Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		1.0
Audio		1.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		1.5

Attack Force Z Blu-ray Movie Review

Terrible A/V quality hinders an already lackluster film.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 4, 2011

The war has come to this island, and you must choose a side.

Attack Force Z is a fairly inconsequential World War II small commando unit movie that moves along from A to B to C with no real energy or purpose, other than the film's stated raison d'être as a tribute to Australia's famed special forces unit and a depiction of a typical mission in the Pacific theatre during the War. The "real" men of Z -- comprised of volunteers from all branches of Australian service -- carried out 284 Pacific missions, the film states in an opening scroll. The "actors" of Z -- two of whom would become major players in Hollywood shortly after the film's release -- carry out a single mission that, at least in terms of its cinematic depiction, is one of a sluggish pace and an absence of excitement until the inevitable larger-scale shootout that defines the picture's end. Still, there's really nothing wrong with Attack Force Z, but there's nothing really right about it either. A "go through the motions" sort of War movie, it features a strong cast but not real sense of urgency or danger, which in a War movie pretty much spells trouble. The picture is held together by a decent if not recycled storyline and its cast, but it's ultimately a forgettable little War picture that even genre enthusiasts are likely to gloss over in favor of bigger and better, if not still similar, movies.

Mel Gibson is pleased to appear in what is about the best-looking shot in the entire transfer.

On January 10, 1945, a small five-man commando unit hailing from the famed "Z" special forces command of the Australian military is sent on a dangerous and urgent mission to rescue the survivors of a downed aircraft on a small Japanese-occupied island in the Southwest Pacific. The mission begins badly as one of the group's own is gunned down from a well-entrenched Japanese machine gun nest. Down a man and with time running out, the men are signaled from a small farmhouse housing a Chinese family living under Japanese occupation. It's home to the leader of a local resistance group, Lin (Chun Hsiung Ko), his daughter Chien Hua (Sylvia Chang), and several children. The commandos, led by Captain P.G. Kelly (Mel Gibson, Lethal Weapon), enlist Lin's help in rescuing the V.I.P. from the crashsite. Meanwhile, the Japanese catch wind of the Australian's arrival and Lin's assistance, putting both Lin's family and the success of the mission in jeopardy.

What Attack Force Z does well is to get right down to business; no time is wasted in starting out with the action and filling in the gaps of both the backstory and the specifics of the plot as they unfold in due time. No "strategic planning" sequences, no "round up the best of the best operators for the mission" sort of time-killers. No, Attack Force Z bypasses all the regular first-act fluff, but at the expense of the second act's pacing. Director Tim Burstall's film is prone to slowing down here and there as the plot develops; the film falls into a tiresome routine before leading up to its halfway exciting climax, ultimately lessening the impact of the story's resolution. To its credit, that middle act takes a stab at further developing the film's characters beyond generic genre norms, though the end result is just another clichéd love story angle that develops alongside the men's struggle to find the purpose and prudence behind the mission. Attack Force Z never manages to find much worth beyond its action, and even then the action is nothing special, just more typical run-and-gun type stuff that plays things safe and that can be found in any number of similar second-class WWII pictures either from the same era or with similar themes and stories.

Inevitably, audiences are going to find the film's one true highlight in its cast. Sam Neil (Event Horizon) and Mel Gibson headline, both still wet behind the ears but showing flashes of the acting chops that would lead them out of lower-level material like Attack Force Z and into leading roles in some of the biggest pictures of the past three decades. There's certainly not much of a reason to watch beyond the acting; the end product is a raw, low budget picture with bigger aspirations and an admirable stated purpose, but the film simply never finds a footing that can solidify it as anything more than a generic wannabe Pacific theater take on the superior Richard Burton/Clint Eastwood 1968 film Where Eagles Dare, which also centered on a crack commando unit hunting down a vital intelligence operative after going down in a plane crash. Of course, Attack Force Z has neither the budget, the scope, nor the quality of script as does Director Brian G. Hutton's famed War picture. Still, the movie is worth watching once as a curiosity; genre enthusiasts will want to compare it to its peers, and Mel Gibson and Sam Neil fans will enjoy seeing the actors in leading roles in a smaller movie before becoming superstars.

Attack Force Z Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Attack Force Z's 1080p transfer ranks amongst the worst the format has seen yet. For starters, IMDB lists the movie has having a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, but this transfer is presented in a 1.34:1 -- or approximately 4x3 -- image that was the norm for most standard definition television broadcasts. The film begins with a terribly wobbly opening scroll, only to give way to some of the murkiest and fuzziest shots one is likely to ever see on Blu-ray. Things don't really improve all that much from there. Blacks are miserably devoid of any life, appearing almost gray and far too bright, effectively washing out the image every time it goes even slightly dark. The print looks well-worn and faded; green foliage is the only real standout color throughout the movie, and even that is handled only marginally well. Fine detail is halfway decent in a few shots, but the image is, generally, so soft that even the 1080p resolution can't do much for this particular source. To make matters worse, there are plenty of motion jitters and jagged edges that sometimes make the movie unwatchable. Splotches, pops, and scratches are also all commonplace. This is a step up from what may very well be the worst Blu-ray to date, Mill Creek's disastrous horror double bill, but even those with the lowest expectations for Attack Force Z will be sorely disappointed.

Attack Force Z Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Attack Force Z's soundtrack fares only marginally better than its disastrous video counterpart. The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is unkempt, loose, and unbalanced. It's as if it tries too hard in places: opening music is ear-piercing loud but not at all crisp or accurate, ditto a screaming monkey heard soon thereafter and any number of high-pitched sound effects placed throughout the movie. Heavier effects are just plain sloppy; for instance, crashing waves heard at film's open play as a jumble of noise that only slightly resembles the real deal. Gunfire does manage a fair crispness and energy, not to mention managing to spread out across the front portion of the listening area during some of the more intense multi-gun shootouts. There's an audible background hiss in places, but dialogue is suitably accurate and focused in the center. Note that no subtitles are included, and the Japanese and Chinese dialogue -- which comprises a small but critical portion of the track -- is not subtitled.

Attack Force Z Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Attack Force Z features only a silent photo gallery (480p, 3:24), the original theatrical trailer (480p, 2:41) that offers a mini-commentary track playing over it that cuts off at the end, and a featurette (480p, 26:57) that contains cast and crew discussing the making of the picture, interspersed with clips from the film.

Attack Force Z Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Attack Force Z is a generic World War II small unit/commando movie that's only worth watching for its two headlining stars. Outside of the cast, the picture begins and ends with a bang but slogs its way through a dull second act. It's the lesser version of Where Eagles Dare, but it's still worth a watch if only as a Pacific theatre companion to the superior Richard Burton/Clint Eastwood picture. Unfortunately, Attack Force Z hans't earned even a passable Blu-ray release. A lazy 1080p transfer, a sluggish lossy soundtrack, and a couple of passable extras all add up to a rather disappointing first outing for new Blu-ray label Cinevision. Skip it.