The 4K UHD of The Great Escape is reviewed HERE

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

ADDITION: Criterion Blu-ray (April 2020): Criterion have transferred John Sturges' The Great Escape to Blu-ray. It is cited as a "New, restored 4K digital transfer". We included the 1991 Criterion Laserdisc in our comparison this was the last time the company transferred The Great Escape. There are some similarities between that large disc format's appearance and the new release's color scheme. It also has yellowish, golden, sometimes green or earthy hues - as opposed to the MGM which was decidedly blue and dark - occasionally approaching teal. While the 2013 MGM Blu-ray showed slightly less information in the frame than the Laserdisc, the new Criterion Blu-ray shows slightly more - mostly on the right edge of the frame. As with most classics, the colors will be debated ad nauseam. I can only say that the Criterion is brighter, shows more detail and depth and looks quite strong in-motion. It is the best image presentation, imo - even if some still decry it's source inferiorities. Some seem to think that Criterion can change the color scheme dramatically from its source - they cannot - just as they couldn't 30 years ago for their Laserdisc.

Now, just like the MGM iterations - at around 1 hour 22 minutes (start of the July 4th celebration - drinking 'homebrew' outside) for about 10-minutes - the image source appears decidedly compromised. With the Criterion instead of looking waxy, flat and digitized (DNR-ish) to mask this weakness as per the old MGM DVDs and Blu-ray, the new Criterion looks very textured, thick and rich with grain (see captures below). As in both though, there is a disparity from the rest of the film. I strongly prefer how Criterion have dealt with it - as it didn't unduly take me out of the film experience as the MGM did. We have two samples below.

NOTE: We have added 62 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) available for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE.

On their Blu-ray, Criterion gives the option of a linear PCM mono track or a robust DTS-HD Master  5.1 surround bump - both 24-bit in the original English language. Plenty of aggressive effects including machine gunfire, motorcycles, planes and trains come through with surprising depth on the surround and there are less-discreet separations. The mono track is authentically flat but carries some punch. The score is by Elmer Bernstein (From the Terrace, The Hallelujah Trail, The Grifters, Birdman of Alcatraz, Love With the Proper Stranger, The Bride at Remagen, The Comancheros, The World of Henry Orient, Kings of the Sun, Hud, To Kill a Mockingbird, Summer and Smoke). Criterion offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Criterion Blu-ray offers two audio commentaries. The first has director John Sturges, composer Elmer Bernstein, stuntman Bud Ekins, second unit director Robert E. Relyea - hosted and introduced by Bruce Eder as found on Criterion's 1991 Laserdisc. It still holds value - especially for the Sturges input. The second commentary is the same one found on the 2003 MGM(s) featuring actors James Coburn, James Garner, Donald Pleasence, Jud Taylor and David McCallum, second unit director Robert E. Relyea, production designer Fernando Carrere, 'talent manager' Hillard Elkins (who represented McQueen), stuntman Bud Ekins and features an interview with Sturges from 1974. It is hosted by Steven Jay Rubin (author of Combat Films: American Realism, 1945-1970). Criterion add a new 23-minute interview with critic Michael Sragow who describes Sturges as "an invisible moviemaker' much in the way Ford and Sturges were in the 1930s. He describes that the story is the star of the film despite the lauded cast and talks about Sturges - how he got involved in film as well as two of his directorial efforts 1953's Jeopardy with Barbara Stanwyck and Escape from Fort Bravo with William Holden. He talks about Sturges only Best Director nomination; Bad Day at Black Rock and his The Magnificent Seven reworking of The Seven Samurai. It is excellent. The Criterion includes the previously released 3/4 hour “The Great Escape”: Heroes Under Ground, four-part 2001 documentary about the real-life escape from the Stalag Luft III prisoner-of-war camp during World War II, including interviews with POWs held there via The Great Escape: Bringing Fact to Fiction, The Great Escape: Preparations For Freedom, The Great Escape: The Flight to Freedom and The Great Escape: A Standing Ovation. It also repeats the 25-minute The Real Virgil Hilts: A Man Called Jones, a 2001 program on the United States Army Air Forces pilot David Jones, the inspiration for Steve McQueen’s character in the film plus Steven Jay Rubin's 1993, 24-minute, "Return to “The Great Escape,” featuring interviews with Coburn, Garner, McCallum and Jud Taylor. There is a trailer and the package has liner notes with an essay by critic Sheila O’Malley.

One of the most re-watchable 'escape' films of all time. It hasn't lost any of its entertainment value seeing all the young stars in supporting roles. The Great Escape has contained set pieces and it works with immense suspense (Sturges' strength.) The new Criterion Blu-ray with superior 4K-restored video, finally the option of authentic mono audio, the two commentaries and valuable Michael Sragow piece -  gets a very strong recommendation! If you love the film - as many of us do - this is the home theatre issue to own. 

Gary Tooze

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