7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.2 |
Social drama set in rural Alabama in the 1930s, directed by Elia Kazan. Montgomery Clift stars as Chuck Glover, an agent sent by the Tennessee Valley Authority to oversee the building of a dam on the Tennessee River. He encounters opposition from the local people, including an elderly woman, Ella Garth (Jo van Fleet) who refuses to budge from her land, and various factions who object to his providing paid employment for local black labourers. Lee Remick co-stars as Ella Garth's granddaughter Carol, who gradually falls in love with the sensitive and liberal-minded Glover.
Starring: Montgomery Clift, Lee Remick, Jo Van Fleet, Frank Overton, Malcolm AtterburyDrama | 100% |
Romance | 78% |
Melodrama | 13% |
Period | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.36:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region B (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Elia Kazan's "Wild River" (1960) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the original theatrical trailer for the film; collection of production stills; and exclusive new audio commentary with film critics Glenn Kenny and Farran Smith Nehme. The release also arrives with a 32-page illustrated booklet featuring a new essay by Adrian Martin, rare archival imagery and more. In English, with English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
"I know I'll probably regret it. I'm sure you'll regret it. But... Go get your hat. Get a coat. Wash up. All right?"
Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.36:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Elia Kazan's Wild River arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment.
The release uses as a foundation the same restoration of Wild River which Fox accessed when they prepared their release for the U.S. market. As far as the technical side of the presentation is concerned, there really aren't any flaws -- image depth and clarity are quite simply outstanding; fluidity is also excellent throughout the entire film. Direct comparisons with the DVD release of Wild River from the The Elia Kazan Collection show dramatic improvements even during a number of very dark sequences -- shadow definition is far superior and again depth is so dramatically improved that there are actually new details that can be seen. Unfortunately, the restoration also introduces a new, much cooler color scheme that irreversibly alters the film's atmosphere (similar updates were done for a number of restored Fox titles, such as The King and I, Desk Set, River of No Return, and The Blue Max. The end result is really quite awkward. The film looks incredibly healthy and vibrant, but it has a distinctive modern identity that simply does not feel right. (Once you start viewing the film, you will quickly notice how overwhelming the wide range of blues and grays are). Finally, there are no stability issues. Also, there are no serious encoding anomalies to report in this review. My score is 3.75/5.00. (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).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles have been provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.
The audio can be a bit thin a times, but it is easy to tell that this is indeed a source limitation. Clarity is good. The high frequencies can be somewhat uneven, but there is no problematic background hiss. Also, there are no pops, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report in this review.
I find this release of Elia Kazan's enormously moving Wild River somewhat frustrating. The technical presentation of the film is outstanding. In fact, this may well be one of the very best looking titles in Eureka Entertainment's catalog. However, Fox's restoration of Wild River introduces a new, much cooler color scheme that gives the film a very contemporary identity. I am going to recommend the Blu-ray, but I believe that Fox could have treated this film much better and produced a real stunner. RECOMMENDED.
1956
1932
1934
2012
2018
2011
Indicator Series
1967
20th Anniversary Edition | Sony Collector's Edition #19
1993
Vintage Classics / Restored
1971
1975
Vintage World Cinema
1981
Digitally Restored
1943
1979
2017
1992
2011
2012
Limited Edition
1970
1942
1937