rate from start to finish.

Action of the Tiger Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There's less to say about this DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track, but only due to format limitations. Obviously more recent action films have spoiled us with bombastic soundscapes that use six or more channels to creative a fully enveloping, immersive atmosphere that punctuates every gunshot, explosion, and vehicle drive-by. And while that obviously isn't the case with this rather modest one-channel mix, Action of the Tiger serves up a few sonic surprises that exceed what could likely be read as an extreme handicap. Dialogue and background details are quite well-defined and employ a decent amount of space in the front, while sporadic bursts of action -- none more so than a few shoot-outs, an early bar brawl, and a hell of an ambush right around the 60-minute mark -- are reasonably powerful without sounding tinny or shrill in the high end. Humphrey Searle's original score sounds great as well, attracting plenty of attention without constantly fighting for it. Overall, it's a faithful reproduction of the original mix and that's good enough for me.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature; these are formatted perfectly (not in ALL CAPS, unlike many recent Warner Archive Blu-rays) and fit snugly within the CinemaScope frame.

Action of the Tiger Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release arrives in a keepcase with poster-themed cover art, no inserts, and minimal extras.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:11) - This rowdy trailer promises plenty of action -- it's in rough but watchable shape and obviously contains the "sanitized" version of Martine Carol's swimming scene. Watch it here.

Action of the Tiger Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Terence Young's Action of the Tiger feels like a dry run for his game-changing Dr. No five years later, but it still plays well enough on its own after more than six decades. The leads are great (along with a terrific supporting performance by Herbert Lom), the scope feels expansive but not unnecessarily padded, and the location footage makes this a visual feast that looks better than ever on Blu-ray. Although the lack of bonus features stings a little more than usual here, its top-tier A/V presentation should thrill die-hard fans and newcomers alike. An easy recommendation!