The new British DVD from Network is much better than all previous editions. It was digitally restored (cleaned up) on a high-definition progressive scan transfer and is 2.35:1 anamorphic, as opposed to the really weak non-anamorphic transfer that there previous edition had, that seems to have been mastered on analogue, not digital. There is still some contrast fluctuation in a few scenes and it is quite soft at times, highly detailed at others, but is overall very clean, with vibrant colours. There are contemporary (1966) interviews with the stars and director Michael Anderson, which are quite fascinating in that quaint 60s BBC style.
Not a great spy thriler, but a good one, with superb cinematography by Erwin Hillier (I Know Where I'm Going!; A Canterbury Tale) and exciting, expansive, bombed-out Berlin locations. Max von Sydow (great hairstyle) and Alec Guinness are excellent and deliver Pinter's witty, economic dialogue with aplomb. The casting of a Segal still confounds me slightly; why is an American working for MI5? In Trevor Dudley Smith's novels, Quiller is British. I guess it's the standard safety casting, so that the movie would sell in the States. Fine actor and a good performance, but the film has a rather strange tone at times, due to his presence, though this is no criticism of his performance.
The DVD is well worth acquiring if you are a fan of the film.
The Quiller Memorandum: Special Edition
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tryavna
- Joined: Wed Mar 30, 2005 4:38 pm
- Location: North Carolina
Many thanks for the quick review, Gordon. Looks like I'll be ordering this soon. I'd actually rate this movie higher than you, though. I do think it's a first-rate spy thriller: intelligent, realistic (for the most part), low-key, and genuinely suspenseful. Perhaps just a notch or two below the Harry Palmer films and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.
By the way, I do agree with you that, as much as I like him as an actor, Segal is slightly miscast here -- at least for those of us who are familiar with the original novels. I don't guess it really matters all that much. Surely not every person working for MI5 in the 1960s was British! Just like not everyone who's ever worked for the CIA has been American.
By the way, I do agree with you that, as much as I like him as an actor, Segal is slightly miscast here -- at least for those of us who are familiar with the original novels. I don't guess it really matters all that much. Surely not every person working for MI5 in the 1960s was British! Just like not everyone who's ever worked for the CIA has been American.
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Anonymous
I've always been a fan of this film for its fairy tale atmosphere and plot (at the climax the villain literally keeps the leading lady hostage in his castle while the hero has to figure out how to get away from the henchmen).
There's lots of fine dialogue from Harold Pinter, although much of it belongs to the original novel (published as by 'Adam Hall'), which also originally had a much more complex plot.
I got sent a review copy of the disc by Network and while it was clearly better than its first release (by another company), it has to be said that the print used for the (excellent) transfer was somewhat faded which I did find a little disappointing - instead of bright reds there seemed to be a lot of dark orange instead. But its a cheap release and there are even a few extras thrown in so it's well-worth getting. Senta Berger looks absolutely ravishing in it.
A decent release of a fine 60s spy movie, notable for its total absence of James Bond-style gadgets (eve less that IPCRESS, which it does somewhat resemble, and which got a less than perfect transfer from Network as they slightly screwed up the aspect ratio so everyone looks just a little wider than they should).
There's lots of fine dialogue from Harold Pinter, although much of it belongs to the original novel (published as by 'Adam Hall'), which also originally had a much more complex plot.
I got sent a review copy of the disc by Network and while it was clearly better than its first release (by another company), it has to be said that the print used for the (excellent) transfer was somewhat faded which I did find a little disappointing - instead of bright reds there seemed to be a lot of dark orange instead. But its a cheap release and there are even a few extras thrown in so it's well-worth getting. Senta Berger looks absolutely ravishing in it.
A decent release of a fine 60s spy movie, notable for its total absence of James Bond-style gadgets (eve less that IPCRESS, which it does somewhat resemble, and which got a less than perfect transfer from Network as they slightly screwed up the aspect ratio so everyone looks just a little wider than they should).