Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 11, 2019

Geoffrey Reeve's "Caravan to Vaccares" (1974) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Scorpion Releasing. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive new video interview with star David Birney and trailers. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Somewhere near Vaccares

Apparently, there are two different versions of Geoffrey Reeve’s film Caravan to Vaccares, and the shorter U.S. version is the one that is included on this recent release from Scorpion Releasing. A longer international version has been made available in some European markets, but it is unclear why changes were made, or if Reeve has officially disavowed one of the two versions of the film.

The Camargue, South West France. A young gypsy leads an armed man to meet another man nearby the area’s famous ancient ruins. The armed man then kills them both and uses a rifle to blow up the tire of an incoming trailer whose two owners are supposed to finalize some sort of a deal at a different location. Shortly after, the man meets the couple from the trailer and pulls out his gun.

Meanwhile, British photographer Lila (Charlotte Rampling), who is on her way to a notorious gypsy festival in Vaccares, is picked up by American tourist Neil Bowman (David Birney), who is just driving through the area. Minutes later, they reach the location where the armed man and the owners of the trailer are and Neil steals his gun. Everyone then heads in different directions.

At an upscale resort, Neil and Lila encounter Duc de Croyter (Michael Loinsdale), a wealthy landowner, who convinces them to help him smuggle Hungarian scientist Zuger (Michael Bryant) into the United States where he would be able to develop a new technology that will solve the world’s energy needs. However, when Zuger is introduced to them the three immediately become moving targets and are forced to run for their lives.

Similar to every other cinematic adaptation of an Alistair MacLean novel, Caravan to Vaccares unapologetically embraces action and then begins digging a big rabbit hole where exotic characters engage in all sorts of strange games. However, this film almost completely abandons conventional logic as well, so as soon as the games begin the relationships that are supposed to determine their nature become incredibly random. Unsurprisingly, the conspiracy that is at the core of the story and all of the ‘surprises’ that emerge with it fail to engage the mind.

What is left to make the film look attractive isn’t much. There is some lovely outdoor footage from the Camargue and the big gypsy gathering offers a few exciting panoramic shots, but the rest is basically boring conversations and discussions that rehash the same content over and over again. What is particularly disappointing, however, is the posturing that is utilized to make them look legit, because it essentially makes the average and bad look awful in that amateurish fashion that is incredibly difficult to tolerate. Lonsdale’s performance, in particular, might be his worst because it looks like he is trying to be a character in an entirely different film. Rampling searches for reasons to say something meaningful but struggles enormously and instead either does her best to look frightened or takes pictures with her camera. Only Birney occasionally appears fully in control of his character, but as soon as he begins to look legit, he gets thrown in yet another bizarre predicament that could instantly give a headache even to seasoned James Bond fans.

*Reeves made in his directorial debut in 1971 with Puppet on a Chain, which is also based on a novel by MacLean. It is a lot more coherent and ultimately better film than Caravan to Vaccares. Puppet on a Chain was recently remastered by Scorpion Releasing.

Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Geoffrey Reeve's Caravan to Vacarres arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Scorpion Releasing.

I am unwilling to say that the release was sourced from a new remaster because it appears that the film was simply transferred in high-definition from the existing U.S. elements. Beyond this and possibly some color grading work, I don't know what else might have been done. Perhaps some basic clean up work, but the transfer still has plenty of minor white specks, a few scratches, and even a some tiny blemishes. There are a few areas where color flutter is noticeable as well. In other words, it is a raw presentation, not a solid remaster, and certainly not a proper restoration. However, I don't mind such a presentation if the film has a decent or good organic appearance, and in this case I think that despite some minor fluctuations the end result is indeed a decent organic transfer. Indeed, both depth and clarity could be better, but they are fine and often there are enough, though not optimal, filmic nuances. Image stability is good too, but this is another area where some optimizations could make a noticeable difference. All in all, while a bit rough, I think that this is a mostly decent organic presentation that should please folks that enjoy this film. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is unlikely to impress folks that appreciate the potency the lossless tracks that appear releases of big-budget modern blockbusters. There is still a fair amount of action where dynamic intensity is decent, or at least for a film from the 1970s, but the native oomph is different. Clarity is good. Also, there are no balance issues, but I think that there is room for some minor optimizations.

Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer Reel - a collection of trailers for other titles from Scorpion Releasing's catalog.

• Interview with David Birney - in this new video interview, star David Birney recalls his work with director Geoffrey Reeve and fellow actors during the shooting of Caravan to Vaccares in Europe and talks about his career in the film industry. The interview was conducted exclusively for Scorpion Releasing. In English, not subtitled. (9 min, 1080p).

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art.

Caravan to Vaccares Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Apparently, the international version of Caravan to Vaccares is longer and has a sequence with a naked Charlotte Rampling, which some funny folks have argued makes it superior. Well, even though I have not seen this version -- and for the record, I could not care less about Rampling's sequence -- I am going to disagree with them because Michael Lonsdale's awful performance is still there, and this is only one of many other serious flaws that the film has. Frankly, I felt that as it is the bulk of the film is full of completely random events and surprises that quite simply cannot be taken seriously, even as part of a plot that originated from an Alistair MacLean novel. Scorpion Releasing's presentation of the film is mostly good, and the label's release also features a nice new video interview with star David Birney.