DVD Corner

Go Tell The Spartans Blu-ray Review

The poor production values hamper “Go Tell The Spartans.”

Based on Daniel Ford’s novel “Incident At Muc Wa, “Go Tell The Spartans” is a Vietnam War film set in 1964. The story revolves around Major Barker who is in charge of a US Army outpost. The Major receives word that there is Viet Cong activity at Muc Wa and is ordered to send men there on a mission. He rounds up a squad that includes South Vietnamese soldiers, an interpreter (Cowboy), a Draftee (Courcey), a First Sergeant who has seen too much (Oleozewski) and a drug addled medic (Corp. Lincoln). 

From a storytelling standpoint, 1978’s “Go Tell The Spartans” is a meaningful anti-war film about the U.S. being in another country’s brutal war. On screen, the movie leaves a lot to be desired. Despite the presence of one of the acting greats in Burt Lancaster as Major Barker (who is the best part of the entire movie by far), director Ted Post really lets this movie down. 

Wendell Mayes wrote a provoking script that captured the perplexing Vietnam War in ways other films do not, but the dramatic impact of the material is entirely ruined by the overall film. Post has had a history of film and TV work, but the not so cinematic movie feels like a cheap TV film through and through with flimsy office sets, inert battle scenes that look like they were filmed on a campground, a cheesy score, and a cast largely comprised of miscast actors. Only the aforementioned Lancaster, a young Marc Singer, and James Wong stand out here. Maybe it’s unfair to place the blame on Post given the clear budget limitations, but the fact remains that the impact of the story could have been so much stronger with a bolder filmmaker at the helm.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.85:1 1080p. How does it look? The restoration is decent, but expect fuzz, dirt specs and flickering here and there.

Audio Track: Unspecified. How does it sound? The audio track is not listed but it’s assumed to be an DTS-HD MA Mono track. Whatever the case may be, the track is adequate.

No extras have been included

August 16, 2023 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Burt Lancaster, Go Tell The Spartans Blu-ray Review, Vietnam War, War Movie