As part of its 100th Anniversary this year, Universal Studios Home Entertainment is offering special Blu-rays of selected catalog titles, and Born on the Fourth of July will arrive in the July wave. This adaptation of Ron Kovic's memoir stars Tom Cruise (The Color of Money) as Kovic, an idealistic young man whose patriotic fervor motivates him to enlist in the Vietnam War.
However, the realities of battle prove far more murky than Kovic expected, and he returns to the United States both psychologically and physically crippled. Permanently confined to a wheelchair, Kovic undergoes an odyssey of self-discovery, an experience that results in his emergence as a highly regarded antiwar activist.
Directed by Oliver Stone (Platoon), the film features an impressive ensemble that includes Kyra Sedgwick (Gamer), Raymond J. Barry (Justified), Frank Whaley (Vacancy), Stephen Baldwin (The Usual Suspects), and Willem Dafoe (Antichrist).
Born on the Fourth of July was also a huge success at the 1990 Academy Awards Ceremony, winning the following Oscars:
Best Director: Oliver Stone
Best Film Editing: David Brenner and Joe Hutshing
In addition, the picture received further nominations for:
Best Picture: A. Kitman Ho and Oliver Stone
Best Actor: Tom Cruise
Best Adapted Screenplay: Oliver Stone and Ron Kovic
Best Cinematography: Robert Richardson
Best Original Score: John Williams
Best Sound: Michael Minkler, Gregory H. Watkins, Wylie Stateman, and Tod A. Maitland
Universal's Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack presents the film in its 2.39:1 original aspect ratio with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track alongside these bonus supplements:
Commentary with Oliver Stone
Backstory: Born on the Fourth of July archival documentary
Day one for me!! Great freakin movie that no one ever seems to talk about. For all those Tom Cruise haters out there who say he cant act, watch this movie!
Where are the deleted scenes? For instance, the opening when Kovic was a boy had been shot to be a much longer opening to the film. Don't hold back, Universal.
I'll wait for the bd reviews to see if it's worth upgrading from my HDDVD copy from 07', which merited a respectable 4 out of 5 on PQ from HighDef Digest ...
Finally, Oliver Stone's best film (with TALK RADIO being a very close second), hits Blu-ray! Thank you Universal...now bring on Joe Dante's THE 'BURBS this year, too!!!!
Not one, not two, but THREE BALDWIN BROTHERS in the cast!! Need I say more? Okay, how 'bout some Willem Dafoe, Tommy Sizemore and Michael Wincott?
...and McGinley and Berenger and Kevin Bacon's wife and...
