Seven Years In Tibet (Blu-ray)
Picture: B+ Sound: B Extras: D Film: C+
Heinrich
Harrier (Brad Pitt) decides to climb the Himalayas, but when WWII kicks in, he
gets diverted to a British prison camp, then escapes to Lhasa, Tibet and
eventually comes face to face with The Dalai Lama (Jamyang Jamisho Wangchuk)
and himself in Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Seven
Years In Tibet (1997), one of two big feature films at the time (Martin Scorsese’s
Kundun being the other) to deal with
Buddhism, Tibet and The Dalai Lama.
At 136
minutes, the film wants to be an epic, but Annaud simply cannot put the
ambitious effort up on screen and the screenplay by Becky Johnston dangerously
downplays the fact that Harrier was a Nazi.
When the time comes for redemption, if that is even possible, it rings
shallow and hollow. Pitt is restrained,
too much to the point that some critics said the film was more about his hair
than historic events, but it is the kind of film China is still banning ten
years later and will continue to do for years to come.
Even with
a supporting cast that includes B.D. Wong, David Thewlis and Mako, the film is
typically awkward like so many Annaud works.
Ultimately, the studio and director banked too much on Pitt as a star
instead of the great actor he can be and the result is a backhanded start
vehicle that is too jumbled to work.
The 1080p
2.35 X 1 image was shot in real anamorphic Panavision by Robert Fraisse and is
the highlight of this disc, with beautiful shots, locations and color. That this is not lesser Super 35 is a plus,
though Scorsese’s Kundun had to be
shot that way due to lighting circumstances and is actually more artistically
accomplished. Nevertheless, this has
demo quality moments and surpasses the old Superbit DVD-Video release with
ease.
The film
was originally issued as an 8-channel Sony Dynamic Digital Sound release in
theaters, but you would not know that from the Dolby Digital 5.1 track
here. The Superbit was in DTS, which was
an improvement over the Dolby, if not by much.
That is the same story with the PCM 16/48 5.1 mix here. John Williams and Yo-Yo Ma even made the
music score, but the film is quiet and limited in this mixdown more than you might
think. Still, it is a good sound mix and
with the better picture is a pleasant sit-through regular DVD could not
deliver. There are no extras.
- Nicholas Sheffo
