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Released by: MGM Limited Edition Collection
Released on: October 12, 2011.
Director: J. Lee Thompson
Cast: Malcolm McDowell, Anthony Quinn, James Mason, Christopher Lee
Year: 1979
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The Movie:
Directed by J. Lee Thompson and written by Bruce Nicolaysen, who adapted his own novel entitled The Dangerous Passage, this 1979 World War II film takes place in Europe where as Basque peasant simply referred to throughout the movie as The Basque (Anthony Quinn) is hired by some French Resistance fighters to help get a high ranking scientist named Professor John Bergson (James Mason) and his family (Patricia Neal, Kay Lenz and Paul Clemens) out of Nazi occupied France and through the Pyrenees Mountains into Spain. While the hazardous terrain would make this job difficult enough, there's the added thread of a pursuant SS Officer named Captain Von Berkow (Malcolm McDowell), a sadistic and twisted man who gets a kick out of burning a harmless local gypsy man (Christopher Lee).
Basically a chase film throughout the mountains of the area in which the film is set, The Passage isn't a particularly deep film nor is it all that original - the plot is pretty thin and while the mountainous locations are certainly as beautiful to look at as they are perilous for our characters to pass through, on a certain level as you watch this movie you'll start to feel like you've been here before. Thankfully, we get some interesting performances here to help set this one apart. It doesn't wind up an unsung classic, but Thompson's direction is stalwart and dependable if not all that flashy and the movie is plenty entertaining.
Anthony Quinn does a fine job as the man of few words, the tough and honest shepherd paid for a job and then forced to fight for his life. His interactions with Mason's scientist and his respective family aren't necessarily the most successful moments in the history of dramatic motion pictures but they get the job done. Christopher Lee isn't given all that much to do but it's nice to see him play a good guy here, given that he's so frequently been associated with bad guys throughout his long and storied career. McDowell, however, is obviously having a blast playing the SS Officer. He seems to relish the role and he really gives it his all. If he overdoes it in spots and comes across as hammy, well his character is supposed to be pretty unhinged so it doesn't really feel out of place.
Thompson's film earns its R-rating thanks to a rather dark rape scene on the part of McDowell's character and some rather nasty violence, with poor Kay Lenz on the receiving end of that. It's McDowell who makes this one, however - no one else in this movie even comes close to his performance here and he chews through so much scenery and powerhouses his way through the movie so relentlessly that it almost seems a moot point discussing anything else. The film went on to be a bit of a notorious flop for United Artists when it bombed in theaters but it's not as bad as its reputation would have you believe. Watch it for McDowell's nutty work and you'll walk away happy.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The Passage looks pretty good in this 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen presentation. There's some minor print damage here and there in the form of the occasional speck but nothing too serious. Grain is present, as it should be, but never distractingly so and colors look nice and natural. Detail isn't bad at all and skin tones look good. Sometimes when the lights go down and the movie starts to play out in darker locales, there are some compression artifacts and shadow detail gets hurt a bit, but other than that, this isn't a bad looking image.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix on the DVD-R is fine, and there are no problems with hiss or distortion to report. Additionally the levels are well balanced. Dialogue is clear and easy to follow and this is problem free, and the score generally sounds quite good as well.
Extras are limited to the standard MGM Limited Edition menu and chapter stops and the film's original theatrical trailer.
The Final Word:
Not the most original movie but McDowell's performance makes it one worth watching. Throw in a few other interesting cast members, some sporadic violence and some great locations and The Passage winds up a decent watch.
