8.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 5.0 | |
Overall | 5.0 |
After having neglected her children for many years, celebrated but icy concert pianist Charlotte visits her daughter Eva at her home. Over the course of a day and a long, painful night, the duo confront the bitter discord of their relationship.
Starring: Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Lena Nyman, Halvar Björk, Marianne AminoffForeign | 100% |
Drama | 85% |
Music | 2% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Swedish: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: Dolby Digital Mono (192 kbps)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 5.0 |
Ingmar Bergman's "Hostsonaten" a.k.a. "Autumn Sonata" (1978) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include an original trailer for the film; exclusive interview with Liv Ullmann; archival video interview with Ingrid Bergman; long documentary film produced by Arne Carlsson; introduction by Ingmar Bergman; and audio commentary by film critic Peter Cowie. In Swedish or English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.
Do you remember?
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ingmar Bergman's Autumn Sonata arrives on Blu-ray courtesy Criterion.
The release is sourced from a brand new restoration that was completed in 2017. Obviously, the previous release of the film from 2013 was prepared from a different remaster. There are some noticeable discrepancies between the two presentations of the film, which I will highlight below.
The density levels of the new presentation are practically identical to those of the previous presentation. I looked very closely, and while there are some very minor fluctuations during the indoor footage, at the end the difference seems cosmetic. In fact, if you upscale to 4K, you will see that the visuals instantly acquire the exact same consistent tightness. Now, the new presentation is graded differently. The primaries become warmer, and with the shift there is also an adjustment in the brightness levels. The most notable difference is in the expanded brown and brown/yellow nuances, which tone down red and red nuances (compare screencaptures #1 and 2 with the corresponding screencaptures from the first review we posted). This is an adjustment that also has an impact on the film's dynamic range, which becomes noticeably more subdued but without having adverse effects on depth and delineation. In fact, exactly the opposite is true, because in certain areas the new grading eliminates some extremely light crushing that was introduced with the previous grading job (see screencapture #6). However, this is yet another cosmetic adjustment that is extremely difficult to spot and appreciate. In fact, given the very particular lighting during the indoor footage and its impact on how colors are perceived, the old presentation routinely emerges as the slightly more convincing one. Overall fluidity and image stability are identical. All in all, as far as I am concerned the overall image balance on the new presentation is marginally superior and as a result there is a small range of better nuances on it, but the color values of the old presentation appear to be slightly more appropriate and convincing. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Swedish: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit) and English: Dolby Digital 1.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.
I viewed the film with the Swedish tracks and was paying close attention because this release is sourced from a new restoration. To be honest, I could not hear any significant difference to mention in our review. But, I was not surprised that this turned out to be the case because the lossless Swedish track from the previous release was already outstanding.
I was very surprised to see that this upcoming release of Autumn Sonata is sourced from a new restoration that was completed in 2017, because the previous release from 2013 offered a wonderful presentation of the film. There is a noticeable difference between the two, and to be honest there is a lot that I like in both. Part of me prefers the color grading of the first 2K restoration, but I also think that the warmer grading of the new restoration, which promotes more earthy and autumn-like primaries and nuances with a slightly better image balance, is lovely. So, it is really, really difficult for me to pick a winner. The release is included in Criterion's upcoming Ingmar Bergman's Cinema thirty-disc box set, which will be available for purchase on November 20. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
Aus dem Leben der Marionetten
1980
Efter repetitionen
1984
En passion
1969
Riten / The Ritual
1969
Hamnstad
1948
Nära livet
1958
Skepp till Indialand / A Ship Bound for India
1947
Kvinnodröm
1955
Till glädje
1950
Törst
1949
Kvinnors väntan / Secrets of Women
1952
Gycklarnas afton
1953
Kris
1946
2003
Scener ur ett äktenskap
1973
Tystnaden
1963
Nattvardsgästerna
1963
Såsom i en spegel
1961
Skammen
1968
Viskningar och rop
1972