3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 7, 2014

Nominated for two Cesar Awards, Jacques Demy's "3 places pour le 26" a.k.a. "3 Seats for the 26th" (1988) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film and a new documentary by Jerome Wybon featuring interviews with Rosalie Varda, executive producer Pierre Grunstein, actress Mathilda May, and cinematographer Jean Penzer. In French, with optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

"Remember the little bar behind the Opera?"

The great Yves Montand plays the great Yves Montand, a legendary singer and performer, who has just arrived in Marseille where years ago he started his career in the city’s night clubs. Now older and famous Montand is getting ready to stage a massive production in the city’s beautiful Opera House that will tell his life story.

Montand is accompanied by the American actress Betty Miller (Catriona MacColl, The House by the Cemetery), who has been his mistress for years. He likes her, but the only woman he ever truly loved was Mylene Le Goff (Françoise Fabian, Belle de jour, My Night at Maud's), a beautiful prostitute he once met in Marseille. Between rehearsals he visits the club where Mylene used to work but quickly realizes that no one seems to remember her.

Meanwhile, in a nearby boutique the young and beautiful Marion (Mathilda May, Lifeforce, The Tit and the Moon) and her two coworkers can’t wait to see Montand singing. She fails to purchase tickets for his show but comes up with a brilliant plan. The plan is to meet Montand after a rehearsal and let him know how important it is for a young singer like her to see him perform live. Her beautiful eyes will then do the rest and Montand will have no other option but to find her three tickets for the show.

Shortly after Marion visits Montand’s dressing room, her mother, Baroness de Lambert, visits his hotel and leaves a small note with a phone number. When later on Montand calls her, he is surprised to discover that the Baroness is no other than his old love, Mylene. The two quickly arrange to meet in a cozy bar not too far away from the Opera House.

Jacques Demy’s final film 2 places pour le 26 a.k.a 3 Seats for the 26th is part musical part beautiful romantic comedy which in a way really does sum up the real life of Ivo Livi, who became the great Yves Montand. As he rehearses different acts from the Hollywood-esque production which everyone is Marseille is dying to see, there are various bits pointing to his relationship with the legendary Edith Piaf who discovered him in Paris, his affair with Marilyn Monroe, and his marriage to Simone Signoret.

But Demy also follows closely Marion’s gradual transformation while she learns more about Montand. Initially she is a shy girl who does mostly what other people tell her to do, but after her encounter with Montand she gathers the courage to follow her dreams and her life changes dramatically. During the second half, her enthusiasm is beautifully captured in a number of great sequences where she sings and dances.

Montand’s stage performances are equally impressive, but Demy never allows his star presence to overshadow the rest of the cast. (There are different stage acts but they are fairly short). In fact, a lot more attention is paid to the manner in which the rest of the characters perceive Montand and his legacy. As a result, even though the film is about Montand it never feels like a bloated tribute.

The use of color isn’t as striking as it is in The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, but it is still quite impressive. The rehearsals and the footage from the show at end look especially beautiful.

The film’s excellent soundtrack was created by Demy’s long-time collaborator Michel Legrand (The Young Girls of Rochefort, Band of Outsiders).

3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jacques Demy's 3 Seats for the 26th arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe.

Restored in 2K by Pathe in 2012, Jacques Demy's final film looks mighty impressive on Blu-ray. The outdoor footage as well as the footage from the practice sessions convey tremendous depth and clarity. Close-ups and the large panoramic shots also impress with terrific fluidity. In fact, despite the fact that light is used in a variety of different ways there are absolutely no clarity fluctuations whatsoever (this is also true even for the notably dark footage from the night club where Yves Montand and Françoise Fabian meet). Color reproduction is also outstanding. There is a wide range of wonderfully saturated reds, blues, greens, yellows, browns, and grays. The blacks are stable and natural, never appearing boosted. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Compromising sharpening adjustments also have not been applied. Unsurprisingly, from start to finish the film has a very solid and very pleasing organic look. Finally, there are no serious stability issues to address in this review. All in all, Pathe's 2K restoration of 3 Seats for the 26th is amongst the very best that I have seen from the French label. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Also included is a Descriptive Audio track (French DTS 2.0). For the record, Pathe have provided optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

The audio has been fully remastered and it is very easy to tell. The lossless 5.1 track boasts terrific depth and clarity and the music is beautifully mixed (the songs that are heard during the casual conversations are always well balanced; there are no sudden spikes or drops in terms of dynamic activity). Also, from start to finish the dialog is clear, free of background hiss, and very easy to follow. The English translation is excellent.

3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Film annonce - original trailer for Jacques Demy's 3 Seats for the 26th. In French, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• Dans les coulisses: le tournage de Trois places pour le 26 - in this new documentary, Rosalie Varda, executive producer Pierre Grunstein, actress Mathilda May (Marion), and cinematographer Jean Penzer discuss the production history of 3 Seats for the 26th. Also included are clips from archival interviews with director Jacques Demy and Yves Montand. The documentary was produced by Jerome Wybon for Pathe in 2013. In French, not subtitled. (35 min, 1080p).

3 places pour le 26 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Pathe's recent 2K restoration of Jacques Demy's final film, 3 Seats for the 26th, is a thing of beauty. The film looks lush and very healthy, clearly the best it ever has. I was also very pleased with the remastered audio. Folks interested in Demy's work should not hesitate to pick up this release. I would also like to remind Demy fans residing in Region-B territories that StudioCanal's Blu-ray release of the French director's restored The Umbrellas of Cherbourg will be out next week. (See our listing here). HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.