Tunes of Glory Blu-ray - Alec Guinness

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Ronald Neame
UK 1960

In Ronald Neame’s Tunes of Glory, the incomparable Alec Guinness plays Jock Sinclair—a whiskey-drinking, up-by-the-bootstraps commanding officer of a peacetime Scottish battalion. A lifetime military man, Sinclair expects respect and loyalty from his men. But when Basil Barrow (John Mills)—an educated, by-the-book scion of a military family—enters the scene as Sinclair’s replacement, the two men engage in a fierce struggle for control of both the battalion and the hearts and minds of its men. Based on the novel by James Kennaway and featuring flawless performances by Guinness and Mills, Tunes of Glory uses the rigid stratification of military life to comment on the institutional contradictions and class hierarchies of English society, making for an unexpectedly moving drama.

***

Two excellent actors shine in powerful roles in this drama by Ronald Neame that pits one Scottish army colonel against another. Alec Guinness is Lt. Col. Jock Sinclair, a man who temporarily takes over command of a regiment until his replacement, Col. Basil Barrow (John Mills) arrives. Sinclair comes from the lower echelons of the social order but was at least able to work himself up the echelons in the military hierarchy. He is fairly well-liked though still a little rough around the edges for some. When Barrow takes over, the two men clash almost at once. Barrow is from the upper crust, went to all the "right" schools, and believes in discipline and then a little more discipline, as well as efficient and proper bureaucratic processes. The differences between the two men threaten to rupture the unity of the regiment, especially after Sinclair assaults a soldier he finds in the company of his daughter. Barrow opts to report his behavior, leading to a climactic series of events.

Excerpt from B+N located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: September 4th, 1960 (Venice Film Festival)

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Comparison:

Criterion - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

Box Cover		Also on 4K-Restored DVD from Criterion:
Distribution	Criterion Collection - Spine # 225 - Region 0 - NTSC	Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:47:00	1:47:36.032
Video	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 7.32 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.66:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 44,707,160,657 bytes Feature: 32,311,910,400 bytes Video Bitrate: 35.87 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital mono)	LPCM Audio English 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit
Subtitles	English, None	English (SDH), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.66:1 Edition Details: • New video interview with director Ronald Neame (23:09) • Exclusive new audio interview with actor Sir John Mills • Video interview with Sir Alec Guinness (15:21) • Original theatrical trailer (3:01) • 8-page liner notes with essay by acclaimed film critic and historian Robert Murphy DVD Release Date: February 17th, 2004 Keep Case Chapters: 19	Release Information: Studio: Criterion 1.66:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 44,707,160,657 bytes Feature: 32,311,910,400 bytes Video Bitrate: 35.87 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Video interview with director Ronald Neame (23:23) • Exclusive audio interview with actor Sir John Mills (14:27) • Video interview with Sir Alec Guinness (15:22) • Original theatrical trailer (3:01) • 8-page liner notes with essay by acclaimed film critic and historian Robert Murphy Blu-ray Release Date: December 4th, 2019 Transparent Blu-ray Case Chapters 18

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Criterion Blu-ray (November 2019): Criterion have transferred Ronald Neame's Tunes of Glory to Blu-ray. It is from a new 4K digital restoration; "Tunes of Glory (1960) was restored in 2018 by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Film Archive and The Film Foundation in collaboration with Janus Films and The Museum of Modern Art. Restoration funding provided by George Lucas Family Foundation. The 35mm Eastman Color original camera negative and 35mm optical track positive are the sources of this digital restoration. 4K Scanning and Image Restoration by FotoKem Audio Restoration by Audio Mechanics." It shifts quite dramatically from the weak SD but never looks crisp or glossy maintaining the film's grit and grain textures to the significantly higher degree offered by the HD resolution. There is an inherent softness and lack of depth that can give the perception of losing detail - it looks far more film-like in-motion. It is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate - I do see that it is slightly cropped on both side edges of the frame as compared to the old DVD. Overall the digital presentation gains significantly on the 4K restored Blu-ray.

On their Blu-ray, Criterion use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. It is also an advancement in the film's audio and score by Malcolm Arnold (The Holly and the Ivy, No Highway in the Sky. The Bridge On the River Kwai, Island in the Sun, Stolen Face, Hobson's Choice) as well as some traditional music like The Skye Boat Song, Scotland the Brave, A Gordon for Me, The Duke of Perth, and The Flowers of the Forest. The sound produced is flat but has a subtle depth. Criterion offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Criterion Blu-ray has the same extras as their DVD from 2004 (15-years ago!); the 24-minute video interview with director Ronald Neame, 1/4 hour audio interview with actor Sir John Mills and the similar length video interview with Sir Alec Guinness - these are all good! - plus a theatrical trailer and the same liner notes with essay by acclaimed film critic and historian Robert Murphy. It's a shame there were no new supplements or a new commentary the film is deserved.

Absolutely brilliant characterizations portrayed in Tunes of Glory. Two magnificent actors at the peak of their craft, I read that Alfred Hitchcock has stated that Tunes of Glory is his own favorite film. It always seems to be unjustly forgotten and I'm so glad it received a 4K-restoration and it's a viewing experience I encourage for everyone.