Jinnah Blu-ray - Christopher Lee

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

(aka "Mohammed Ali Jinnah")

Directed by Jamil Dehlavi
United Kingdom / Pakistan / India 1998

Christopher Lee (I, Monster) stars in Jinnah, an epic drama about the life of Pakistan’s founding father, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, directed by Jamil Dehlavi (Born of Fire, Immaculate Conception).

Exploring Jinnah’s journey, from political isolation in the Indian National Congress to his leadership of the Muslim League, and from his controversial fight for a Muslim homeland to the Partition of India, this ravishing and enthralling film examines the founding of Pakistan, as well as the bloody aftermath.

Co-starring Indian screen icon Shashi Kapoor (Shakespeare Wallah), and with support from James Fox (Performance), Indira Varma (Game of Thrones), Sam Dastor (The Life and Death of Peter Sellers), and Maria Aitken (A Fish Called Wanda), Jinnah features a commanding performance from Lee – one which he himself considered to be the best of his career.

***

Biography of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of modern Pakistan is told through flashbacks as his soul tries to find eternal rest. The flashbacks start in 1947 as Jinnah pleads for a separate nation for the Muslim regime, infuriating Lord Mountbatten. Mountbatten then tries to enlist Gandhi & Nehru to persuade Jinnah to stop his efforts. Gandhi sides with Jinnah, which upsets Nehru. However, Jinnah turns down the offer to become prime minister and the film takes another slide back to 1916, which reveals all of the political implications that have occurred.

Posters

Theatrical Release: September 2nd, 1998 (Montréal Film Festival, premiere)

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Review: Indicator - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Indicator - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:49:54.588
Video	1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 44,687,648,786 bytes Feature: 36,304,658,880 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.51 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 2678 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 2678 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) LPCM Audio English 2304 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit LPCM Audio Urdu 2304 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit
Subtitles	English (SDH), English (Urdu translated), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Indicator 1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 44,687,648,786 bytes Feature: 36,304,658,880 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.51 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Dare to Dream (1997/2023, 37:24): insightful documentary about the making of the film, featuring interviews with Dehlavi, actors Christopher Lee, Shashi Kapoor and Maria Aitken, and director of photography Nic Knowland • Original theatrical trailer (2:53) • Image gallery: original location photography Limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay on the film’s troubled production by cinema expert and film festival programmer Éric Peretti, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits Blu-ray Release Date: January 22nd, 2024 Transparent Blu-ray Case Chapters 12

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Indicator Blu-ray (January 2024): Indicator have transferred Jamil Dehlavi's Jinnah to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "High Definition remaster, newly regraded under the supervision of director Jamil Dehlavi". Eureka came out with a bare-bones Blu-ray of Jinnah in 2016, and we reviewed it HERE. We've compared a couple of captures below. The new Indicator has superior contrast, richer, deeper colors and looks superior. Flesh tones appear more realistic and the overall 1080P is a very adept, clean, consistent transfer with pleasing textures.

NOTE: We have added 50 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Indicator give the options of a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround bump, linear PCM two channel both in the original English or an Urdu DUB'ed language track. Jinnah has separations in the crowd noise / cheering but the film is largely dialogue-driven. The score is credited to Nigel Clarke and Michael Csányi-Wills (both their first feature) also the film has Salman Ahmad's "Azadi" sung by Ali Azmat + Samina Ahmed plus the chanting of "Pakistan Zindabad". The audio transfer is clean and well-balanced. Indicator offer optional English (SDH) subtitles or English translated (for the Urdu) on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Indicator Blu-ray offers Dare to Dream. This is Kristen Morton's 37-minute documentary about the making of the film, featuring interviews with Dehlavi, actors Christopher Lee, Shashi Kapoor and Maria Aitken, and director of photography Nic Knowland. The documentary discusses the the trials and tribulations faced by a British production team. There is an original theatrical trailer and an image gallery of original location photography. The package has a limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay on the film’s troubled production by cinema expert and film festival programmer Éric Peretti, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits.

Jamil Dehlavi's Jinnah is a remarkable bio-pic. Christopher Lee has stated that Jinnah was the most important film he ever made, and he considers it his best performance. While it received huge response in Pakistan, Lee was disappointed it did not get a wider English theatrical releases. Jinnah won many international awards. Professor Stanley Wolpert wrote about the man:
"Few individuals significantly alter the course of history.
Fewer still modify the map of the world.
Hardly anyone can be credited with creating a nation-state.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah did all three."

The Indicator Blu-ray has certainly advanced over the 2016 Eureka edition in every area; with the director's re-grading supervision, multiple 24-bit audio options, the documentary on the making of the film and the included booklet. Jinnah is a film about a national hero of epic stature and highly educational. Unjustly, he is rarely referenced in the West. A fascinating juncture of history overlapping with Attenborough's Gandhi. Absolutely recommended.