Warfare – 4K Eagle Pictures Edition Review

Based on real events and built from direct memories, Warfare tells the story of a Navy SEALs mission during the Iraq War in 2006, which began as a support operation and quickly turned into a nightmare. A group of young soldiers finds itself surrounded, under constant attack, and without a clear way out. From this, a narrative takes shape that foregoes any easy heroism to focus on the horrifying human experience of war.

Those expecting a celebratory film of the American army are completely mistaken. Alex Garland (screenwriter and director of works like Men, Annihilation, Civil War, and Ex Machina), here co-director alongside Ray Mendoza – one of the real-life protagonists of the story – confirms his critical and disillusioned view of armed conflict. Warfare is a film permeated by confusion, nervousness, sweat, dust, blood, and a sense of abandonment.

Theater of War

There is no triumphalism but a profound bitterness that accompanies the narrative from beginning to end, deliberately leaving many open wounds. The (in)visible enemy, before being hidden within the walls of a dusty village, is an insidious threat that dwells in the minds of each soldier, forced to fight against themselves and a lost sense of self-preservation.

The cast is surprisingly cohesive and effective: Will Poulter, Joseph Quinn, and an intense D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai convey the idea of a group rather than just a military unit. Garland and Mendoza choose an almost real-time staging, tense and claustrophobic, reminiscent of a wartime Rio Bravo, more interested in faces and reactions than in spectacle. Brutal, essential, and profoundly human, Warfare shows war for what it is: an experience that leaves only ruins, both inside and out. One of the strongest and most lucid war films of recent years.

Shot entirely in digital 6K (DJI Ronin 4D-6K cameras) and then finalized on a 4K master, “Univisium” image format 2.00:1 (3840 x 2160/23.97p), HEVC encoding on a BD-66 dual layer disc. Technically, we are in the presence of an excellent video signal, capable of enhancing the “dusty” cinematography of David J. Thompson (camera operator in works like Finch, Civil War, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes). The brownish dominant tone contributes to giving even greater scenic presence and breadth to the outdoor shots, with chromatic extension and dynamic range of lights superior to the 2K version, which is included here on a BD-50. A remarkable result despite the sole presence of HDR-10, as opposed to the Dolby Vision US version.

The spectacle continues in the audio department, with high-tension elements, screams, gunshots, explosions, and the roar of armored vehicles and jets, thanks to the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 channel (16 bit) in Italian and English. Both are of excellent quality, with wide dynamics and substance even from the rear channels, with the original track offering a different level of involvement for the direct dialogue. Here too, the American edition, which lacks Italian, benefits from Dolby TrueHD 7.1.4 (24 bit) with ATMOS objects.

On the BD-50 2K disc, the extras: 14 minutes of interviews with part of the cast + 8 minutes with Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza. Italian subtitles included.