6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
The story of the ill-fated second wife of the English king Henry VIII, whose marriage to the Henry led to momentous political and religious turmoil in England.
Starring: Henny Porten, Emil Jannings, Paul Hartmann (I)Drama | 100% |
Foreign | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Music: LPCM 2.0
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (A, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Note: This film is available as part of
Lubitsch in Berlin 1918-1921.
Ernst Lubitsch’s vaunted “touch” made him something of a rarity in Golden Age Hollywood, namely a star director in a town which more
typically tended to be all
about "real" stars (as in the kind up there on the silver screen). But what’s interesting about Lubitsch’s Hollywood career is that while it lasted
decades and
offered scores of films, when you get right down to it, the so-called “Lubitsch touch” might be best remembered for only a veritable handful of
outings
like Trouble in Paradise, Design for Living, Ninotchka, The Shop Around the
Corner and To Be or Not to Be. Now, it
perhaps goes without saying that with a handful like that, who really cares if not all of Lubitsch’s films have managed to penetrate into the
public consciousness, but for devoted cineastes with a taste in World Cinema, and in this case World Silent Cinema, this aggregation of
six silents Lubitsch made when he was still in Germany may be a bit revelatory, both in terms of subject matter but also in terms of what would
soon
enough become known as the “Lubitsch touch”.
Note: Eureka Entertainment provided check discs for the purposes of this review.
Anna Boleyn is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment's Masters of Cinema imprint with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in
1.33:1. Introductory text cards state this was restored in 2001 from a camera negative and tinted nitrate* copy, with a 2K digital version being finished
in 2014. To my eyes, this is the best overall looking feature in this set, which is not to say it's without some of the same age related wear and tear
seen in many of the other films in this set. That said, damage is perhaps arguably a bit less here overall, though there are still manifest
nicks, scratches and other blemishes. But the overall presentation here is quite good, with generally very good detail levels throughout. There are
some interesting teal like tones in both credit text and some intertitles, and some of the blue tinting is very evocative. Much of the film is in
"traditional" black and white, or perhaps just slightly sepia toned. There are a couple of noticeable spikes in the grain field when the film ventures
outside. My score is 3.75.
All of the films in this set feature LPCM 2.0 renderings of musical underscore. This film features another piano score by Javier Perez de Azpeitia (he also scored Sumurun, and commendably the two scores are rather stylistically diverse). This score is given a 2006 production date in the closing credits and sounds absolutely problem free throughout the presentation.
While there are no supplements tied to individual films included with this set, Disc Three offers the following comprehensive documentary, which does get into at least some of the films and this general era of Lubitsch's life:
This is another film that probably could have used some judicious editing (it clocks in at slightly over two hours), but it's a really fascinating film in many respects, and it certainly has a sumptuous production design. Video has some issues, as per all the films in this set, but to me looked the best overall of all the films in this set. As with the rest of the offerings in this set, audio is fine, for those considering a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
Masters of Cinema
1920
Die Bergkatze / Masters of Cinema
1921
The Oyster Princess / Masters of Cinema
1919
神々の深き欲望 / Kamigami no Fukaki Yokubo / Masters of Cinema
1968
The Decalogue I-X
1989
Babettes gæstebud
1987
The Night / Masters of Cinema
1961
Ansiktet
1958
Musik i mörker
1948
Faithful Heart / Masters of Cinema
1923
The Cousins / Masters of Cinema
1959
Елена
2011
L'eau froide
1994
一人息子 / Hitori musuko
1936
晩春 / Banshun
1949
1948
Fängelse
1949
1960
Mahanagar
1963
Przypadek
1987