8.4 | / 10 |
Users | 3.7 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 3.7 |
Allied prisoners of war plan for several hundred of their number to escape from a German camp during World War II.
Starring: Steve McQueen (I), James Garner, Richard Attenborough, James Donald (I), Charles BronsonDrama | 100% |
War | 69% |
History | 54% |
Period | 44% |
Epic | 18% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
John Sturges' "The Great Escape" (1963) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; two audio commentaries; new program with critic Michael Sragow; and other archival programs. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Sheila O’Malley and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Great Escape arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this Blu-ray release:
"This 4K digital restoration was undertaken by MGM. A digital transfer was created in 10-bit 4K resolution on an ARRI film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative at EFILM in Los Angeles. A 35mm interpositive was also scanned at Deluxe in Sherman Oaks, California. Original Metrocolor prints of The Great Escape are badly faded, making accurate color references difficult to find. Color references for this edition included an original 35mm dye-transfer print from the Academy Film Archive's Technicolor Reference Collection, a 35mm acetate print owned by Martin Scorsese, and a 35mm acetate print owned by Quentin Tarantino.
The original monaural soundtrack was remastered from a 35mm magnetic track. The alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack was created in 2002 by Chace Audio in Hollywood, California.
Colorists: Roman Hankewycz/Harbor Picture Company, Santa Monica, CA; Kevin O'Connor/Deluxe Sherman Oaks, CA."
I own the first release of the film that MGM produced and I think that the technical presentation on it is very strong. The film does look a tiny bit softer than it should -- and given the age of the master as well as the technology that was used to produce it, it is perfectly fine -- but overall I think that it has a very pleasing organic appearance without any serious technical anomalies. This upcoming release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that offers two major improvements and a few smaller ones. The major improvements are what virtually every new proper master delivers: better density levels and finer fluidity. So, if you already own the first release you should expect to see 'tighter' visuals on the new release. During daylight footage this can make quite a difference, especially if you view your films on a larger screen, or even better project them. However, native softness, which is part of the original cinematography, is obviously retained, so it important not to confuse better density with sharper visuals in particular areas where it exists. Examples where despite the better density the visuals remain softer as they are on the previous release can be seen in screencaptures #3 and 10. The stronger fluidity is again easy to appreciate if you have a larger screen, and if you decide to upscale to 4K then the overall improvement becomes even bigger.
Here are a few smaller improvements that you should see on the new master: In some darker areas finer nuances are better exposed. However, keep in mind again that the management of light and camera positioning produce minor fluctuations that could flatten the visuals a bit, and when the effect becomes prominent these finer nuances again could become difficult to identify. In other words, this is a limitation of the original cinematography. You can see two examples with similar limitations in screencaptures #5 and 15. The color grading job introduces a few small expansions in the supporting nuances, but the overall balance and temperature of the color scheme are extremely similar to that of the previous release. Lastly, the new master is healthier. How much? As far as I am concerned the difference is quite obvious, but the improved density levels I think also help because they support stability as well. All in all, this is a really, really strong technical presentation of The Great Escape which I think its fans will be enormously satisfied with. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.
I viewed the entire film with the original Mono track. I think that it sounds fantastic. It is clean, clear, stable, and completely free of age-related anomalies. Older films tend to reveal weaknesses in the upper register, but there are none here. Also, there are no encoding anomalies to report in our review.
German war camps were nothing like the place you would see in The Great Escape, and to assume that soldiers and civilians that were unlucky to end up there could behave like the many stars that made the film is beyond naive. This is the biggest problem with this film -- it sells a fairy tale, it does not recreate a true story. This does not mean that it is an awful film. No, not at all. There is plenty of good acting with memorable action footage in it, but it is not the masterful and authentic war drama that Hollywood wanted it to be and various critics argued it was. (You can get a much more accurate idea of what German camps were like if you see Lajos Koltai's Fateless. And for a similar viewing experience revealing the truth about the Soviet gulags, you can spend an evening with Hardy Martins' As Far as My Feet Will Carry Me). Criterion's upcoming Blu-ray release of The Great Escape should make admirers of the film very, very happy. It is sourced from a very beautiful new 4K master and has a great selection of archival and new bonus features. RECOMMENDED.
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