Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Rollerball Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 14, 2015

Norman Jewison's "Rollerball" (1975) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers for the film; TV spots; exclusive new video interview with actor James Caan; exclusive new featurette with stuntman Craig R. Baxley; archival featurette; audio commentary with director Norman Jewison; audio commentary with screenwriter William Harrison; and more. The release also arrives with a 28-page illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film, illustrated with original archive stills and posters. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

"I just wanna get out there and hit them little fellas."

The future. Rollerball is the greatest sports game in the world and everyone has a favorite team. The game is dangerous, but powerful corporations have invested massive amounts of money in it and no one is allowed to question its integrity.

The corporations have also created the perfect system -- everyone is employed, there are no crimes and wars, and all important resources are carefully managed. God has also been forgotten.

When Jonathan E. (James Caan, Thief), the outspoken star of the Huston team, becomes too popular, the CEO (John Houseman, 3 Days of the Condor) of the Energy Corporation decides to retire him because he is afraid that he could crack the system. (It is never made explicitly clear why and how -- or why he can’t die in a tragic accident if he really is such a big risk for the corporation). Soon after, Jonathan visits the CEO’s office and is promptly asked to leave Rollerball in style. Initially perplexed and later on angered, the star suddenly realizes that he has been living in a cozy bubble and that the system needs to be changed.

Norman Jewison directed Rolerball forty years ago from a script by William Harrison. It was once promoted as a sci-fi film, but sadly even its most outrageous predictions about our future are now realities.

The film is stylishly lensed and frequently quite beautiful to look at, but it is very dark and cynical. In what is essentially an Orwellian world, Caan’s character suddenly realizes that he has been nothing more than a puppet trained to think and react in ways that please his masters. After he is asked to retire, he begins to reevaluate his life and the system he has been a part of.

A large part of the film is dedicated to his internal struggle for balance -- his violent side frequently overpowers his rational side and he becomes unrecognizable. Interestingly enough, these struggles are captured in ways that actually allow one to deconstruct the entire film in a couple of different ways. The most obvious read of the story is that the modern gladiator eventually sees the big picture and goes against the system. Another possible read, however, is that the system has actually made him addicted to violence and it is the addiction that is fueling his anger.

The script could have been much better polished, but Caan’s performance more than makes up for the numerous bumps. He is at his very best when he goes berserk and hurts his opponents to make a point. Houseman has the right attitude, though occasionally he clearly overreacts. John Beck is pretty good as the feisty rollerballer Moonpie.

Jewison shot the film with cinematographer Douglas Slocombe (Indiana Jones Trilogy). Many of the most memorable action sequences were shot inside the old Basketballhalle (now the Audi Dome) in Munich, where the 1972 Summer Olympic Games were held.

Rollerball Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.84:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Norman Jewison's Rollerball arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video.

The release has been sourced from the same dated master that was accessed for the U.S. release of film and unsurprisingly the basic characteristics of these releases are virtually identical. Detail and clarity range from decent to good. However, during the darker footage from the arena it is very easy to tell that depth should be a lot better. Generally speaking, contrast levels remain stable. Shadow definition, however, fluctuates and select parts of the film could look quite flat (this is true even for well-lit close-ups). Grain is visible, but it is not as well defined and distributed as it should be. There are no traces of recent sharpening adjustments. Colors are stable, but the reds are pushed up quite a bit. There are no serious stability issues, but some minor scratches and specks occasionally pop up here and there. Finally, there are no serious encoding anomalies to report in this review. All in all, while this isn't a problematic presentation of Rollerball, it is rather easy to tell that the film could and should look substantially better. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Rollerball Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) and English and LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit). For the record, Arrow Video have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

I viewed the film with the original LPCM 2.0 track. Depth and clarity are excellent. Some extremely light hiss can be felt, but it never becomes distracting. Balance is very good and the lush classic tracks easily open up the film in all the right places. The dialog is crisp, stable, and easy to follow. There are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report in this review.

Rollerball Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers -
  
  1. Original Theatrical Trailer - in English, not subtitled. (3 min).
  2. Theatrical Teaser - in English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• TV Sport - three original TV spots. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Isolated Music & Effects Track - presented as LPCM 2.0 track.

• From Rome to Rollerball - this archival featurette focuses on some of the similarities between Rollerball and the gladiator games that were popular in Ancient Rome. Included in it are clips from interviews with director Norman Jewison and James Caan and archival footage from the shooting of Rollerball in Germany. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• The Bike Work: Craig R. Baxley - in this new featurette, stuntman Craig R. Baxley (Madrid Biker #1) discusses the production history of Rollerball and some of the specific stunts he and his colleagues did during the shooting of the film in Munich. The featurette was produced, edited, written and directed by Robert Fischer for Fiction Factory. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• The Fourth City - in this new featurette, unit manager Dieter Meyer, Audi Dome manager Moritz Breitner, and Jimmy Berg ("Houston Team Rookie") revisit some of the key locations from Rollerball. The featurette was produced, edited, written and directed by Robert Fischer for Fiction Factory. In English, not subtitled. (19 min).

• Blood Sports by James Caan - in this brand new interview, actor James Caan recalls some of the obstacles he and his colleagues had to overcome during the shooting of Rollerball, and discusses his character, some of the key themes in the film, the modern look of the Olympic Village in Munich, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Arrow Films. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• The Making of Rollerball - archival featurette with clips from interviews with director Norman Jewison, editor Anthony Gibbs, screenwriter William Harrison, and actor John Beck, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (26 min).

• Audio Commentary with Norman Jewison - the director of Rollerball explains in great detail how and where key sequences from the film were shot, and discusses the casting process, the main conflicts, the different responses to the film, etc.

• Audio Commentary with William Harrison - screenwriter William Harrison explains how his original story, "Roller Ball Murder", evolved into a script, and discusses some of the socio-political overtones in Rollerball, the accidental symbolism in the film, the framing of select sequences, etc.

• Booklet - 28-page illustrated booklet featuring: James Oliver's essay "Zero Sum Game - The Politics, Paranoia and Prescience of Rollerball" and technical credits.

• Cover - reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper.

Rollerball Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While Norman Jewison's Rollerball could have been a much better film, I don't know if it could have been a more accurate film as virtually all of its predictions about our future are now realities. That abandoned sequel James Caan mentions in a brand new interview included on this release suddenly looks quite intriguing. Was there a script for it? Rollerball could look better in high-definition, but Arrow Video have once again produced a Blu-ray release that should make fans of the film happy. RECOMMENDED.