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Review
Archives
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Today's
Date is:
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Patton
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Reviewed
by: |
Lawrance
M. Bernabo |
| Genre: |
War/Drama
|
| Video: |
Widescreen
anamorphic format 2.35:1, enhanced for 16x9 TVs. |
| Audio: |
5.1 Surround,
Dolby Digital Surround 2.0, French 2.0 Mono |
| Language: |
English,
French |
| Subtitle: |
English
& Spanish (Note: no translation of German dialogue sections
with Spanish subtitles) |
| Length: |
170
Minutes |
| Rating: |
PG
(M) |
| Release
Date: |
11-2-99
|
| Studio: |
20th
Century Fox |
| Commentary:
|
No.
But there is Audio essay on the historical Patton by biographer
Charles M. Province, Documentaries: "The Making of Patton: A
Tribute to Franklin J. Schaffner" (1977), 50 minutes. |
| Documentaries:
|
None |
| Featurettes:
|
None |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
None |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
Trailers
for "Patton," "Tora, Tora, Tora" and "The Longest Day." |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
None |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
None |
| Cast
and Crew: |
George C.
Scott (Gen. George S. Patton, Jr.), Karl Malden (Gen. Omar N.
Bradley), Michael Bates (Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery),
Ed Binns (Major General Walter Bedell Smith), Richard Muench
(Colonel General Alfred Jodl), Siegfried Rauch (Captain Oskar
Steiger), Karl Michael Vogler (Field Marshal Erwin Rommel),
Tim Considine (Slapped Soldier). |
| Screenplay
by: |
Francis Ford
Coppola and Edmund H. North (based on the books "Patton: Ordeal
and Triumph" by Ladislas Farago and "A Soldier's Story" by Omar
N. Bradley. |
| Produced
by: |
Frank Caffey and Frank
McCarthy |
| Directed
By: |
Franklin
J. Schaeffner |
| Music: |
Jerry Goldsmith. |
| The
Review: |
"Patton"
offers one of the great marriages of actor and role with George
C. Scott's riveting portrayal of the notorious American tank
commander. As a film biography "Patton" forgoes the rise of
the celebrated general and merely hints at his ironic death
because of injuries suffered in a traffic accident, focuses
entirely on his military career commanding troops in North Africa,
Sicily and France during World War II. The strength of the script
by Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North, as well as of Scott's
performance, is that the paradoxes of Patton are completely
embraced. One minute the man kneels in prayer by the bedside
of a horribly wounded soldier one minute and the next he slaps
another solider at the same hospital and threatens to shoot
him for being a coward. Not even Patton's loyal cadre of staff
officers can keep him from shooting off his mouth every time
there are reporters around, but then neither German Field Marshall
Rommel or English Field Marshall Montgomery can beat him on
the battlefield. Viewers find themselves identifying with the
German captain who is the intelligence expert on Patton and
arguably the only person in the film who really understands
or respects the American general. One of the things that makes
"Patton" so admirable as a film is the way it presents such
a flawed hero, at a time when Americans were watching the Vietnam
War on their televisions and beginning to realize that there
might be something wrong with the glorification of war. The
more I watch "Patton," the more I am very impressed with the
battle sequences of director Franklin J. Schaffner ("Planet
of the Apes," "Pappillon"), which were staged live and full-scale
without special effects of miniatures. Schaffner provides not
just the large spectacle of a desert tank battle, but smaller
and equally memorable moments, such as a soldier falling dead
in the snow. Karl Malden's performance as Bradley is just as
solid as Scott's, presenting a man whose personality is the
complete antithesis of Patton. We know that Bradley's judgments
of Patton are correct, but, damn, the general gets things done
on the battlefield. For kids today the parallel would be to
the basketball superstar who rules the world on the court but
who cannot keep out of trouble anytime he is not playing the
game. In terms of film history "Patton" marks the emergence
of a more realistic type of war movie. In 1971 "Patton" received
ten Academy Awards nominations and won seven major awards: Best
Picture, Best Actor (Scott refused to accept the honor), Best
Director, Best Story and Screenplay, Best Art Direction/Set
Decoration, Best Sound, and Best Film Editing. Its other three
nominations were: Best Cinematography, Best Original Score,
and Best Special Visual Effects |
| Image
and Sound |
This DVD
is mastered in THX, but "Patton" is still a 30 year old film
and there are some flecks and specks if you really want to look
for them. But certainly there is nothing to distract you while
viewing the film. The image is certainly superior to what is
available on video although the colors might be a bit muted
and faded at times. Originally filmed in a non-anamorphic 70mm
widescreen process known as Dimension 150, the print is presented
with a 2.35:1 aspect ration with accommodation for enhanced
16:9 playback. In terms of audio you will find that the 5.1
Dolby Digital track is directed more towards forward and center,
but then again you have to remember when this film was originally
made. Certain Jerry Goldsmith's score comes through loud and
clear on the audio and that is certainly a plus. |
| The
Extras |
The second
disc features the 1997 50-minute retrospective documentary,
"The Making of Patton: A Tribute to Franklin J. Schaffner."
Recent interviews with cinematographer Fred Koenkamp, executive
producer Richard Zanuck, composer Jerry Goldsmith and Oliver
Stone (who explains how "Patton" was responsible for the deaths
of millions of Cambodians) are blended with audio interviews
from 1970 with director Schaffner, producer Frank McCarthy and
actor George C. Scott. Clips from the film are combined with
newsreel footage of Patton and publicity stills from the production.
The end result is a healthy respect for Schaffner's efforts
in putting together a film that had almost 80 locations and
which did not use a single process shot. You have to wonder
how they would try making "Patton" in today's Hollywood. Note:
The documentary is not captioned. |
| Commentary |
The audio
commentary on the first disc is really more of an essay on Patton
by Charles M. Province, the author of the book "The Unknown
Patton" and founder/president of the General George S. Patton,
Jr. Historical Society. Speaking for over an hour, Province
tells all about the Patton's equally fascinating life before
World War II, although his lecture is totally independent of
what is happening on screen. Province's insights in the infamous
incident of Patton slapping soldiers for cowardice are particularly
interesting. Obviously a tremendous supporter of Patton, Province
does gloss over the man's shortcomings, but his lecture is certainly
fascinating. I am disappointed that at some point Province does
not talk more specifically about the film's depiction of his
hero. On the second disc Jerry Goldsmith's Oscar nominated musical
score is presented in stereo. He might not have won an Oscar,
but few scores are as memorable as this one. This runs approximately
42 minutes and includes numerous alternate takes of the trumpet
fanfare. The score is followed bya series of radio ads for the
movie: the first one talks about how General Patton is "loved"
by "the ladies," and then offers choice quotes from female critics
such as Judith Crist. Unfortunately, there is no way of getting
to particular tracks or the radio spots without just fast-forwarding |
| Final
Words: |
You certainly
have to appreciate what Fox has put together here: an anamorphic
transfer and extra content, all for a list price of $29.98,
which I am sure you can all beat out in the real world. This
is a "Special Edition" DVD priced as a regular DVD, which might
not impress people who do not remember World War II, let alone
this Oscar winning film, but which will have meaning for those
of us who remember being mesmerized by George C. Scott giving
that profanity laced opening speech standing in front of that
giant American flag. Final Note: Scott returned to the role
in "The Last Days of Patton," a 1986 TV-movie. |
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