Review of Too Late the Hero

Introduction

Too Late the Hero was directed by Robert Aldrich who also directed the Dirty Dozen, and I believe this to be his best film in a career that was cut short in 1983. Set in World War II, Cliff Robertson plays an US lieutenant sent to accompany a British squad on a mission to destroy a Japanese radio base. Fairly early on, the squad realises it`s a suicide mission .....

Michael Caine plays his usual cockney self - as a medic this time - and is entertaining as always.

The film is typically Aldrich, so the battle scenes are fairly graphic and remarkably lifelike, adding to what is a suspenseful film from beginning to end.

Pointless trivia fact: The US television name for this was "Suicide run"

Video

Considering the age of the film (1969-1970) they have done an excellent job here. The anamorphic widescreen print looks essentially clean and colour fidelity is high. There are some areas that could usefully have been given some treatment but overall very good.

The digital transfer is also top notch with no obvious banding or jaggies in high contrast areas and no really washed out blacks.

The DVD menu is animated and musical yet simple and quick to use - my favourite combination :)

Audio

The Dolby Digital mono, resolved to stereo and subwoofer by my amp, soundtrack was acceptable, with all dialoge easy to understand and a properly rousing World War II score.

Features

A good selection of things here, especially considering the age of the film.

The features begin with a slideshow (or photo gallery depending on your definition) which is pretty good as slideshows go.

Then we get a few biographies. The one for Michael Caine is very complete with quotes and trivia thrown in as well as a standard biography.

There`s a 4 page production notes section - a commentary would have been nice but would have required a more alive director. As it is, this give a good insight into the film and is well worth taking the time to read. This is followed by some trivia from the production.

Then there`s the awesome quotes section containing a whole quote. I`ll not reveal it here however.

Conclusion

One of the best WWII films in my opinion and one that is somewhat underrated these days. The movie is gripping from the start to the excellent ending and is definitely one to be watched a few times.

A must for the dedicated WWII fan.