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"Pimpernel" Smith [Blu-ray]
(Leslie Howard, 1941)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: British National Films Video: Olive Films
Disc: Region: 'A' (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player) Runtime: 2:01:05.258 Disc Size: 24,468,740,014 bytes Feature Size: 24,326,909,952 bytes Video Bitrate: 23.50 Mbps Chapters: 9 Case: Standard Blu-ray case Release date: November 15th, 2016
Video: Aspect ratio: 1.33:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1791 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1791 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles: • English (SDH), None
Extras: • None
Bitrate:
Description:
Inspired by Baroness Emmuska Orczy's The Scarlet
Pimpernel, Pimpernel Smith stays true to the
source material while allowing director and star Leslie
Howard to present a thought-provoking and entertaining
dramatic work.
The Film: English archaeologist Horatio Smith (Leslie Howard) takes his students to Germany before the start of World War II to study the existence of early Aryans. He is actually there, however, to free concentration camp inmates. General von Graum (Francis Sullivan), a Gestapo head, dispatches the beautiful Ludmilla Koslowski (Mary Morris) to find the man behind the escapes, but she instead allies with Horatio. Together they scheme to free Ludmilla's father, Sidimir (Peter Gawthorne). Excerpt from MRQE located HERELeslie Howard was among the British actors based in Hollywood who returned home during World War I to do their bit for the war effort, and this tale of a reincarnated Scarlet Pimpernel smuggling people out from under the Nazi's noses typifies the star's attitude to traditionally English values. Deftly directed and imaginatively edited, the film may nevertheless be just too restrained and Anglo-Saxon for its own good (especially Howard's characterisation of the absent-minded archaeology professor setting out to disprove the existence of an Aryan civilisation). Excerpt from TimeOut located HEREImage : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. Pimpernel Smith arrives on Blu-ray from Olive Films. This is only single-layered but has a reasonable bitrate for the 2-hour film. The feature looks quite pleasing with some rich grain textures. Contrast exports decent layering with appreciative shadow-detail and inky blacks. There is no real depth but this is all very watchable in the original 1.33:1 aspect ratio with a few speckles but no detrimental flaws. The Blu-ray improved the presentation over an SD rendering and the consistency and overall quality add to the very positive viewing experience.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :Audio is transferred to a DTS-HD Master (24-bit). Audio is exported cleanly and without errors. The score by John Greenwood (Secret Agent, Man of Aran, Elephant Boy) sounds fine in the lossless adding another layer to the adventure/mystery features of the film. There are optional English subtitles and m y Oppo has identified it as being a region 'A'-locked.
Extras : No supplements - not even a trailer which is the bare-bones route that Olive are going with the majority of their releases.
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze November 18th, 2016 |
About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500 DVDs and have reviewed over 5000 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
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