Product Description

Politics and low tide hold a U.S. gunboat on China's Yangtze River in 1926.

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Following the success of The Sound of Music, director Robert Wise chose to film Robert McKenna's prize-winning 1962 novel, The Sand Pebbles--an ambitious choice for a director at the peak of his career. Shot in Taiwan and Hong Kong, the film combines historical sweep and intimate human drama in several parallel stories, all revolving around U.S. Navy machinist's mate Jake Holman (Steve McQueen). Holman is a skillful but fiercely independent sailor who joins the "sand pebble" crew of the U.S.S. San Pablo, a Navy gunboat patrolling the Yangtze River on the eve of the Chinese revolution in 1926. The San Pablo's inexperienced captain (Richard Crenna) obsessively defends the Navy's mission--however unnecessary or unwanted--to protect American missionaries and businessmen, blind to the more dangerous implications of American involvement with China's opposing political factions.

Holman is a defiant voice of humanity in this clash between outmoded values and inevitable change; his final line of dialogue ("What the hell happened?") is a tragic summation of misguided policy, expressing the film's criticism of the Vietnam War. Rather than preach, however, Wise lets McKenna's potent drama emerge from finely-drawn relationships--between Holman and a young American teacher (19-year-old Candice Bergen, in her second film); between Holman and the Chinese "coolie" (Mako) whose heartbreaking fate transcends all issues of racial or political difference; and between crewmate "Frenchy" Burgoyne (Richard Attenborough) and the Chinese woman he's sworn to love and protect at all costs. Combined with the film's colorful supporting cast, adventurous scope, and climactic battle scenes, these personal dynamics bring substance and spirit to a complex story of good intentions gone awry. --Jeff Shannon

Set Contains:

In 1966, The Sand Pebbles was released theatrically in two slightly different versions, and both are include in this two-disc "Cinema Classics Collection" DVD release, which comes in a standard case in a cardboard slip-cover, and opens to reveal an informative scene index flyer; a reproduction of the original souvenir booklet from the "Roadshow" release of the film, and an embossed envelope containing four postcard-sized reproductions of Sand Pebbles lobby cards.

Disc 1 features a beautiful 2.35:1 widescreen transfer of the 183-minute theatrical version, including overture and intermission music but otherwise identical to the previous "special edition" DVD release from 2001. The wide-ranging commentary with director Robert Wise and actors Richard Crenna, Mako, and Candice Bergen is also carried over from the previous DVD. Each brings their own abundance of production memories, anecdotes, and personal observations. Exclusive to this DVD is the isolated music score on a separate track, accompanied (when no music is heard) by commentary by documentary and music producer Nick Redman, film music historian Jon Burlingame, and film historian/screenwriter Lem Dobbs (The Limey, Dark City), each providing their informative appreciation of Jerry Goldsmith's excellent score.

Disc 2 is double-sided, and includes the 196-minute widescreen "Roadshow" version of The Sand Pebbles on side 1, with introductions by Robert Wise and Richard Zanuck. The Roadshow version is 13 minutes longer than the theatrical version, due to additional music (overture, entr'acte, and exit music) and a few relatively unimportant scenes that are either missing or shortened in the theatrical version. Unfortunately, the Roadshow version was mastered from an unrestored Deluxe color print that had badly faded toward the magenta/pink end of the spectrum. This makes it useful only for purposes of comparison; for feature-length viewing of The Sand Pebbles, the fully restored and color-corrected theatrical version is strongly recommended over the faded Roadshow print. The special features are on side 2, beginning with the 63-minute documentary "The Making of The Sand Pebbles, divided into six sections and consisting of film clips, behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with Robert Wise, Candice Bergen, Sir Richard Attenborough, producer Richard Zanuck, film historian/critic F.X. Feeney, stunt coordinator Loren Janes, Neile Adama (married to Steve McQueen from 1956-72), Robert Relyea (McQueen's business partner), and others.

The "Sidebars" section includes two featurettes: "Remembering Steve McQueen" (10:55) pays tribute to the late actor, and includes interviews with director Norman Jewison, Richard Zanuck, Robert Relyea, Neile Adams, and others. "Robert Wise in Command" (10:36) honors the late director's distinguished career through archival interviews clips with Robert Mitchum, Julie Andrews, Rita Moreno, Marsha Mason, Candice Bergen, Sir Richard Attenborough, screenwriter Ernest Lehman, and others. In "China 1926" authors and history professors J.A.G. Roberts and Merle Goldman provide informed perspective on Chinese history as depicted in The Sand Pebbles, along with refreshingly candid assessments of the film's historical accuracy. A section called "From the Fox Vault" includes two vintage 1966 promotional featurettes, "A Ship Called San Pablo" (14:25) narrated by Richard Attenborough, and "Secrets of the San Pablo" (8:50) narrated by Richard Crenna. The "Radio Docs" are titled "Changsha Bund and the Streets of Taipei" (13:10) and "A Ship Called San Pablo" (9:20); both are narrated by Richard Attenborough and provide colorful background to promote the exotic appeal of The Sand Pebbles. Also included are three brief promotional radio spots, and photo galleries divided into five categories (Behind the Scenes, Production Art, Publicity, Posters, and Interactive Pressbook). A final and altogether pleasant surprise on disc 2 is an interactive reproduction of "The Sam Pebbles," a still-amusing movie parody from issue #117 (March 1968) of MAD magazine. --Jeff Shannon

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 2.35:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.5 x 0.7 x 5.4 inches; 3.2 ounces
• Director ‏ : ‎ Robert Wise
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Color, NTSC, Special Edition, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen, Multiple Formats
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 3 hours and 2 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ May 6, 2014
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Candice Bergen, Richard Crenna, Emmanuelle Arsan
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ Spanish, English, French
• Language ‏ : ‎ Unqualified, English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 4.0), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
• Writers ‏ : ‎ Richard McKenna, Robert Anderson
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2