First, it's important to get out that this reviewer is not a fan of Director Michael Hanake. "Cache" should've been called "crape'" and his American remake of "Funny Games," let alone his original of that film, were also trash, serving no sense of purpose and completely at odds with his proposed indictment of exploitation films, by offering nothing more than a bad, senselessly violent "exploitation" film wrapped around good actors. With that said, "THE WHITE RIBBON," while anti-climatic, uneven in pacing and a bit confusing(It's repeatedly explained as having taken place on the "eve" of WW1, but it's chronology is of a period up to a year earlier), is still his best film. It's also his most accessible.

Set in a small, rural German village, a year before the start of WW1, inhabitants of the town are meeting up with horrible circumstances. The town doctor is thrown off his horse, seriously injured and almost killed, due to a wire that had been purposefully set up to do harm. A farmer's wife is found dead from a mysterious accident at the sawmill wherein she worked. And more disturbing events unfold, as the plot continues. The lone intellectual of the town, a relocated teacher begins to question the events and assumptions surrounding them, coming up with his own horrifying explanations(sort of)at who is responsible. Haneke pulls punches with his ending and those who make it through the entire film, will likely be annoyed at its anti-climatic closing. Still, it's hard to argue that there isn't some provocative social commentary going on here and a craftsmanship missing from his previous work. Shots last longer than in typical main-stream films, and the black&white cinematography, pacing and general atmosphere will make this a challenging experience for some, but it's worth the time, and easy to recommend. However, it definitely didn't deserve the Oscar for best foreign film when compared to so many, vastly superior, satisfying films that were nominated alongside it, and many more that were overlooked.

SONY has provided the correct 1.85:1 aspect ratio for this AVC MPEG-4 1080p blu-ray. While it's filmed in black and white, the lack of color, let alone "vibrant" color, doesn't diminish the stunning quality of the image.  Detail is astounding! While it doesn't offer the level of depth found on many color releases, there is notably more depth than in average looking blu-ray releases and the contrast is flawless. The only criticism that deserves to be leveled at this release, lies in the seemingly "small" subtitles. German doesn't have the fluidity or similarities found in Spanish or Italian films, and there are times where one has to almost squint to make out what the translation is, without losing a sense of the onscreen drama. It's challenging due to the small subtitles on numerous occasions.

SONY has provided a DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix that is generally subdued, but ultimately impressive. The dialogue, ambient effects and music are almost brilliant in their clarity. Surround effects compliment key sequences in a thoroughly naturalistic tone. The mix offered here demonstrates how great a lossy track can be, without having to rely on bombastic explosions and over-the-top "manufactured" effects.

SONY has included some extras, including a "MAKING OF FEATURETTE" in standard resolution.  Another featurette, running close to an hour, examines the work of Haneke, utilizing interviews from him and associates. Trailers for the film and others are offered in full HD.