Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie Review

Spike Lee's hit-or-miss WWII drama looks and sounds spectacular on Blu-ray.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 3, 2009

Miracles are the only sure thing in life.

Oh, what could have been. Inside Miracle at St. Anna is a great movie, a classic even, yearning to be loosed and remembered with the greats of the War genre, if not as one of the better films of any genre. Unfortunately, the movie feels incomplete, unpolished, awaiting those final touches that turn it from ordinary to extraordinary. Much like the Primavera statue that serves as the focal point of the film, Miracle at St. Anna is a thing of beauty in its own right, worthy of praise and affection, but it is absent the remainder of the finished product, lost to unforetold tragedy and leaving its viewers with only a glimpse as to what may have been. Director Spike Lee (Inside Man) tells a tale worth being told. Unfortunately, the project meanders all over the map, at times playing as a straight war picture, at others as a commentary on the racial makeup of the era, and at others still as a sort of religious experience film that discusses ideas such as fate and perseverance in the most difficult of circumstances. Each and every one is a noble effort; Spike Lee simply tries to cram in too much, which bogs down the film and whatever one primary theme he was aiming for, and the entire experience suffers as a result.

The Buffalo Soldiers.

Miracle at St. Anna tells the story of four African-American soldiers and their experiences in a small Italian town during the Second World War. However, the film begins in the mid-1980s, featuring an African-American World War II veteran gunning down a man he recognizes while at his place of work. He is arrested, found to be in possession of a valuable 450-year-old statue head, and questioned by rookie reporter Tim Boyle (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, The Lookout). Eventually, the man becomes compelled to recount his wartime experiences. Four survivors of a fierce firefight with German forces -- Stamps (Derek Luke, Friday Night Lights), Bishop (Michael Ealy, Seven Pounds), Hector (Laz Alonso, This Christmas), and Train (Omar Benson Miller, The Express) -- find themselves behind enemy lines and caring for a young and wounded Italian boy named Angelo (Matteo Sciabordi) who instantly forms a bond with Train, the man he refers to as "the chocolate giant." Train is also in possession of the head of the Primavera stature, a good luck charm, or so he claims, for he believes it to make the carrier invisible and provide him with the strength of five men. Unsure of what to do with the boy, they take him to a small village, surrounded by Germans, and where they befriend many of the locals. Meanwhile, the Germans are in pursuit of the terrorist known as "The Butterfly" and believe him to be holed up in the very town where the Buffalo Soldiers find themselves stranded, awaiting additional allied forces to arrive and aid in their return to base.

At times, Miracle at St. Anna is a film focused in its meaning but unfocused in its construction. At other times, it is a film focused in its construction but unfocused in its meaning. Director Spike Lee's vision for the film was to tell a tale of the contributions of African-Americans in the Second World War, a noble effort and clearly a story that needs to be told. The director is also to be commended for not simply making a standard War picture, packed with clichés and all of the expected scenes and themes. Instead, the film takes something of a novel approach to the War picture, bookending the experience with the action and leaving the middle open for extensive commentary on a number of issues. The theme of race is a constant throughout the film. A character is constantly referred to as a "chocolate giant;" the men of the 92nd Infantry Division deal with a racist white superior officer; they discuss and argue amongst themselves as to their place in the war and their country; and the film sees an extended scene that features a confrontation between the men and a racist white ice cream shop owner stateside. The later is perhaps the film's weakest moment, playing as nothing but a ploy to stir audience emotions and further remind them of the difficulties the men faced at home. It's a scene that panders to core emotions, placed smack-dab in the middle of a film built around the race issue. The remainder of the film does a fine job in communicating the thoughts and frustrations of the men and the times they live in without providing audiences with a heavy-handed reminder.

Miracle at St. Anna also wishes to be a film that places emphasis on the importance of hope; belief in oneself in the face of hate, destruction, distrust, and uncertainty; and even salvation. It is also, perhaps, even a religious experience film that attempts to show the power of the human soul, and even the whole of the human experience, whittled down to a brief moment in time as several events come full circle in shaping the course of two men's lives. These themes do eventually come full circle, but in a confused sort of way during the film's bookends that take place in the mid-1980s. Like the rest of the film, it works, but requires some effort to piece it all together. The ending does prove to be emotionally satisfying, but in spite of, and not because of, all that leads up to it. Miracle at St. Anna deals with the same issues throughout, notably choppy editing that never lends to the film a sense of cohesion or effective storytelling. It wanders from one theme to another, from one character to another, even from one language to another, all with mixed results. It's difficult to follow at times, but put together just well enough to have all of the important aspects come to fruition by the end, and allow the aforementioned finale to work its magic and be sufficiently emotionally satisfying.

Although the film could have been much better, there is still plenty to admire about the end result. For those expecting a more traditionally structured War film, prepare to be disappointed; Miracle at St. Anna is more of a character, era, and spiritual study rather than a straight War film. Nevertheless, the film features two extended action sequences that are about as good as anything else out there, nearly matching for intensity, visual style, choreography, and excitement as anything seen in Saving Private Ryan or Band of Brothers. Several scenes are excessively violent, though that is both expected of and welcome in a film such as this, for it lends a gritty realism to the experience. Speaking of "gritty," Miracle at St. Anna is just that, taking the now tried-and-true visual approach to wartime filmmaking, and again, it works effectively here. The acting is also uniformly good throughout; several actors seem to indulge in overacting, particularly those playing Nazis, but the film's core quartet and their supporting cast perform admirably. Finally, Spike Lee has crafted a film that is often beautiful to look at; the cinematography and locations are fabulous, and he also lends to the film an authentic feel that always places the audience alongside the heroes of the story.

Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Disney presents Miracle at St. Anna on Blu-ray with an excellent 1080p, 2.35:1-framed transfer. The film features two distinct looks -- those that take place in the United States (regardless of time) and those that take place in 1944 Italy. Those stateside shots sparkle in high definition. They feature first-class clarity, detail, and color reproduction; no shot may look quite as vibrant as the most colorful of Blu-ray discs, but it offers a quality lifelike look that sports a natural, perhaps slightly subdued, appearance. Most of the film takes place in 1944 Italy, and such scenes present viewers with a gritty, washed out, dull, and very grainy image. Detail remains impeccable for the look the film presents during these wartime sequences. The finest details on the uniforms stand out, from the rank patches on the sleeves to the ridges and wear on the hand grenades attached to their shirts. Even the netting on the helmets stands out with excellent texture. Again, the transfer doesn't equate to high definition eye candy; instead, and more importantly, it represents, and faithfully recreates, the intended look of the film brilliantly. In both cases, flesh tones appear spot-on and black levels are impeccable. No matter the scene, Miracle at St. Anna looks fantastic on Blu-ray.

Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Miracle at St. Anna features a hefty DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. As expected, the highlight of the soundtrack comes during the action sequences. Bass thumps with each explosion and gunfire crackles from every direction. Artillery shells scream around the soundstage, and listeners will be able to feel both the ground rattle under the power of the high velocity projectiles and rumblings of the subsequent explosions. The score swells nicely around the soundstage, and atmospherics -- the rolling water, the breeze, and gunfire and explosions in the distance that pop sporadically in every direction -- fill the soundstage with these sounds with vigor and accuracy. Nevertheless, much of the film is dialogue-driven, and in that regard the track is also first-class. Dialogue is crisp and intelligible, coming across even better than most discs. Whether the way it was recorded or simply a new high in soundtrack presentation, the recorded spoken word has rarely sounded as natural as it does here. Also, the track enjoys a nice bit of atmosphere during the middle sections of the film. Much of it plays out through the front, but the results are consistently impressive. Like the video quality, this lossless DTS soundtrack impresses no matter the situation.

Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disney has chosen to forego an extensive supplemental package for this Blu-ray release of Miracle at St. Anna. Deeds Not Words (1080p, 17:08) features Director Spike Lee and Author James McBride discussing the experiences of the African-American soldier in World War II with a roundtable of veterans. The Buffalo Soldier Experience (1080p, 21:36) is another piece that again further recounts life for the Buffalo Soldiers in World War II. The piece features plenty of vintage video clips and still photos with accompanying interview snippets from the filmmakers, historians, and veterans. Concluding this brief supplemental package is a series of nine deleted scenes presented in 1080p high definition.

Miracle at St. Anna Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Miracle at St. Anna is a different kind of War film. It is far more deliberate and contemplative than its contemporaries, featuring some themes that are unique to the film, and others that are explored in other War pictures, but not quite as they are here. The film tackles both race relations and spiritual undertones with mixed results. It tries to be meaningful, and it is, it just comes off feeling too heavy and too difficult to digest. It's a fantastic concept, done well, but clearly lacking in cohesion and completeness, a part of a greater whole that just might have been one of the best efforts in recent memory. Instead, Miracle at St. Anna is a good movie, just not the masterpiece it wanted to be, and should have been. Spike Lee's well-meaning picture makes for a masterful Blu-ray presentation. The film's varied looks shine in high definition, and the soundtrack is among the better of those currently available. The disc lacks in supplements, but Disney has ensured that the presentation of the film comes first, and in that regard, it doesn't disappoint. Miracle at St. Anna is a film worth watching, bordering on a must-see, and is one that almost demands repeat viewings, and this Blu-ray disc represents the best way to view the film at home.