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Farewell to the King Release Date: June 6, 2006 Studio: MGM Studios Year: 1989 Rating: PG-13 Running Time: 1h54m Video: 1.85:1 anamorphic Audio: English DD2.0, French DD2.0 Subtitles: English, French TV-Generated Closed Captions: English Menus: Non-animated Packaging/Materials: Single disc keepcase MSRP: $14.94 The Feature: 1/5 John Milius’s “Farewell to the King” has shades of “Apocalypse Now” (for which Milius wrote the screenplay) and “Lawrence of Arabia,” but those other films had Marlon Brando and Peter O’Toole playing charismatic leaders in another culture. “Farewell to the King” has Nick Nolte as its caucasian king - specifically a WWII, U.S. Army soldier who becomes ruler of a Borneo mountain tribe - and that bit of miscasting proves to be the film’s undoing. Nolte’s off-putting, sometimes manic portrayal makes the entire situation unconvincing and undermines the emotional tenor of almost every scene he’s in. It only gets worse when members of an Allied operations team, sent to persuade the tribe to fight against encroaching Japanese forces, also become devotees. There is simply nothing about Nolte’s King Learoyd that makes their devotion understandable or sympathetic. To see such commitment in their faces pulls the viewer out of the movie as quickly as poorly rendered computer imagery. So say farewell to a film with potential. Video Quality: 2/5 Dust and dirt specks can been seen throughout the film, along with occasional compression noise. Minor edge enhancement is visible at times. Black levels are inconsistent - sometimes rather muddy or completely lacking shadow detail. Grain is also very apparent during these low light sequences. Flesh tones are equally inconsistent - ranging from over pink to pasty with the caucasian members of the cast. Audio Quality: 2/5 The Dolby Surround audio track is sometimes tinny or hollow sounding, with occasional buzzing artifacts in the dialogue. Combat sound effects are pretty low rent, with explosions and gunfire lacking punch. Special Features: N/A Recap and Final Thoughts The Feature: 1/5 Video Quality: 2/5 Audio Quality: 2/5 Special Features: N/A Overall Score (not an average): 2/5 An at-best, mediocre film gets an understandably low frills release. Equipment: Toshiba 42" CRT RPTV fed a 1080i signal from an Oppo DV-971 DVD player. Audio evaluation is based on an Onkyo TX-SR575x 5.1 AVR running JBL S26 mains and surrounds, JBL S-Center, and equalized SVS 20-39 PCi subwoofer.
