From Mark Robson, the acclaimed director of The Bridges at Toko-Ri, The Harder They Fall and Peyton Place, comes this searing drama starring Arthur Kennedy (Boomerang) in a brilliant, Oscar-nominated role. During World War II, Sergeant Larry Nevins (Kennedy) is blinded by enemy fire and lands in a military hospital with African-American soldier Joe Morgan (James Edwards, Home of the Brave) and attending nurse Judy Greene (Peggy Dow, Shakedown). Though he’s engaged to a young woman (Julie Adams, Bend of the River) back home, Larry finds himself falling for Judy. Meanwhile, his casual racism damages his friendship with Joe. On the long and painful road to recovery, Larry begins to realize how much he truly cares for Judy…and how wrong he was to judge others by their race. Will Geer (Broken Arrow), Nana Bryant (Harvey), Jim Backus (TV’s Gilligan’s Island), Richard Egan (The 300 Spartans), Murray Hamilton (Jaws) and Rock Hudson (The Tarnished Angels) add stellar support to this deeply moving film about one man’s redemption through courage, care and love.
For thoughts on Bright Victory, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
[youtube https://youtu.be/Txbsm8PCFuc?t=3599]
Video Quality
Bright Victory makes its Blu-Ray debut thanks to Kino Classics with a brand new 1080p transfer from a 2K master. While this film may be over 70 years old, this presentation holds up quite well despite some deficiencies slipping through the remastering gauntlet. The new transfer exhibits a great amount of depth and enhanced detail within the film’s composition. Black levels are pretty deep with no blatant occurrence of black crush or compression artifacts. The contrast is strongly defined, and the track only experiences momentary instances of flicker and density fluctuation in the print. You do have a minor layer of faint nicks and scratches in places, but it is obvious that it has been spruced up immensely. The lovely black-and-white photography shot by William H. Daniels shines in high definition with natural grain intact. You get a pleasing amount of detail present with textures on the clothing and within the production design. Kino Classics has provided a really great presentation for this one.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with a mostly decent DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track that serves this movie pretty well considering its age. Dialogue and background noises are represented in complete harmony with all competing elements. This track does present a minor amount of age related wear and tear and some faint hissing. The track can also sound a bit thin when it comes to the music, which likely can be attributed to the age of the source elements. The music does not overwhelm the dialogue or other important information. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film. Kino Classics has done a nice job here.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Film Historian/Screenwriter Gary Gerani delivers a really informative commentary track in which he talks about how this film fits into the lineage of wartime films, the careers of the creatives, how it compares to the source material, the progressive nature of the themes, the uncertainty you feel towards the protagonist, the costumes featured in the film and many other topics. This is a well-researched track that is worth checking out.
- Trailers: There are trailers for So Proudly We Hail!, Fixed Bayonets!, Time Limit, Boomerang, Bend Of The River and Paths Of Glory. .
Final Thoughts
Bright Victory is a stirring film which has some dated elements but has its heart in the right place in terms of striving for a progressive tale. Arthur Kennedy delicately navigates this role which both inspires and leaves you frustrated. The character is not so black and white, which makes his journey that much more compelling as you trace where he might end up. The love triangle of sorts is sold by the charming performances of the two women in Larry’s life. Judged as a melodrama, this film stands tall within the genre. Kino Classics has delivered a Blu-Ray release that sports a great A/V presentation and an informative commentary track. If you are a fan of the cast, be sure to add this to your list. Recommended
Bright Victory will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray on September 13, 2022.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 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.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
