Invincible Blu-ray

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

Directed by Werner Herzog
United Kingdom / Germany / Ireland / United States 2001

Invincible was the first dramatic work by Werner Herzog in a decade. He assembled a typically eclectic cast – including Tim Roth (Meantime), Udo Kier (Exposé) and two-time World’s Strongest Man Jouko Ahola – and blended the lives of three equally eclectic real-life figures – Jewish strongman Zishe Breitbart, Austrian clairvoyant Erik Jan Hanussen, and German chief of police Count Wolf-Heinrich von Helldorff – to blend fact and fiction in his typically idiosyncratic way.

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Set in the early 1930s, "Invincible" chronicles the life of Zishe Breitbart (Ahola), a Jewish blacksmith's son who travels from Poland to Germany to make his name as a strongman. Teaming up with legendary mesmerist Hanussen (Roth), Zishe becomes an overnight sensation. But Hitler's ascent to power convinces him that his true calling is to warn his people of the terrible danger facing them.

Hanussen - in reality a Czechoslovakian Jew who was arrested and executed once his true identity was revealed - is a fascinating figure, but his life was far better covered by István Szabó in his 1988 biopic. And while Tim Roth's suitably hypnotic portrayal stands comparison with Klaus Maria Brandauer's, his role here is frustratingly peripheral.

Excerpt from BBC located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: September 3rd, 2001 (Venice Film Festival)

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Review: Indicator - Region 'B' - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: or Buy directly from Indicator: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Indicator - Region 'B' - Blu-ray
Runtime	2:12:57.970
Video	1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,540,809,522 bytes Feature: 42,502,342,656 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.10 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1976 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1976 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) DUB: LPCM Audio English 2304 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit DTS-HD Master Audio German 1804 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1804 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) Commentary: Dolby Digital Audio German 112 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 112 kbps / DN -30dB
Subtitles	English (SDH for English track), English for German track, English for commentary, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Indicator 1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,540,809,522 bytes Feature: 42,502,342,656 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.10 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Audio commentary with writer-director Werner Herzog, in German with optional, newly translated English subtitles (2002) • The Road to ‘Invincible’ (2021, 26:22): cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger discusses his long-time collaboration with Herzog and the making of Invincible • Archival Interview with Peter Zeitlinger (2001, 12:55): the cinematographer filmed on location by stills photographer Beat Presser • Location Footage (2001, 2:53): previously unseen footage recorded by Presser • Three early short films by Zeitlinger: Katharina Blum (1978, 1:56), Experiment Rayner’s Garden (1978, 1:57) and Geburtstag (1979, 7:41) • Original UK theatrical trailer (2:16) • Original German theatrical trailer (2:10) • Original US theatrical trailer (2:12) • Image gallery: publicity and promotional material • Limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay by Jason Wood, Werner Herzog on Invincible, an archival interview with actor Tim Roth, an account of the life and career of strongman Siegmund Breitbart, an overview of contemporary critical responses, Peter Zeitlinger on his early short films, and film credits Blu-ray Release Date: July 26th, 2021 Transparent Blu-ray Case Chapters 9

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Indicator Blu-ray (July 2021): Indicator have transferred Werner Herzog's Invincible to Blu-ray. It is cited as being a "new 2K restoration with both its English and German soundtracks". The 1080P has some early teal/green leaning in the Eastern Poland scenes but that doesn't persist. It looks quite fetching on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate - strong black levels, rich, passive, colors (grays) and very pleasing grain texture. The performance sequences look beautiful - actually the majority of the film is of the upper tier of digital quality - exceptional contrast, true diffused colors and a pleasing film-like HD appearance. It is commiserate with Indicator penchant for exceptionally authentic video quality.

NOTE: We have added 56 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Indicator use a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround track (24-bit) in the original English language with an optional German DUB in lossless 2.0 channel stereo. Invincible has few aggressive moments - lots of separated sound (crowds) that come through discreetly with effects less-frequent transferring to the rear channels. It has a wonderful score by the team of Hans Zimmer (Regarding Henry The Wind, 12 Years a Slave, The Thin Red Line, Broadcast News, Angels and Demons etc.) and Klaus Badelt (The Recruit, Point Blank, Rescue Dawn, Dragon Hunters, Constantine). This this marks an early effort of Badelt into feature films. He would collaborate with Herzog many more times in the future director's work. Indicator offer optional English (SDH) subtitles for the English, for the translated German and for the director's commentary (in German) on their Region 'B' Blu-ray.

The Indicator Blu-ray is, typically, stacked to the gills (6 Gig worth.) It offers a the previous 2002 commentary by writer-director Werner Herzog, in German with optional, newly translated English subtitles. He explains plenty of production details and the historical story of real-life figure Zishe Breitbart (a.k.a. Siegmund Breitbart.) I always enjoy director's commentaries as they can relate information about the final project - its weaknesses and effectively exported themes that no crew or critic might be cognoscente. The Road to ‘Invincible’ is a new (2021) video piece with cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger discussing his long-time collaboration with Herzog and the making of Invincible. It runs over 26-minutes. There is also an archival Interview with Zeitlinger from 2001, and for over a dozen-minutes the cinematographer filmed on location by stills photographer Beat Presser. There is some 2001 location footage previously unseen as recorded by Presser. I enjoyed the inclusion of three unusual early short films by Zeitlinger: Katharina Blum, Experiment Rayner’s Garden both from 1978 and Geburtstag - a lightly longer piece from 1979. There are three original trailers; UK, German and US. As with all Indicator releases there is an image gallery of publicity and promotional material and the package contains a limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay by Jason Wood, Werner Herzog on Invincible, an archival interview with actor Tim Roth, an account of the life and career of strongman Siegmund Breitbart, an overview of contemporary critical responses, Peter Zeitlinger on his early short films, and film credits. It is limited edition of 3,000 copies.

The fascinating premise carries Werner Herzog's Invincible a long way. I was riveted not knowing what to expect but still undecided abut its cinematic value. I'll refer to Roger Ebert's comments; "Watching Invincible was a singular experience for me, because it reminded me of the fundamental power that the cinema had for us when we were children. The film exercises the power that fable has for the believing." I appreciated the vague, un-spoken, background details - the mystery - and the enigmatic realization. The Indicator Blu-ray is at their unsurpassed quality levels - an effective a/v transfer of a unique, engrossing film experience - loaded with revealing extras. Herzog fans and curious cinephiles will want this to investigate this oddity in his oeuvre.