Battle of Britain 4K 1969 Ultra HD 2160p

A gripping, if somewhat lengthy, saga about how the British Royal Air Force prevented the Germans from invading the country. An impressive ensemble cast. Kane, Plummer, and Moore landed the most compelling roles. Susanna York excelled as Plummer’s wife—she hates the war and longs with all her heart for warmth and love. Olivier is brilliant as Sir Hugh Dowding, whose clever tactics enabled a small force of fighter planes to destroy the German aircraft. Robert Shaw is superb as the weary, exhausted commander of the fighter pilots, relentlessly sending his men into the air. The filmmakers did not forget the Czech and Polish pilots who fought side by side with their British comrades. The problem is that, apart from Jürgens, all the German actors created nothing more than caricatures of the Nazi high command. Rolf Stiefel is particularly laughable as a frenzied Adolf Hitler, constantly in the throes of hysteria. The aerial combat scenes, footage of German bombing raids, and dogfights between British and German fighters are spectacular and truly mesmerizing. It was on these scenes that nearly the entire budget of 12 million was spent. Adolf Galland, one of Germany’s top ace pilots who took part in raids on England during the war, was invited to serve as a technical consultant. This film will be dear to the hearts of all those who love the war genre—and aerial combat in particular.

User Review
This dramatized biography to my mind represents one of the most difficult sorts of film to make. I believe the makers of "The Battle of Britain" succeeded in making it a stirring war film, and one that deserves to be watched and remembered often. Many people find the battle scenes in the air in this film among the best ever staged. Cliff Richardson deserves praise for his special effects; and Guy Hamilton, director in charge, has frankly done marvelous work of a very difficult-to-achieve sort. He has interiors, intimate scenes, outdoor lectures, strafings, bombings, aerial battles, airplane landings, group shots and conferences to handle.Wilfred Greatorex and James Kennaway. In addition, Ron Goodwin and William Walton supplied memorable music, veteran Freddie Young the lucid cinematography and Maurice Carter wonderful art direction. The story-line chronologically follows the "Battle of Britain", No aspect is overlooked. The success of Luftwaffe air attacks on forward bases is noted; and so is the lucky decision by Hitler to start bombing Londoners instead that caused a shift it tactics and saved Britain's radar towers, key to targeting incoming attackers for interdiction by British aircraft. We hear a lecture by an Air Marshal, see firefighting squads and female drivers in action; we see both sides talking in their own languages--the Germans being subtitled; and we see action in the British War Room and at the highest levels of military planning. A couple is followed to illustrate what pilots and their wives, she being part of the war effort also, had to undergo and the pressures they faced. The pilots are also seen waiting between sorties at their bases; and finally when none come, the first phase of WWII, the expedition and subsequent Battle of Britain is over. In the huge cast are most of the leading male actors in England, including Laurence Olivier as Hugh Dowding, chief of the air effort, Trevor Howard as Keith Park, Patrick Wymark as Mallory, their chief opponent within the air corps,, plus Christopher Plummer and Susannahh York as the troubled couple, Harry Andrews, Michael Caine, Ian McShane, Kenneth More, Curd Jurgens, Nigel Patrick, Michael Redgrave, Robert Shaw, Robert Flemyng, Michael Bates, Ralph Richardson, Isla Blair and Edward Fox. This is a splendid, well-paced and beautiful recreation. The music is superb; the combat footage unexcelled and the acting far-above-average. I rate this film on many counts above anything else ever done concerning the defense of Britain by its air forces during the late war.

Info Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (88.6 Mb/s)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1

Info Audio

#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
#English: FLAC 2.0
#French: DTS 5.1
#German: DTS 5.1

Info Subtitles

English SDH (PGS), Arabic, Chinese (Cantonese) (Traditional) (PGS), Czech (PGS), Danish (PGS), Dutch (PGS), Filipino, Finnish (PGS), French (PGS), German (PGS), Greek (PGS), Indonesian, Italian (PGS), Japanese, Korean (PGS), Norwegian (PGS), Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazilian), Romanian (PGS), Spanish (PGS), Spanish (Latin American) (PGS), Swedish (PGS), Thai, Turkish.