6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 2.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
In winter of 1938, Paris is crowded with refugees from the Nazis, who live in the black shadows of night, trying to evade deportation. One such is Dr. Ravic, who practices medicine illegally and stalks his old Nazi enemy Haake with murder in mind. One rainy night, Ravic meets Joan Madou, a kept woman cast adrift by her lover's sudden death. Against Ravic's better judgement, they become involved in a doomed affair; matters come to a crisis on the day war is declared.
Starring: Ingrid Bergman, Charles Boyer (I), Charles Laughton, Louis Calhern, Ruth WarrickRomance | 100% |
War | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (48kHz, 16-bit)
None
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
If Parisian tourguides are to be believed (and many of them are British, so their comments must be taken with a grain or two of Francophobic salt), French insurance companies specifically deny coverage for any of Paris' insanely busy roundabouts, like the one that encircles one of the most famous icons of French history and national pride, the Arc de Triomphe. As someone who madly decided to rent a car in Paris the last time I was there (ostensibly to get to Normandy, but which by default included urban Parisian driving), I can vouch for the fact that you pretty much take your life into your hands anytime you venture into a Parisian roundabout, whether on foot or in a vehicle, and so the fact that insurance companies refuse to cover any accidents in these locations strikes me as completely plausible. There is in fact a little coterie of observers who congregate regularly at the apex of the Champs-Elysées for the very opportunity to witness a fender bender (or several) in the grand parade of traffic that marauds around the Arc de Triomphe. There's a different if no less deadly kind of danger afoot in Lewis Milestone's largely forgotten 1948 opus Arch of Triumph, a film which opens with a stunning view of the monument (plus what looks like a not very convincing miniature), as an instant visual glyph that we're in the City of Lights. It's the last few relatively calm hours before the outbreak of World War II, in a rain soaked winter of 1938, and while true hostilities have not yet broken out between France and Germany, there's little doubt that the bad guys in the film, as personified by a dapper if depraved Charles Laughton in a showy supporting role, are Nazis.
Arch of Triumph is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Frankly, I could reasonably argue a 3.5 score for this presentation, for when it's good (which is often), it boasts really good contrast and ample black levels, helping the noir-ish photography by Russell Metty to offer surprising depth and nuance. Unfortunately, there are an ungainly amount of clarity, grain and contrast variances here that suggest to me that this was cobbled together from composite elements. There are numerous cutaways and even shorter segments that have noticeably worse contrast (to the point that backgrounds of frames are basically black), with increased fuzziness and pronounced grain. As with many vintage Olive releases, the elements have their fair share of age related damage as well. Still, there's nothing here that's less than watchable, if approached with reasonable expectations.
Arch of Triumph's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track has a lot of high end, with attendant hiss. The high end tends to make the score (including a song Bergman warbles) and a few sound effects just a bit shrill, but dialogue escapes mostly unscathed. The entire track suffers from a certain boxiness, as befits its era, but there are no deal killing problems.
There are no supplements on this Blu-ray disc.
Though the rain is relentless in Arch of Triumph, unfortunately lightning doesn't strike twice, and this World War II refugee romance starring Ingrid Bergman can hardly be placed in the same category as the immortal Casablanca. If the seriously overstuffed second act had been aggressively trimmed, letting the film focus on the revenge angle earlier, Arch of Triumph would at least have been an agreeable enough effort. Still, fans of the stars may want to check this out, but they should be prepared for less than optimal video and (to a less extent) audio.
80th Anniversary Edition
1942
1927
Director's Cut
1986
Les Salauds / Slipcover in Original Pressing
2013
2016
1959
Le silence de la mer
1949
1965
Le dernier métro
1980
Trois couleurs: Rouge
1994
1937
Manon des sources
1986
Un long dimanche de fiançailles
2004
1983
Les enfants du paradis
1945
1934
Anne and Muriel / Les deux Anglaises et le continent
1971
Jules et Jim
1962
Special Edition
1978
2014