Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson April 14, 2020

Von Richthofen and Brown (1971) was produced and released during a time Roger Corman (then 44) was honored with a retrospective of many of his films in New York. He had either produced or directed a combined 100 features, although a number of these were "10-day films" as he liked to call them. Von Richthofen and Brown is definitely a departure from his Edgar Alan Poe adaptations and "Motorcycle Gang Craze" series. It dramatizes the aerial warfare showdown between Germany and Great Britain during WWI. It's also a cat-and-mouse game between the Prussian-born pilot Manfred von Richthofen (John Phillip Law) and Roy Brown (Don Stroud), a wheat farmer from Saskatchewan, who's a pilot for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Though von Richthofen has eighty confirmed Allied kills, he's the last in a dying breed of knightly soldiers who fight with dignity and elegance. Brown is the type of "every man" commoner but he has a rugged individualism that makes him an outsider from his cavalry.

The movie alternates between several breathtaking aerial sequences between the two nations and ground scenes that are much more pedestrian. Von Richthofen is one of the most stolid soldiers which contrasts with the more gung-ho types such as one Her­man Goering (Barry Pri­mus), which he differs with in practically every respect. Corman shows a typical Aryan camaraderie among the Germans but gives less screen time to the Brits which make the representations unbalanced. Dymphna McKenna's costumes look authentic and the actors deliver their line competently but in a rather stiff way that make their performances wooden. In the middle of the picture, Corman introduces a voluptuous and attractive unmarried German woman who's supposed to serve as von Richthofen's love interest. She sensually massages and feels the wings of von Richthofen's biplane, setting up a big love scene. We don't really get one although one was apparently filmed. According to film critic Lou Cedrone of The Evening (MD) Sun, a nude scene was reportedly screened for preview au­diences but was later deleted because: (a) the producers wanted a GP rating and they were also advised to by the MPAA, and (b) the test audiences reacted with hilarity to the scene. Corman is also unsuccessful with another subplot involving Brown and Ilse (Karen Huston), a one-legged French girl. Brown happens to visit her at a villa but nothing comes of it and we never learn Ilse's fate.

Von Richthofen and Brown is more successful (by far) with its stunning aerial choreography, which looks far more realistic than what's recreated today with CGI. In a new interview on this Kino disc, Corman remembers using two aerial cameras, which added more POV shots inside the cockpits. Corman and cinematographer Michael Reed break up any aesthetic monotony in the air with "von Richthofen’s Flying Circus,” which were planes painted in different colors by the Germans to throw off the RAF. The Austin (TX) American's John Bustin lauded the aerial scenes as "extremely well-done and as exciting as anything that’s ever been done along these lines."

Von Richthofen and Brown was shot near Dublin at the Weston Aero­drome over five-and-a-half-weeks so Corman could reuse the planes that were flown in The Blue Max (1966) and Darling Lili (1970). Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times estimated that United Artists gave Corman "probably the biggest bud­get of his career." On this BD's interview, Corman remembers the New York Times giving the film a glowing review but in my research, it received mixed, mediocre, and poor reviews. He probably didn't read the write-up by L. Pierce Carson of The Napa Valley (CA) Register who, because of the narrative's utter plotlessness, denigrated it as "the worst film I’ve ever seen." Technically, it's far better than that and worth a second look in high-def.

Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber Studio Classics has given Von Richthofen and Brown its global debut on Blu-ray on this MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-25. It appears in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The print is struck from a dated source and largely lacks fine detail. The opening credits display both coarse grain and some heavy dirt. Ground scenes are mostly bathed in browns and dark greens. Contrast is not very good in lower-lit scenes (see Screenshot #9). The image improves during the second half with more vibrantly accented colors. The DeLuxe color shines most when we see the Germans' camouflaged planes, which Ken Heinrich of the Miami News described as sporting "bright, circus colors" on the theatrical print (see capture #3). The landscapes, dense vegetation, and trees show good greenery that are positively accented on this transfer. My video score is 3.25.

The 97-minute feature comes with eight chapter stops.

Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Kino supplies the movie's monaural mix, which is rendered here as a DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono (1557 kbps, 16-bit). The track probably sounds as good, if not better, than the mix heard in movie theaters back in 1971. But it's below the standards of restored sound mixes from '70s films. Part of the problem is the source, which likely sounded muffled as it did here. Sound mixer Liam Saurin is the sole technician credited in the sound department and he likely needed better equipment. The aforementioned Kevin Thomas lamented the actors' German accents and dubbing: "They (and everyone else involved) are hampered by one of the worst soundtracks heard in some time. Wheth­er they were actually dubbed or not it's impossible to tell but they certainly sound that way much of the time." Ann Guarino of the Daily (NY) News faulted the mono more for sounding too clichéd than for any aural deficiencies: "A lot of aerial shots showing dogfights is accompanied by a sound track pep­pered with the noise of machine guns and the moaning and dron­ing of planes, all of which has been done before." While there's maybe some persistent hiss, there are no loud distortions or tape dropouts. Hugo Friedhofer's score sounds fine when it's working on its own but gets either drowned out or forgotten by the surge of the bi- and tri-plane engines.

Fortunately, Kino provided us with handy optional English SDH, which can be switched on in the menu or via remote activation.

Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• NEW Chivalry in Warfare: Corman, von Richthofen, and Brown - A NEW Interview with Director Roger Corman (12:47, 1080p) - in this recent interview, the "King of B Pictures" reminisces about the model airplanes he grew up playing with (including a replica of von Richthofen's red biplane); the casting of John Phillip Law, Don Stroud, Barry Primus, and Corin Redgrave; the planes that were used for filming in Ireland; living in Dublin during the production; and the core themes of Von Richthofen and Brown. Corman's memories of making this film are so sharp that one wishes Kino had recorded a feature-length commentary with him. In English, not subtitled.

• Theatrical Trailer (3:04, 1080p) - an unrestored anamorphic widescreen trailer for Von Richthofen and Brown that's littered with film artifacts. The sound is more acceptable.

• Bonus Previews - original trailers for The Secret Invasion (3:11), X: The Man With the X-Ray Eyes (2:19), 1985's The Aviator (2:34), and Death Rides a Horse (1:33).

Von Richthofen and Brown Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In comparison to farily more recent WWI aerial warfare films that unload CGI spectacle, such as Tony Bill's Flyboys (2006), I was more impressed with Von Richthofen and Brown's flight choreography and realism. It tells a dual narrative between two ace pilots but the storytelling and acting are rather lackluster. Kino Lorber delivers a transfer that's a mixed bag and a mediocre uncompressed monaural track that could use a major remastering. The dozen-minute interview with Roger Corman is concise and excellent, which whets the appetite for a complete commentary by the legendary B filmmaker. While the disc's technical aspects are merely average, this comes RECOMMENDED and Corman fans should add it to their collections.