- Actors: Michael Caine, Nigel Green, Guy Doleman, Sue Lloyd, Gordon Jackson
- Directors: Sidney J. Furie
- Format: PAL
- Language English
- Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3 - 1.33:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Classification: PG
- Studio: Carlton
- DVD Release Date: 20 Oct 2003
- Run Time: 103 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00004CZVN
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 26,109 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
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Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
In the spy-crazed film world of the 1960s, Len Deighton's antihero Harry Palmer burst onto the scene as an antidote to the James Bond films. Here was a British spy who had a working-class accent and horn-rimmed glasses and above all really didn't want to be a spy in the first place. As portrayed by Michael Caine, Palmer was the perfect antithesis to Sean Connery's 007. Unlike that of his globetrotting spy cousin, Palmer's beat is cold, rainy, dreary London, where he spends his days and nights in unheated flats spying on subversives. He does charm one lady, but she's no Pussy Galore, just a civil servant he works with, sent to keep an eye on him. Eventually he's assigned to get to the bottom of the kidnapping and subsequent "brain draining" of a nuclear physicist, all the while being reminded by his superiors that it's this or prison. Things begin to get pretty hairy for Harry. Produced by Harry Saltzman in his spare time between Bond movies, the film also features a haunting score by another Bond veteran, composer John Barry. --Kristian St. Clair, Amazon.com
Video Description
DVD Special Features:
Interactive menus
Scene access
Audio: English (mono)
Aspect ratio: 4:3
Interactive menus
Scene access
Audio: English (mono)
Aspect ratio: 4:3
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Comments on Blu Ray QUality,
By max222 (Surrey, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Ipcress File [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
I won't comment on the actual film as hopefully all readers here will already know how good it is. So restricting myself to a Blu Ray vs DVD (Network DVD 2 Disc version) comparison is the Blu Ray an improvement ? Well watching on a 50" Plasma and also on a 26" LCD the BD picture improvement over the DVD was clear from the start. Specifically the Blu Ray is far clearer, far less fuzzy with far more detail. In addition the DVD seems artificially too bright in comparison seemingly being flooded with white light. The Blu Ray also gives you a wider picture - by that I mean it has more of the image either side than the same scene on the DVD does. eg near the beginning of the film in the railway station or in the railway carriage you can see more of the station or the inside of the carriage. To do this review I did a side by side comparison of the DVD and Blu Ray and froze certain scenes and flicked between them. However the Blu Ray is of course not reference quality, does not have the 3D "pop factor" of modern films. But then you would not expect that. Nor has it had the attention lavished on it that say similarly aged films like Dr No or From Russia With Love have. Again not being as popular with the masses you again would not expect the same amount of money to have been spent on the remastering process. What you can say for sure is the film has never looked better since the original cinema release. It is a big step up from the DVD and if you enjoy the film well worth upgrading to. What perhaps is a disappointment is none of the extras from the Network DVD have been carried over. A real shame. But as for me extras are not really that important I was still pleased with this Blu Ray.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Blu-Ray File,
By
This review is from: The Ipcress File [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
The Ipcress File certainly has artistic merit for its camera angles and the framing of shots but for all the time the cameraman must have spent laying on the floor shooting the ceiling it doesn't become a distraction, though you are aware of it, and above all it's just a great 60's British yarn with a young Michael Caine at his best. The picture quality is very good for a 1965 film. I think we'e all guilty of expecting every Blu-Ray release to look so detailed and pristine that it's as if we are actually on the set seeing it with our own eyes...there is plenty of grain to be seen (a 60's patina, if you like)and some shots have a grainy haze apparent in the out of focus background areas but overall it looks very good. While it is mastered in 5.1 don't expect anything to actually happen around you. From what I can determine it's in glorious original centre mono with a bit of this bleeding into the rest of the channels to fill it out a bit. It's a 60's film...what do we expect? It sounds strong and clear. Die hard fans of the film should be thrilled to have it looking this good and newcomers will get to see a good movie that has been mastered to Blu-Ray at a standard that many old films can only aspire to.
25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Iconic 60's classic gets a picture-perfect, if extras-light Hi-Def debut,
By
This review is from: The Ipcress File [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
I'm sure that most people reading this will be fairly familiar with this terrific film, and will mostly want to know how this Hi-Def debut compares to the previous DVD versions. So, to business...
First and foremost, the film is presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and is 16:9 enhanced. Whilst I can't speak for the recent Network DVD re-issue, comparing it to the old widescreen Carlton DVD the difference in quality is remarkable. Detail is infinitely improved with much more fine texture being visible (especially on people's skin). Contrast is accurately reproduced, with no discernible clipping of the white areas of the image, and a decent enough if slightly limited range of detail in the darker areas (although this may just be my TV). Colors are much more accurate than the previous DVD (on which the overall image, and skin tones in particular, suffered from a queasy yellow tint). On this release, skin tones are accurate and natural, and the overall image reproduces the photographic style of the film perfectly. One of the most striking differences is how much less dirt and grain are apparent in the image (for an example, look at the interior shot from the car driving through the station entrance at the beginning of the film). Whether this is the natural result of using a better film element or through artificial grain and noise reduction I am not sure, but I certainly did not detect any unsightly digital smearing or other artefacts (including, thankfully, edge enhancement). I have certainly never seen this film look better, and would definitely recommend it to those looking for an upgrade over their old copy. As far as the Network release is concerned, I remember reading about some sync issues that people were complaining about. Those certainly are not in evidence here. Sound-wise, the track provided here is of excellent quality with a full dynamic range and excellent clarity. I can't really review the 5.1 remix as I don't have a surround sound set up, although quite what they could (or should) do with a strictly mono film is questionable. What is a pity is that ITV chose not to import the special features from the recent Network release onto this blu-ray, which is pretty bare. However, the very favorable asking price on amazon goes some way towards mediating this.
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