Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 21, 2020

Robert Aldrich's "Ulzana's Raid" (1972) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kno Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage trailer for the film; exclusive new video interview with actor Bruce Davidson; and new audio commentary by critic Nick Pinkerton. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The scout

At first it seems like the two groups are simply driven by pure hatred for each other. The Apaches have broken out of their reservation and ‘gone on the war path’ with the merciless chief Ulzana (Joaquin Martinez), a middle-aged, muscular warrior who very rarely speaks. A simple gesture from Ulzana is enough to instantly turn his men into a pack of angry dogs. The second group is led by Lt. Garnett DeBuin (Bruce Davidson), a young, idealistic and very inexperienced officer, who has vowed to impress his superiors by quickly restoring order in the area. To compensate for his inexperience, DeBuin has accepted the services of the seasoned scout McIntosh (Burt Lancaster) and the ‘civilized’ Apache tracker Ke-Ni-Tay (Jorge Luke).

As Ulzana’s group moves further west and leaves behind a trail of disfigured corpses, however, DeBuin slowly begins to realize that the men he is tracking down and trying to destroy are not just some blood-thirsty savages. They have a tactical plan that will push his group into a trap where they will be quickly overpowered and then annihilated. McIntosh, who has been the first to suspect so, then urges DeBuin to make a risky move that could very well be their only chance to outmaneuver Ulzana’s group. But if they are the first to make a mistake, they could fall even quicker in Ulzana’s trap.

This excellent western from the great American director Robert Aldrich sees the West before it was ‘civilized’ by the settlers as it probably was – a big and dangerous battlefield where only the strongest and most brutal of men would survive. It is basically the flipside of the beautiful and inspiring place that was promoted in so many of the classic westerns that Hollywood produced over the years.

The characterizations are just as unglamorous and as a result the entire film basically becomes a repudiation of the popular notion that one of the two rivaling sides in the West -- the white settlers -- is to be exclusively blamed for the carnages that occurred as the natives were gradually forced to choose between assimilation and extermination. Aldrich offers a different explanation, which is that the culture of the settlers and the culture of the natives were so incompatible that violence and death were quite simply unavoidable. (All of the important observations about the inevitable clash are revealed through DeBuin’s struggle to understand Ulzana’s mission, with Ke-Ni-Tay’s validation of the Apache’s actions then introducing the necessary counterpoint). The entire conflict of course is downsized, simplified and then framed within the chase that the film chronicles for easier digestion.

The R-rating is well deserved because there are some pretty graphic visuals that can leave a lasting impression. On the other hand, it has to be said that all of the violence and ugliness serve a purpose, so the graphic content was clearly not added up for shock value.

Aldrich and Oscar-winning cinematographer Joseph Biroc (The Towering Inferno) chose some spectacular locations for the film in Arizona and Nevada. The entire shoot was completed in seven weeks.

Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ulzana's Raid arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The technical presentation is disappointing. The release is sourced from the same dated quite problematic master that Swiss label Explosive Media worked with to produce this release of Ulzana's Raid in 2017. The master was supplied by Universal Pictures.

The master has elevated contrast levels as well as traces of conventional sharpening that provide the entire film with a very harsh digital appearance. The wider panoramic shots can be especially problematic because virtually all of them lack proper depth. Predictably, delineation suffers as well. The darker and nighttime footage has plenty of smearing and on a larger screen it produces some of the most distracting anomalies. The color grading is good, but because of the previously mentioned anomalies some nuances are lost. (The blacks and grays are the most problematic ones). Image stability is very good. Lastly, there are no large distracting cuts, debris, stains, or other conventional age-related imperfections to report. All in all, this film desperately needs a proper new master so that it has a solid organic appearance and really look as good as it should in high-definition. (Note: This is a Region-A Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I mentioned in our review of the Swiss/German release that the audio was probably remastered at some point. It is very solid. Clarity, depth, and the overall range of dynamic nuances appear to have been optimized really well. Perhaps there is some room for cosmetic adjustments, but I don't think that a new master will deliver an overall stronger audio track.

Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary - critic Nick Pinkerton shares plenty of interesting information about the conflicts that are chronicled in the film, the Apache tribe and its history, Robert Aldrich's career and the various other films he directed that are now considered classics, etc. The commentary was recorded exclusively for Kino Lorber.

• Interview with co-star Bruce Davidson - in this new video interview, Bruce Davison recalls his first encounter with Robert Aldrich, how he was cast to play the character of Lt. Garnett DeBuin, what it was to work with Burt Lancaster, etc. (There are are some outstanding comments Aldrich's honesty, and how it helped Davidson stay in the film business). The interview was conducted exclusively for Kino Lorber. In English, not subtitled. (16 min, 1080p).

• Trailers From Hell - an archival episode of Trailers From Hell with John Landis. In English, not subtitled. (4 min, 1080p).

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Ulzana's Raid. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 480/60i).

• Additional Trailers - additional trailers for the following titles from Kino Lorber's catalog:
  
  1. The Hunting Party
  2. Valdez Is Coming
  3. The Revengers
  4. Billy Two Hats
  5. The Spikes Gang
  6. Breakheart Pass
  7. The Missouri Breaks
  8. Barquero

Ulzana's Raid Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is disappointing to see that the North American release of Robert Aldrich's western Ulzana's Raid was sourced from the same old master that European labels used to produce their local releases of the film. This master, which was supplied by Universal Pictures, has way too many issues that quite simply make it unsuitable for Blu-ray. Too bad, because the release has a lovely exclusive new video interview with actor Bruce Davison.