Search DVDBeaver |
S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
directed
by Cy Endfield
U.S. 1964
No
matter its shortcomings, it is difficult to discredit a film that pulls off an
entire second half of nonstop, exciting action in a way that isn’t completely
mind-numbing. Zulu’s scenes of war move with intelligence and grace, and its
battle sequences are true sights to behold. It’s when the characters open their
mouths and actually try to speak real dialogue that the movie deflates: The
entire first half is a big, meandering mess of clichés and racial stereotypes.
But those battle sequences—wow. Excerpt from danel_the_tinman at the Film as Art website located HERE |
Posters
Theatrical Premiere - January 22nd, 1964 - U.K.
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Paramount - Region 2/4 - PAL vs. Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC vs. MGM - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount Region 0 Blu-ray |
Big thanks to Roland Lataille for the MGM Screen Caps! Thanks Roland !
and to Ole of DVDBasen for the PAL Screen Caps!
and to Mark Wilson for all of the Goodtimes (and Laserdisc) screen captures!
(Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP LEFT vs. Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP RIGHT)
(Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM LEFT vs. MGM - Region 1 - NTSC -
BOTTOM MIDDLE) vs. Paramount - Region 0 - Blu-ray - BOTTOM RIGHT)DVD Box Covers |
|
|
|
|
|
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
|
Bitrate:
Goodtimes
|
|
Bitrate:
Paramount R2/4
|
|
Bitrate:
Front Row
|
|
Bitrate:
MGM |
|
Bitrate:
Blu-ray |
|
Comments: |
NOTE:
The below
Blu-ray
captures were ripped directly from the
Blu-ray
disc. ADDITION: Paramount Blu-ray - December 08': This disc is region 0 and will play on Blu-ray machines around the entire world without any region-locking encumbrances. Unreal. This comparison may be one of the 'poster boys' for the Blu-ray format. Although the MGM DVD from 2003 was vastly ahead of the other standard definition transfers - the hi-def Blu-ray blows all of them right out of the water. Aside from the expected colors (see deep rich reds) and detail being abundantly superior this new Paramount disc shows incredible depth. It is framed in around 2.25:1 and is marginally cropped beside the MGM but aside from that the Blu-ray is ridiculously improved. The disc is approaching 40 Gig with the feature being over 35 Gig. The bitrate is 35.1 - almost 5 times that of the competent MGM DVD. Wow - this image quality is one of the most stunning of the year compounded by the fact the film is almost 45 years old. Any old fans of this classic should get the kids in front of their 60 inch TV stands to introduce them to this incredible film finally available on Blu-ray. Audio sounds clean but is still only a 2.0 track (original?) and there are optional English or English (SDH) subtitles available. Extras duplicate the Paramount PAL release from 2002 with the excellent commentary and extensive featurette (divided into sections) - playable on my Region 'A' machine. Certainly this should receive some attention in our year-end poll. A highly memorable film looking, digitally, far better than ever before. Absolutely recommended! - Gary W. Tooze***
DVD comparisons: The Goodtimes Region 0 version of Zulu is cropped similarly to the Front Row Entertainment Region 0. The Goodtimes contrast has been boosted and the image is only slightly sharper than the very hazy Front Row DVD. Both are extremely poor and not worth owning even if given as a present. The Paramount Region 2 - PAL is only slightly behind the new MGM Region 1 edition, but has a wonderful commentary and two "Making of" documentaries. It is slightly cropped, most noticeably on the left edge. The colors of the 2 editions are very similar with the PAL version being marginally saturated. For the film get the MGM, but if you are a big fan of the film then you may want to also own the Region 2/4 for the extensive extras. Anyway, it is nice to have options. Previous: I don't think that Front Row Entertainment is in business any longer... well, at least the stated website URL on their DVD covers is no longer functioning.... and probably with good reason. The Front Row disc is pretty badly cropped almost exclusively on the sides. The MGM has a solid image, detailed with good colors and it adheres to the original aspect ratio. There really isn't much of a comparison to make, but I will state that the MGM Region 1 DVD is really bare bones with only a trailer as an extra. It has the original Mono soundtrack which is clear. Beside the Front Row disc the MGM looks stupendous, but I do see a shade of edge enhancement but it appears to be the best DVD in Region 1 for this film at the present time. - Gary W. Tooze |
Distribution |
Goodtimes R0 - NTSC Region 0 - NTSC |
Paramount
Region 2/4 - PAL |
Runtime | 2:17:30 | 2:12:39 (4% PAL speedup) |
Video |
2.13:1 Cropped |
2.30:1
Slightly cropped 16X9 enhanced |
Audio | English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)(DD2.0 Surround), Italian (DD2.0 Stereo) French and Spanish (DD1.0 Mono) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) |
Subtitles | None | English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hebrew, Greek, Croatian, Slovenian and none. |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Gootimes
Aspect Ratio: DVD
Release Date: ?
Chapters 18
|
Release Information: Studio: Paramount (Australia)
Aspect Ratio:
DVD
Release Date: Dec 2002 Chapters 16 |
Distribution |
Front Row Entertainment Region 0 - NTSC |
MGM
Region 1 - NTSC |
Paramount
Region 0 - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 2:18:35 | 2:18:05 | 2:18:24.296 |
Video |
2.12:1 Cropped |
2.35:1
Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced |
2.25:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Feature: 35,302,712,064 bytes Disc Size: 38,676,618,620 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Average Bitrate: 34.01 Mbps |
Audio | English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
Dolby Digital Audio English 448 kbps 2.0 /
48 kHz / 448 kbps |
Subtitles | None | English, Spanish, French and none | English, English (SDH) and none |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Front Row Entertainment
Aspect Ratio: DVD
Release Date: October 20, 1998
Chapters 10
|
Release Information: Studio: M G M, Inc
Aspect Ratio:
DVD
Release Date: May 20, 2003 Chapters 24 |
Release Information:
Aspect Ratio: 2.25:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Feature: 35,302,712,064 bytes Disc Size: 38,676,618,620 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Average Bitrate: 34.01 Mbps Edition Details: • Commentary with Robert Porter and film historian Sheldon Hall • “The Music of Zulu” • “Zulu: Remembering an Epic” • “The Making of Zulu: Role of Honor” • “The Making of Zulu:…Snappeth the Spear in Sunder” • Theatrical trailer
Blu-ray
Release Date: November 3rd, 2008 Chapters 15 |
DVD Menus
(Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs.
Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC -
RIGHT)
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. MGM - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Screen Captures
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
1) Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP2) Paramount - Region 2/4 - PAL - 2nd 3) Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - 3rd 4) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC - 4th 5) Paramount (UK) - Region 0 - Blu-ray - BOTTOM |
|
Criterion Laserdisc capture:
1) Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP2) Paramount - Region 2/4 - PAL - 2nd 3) Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - 3rd 4) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC - 4th 5) Paramount (UK) - Region 0 - Blu-ray - BOTTOM
|
|
1) Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP2) Paramount - Region 2/4 - PAL - 2nd 3) Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - 3rd 4) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC - 4th 5) Paramount (UK) - Region 0 - Blu-ray - BOTTOM
|
|
1) Goodtimes - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP2) Paramount - Region 2/4 - PAL - 2nd 3) Front Row Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC - 3rd 4) MGM - Region 1 - NTSC - 4th 5) Paramount (UK) - Region 0 - Blu-ray - BOTTOM
|
|
More Blu-ray
DVD Box Covers |
|
|
|
|
|
Report Card:
Image: |
Paramount Blu-ray |
Sound: |
- |
Extras: | Paramount / Paramount Blu-ray |
Menu: | - |
DONATIONS Keep DVDBeaver alive and advertisement free:
CLICK PayPal logo to donate!
Gary Tooze
|
|