ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT has released a stunning looking "COLONEL REDL" on dvd.  Director/co-writer Ivan Szabo's recent epic film, "SUNSHINE" just received its dvd release, and fans of that film will also marvel at the kind of storytelling he manages with "COLONEL REDL". 

Klaus Maria Brandauer is magnificent in the title role.  Szabo is a master at bringing depth to his characters as well as to his stories, and Colonel Alfred Redl is a very complex man.  Overcoming his peasant background, he's skillfully risen in ranks to become one of the elite members of the Austrian military.  Sent to spy on Russia, he must hide his true identity and purpose.  However, he has more than one identity.  He's a homosexual, and this fact alone would seem an act of betrayal to his homeland, hence one of many conflicts permeating the various layers to the plot.

The film moves at a steady, building pace, and it's gripping in its own methodical, tempered way.  Don't expect an action film by any means, but with the potential for mass bloodshed hanging on the outcome of Redl's actions, there's an always lurking presence of the omnipresent ramifications of world war.

The film is presented in full-frame, and nothing "appears" to be missing.  No shot appears too tight, so we assume this is the correct or "near" correct aspect ratio.  There is great depth to every image.  Szabo likes to present compositions like paintings, and the color values are excellent and often vibrant.  There is some grain in darker sequences.  Contrast is fine, with deep blacks and grays.

The monaural track is unremarkable, but free of distortion.  The dialogue is always intelligible.

There is a section, "THE NAKED FACE:CONVERSATIONS WITH DIRECTOR IVAN SZABO & KLAUS MARIA  BRANDAUER" which is one of the better supplements we've seen recently on any dvd, actually enhancing the film's value, rather than just playing like a publicity piece.