FORCE 10 FROM NAVARONE
(Guy Hamilton, 1978)
Release date: 29 June 2020
Limited Edition Blu-ray (UK Blu-ray premiere)
Robert Shaw (Young Winston), Harrison Ford (Raiders of the Lost Ark), Barbara Bach (Short Night of the Glass Dolls) and Edward Fox (The Day of the Jackal) star alongside Carl Weathers (Rocky), Richard Kiel (Moonraker) and Franco Nero (Django) in this star-studded high adventure. Directed with an assured hand by Bond veteran Guy Hamilton (Battle of Britain), this rip-roaring adaptation of Alistair MacLean’s follow-up to the classic The Guns of Navarone sees the elite cadre of commandos embark on a secret mission deep in the Yugoslavian wilderness, during the darkest days of World War II.
INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 2 x BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
• High Definition remasters
• The extended, 126-minute European version with 5.1 surround, stereo and mono audio options
• Box-set exclusive presentation of the alternative, 118-minute original theatrical cut with original mono audio
• Audio commentary on the extended version with film historians Steve Mitchell and Steven Jay Rubin (2020)
• The BEHP Interview with Ron Goodwin (1999): archival video recording, made as part of the British Entertainment History Project, featuring the celebrated composer in conversation with Linda Wood
• Tour de Force (2020): actor Angus MacInnes recalls his early film role
• From Žabljak with Love (2020): the making of Force 10 from Navarone as told by construction manager Terry Apsey, stuntman Jim Dowdall, grip Dennis Fraser, chief hairdresser Colin Jamison, and chief make-up artist Peter Robb-King
• Christopher Challis: A Life Behind the Lens (2020): a tribute to the acclaimed cinematographer, featuring interviews with fellow directors of photography and camera crew Dennis Fraser, Oswald Morris, John Palmer and Sidney Samuelson, as well as archival footage of Challis, including previously unseen material
• A Show of Force (2020): a look at the different versions of Force 10 from Navarone
• Super 8 version: cut-down home cinema presentation
• Two original theatrical trailers
• TV Spot
• Image gallery: publicity and promotional material
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with a new essay by Sheldon Hall, archival production reports including interviews with cast and crew members, an interview with actor Robert Shaw, recollections of the film’s Yugoslavia shoot excerpted from the memoirs of cinematographer Christopher Challis and screenwriter George MacDonald Fraser, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits
• Limited edition exclusive set of five replica production stills
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies
• All details subject to change
#PHILTD193
BBFC cert: 15
REGION B
EAN: 5060697920581
I assume so, although this is always a tricky question to answer because unless Kino (or whoever) actually provides the serial number of the transfer they used, it's impossible to be certain.
I was only asking since the KL disc is touted as having a brand-new 2K master, whereas the Indicator disc states a HD remaster. Either way, I'll def be getting the Indicator blu just for all the extras and the nice looking slipcover.
I watched this right after Come and See and I have to say, considering the two take place in the same-ish area and involve partisans and Nazis burning shit, it was a wild trip (with severe whiplash). Interesting (unintentional) double bill to say the least.
I coincidentally saw 'Come and See' right after I'd finished reading 'Everything is Illuminated' and I think I spent the next three weeks curled up in a horrified, twee ball.
yoloswegmaster wrote: Sat Jun 13, 2020 2:11 pm
I was only asking since the KL disc is touted as having a brand-new 2K master, whereas the Indicator disc states a HD remaster. Either way, I'll def be getting the Indicator blu just for all the extras and the nice looking slipcover.
I haven't seen Kino's so can't compare, but it doesn't look like a new one (though it still looks very good!) and the notes indicate it's a high-def master they received from Sony, which usually suggests it's an older one. I'm not sure where Kino got there's from, though MGM has the rights to the film in the States.
Note that the extended cut is actually 126 minutes, not 120, and that the commentary was originally recorded for the Kino Lorber edition, so it's neither "brand new" nor "exclusive". (It is, however, very good, and there was clearly little point in reinventing the wheel.)
yoloswegmaster wrote: Sat Jun 13, 2020 2:11 pm
I was only asking since the KL disc is touted as having a brand-new 2K master, whereas the Indicator disc states a HD remaster. Either way, I'll def be getting the Indicator blu just for all the extras and the nice looking slipcover.
I haven't seen Kino's so can't compare, but it doesn't look like a new one (though it still looks very good!) and the notes indicate it's a high-def master they received from Sony, which usually suggests it's an older one. I'm not sure where Kino got there's from, though MGM has the rights to the film in the States.
Svet is claiming that it's been sourced from a 2K remaster. :-k :-k :-k
My guess is that he supposed these are the same than the Kino disc that supposedly comes from a new 2k remaster. In practice, the Indicator discs didnt like recent 2k remasters to me.
Is it just me or is the Indicator image downright purple-tinted? I admit to not knowing how this looked on film, but it seems like an odd color palette.
It's just dat good ol' DVD-era magenta push. Force 10 simply has it in a quite intense fashion, but you can find this magenta bias on many BDs re-using pre-existing studio HD masters, with Universal and MGM's ones being usually the worst offenders in this regard.
Not being a dad, I guess I was doomed to not like this, but I thought this was only moderately entertaining but highly ridiculous. Young Harrison Ford cannot act and, to be fair, is given nothing to act, and Edward Fox's suitcase of explosives becomes a magic hat with which to pull plot convenience rabbits out of. I think the WWII action film Gregory Peck and David Niven made after being iced out of their parts for this sequel to Guns of Navarone, 1980's the Sea Wolves, was more enjoyable and showed up this flashier but completely unlikely and predictable actioner. They definitely had the last laugh on this!
I find it interesting that the analysis/cut comparison extra uses Kino's remaster for the Extended Version footage. If Indicator had access to Kino's master, was there a reason why it wasn't used for the Extended Version main feature?
