BLU-RAY
REVIEW: MIRACLE AT ST ANNA
02/08/09
The opening scenes of
Miracle at St. Anna set up the movie as a mystery involving
a New York City postal clerk, working the stamp counter, who
recognizes his next customer and suddenly pulls out a German
Lugar and kills him. Detectives later find in his house, the
head of a statue from Florence worth about $5 million on the
black market. From the start, the movie sets up some
intriguing questions like how did a postal clerk get his
hands on a Florence relic, why did he kill the man, and why
did he use a German Luger? Too bad the movie doesn’t
deliver, and leaves the viewer very disappointed.
The movie is mostly set in Italy during the second World War
and focuses on Hector (Lax Alonso), Bishop (Michael Ealy),
Stamps (Derek Luke), and Train (Omar Benson Miller) four
black solders in a white men war. When we first meet Train
he is already carrying the head, he believes it will bring
him luck. Train saves the life of boy named Angelo (Matteo
Sciabordi) who he grows attached too. The four take the boy
to an Italy family and end up surrounded by Germans.
The movie brushes the topic of blacks fighting a war for a
country that treats them like second class citizens a couple
of times and is explicitly seen in a very well done scene
were the four enter an ice cream parlor in Louisiana.
The movie as a whole is not bad, but I was expecting a
better ending to match the amazing beginning. The ending is
probably the worst thing about the movie. It’s very
contrived and looks like something out of a soap opera. The
movie does have some good action scenes, but nothing as good
as the action in Saving Private Ryan. The most intensity
scene takes place at a church where the Nazis murder an
entire community and burn the rest when they run out of
bullets.
The movie is presented in 1080P with an aspect ration of
2.35:1. The look of the movie is brilliant. While the colors
are bland, they are pristine and artifacts are nonexistence.
The audio presented in 5.1 DTS-HD, will have you quivering
in your seat every time shoot are fired. Touchstone Pictures
has loaded the Blu-ray of Miracle at St. Anna with three
features.
Review By Brad Peterson
brad@smartcine.com
VIDEO:
Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) 1080P
AUDIO:
English 5.1 DTS HD/Dolby Digital English, French and Spanish
5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English SDH French & Spanish
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Deeds Not Words - A roundtable discussion led
by Director Spike Lee and Author James McBride with veterans
of World War II. (17:08)
The Buffalo Solider Experience - The history,
struggles and firsthand accounts of the Buffalo Soldiers of
World War II. (21:38)
Deleted Scenes - Nine deleted scenes are present.
The deleted scene worth watching is Co-workers which shows
more of Hector after the war. Joe Louis and Dead Villager
Montage are also interesting.
RATING BREAK DOWN:
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