6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A unit of American military advisors in Vietnam prior to the major U.S. involvement find similarities between their helpless struggle against the Viet Cong and the doomed actions of a French unit at the same site a decade before in this bitter look at the beginnings of the Vietnamese war.
Starring: Burt Lancaster, Craig Wasson, Marc Singer (I), David Clennon, Evan C. KimWar | 100% |
Drama | 18% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
None
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Before “Platoon” found enough political distance to explore the Vietnam War, resulting in a critical and commercial triumph, other productions made a similar, less funereal attempts to address the futility of the conflict. 1978’s “Go Tell the Spartans” was perhaps a victim of bad timing, finding a limited audience during its theatrical release, but the clarity of its message and overall emotional authenticity is as powerful as a best Vietnam dissections, only hampered by a limited budget, which prevents the picture from achieving a truly cinematic viewing experience.
The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation offers a filmic but slightly aged look for "Go Tell the Spartans," with sharpness offered whenever possible during the viewing experience. Detail is best with close-ups, identifying the intense environment on pain faces, and distances are easily surveyed. Colors are satisfactory, mostly dealing with army gear and jungle visits, but various shades of green maintain their intention, and skintones are natural. Delineation isn't problematic, preserving frame information. The source is in respectable shape, with some speckling detected, but no overt damage.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix reaches sharp extremes on occasion, hitting a few harsh highs during the listening event. Dialogue exchanges are the priority here, keeping dramatics clear with some signs of age and budgetary limitation. Scoring retains percussive snap and mood. Atmospherics are mild, but violence offers heaviness with explosions and gunfire.
Post directs straightforwardly, but the power of "Go Tell the Spartans" isn't diluted, working through various characters as they react to the horrors they witness, with some unable to take the insanity of military service. It's bold work, especially for its time, making a definitive statement about the true price of war, mixed in with some combat sequences and scenes of stunned reflection. "Go Tell the Spartans" isn't normally listed as a resource during the discussion of big screen Vietnam War stories, but it deserves a viewing.
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2020
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Fragile Fox
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Special Edition
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1949
Collector's Edition
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2007
Final Cut | 40th Anniversary Edition
1979
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Warner Archive Collection
1945