Murphy's War (Limited Edition, Region B)

(Peter Yates, 1971)
Release date: 30 May 2022
Limited Edition Blu-ray (World Blu-ray premiere)

Peter O’Toole (The Ruling Class) gives one of his most spirited and memorable performances in Murphy’s War, a blood-and-thunder adventure film directed with grit by Peter Yates (The Friends of Eddie Coyle, The Deep). 

O’Toole is the titular Irish merchant seaman, whose ship is attacked by a German U-boat on the Orinoco river in Venezuela during the dying days of World War II. The sole survivor, Murphy is picked up by a French oil engineer (Philippe Noiret, Cinema Paradiso) and taken to a native village hospital where he is treated by the pacifist Quaker Dr Hayden (Siân Phillips, Becket, Dune). During his convalescence, Murphy plots his one man war on the enemy U-boat that callously slaughtered his shipmates…

Filmed on location in infamously uncompromising conditions, Murphy’s War combines impressively staged action with harsh realism and good humour. Presented on Blu-ray for the first time, and accompanied by a wealth of new and archival extras, along with a booklet containing new writing on the film.
 

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

• High Definition remaster
• Original mono audio
• Michael Deeley in Conversation (2008, 42 mins): archival audio recording of the Murphy’s War producer in an onstage discussion with Matt Field, recorded at London’s BFI Southbank
• Philippe Noiret on ‘Murphy’s War’ (1971, 6 mins): extract from the French television programme Bulletin d’information
• A Great Adventure (2022, 31 mins): in-depth account of the film’s production with editor and assistant director John Glen
• Dougie, Chic and Me (2022, 18 mins): focus puller Robin Vidgeon recalls working with director of photography Douglas Slocombe and camera operator Chic Waterson
• One Man Army (2022, 18 mins): appreciation by academic and film historian Sheldon Hall
• Behind the Camera: Douglas Slocombe (1999, 13 mins): archival documentary by Richard Blanshard on the great cinematographer, featuring interviews with Richard Attenborough, Frank Marshall, Alan Parker and Ken Russell
• Super 8 version: original cut-down home-cinema presentation
• Alternative US ending credits
• Textless theatrical trailer
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay by Julian Wheeler, a look at the production of the film, an archival interview with Peter O’Toole, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits
• World premiere on Blu-ray
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK