Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Islands in the Stream Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 6, 2024

Franklin J. Schaffner's "Islands in the Stream" (1977) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critic Samm Deighan; new video essay by critic Daniel Kremer; and new program with critics Daniel Kremer and Nat Segaloff. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Before I comment on Franklin J. Shaffner’s film Islands in the Stream, I wish to state that I am unfamiliar with Ernest Hemingway’s novel that inspired it. In fact, it is because of the film that I am now aware of its existence. Apparently, the novel was discovered sometime after Hemingway died in 1961 and became the first of several to be published in the 1970s. After winning multiple Oscar awards, including Best Director and Best Actor in a Leading Role, with Patton in 1970, Shaffner reunited with George C. Scott on Islands of the Stream in 1977, which remained the last film they made together.

The Bahamas, 1940. American artist Tom Hudson (Scott) has traded art for booze and fishing. When occasionally he is asked why he did it, he says that he has many good reasons and quickly moves on to another subject. But his best pals in the area -- Eddy (David Hemmings), a drunkard who routinely gets into fights he cannot win, Joseph (Julius Harris), a loner who cooks and helps with whatever he can, and Captain Ralph (Gilber Roland), another drunkard who smuggles European Jews into Cuba and America with his small boat -- know that there is only one. Back home, Tom could not repair a broken marriage with a woman he never stopped loving, so in a desperate attempt to trick his mind into forgetting her, he packed up a bag and went as far away as he could. If more than half the world was not on fire, Hudson likely would have gone even further away.

While trying to keep up with Eddy’s drinking habits, one day Tom is informed that his three teenage boys have come over to visit him. Their reunion is not easy, but they manage to repair their bond, and a few days later Hudson even takes them on a fishing trip that quickly creates unforgettable memories. Before they leave, the oldest boy reveals the real reason he and his brothers made the trip -- he had to tell Tom that he has decided to join The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).

A year or so later, Tom is visited by Audrey (Claire Bloom), the love of his life, and she shares with him her plan to marry a general who has recently proposed to her. While recalling their past and confessing that they are still in love, Audrey then reveals to Hudson that their oldest son has died in battle.

Sometime after Audrey leaves, Tom decides to abandon his private paradise and make the dangerous trip back to America, where he intends to begin a new chapter in his life. He tells Eddy that Joseph is the only help he needs and instantly breaks his heart. However, in the middle of the sea, Eddy emerges from a tiny locker, and moments later Tom hands him a bottle of his favorite whiskey. Several hours later, Tom saves Captain Ralph, his assistant, and a Jewish family from a burning boat that has been hit multiple times by German patrols. To avoid serious trouble with immigration authorities in the Key West area, Tom alters his original plan and instead heads toward Cuba, where it should be easier to smuggle the Jewish family. But the journey to Cuba proves a most dangerous one.

The narrative is broken into three uneven chapters -- “The Boys”, “The Woman”, and “The Journey”. In each chapter, Tom’s past and present merge and adjust different aspects of his deceivingly simple philosophy of life. The changes are not dramatic but are substantial enough to reveal that in a time of war it is impossible to remain neutral.

However, despite the unmissable presence of war, Islands in the Stream does not evolve into a war drama. It remains a very intimate film about the passage of time in the life of a man with a history of making the wrong decisions for the right reasons. For example, it is not long before it is revealed that Tom regrets his decision not to fight and keep Audrey in his life and that he has been drinking to numb the painful anger that often rages inside him. Later, Tom also realizes that he should have done more to dissuade his oldest son from becoming a pilot.

The calmness that permeates Islands in the Stream has a distinct Hemingway-esque quality as well. It forces the viewer to ponder the nature of existence and how all triumphs and failures that supposedly define it are utterly meaningless. (Another very good film with an identical message is Havana in which a seasoned American gambler unexpectedly falls in love with a beautiful woman he cannot have and is then forced to return home as Fidel Castro’s thugs approach the Cuban capital. Havana channels a similar calmness which makes it very easy to realize that the triumphs and failures of the opposing sides are defined by ideological lies, which time will inevitably render meaningless and destroy).

Shaffner, cinematographer Fred Koenekamp, and composer Jerry Goldsmith were a formidable team in Patton. In Islands in the Stream, their work is again impressive. Apparently, Goldsmith declared on multiple occasions that the soundtrack he created for Islands in the Stream was his favorite.

Islands in the Stream Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Islands in the Stream arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films.

The release is sourced from an old but solid organic master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. Indeed, only during a couple of daylight sequences, where sunlight is very intense, I was able to spot a few highlights that could have been managed better. However, elsewhere throughout the film there is stylization work as well, so balance still looks very good. Delineation, clarity, and depth are typically very good. Density levels could have been a bit stronger, but I still liked what I saw a lot. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. Color balance is very nice. The primaries and the supporting nuances are set properly and both look healthy. Some could look fresher, and I assume that a future 4K master will introduce precisely this type of improvement, but I did not see anything that I did not like. Image stability is good. I noticed a few blemishes and dark spots, but there are no large cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 4.25/5.00. (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).

Islands in the Stream Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

Jerry Goldsmith's soundtrack does a lot of important work to enhance a very particular atmosphere. In some areas, it becomes the atmosphere, too. The lossless track is very healthy and reproduces its native quality wonderfully. Is there any room for improvement? I don't think so. However, one could probably use modern digital tools for some minor rebalancing work.

Islands in the Stream Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Samm Deighan.

• "Survival Scars: Franklin J. Schaffners as Auteur - this exclusive new video essay was created by critic Daniel Kremer. In English, not subtitled. (38 min).

• "For Whom the Camera Shoots: Daniel Kremer and Nat Segaloff Discuss Ernest Hemingway on Film - an exclusive new program. In English, not subtitled. (54 min).

Islands in the Stream Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Moving on. It is the one constant element in our cycle of existence. It does not matter whether we are experiencing triumphs or failures, whether there is peace or war, we have to keep moving on -- until we run out of time and the whole thing abruptly ends. This is the grand message that emerges from Franklin J. Schaffner's Islands in the Stream, a deceivingly simple, often strikingly beautiful film about an aging American artist who has relocated to a quiet corner of the Bahamas while the rest of the world is on fire. Islands in the Stream was the second and final film Schaffner made with George C. Scott after the multiple Oscar-winner Patton. It is not yet available on Blu-ray in America, but this recent Australian release from Imprint Films is Region-Free. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.