Tunes of Glory

UPC: 037429185926

Studio: Criterion

Summary: Two excellent actors shine in powerful roles in this drama by Ronald Neame that pits one Scottish army colonel against another. Alec Guinness is Lt. Col. Jock Sinclair, a man who temporarily takes over command of a regiment until his replacement, Col. Basil Barrow (John Mills) arrives. Sinclair comes from the lower echelons of the social order but was at least able to work himself up the echelons in the military hierarchy. He is fairly well-liked though still a little rough around the edges for some. When Barrow takes over, the two men clash almost at once. Barrow is from the upper crust, went to all the "right" schools, and believes in discipline and then a little more discipline, as well as efficient and proper bureaucratic processes. The differences between the two men threaten to rupture the unity of the regiment, especially after Sinclair assaults a soldier he finds in the company of his daughter. Barrow opts to report his behavior, leading to a climactic series of events. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: Best British Film – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Foreign Film – null Best Adapted Screenplay – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Volpi Cup for Best Actor – Venice International Film Festival Best Foreign Film – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Features: New high-definition digital transfer, with restored image and sound and enhanced for widescreen televisions
New video interview with director Ronald Neame
New audio interview with actor Sir John Mills
BBC television interview with Sir Alec Guinness
New essay by film historian Robert Murphy, author of "British Cinema and the Second World War"
Original trailer
English subtitles for the deaf and hearing-impaired
Optimal image quality: RSDL dual-layer edition

Tunes of Glory

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 02/17/2004

Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Vistavision

Audio: DD1 Dolby Digital Mono

Runtime: 106 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English

Subtitles: English

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. Opening Credits [2:21]
2. Jock's Last Day [8:18]
3. Colonel Barrow [4:17]
4. Bad Form [6:04]
5. Breakfast With Morag [2:19]
6. Inspection [8:17]
7. "Some Other Time" [5:53]
8. Mary [4:10]
9. Dancing Class [3:24]
10. The Party [9:49]
11. Bar Brawl [4:23]
12. A Formal Inquiry [9:58]
13. In the Mess [2:01]
14. "The Idea" [2:59]
15. "Jock's Decision" [9:27]
16. "The Living and the Dead" [6:49]
17. Full Honors [4:09]
18. End Credtis [11:45]

Craig Butler

Tunes of Glory contains what Alec Guinness once called his particular favorite performance, and it's not hard to see why. Guinness is nothing less than stunning in the role, a tour de force which allows him to peel back the many layers of his character and lay it bare. Although the part could easily be played in an overly ostentatious manner, Guinness is careful to hold back when necessary, playing to the hilt only when it suits the character's needs and motivations rather than when it is most advantageous for the actor. He is not afraid to let the audience see the character's warts, such as his ego-gratifying need to impugn the masculinity of other characters. Yet it is the realness, the three dimensionality of the portrayal, that makes the audience care so deeply for the character. John Mills is also superb, although in a quite difficult part that precludes a great deal of audience sympathy. His subtle, introspective performance meshes quite well with Guinness's more galvanizing work. Director Ronald Neame turns in an unmannered, smooth job; if there's little of distinction to his work, it still provides the requisite showcase for his two stars, along with a sterling supporting cast. James Kennaway's screenplay is efficient and flavorful, but also manipulative; the issues it purports to address are presented too baldly for it to have the desired impact. As a result, Tunes is best appreciated not for what it says but for the way the actors say it. Guinness and Neame had earlier worked together, also to very good effect, on The Horse's Mouth. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Percy Herbert  Actor 
Gwen Nelson  Actor 
John MacKenzie  Actor 
David Webb  Actor 
Gerald Harper  Actor 
William Marlowe  Actor 
James Copeland  Actor 
Andrew Keir  Actor 
John Barcroft  Actor 
Keith Faulkner  Actor 
Angus Lennie  Actor 
Paul Whitsun-Jones  Actor 
Andrew Downie  Actor 
Richard Leech  Actor 
Lockwood West  Actor 
William Young  Actor 
Jameson Clark  Actor 
John Harvey  Actor 
Peter McEnery  Actor 
Mark Burns  Actor 
Donald Douglas  Actor 
Eric Woodburn  Actor 
Barry Steele  Actor 
Malcolm Arnold  Composer (Music Score) 
Malcolm Arnold  Producer 
Albert Fennell  Executive Producer 
James Kennaway  Screenwriter 
Colin Lesslie  Producer 
Ronald Neame  Director 
Alec Guinness  Actor 
John Mills  Actor 
Dennis Price  Actor 
John Fraser  Actor 
Susannah York  Actor 
Kay Walsh  Actor 
Gordon Jackson  Actor 
Allan Cuthbertson  Actor 
Duncan MacRae  Actor 

Country: UK