3D Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Four of the 10 Best Picture winners of the ’60s were musicals, but as Hollywood transitioned to a post–Easy Rider era, they had to make even song-and-dance extravaganzas more relevant. And so in 1972, Cabaret redefined what a movie musical could be.

Drastically, brilliantly reworked from the hit stage play, it recounts the often-sordid lives and loves of a few pretty young men and women against the backdrop of Berlin, 1931. A serious-minded Brit (Michael York) enters the Bohemian scene, with free-spirited nightclub singer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) as his guide, and they share love and lovers and provide shoulders for their lovelorn friends to cry on.

That an entire movie set in pre–World War II Germany would make such melodrama the focal point—while the ranks of the Nazis can be seen swelling all around—might seem strange, but that blatant contrast is intentional. One of the major themes of Cabaret is the bygone ignorance that allowed the forces of evil to take hold. This second entry in the too-short film canon of director Bob Fosse (who also staged the musical numbers) is unquestionably his best.

Cabaret has been remastered for its long-awaited Blu-ray debut, replacing years of substandard film and video presentations. Colors are now much more accurate, right down to the real and theatrical pastiness of the faces. A healthy film grain is maintained, and while the 16:9 image is soft in places and the blacks can be a little vague, we are obviously watching a true HD transfer. Restoration addresses a notorious prolonged scratch that marred much of a late portion of the movie, reportedly repaired frame by frame, by hand!

My player confirmed that the soundtrack is a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 affair, but you could have fooled me. I frequently pressed my ear against the surround speakers, finding them to be dead silent. The full potential of the multichannel soundfield is indeed used sparingly, as in one notable early scene when Sally screams as a train passes overhead. Singing and speaking voices are clear, but dynamic range can appear strained, likely limited by the quality of the original recording, although the produc- tion numbers display a pleasing fullness.

A new half-hour documentary with Minnelli plus an expert audio commentary enhance this classy Blu-ray book edition. The vintage behind-the-scenes segment is a treat, but the bizarre, scattered series of “Reminiscences,” random bits culled from the 1997 documentary shoot, is a patience-tester.

Blu-ray
Studio: Warner Bros., 1972
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audio Format: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Length: 124 mins.
MPAA RAting: PG
Director: Bob Fosse
Starring: Liza Minnelli, Michael York, Joel Grey