Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Land of the Pharaohs Blu-ray Movie Review

Pyramid scheming.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III July 12, 2023

What happens when we die? Probably nothing, and we damn sure can't take anything with us. But just try telling that to Pharaoh Khufu (Jack Hawkins), who has amassed an ungodly amount of wealth in Howard Hawks' soapy historical drama Land of the Pharaohs and wants nothing more than to buried with it. Enlisting the help of aging architect/slave Vashtar (James Robertson Justice) to design an intricate robber-proof tomb, Pharaoh Khufu spares no expense -- and by that I mean "works thousands of slaves to death and raises taxes" -- to ensure that it's built exactly to spec and will preserve his body and treasures for all eternity. But when his second wife Princess Nellifer (Joan Collins) secretly plots to separate the two of them, a chain of lies and deceit as big as the Great Pyramid itself is set in motion.

Land of the Pharaohs was director Howard Hawks' largest-scale assignment to date, the first and only time he worked in 2.55:1 Cinemascope (an ultra-wide format used to lure new television owners out of their homes) and, perhaps most importantly, it was his last collaboration with longtime friend William Faulkner, a creative partnership that had flourished since 1933's Today We Live. Faulkner is listed as one of three credited writers on the film, but you probably wouldn't know it from the mushy and uneven script that serves as Land of the Pharaohs' most obvious weakness: its overcooked twists and turns work in tandem with campy dialogue delivery and sweeping historical inaccuracies (which actually got it banned in Egypt) to create an honestly kind of disarming atmosphere that's nonetheless a bit more "pleasure" than "guilty", in my opinion... yet I wouldn't blame first-time viewers for flipping those adjectives around.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Land of the Pharaohs turned out to be a commercial failure and the first of Howard Hawks' storied career, leading to a brief hiatus for the director that would mercifully end with his exceptional return on the 1959 Western classic Rio Bravo (not coincidentally coming very soon to 4K UHD from Warner Bros.). Yet it's the film's reputation as a guilty pleasure -- never more evident than in its 2007 DVD debut from WB, who branded Land of the Pharaohs as part of its "Cult Camp Classics" series -- that has earned it a surprisingly long life and one that's long past ripe for re-evaluation, having been championed by the likes of Martin Scorsese as a personal favorite. I can't share that same level of enthusiasm due to my lack of nostalgic attachment, which I believe you have to have in some capacity to truly fall for its charms. Yet the film's obvious technical strengths, stunning location cinematography, and extravagant production design certainly elevate Land of the Pharaohs beyond an unearthed minor curiosity.

Aiding its legacy -- and timed perfectly to tide Hawks fans over until Rio Bravo comes out -- is Warner Archive's new Blu-ray edition of Land of the Pharaohs, which will absolutely delight apologists of this sword-and-sandal soap opera. Its new 4K-sourced restoration is a cause for celebration by itself, but this disc also comes equipped with a brand new 5.1 audio mix sourced from original four-track stereo elements and a few lightweight bonus features.

Land of the Pharaohs Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As mentioned earlier, Land of the Pharaohs was director Howard Hawks' first and only time working in the ultra-wide 2.55:1 CinemaScope format, one of many new theatrical formats designed to lure new TV owners back to the movie theater. Unsurprisingly, it favors medium and wide shots framed in a way to maximize the film's scope, what with its thousands of background extras and lavish production design, with occasional tighter shots and even close-ups that amplify its overall visual impact. The WarnerColor process heavily favors earth tones and browns, perfect for its sandy environments and skin tones in various shades of bronze -- some with a good bit of "Egyptianface", mind you -- and its particular palette is represented consistently well on Warner Archive's stunning new 1080p transfer, which likewise greatly supports the fine-grain image detail of its source stock. Built from a recent 4K scan of the original camera negative (as opposed to the older DVD edition, which used a color reversal intermediate) and treated to a round of careful manual cleanup, the resulting picture is truly a best-case scenario for fans and looks exceptional from start to finish, from its numerous scenes shot on location in Egypt (including inside an unfinished pyramid) to its attractive interiors filmed mostly in studios owned by the Italian film production company Titanus.

A few problem areas arise during darker scenes and a handful of shots mostly in the home stretch, where dominant shadows don't play well with the grain structure (age-related damage, perhaps?), black levels barely reach below medium-gray with stray color interference, three or four very brief shots display obvious signs of softness, and Land of the Pharaohs ' near-constant use of optical dissolves naturally take several frames to jump into crisp focus. These seem to largely unavoidable issues and absolutely don't detract from what's ultimately a very carefully-done restoration that maintains Warner Archive's impressively long winning streak for clean, purist-friendly transfers.

Land of the Pharaohs Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Equally impressive is Warner Archive's brand-new DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix, which is sourced from an original four-track magnetic stereo print dating from the film's theatrical release; in contrast, both older DVDs made use of a lossy Dolby 2.0 surround mix. This respectful remix offers a much-needed boost in clarity over the older DVD, opening up nicely at critical moments (massive crowds, echoing interiors) and conveys a crisp and dynamic sound stage that stands in sharp contrast with the more common mono mixes typically created during this particular era of filmmaking. Dialogue is clean and easily understood, background effects are mixed nicely, the very sporadic action sequences bring light surround activity, and Dimitri Tiomkin's rousing score has never sounded better. It's a great all-around effort that shows no real room for improvement, hence the warranted five-star score.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are offered during the main feature only, not the extras.

Land of the Pharaohs Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with poster-themed art and no inserts of any kind. The extras are ported over from previous DVD editions... but while Land of the Pharaohs' press release and packaging list the classic Looney Tunes short "Sahara Hare" as one of them, it was sadly not included on this disc for unknown reasons.

• Audio Commentary - Filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich is our host for this DVD-era track, which ends up being kind of so-so given his obvious dislike for the film. (A few dryly funny stories are sprinkled throughout, though overall enjoyment will hinge solely on your opinion of Bogdanovich's personality.) It's nonetheless a worthwhile commentary due to the occasional contributions of director Howard Hawks, who "appears" via a collection of clips intermittently played by Bogdanovich from his series of audio interviews with the director recorded during the 1960s. Please note that, much like on Warner Archive's recent Blu-ray release of Angel Face, this commentary is only playable during a separately-included standard definition version of the film; it was reportedly not stored as a separate audio file and thus incompatible with the newly-restored visuals.

• Theatrical Trailer (4:18) - This appropriately epic-length promotional piece can also be seen here.

Land of the Pharaohs Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Howard Hawks' campy historical drama Land of the Pharaohs proves the idiom "they don't make 'em like they used to" isn't always accurate -- its visuals and scope far outpace the script and story, which are both pretty silly. But there's still a lot of enjoyment that can be wrung out of this one aside from its obvious visual strengths, though much of it falls into "guilty pleasure" territory. That said, anyone with a soft spot for Land of the Pharaohs will flip for Warner Archive's new Blu-ray, which absolutely pushes the limits of what grand-scale catalog titles can look and sound like on disc. Only the bonus features mildly disappoint, but otherwise it's firmly Recommended for established fans.