Confirmation
(2016/HBO Blu-ray)/The
Deadly Trackers
(1973/Warner Archive Blu-ray)/Five
Days One Summer
(1982/Ladd Company/Warner Archive DVD)/I,
Anna
(2012/Embargo/Kimstim DVD)
Picture:
B/B/C+/C+ Sound: B-/C+/C+/C+ Extras: C/C-/C-/D Main
Programs: B-/C/C+/C+
PLEASE
NOTE:
The
Deadly
Trackers
Blu-ray and Five
Days One Summer
DVD are now only available from Warner Bros. through their Warner
Archive series and can be ordered from the link below.
Here's
a new cable telefilm based on a real-life political event and three
dramas with stakes as high...
Rick
Famuyiwa's Confirmation
(2016) takes on the serious case of Anita Hill (Kerry Washington)
risking her reputation and career to accuse (future Justice) Clarence
Thomas (Wendell Pierce, portraying him well with dignity, et al) of
sexually harassing her, leading to an unprecedented media circus so
vile, that only an Andy Warhol film that showed it non-stop for
several weeks could begin to give one the impression of how insane it
was. Still, this HBO cable telefilm manages to communicate a nice
chunk of the madness in its 128 minutes. The accusation was a
problem enough for those who wanted Thomas in, but the
racially-tinged sexist backlash and media's complacency to doubt Hill
off the bat became the bigger issue.
The
film shows how she and pother witnesses where smeared and railroaded
instead of merely dealing with the accusation and disproving it
legitimately (they could not, thus Thomas was guilty of something,
reenforced by the other women who soon spoke out after Hill) so it
became totally politicized and still affects us to this day (the
demonization of Hillary Clinton no matter what, women still being
assaulted on college campuses and ignored or worse) in a situation
that needs to change soon and is long overdue for change. No matter
the outcome of the Hill/Thomas Hearings, it became a watershed for
women in politics, et al, and this film (despite a few down points)
spells it all out well enough. It has my largest recommendation of
all the entries on this list. Greg Kinnear is good as a Joe Biden in
flux and Jennifer Hudson also has a brief-but-important turn here.
Extras
include Digital HD Ultraviolet Copy for PC, PC portable and other
cyber iTunes capable devices, while the Blu-ray adds Character Spots
and interview clips with Washington and Pierce.
Originally
a Sam Fuller film, The
Deadly Trackers
(1973) is a revenge western taken over by Barry Shear and is pretty
brutal, even by today's standards as these films became most graphic
(Vietnam was part of that) with Richard Harris as a sheriff out to
stop a tough criminal (a very rough-looking Rod Taylor) who is about
to be captured when he kidnaps Harris's son, then kills him and his
wife! From there, Harris is on the hunt, but it will not be easy
with plenty of twists and turns.
Unfortunately,
the film is very uneven thanks to Fuller's loss, editing is awkward,
pacing not good and the great acting suddenly becomes shrill in the
mess, the hate obvious and the result is 105 minutes of strained
cinema that looses its impact as it can never build itself up to
anything. The opening and closing credits are presented in a
sepia-like cloth as if to make sure we know this is supposed to be in
the past, but it seems slapped together and desperate. It also
contradicts the plot, graphicness and you can tell something possibly
interesting was lost in the process, like a character study instead
of a bloodfest.
Warner
Archive has issued it on Blu-ray for posterity and we guess any of
Fuller's work on the film (he co-wrote this with Lucas Heller, but
only Heller get credit now) is either lot or stuck in a legal
entanglement, but it should be in print and looks as restored as it
is likely ever going to be.Sad this did not work out and Fuller could
not complete the film.
An
Original Theatrical Trailer is the only extra.
Fred
Zinneman's Five
Days One Summer
(1982) is the journeyman director's last film, with Sean Connery
dating below his age for sure, but she (Betsy Brantley) is pretending
to be his wife when she should not be and it is even more
complicated. We also learn the relationship may be an abusive one
with Connery's character not a nice guy, but this is all challenged
when they meet a mountain climbing guide (Lambert Wilson) who she
likes and they start to have their own affair.
Cheers
to The Ladd Company for making a film of such challenging material
and all for taking the risks to be in such a film, and though
Zinneman could still direct actors well in what would be his last
feature film, it does not add up to what it could or should have
despite some solid moments throughout. Connery was in an odd period
before his comeback started to come about (starting with Ladd having
him be in the lead for Peter Hyams' underrated Outland,
then onto Never
Say Never Again
and The
Untouchables)
and it is definitely worth a look just the same. Anna Massey rounds
out a decent supporting cast and the locales are a plus.
An
Original Theatrical Trailer is sadly the only extra.
Barnaby
Southcombe's I,
Anna
(2012) has
the great Charlotte Rampling in the title role, a woman seeming
shocked at a brutal murder in an apartment building which will be
blamed on a young man, but she may know more about what really
happened than she is saying. Enter the ever-capable Gabriel Byrne as
a police investigator who meets her and sees something is amiss in an
unusual way. Thus, this becomes a mystery, psychological thriller,
character study and showcases the talents of two great
internationally-known actors who deserve a bit more attention.
The
script still has some issues and makes the film uneven at times, but
there is more than enough here to give it a look.
There
are unfortunately no extras.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer on Confirmation
is a solid digital HD shoot, while the 1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High
Definition image transfer on Tracker
can show the age of the materials used, but this is far superior a
transfer to all previous releases of the film and was originally
issued in 35mm
dye-transfer, three-strip Technicolor prints that this disc shows
often to good effect. The two tie as our best performers here and
either offer little to complain about.
As
for the DVDs, the anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image on Summer
and anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image on Anna
(one of the last films shot on Fuji 35mm film camera negative) may
also have some flaws, but tie for second place and look as good as
expected for that format, so presentations here are up to what one
would like.
Then
there is the sound, the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix on
Confirmation
can be quiet at times and offers some monophonic audio, but is as
well mixed and presented as expected and is easily the best performer
sonically here. The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono lossless mix
on Trackers
sadly shows the age of the audio source, though if original audio
stems exist somewhere, could this sound a bit better. Hard to tell,
but it is so compressed and aged that the lossy Dolby Digital 2.0
Mono on Summer
and lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 on Anna
can more than compete, but I expected a little more out of Anna,
so those silences hurt it a bit too.
To
order either of the Warner Archive releases, The
Deadly
Trackers
Blu-ray and Five
Days One Summer
DVD, go to this link for them and many more great web-exclusive
releases at:
https://www.warnerarchive.com/
-
Nicholas Sheffo