At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf March 4, 2015

As they entered the moviemaking stage of their career, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis selected a military comedy to keep up with the competition, deploying their balance of smooth and sharp to mess around with the details of life in the service. 1950’s “At War with the Army” hedges its bet some with the addition of director Hal Walker, who previous worked with Hope and Crosby on “The Road to Utopia,” bringing a well-oiled understanding of comedy team timing to the screen. An adaptation of a play by James B. Allardice, “At War with the Army” struggles to become something cinematic, retaining its theatrical origins with stiff slapstick and finger-snap dialogue, and while Lewis tornados around the frame, energy is missing from this amiable but unremarkable effort.

Misunderstandings and office shenanigans dominate “At War with the Army,” focusing on female troubles shared by Puccinelli (Martin) and Korwin (Lewis), whose frustrations with military life are scrambled by opportunists looking to make some trouble for the pair. The plot zigs and zags, working to push the duo into corners, watching how the characters manage to survive in a hyperactive system of orders and ambition. Mundane activities and office politics are handled well by Martin, who plays up his character’s charms and stymied dreams of wartime action. Lewis goes nuts with the silly stuff, working out his famous manic energy, which spills into a brief scene in drag and a battle with a cola dispensing machine. This being Lewis, no scene goes by un-mugged.

At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Advertised as remastered for its Blu-ray debut, the AVC encoded image (1.33:1 aspect ratio) presentation still shows substantial signs of wear and tear, with the opening reel riddled with scratches and damage, getting things off to a rocky start. While speckling and additional evidence of distress remain (including some judder), the viewing experience eventually calms down, revealing an adequate sense of sharpness for period cinematography, capturing set design detail and facial particulars. Costumes also reveal texture, showing clear elements of rumpled fatigue. Black and white balance is comfortable, and the image retains filmic qualities. The BD is also a bit of a patchwork quilt of source materials, with clarity periodically dipping to piece together an entire movie.

At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Also experiencing some opening troubles, the 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix reveals some heavy damage, with fluctuating volume levels and crackly voices. The discomfort eventually settles down, but crispy extremes remain, pushing some of Lewis's antics into the red. Music is approachable but never remarkable, keeping a low profile with passable instrumentation and full vocals. Scoring is sparse but supportive.

At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

There is no supplementary material on this disc.

At War with the Army Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"At War with the Army" isn't particularly funny, but it's amusing at times, while musical numbers are proficient enough to pass. The movie remains hopelessly stage-bound at times, barely working up interest in becoming a film, but it does show flashes of invention, perhaps at its most comfortable when allowing its famous stars to work their individual magic, taking the pressure off storytelling needs.