Germany Region B blu-ray
1080p Widescreen 2.35:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (original)
German/Italian/Spanish: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (dub)
Subtitles: German, Spanish, Italian, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
MOVIE: 8
VIDEO QUALITY: 9
AUDIO QUALITY: 9
EXTRAS: 0
Soldier Blue is a fictional re-enactment of the infamous 1864 Sand Creek massacre in Colorado by the U.S. Cavalry on a Cheyenne Indian village and the events that lead up to it. It’s a pretty decent movie with a pretty violent ending that is considered shocking and controversial. Although it was pretty sad to see the Indians get massacred at the end of the movie, the whole tone of the first and second acts weren’t serious or focused enough to make the ending as powerful as it should be. The acting by the leads, Bergan and Strauss, is certainly interesting. I’m not sure it’s good acting, but it’s got that 1970s vibe. This was the first time I saw Candice Bergan as a young woman in a movie. She’s got great hair, but other than that, she really isn’t such a good actress. She sort of reminded me of Sarah Palin in the movie – she’s got this “okee dokee” tough attitude about all the traumatic events going on in the film which was sort of off-putting. Peter Strauss was a bit better – when his whole world falls apart in the film, he sort of goes Planet of the Apes bonkers. And Donald Pleasence pops up in a really bizarre awkward role. Eventhough he’s trying to hunt down the two main protagonists in the film, he just doesn’t come off as scary or intimidating – just more like a joke. The best actor in the film, John Anderson, plays the Colonel that is in charge of the massacre of the Indian village. He’s sort of similar to Patrick McGoohan’s Longshanks in Braveheart. It’s too bad that his character wasn’t developed and only pops up at the end of the film. Furthermore, the Indian characters should have been developed more as well. If this was a longer, more epic film, with the villains (cavalry) and the victims (Indians) developed, it could have been much better. The music of the movie even has an interesting dated 1970s soundtrack.
The Region B German blu-ray is excellent – popping colors and great sharpness. There is high detail in foregrounds and backgrounds, and there is a very tiny amount of original grain which flatter the image. The DTS-HD audio is very solid for a 1970s film – it’s mixed well and the action scenes do provide a good enough punch. There are no extras on this blu-ray.
The only thing funny about this blu-ray is the cover – I don’t know why they chose such a generic looking cover. The cowboy on that cover is not even in the film. This is one blu-ray that can certainly get a custom cover!
I’ll take Dances With Wolves over this film any day, but Soldier Blue is still an interesting, bizarre, violent, and historical film worth checking out.
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