8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.3 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A trio of crooks relentlessly pursue a young American woman through Paris in an attempt to recover the fortune her dead husband stole from them. The only person she can trust is a suave, mysterious stranger.
Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Walter Matthau, James Coburn, George KennedyRomance | 100% |
Mystery | 8% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Stanley Donen's "Charade" (1963) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an audio commentary with director Stanley Donen and screenwriter Peter Stone, and original theatrical trailer. The disc also arrives with a 16-page illustrated booklet containing Bruce Eder's essay "The Spy in Givenchy". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
What a story!
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Stanley Donen's Charade arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"This high-definition digital transfer was created from the 35mm interpositive at IVC. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using MTI's DTS system and Pixel Farm's PFClean system, while Digital Vision's DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.
Telecine supervisor: Maria Palazzola.
Telecine colorist: Gregg Garvin/Modern Videofilm, Los Angeles."
This is a strong high-definition transfer, one that improves on all problematic areas SDVD releases of Charade previously conveyed. Fine object detail is very good, clarity very pleasing, and contrast levels certainly a lot better than I expected them to be. The color-scheme has also benefited enormously from the upgrade to 1080p; blues, reds, yellows, greens, browns, blacks, and whites look fresh and natural; for the first time now the nighttime scenes actually look healthy as all of the blockiness that plagued previous SDVD releases of Charade is gone. Edge-enhancement is not a serious issue of concern. I also did not detect any traces of heavy noise reduction. I did see a few very mild color pulsations during the second half of the film, but they certainly appear to have been inherited. Finally, there are no serious stability issues to report in this review. I also did not see any large cuts, warps, marks, or stains. To sum it all up, this clearly is the best Charade has ever looked. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: English LPCM 1.0 (Mono). For the record, Criterion have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.
The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"The monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the 35mm magnetic tracks. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated audio system."
I don't have any major reservations with the English LPCM 1.0 track. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. There are no balance issues with award-winning composer Henry Mancini's music score either. Understandably, the dynamic amplitude is rather limited, but overall the sound has very pleasing depth. Lastly, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or audio dropouts to report in this review.
Trailer - a theatrical trailer for Charade. In English, not subtitled. (4 min, 1080i).
Commentary - an audio commentary, recorded exclusively for Criterion in 1999, with director Stanley Donen and screenwriter Peter Stone. This is the same audio commentary that was included on Criterion's SDVD release of Charade. It is very informative, and at times quite hilarious, containing a wealth of information about the production history of Charade, where and how specific scenes from the film were shot, how the film was initially received, etc.
Booklet - 16-page illustrated booklet containing Bruce Eder's essay "The Spy in Givenchy" (Mr. Eder is a longtime journalist, film writer, and audio/video producer whose work has appeared in the Village Voice, Newsday, Current Biography, Interview, and Oxford American. He is a frequent contributor to the Criterion Collection and has recorded audio commentaries for more than two dozen movies).
I think it is fair to say that Stanley Donen's Charade has finally received the type of treatment it deserves. After years of somewhat justified abuse - obviously, because of the film's notorious public domain status - Criterion's Blu-ray release should convince other distributors to stop experimenting with it. Or at least I hope it will. Please keep in mind that this is a Region-A "locked" release. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
1938
1935
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1975
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1946
1933
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1935
1962
East of Shanghai
1931
Trois couleurs: Blanc
1994
2017
1945
Warner Archive Collection
1966
1961
1945
1940
Professione: reporter
1975