‘3 Days Of The Condor’ 4K UHD Blu-Ray Review – A Conspiracy Classic From Pollack & Redford

In this classic conspiracy thriller, screen icon Robert Redford (Tell Them Willie Boy is Here, The Sting, All the President’s Men, Indecent Proposal) stars as CIA Agent Joe Turner. Code name: Condor. When his entire office is massacred, Turner goes on the run from his enemies…and his so-called allies. After reporting the murders to his superiors, the organization wants to bring Condor in—but somebody is trying to take him out. In his frantic hunt for answers, and in a desperate race for his life, Turner abducts photographer Kathy Hale (Faye Dunaway, The Thomas Crown Affair, Eyes of Laura Mars), eventually seducing her into helping him. Every twist leads Condor to the end of his nerves…and will take you to the edge of your seat. And as he zeroes in on the staggering truth, he discovers there are some secrets people would kill to keep. Masterfully directed by Sydney Pollack (Jeremiah Johnson, Tootsie, Out of Africa, Havana) and also starring Cliff Robertson (Charly), John Houseman (The Paper Chase) and the icy Max von Sydow (Needful Things), 3 Days of the Condor endures as one of Hollywood’s finest tales of political paranoia.

For thoughts on 3 Days of the Condor, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/NtnntbeGwqs?si=to5ocHsLrOIXV5Ek&t=2689]

Video Quality

Kino Classics presents 3 Days of the Condor with a really amazing 2160p/Dolby Vision transfer for the first time on 4K UHD Blu-Ray in the U.S. sourced from a 4K scan of the Original Camera Negative. The film was previously released on 4K UHD overseas a few years ago, but by all accounts that release had an unappealing color grade applied to it that has thankfully been rectified with this new presentation. When compared to the old Paramount Blu-Ray release from way back in 2009, this release is a substantial improvement by every metric. Even those who are not 4K UHD compatible yet can safely upgrade this one as the included Blu-Ray is struck from the new 4K scan. 

Detail and clarity are notably improved with the natural film grain coming through without anything in the way of grain management. Most of the grain resolves very well with it looking quite thick yet organic and never noisy. The texture on display in the costumes and within the environment is favorable. Facial details such as mustaches are present with impressive clarity. This transfer has cleaned nearly every instance of stray specks and dirt. There does not appear to be any jarring digital anomalies such as compression artifacts, banding or any other such nuisances. 

The Dolby Vision allows for a grander depth of color to the film, but you should not expect bright colors to flow out of the screen thanks to the reserved nature of the picture. While a few elements skew a touch to the turquoise side of the color spectrum, the color palette seems to have returned to a more natural state compared to the overseas release. The hues are complex and enriched to their most pleasing state. Where the Dolby Vision really shows its worth is in the contrast. Black levels are deep and nuanced with nothing lacking in shadow detail and in resolving crushed blacks. Highlights are fairly stable with no evidence of blooming. This presentation is a favorable effort from Kino Classics, and it will please any film fan who scoops it up. 

Audio Quality

The 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with both a DTS-HD 2.0 and 5.1 Master Audio track in English that handles this material without issue. The 5.1 surround track holds its own for those looking to engage all of their speakers, and the 2.0 stereo track appears to more accurately reflect the original intention of the film. There does not seem to be any egregious instances of age-related wear and tear. Dialogue always seems to emanate without a hiccup as competing elements maintain a good balance so that everything comes through clearly. The environmental sounds are carefully defined and rendered well alongside everything else. The track typically feels alive from the general din of the locations. The score from Dave Grusin is used perfectly to set a tone for this story, and the track handles it impeccably throughout the duration of the film. Kino Classics has given this film a welcome audio presentation that brings the movie to your living room in rare form. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided. 

Special Features

• Audio Commentary #1: Director Sydney Pollack provides a pretty monotone but informative commentary track in which the filmmaker discusses the production of the film, maintaining consistency between the shooting days, figuring out how to craft certain sequences, changes from the source material, the journey of the characters and much more. 

• Audio Commentary #2: Film Historians Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson provide an incredibly informative new commentary track in which they discuss how this fits into the careers of Robert Redford and Sydney Pollack, the visual aesthetic of the picture, the shooting locations, the themes of the film, the backgrounds of the performers, the legacy of the feature and more. 

• Something About Sydney Pollack: A 59-minute documentary about director Sydney Pollack from 2004 that explores his life and legacy including his entry into Hollywood, his famous friendships with actors such as Robert Redford, and so much more that is a pleasure to watch. 

• More About The Condor: A 25-minute piece in which Redford and Pollack discuss the creation of this film, the reasons they wanted to tackle this material, taking the premise and doing their own thing with it, the state of cinema in the ‘70s, and more. 

• Trailers: The three-minute trailer for 3 Days of the Condor is provided here. There are also trailers provided for Indecent Proposal, The Thomas Crown Affair, Needful Things, Malone, The Interpreter, The Groundstar Conspiracy, The Eiger Sanction, and Marathon Man.  

Final Thoughts

3 Days of the Condor is a knockout conspiracy thriller from the great Sydney Pollack, who brings a confident sense of pacing and composition which makes this movie as effective as it is. Robert Redford is terrific in the lead role as he finds himself directed by a bevy of equally talented performers including the unbelievable Max von Sydow. The technical side of the narrative may seem a bit dated, but those who can lose themselves within the time period in which this was made will have a blast. Kino Classics has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray featuring a top-tier A/V presentation and a lovely array of new and archival supplemental features. This is one of the great ‘70s thrillers, and it deserves a spot in your collection. Highly Recommended 

3 Days of the Condor is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray and Blu-Ray. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.