7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A retired American teacher leading a solitary life in a luxurious palazzo in Rome meets a lively marchesa and her companions, including her daughter and her lover. He rents them an apartment, and his quiet lifestyle is changed in a profound way by his colorful new tenants.
Starring: Burt Lancaster, Helmut Berger, Silvana Mangano, Claudia Cardinale, Dominique SandaDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Italian: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A master craftsman of films such as 1963’s “The Leopard” and 1971’s “Death in Venice,” Luchino Visconti settles down for 1974’s “Conversation Piece,” which is perhaps his most tranquilized effort. Taking a microcosmic look at life inside an Italian apartment building, the picture is exquisitely observational and finely acted, carrying a bold sense of unspoken desires and developing fears, playing smartly as both a domestic drama with pronounced period intentions and as a study of the aging process, with its distressing atmosphere of seclusion and routine. While a motionless feature in a visual sense, Visconti encourages a rising tension to the piece that’s nurtured expertly for two generous hours of pointed conversation and acts of deception. The helmer’s penultimate creation, “Conversation Piece” radiates an autobiographical touch underneath the theatrics, articulating private thoughts and broken dreams in an achingly human manner, making star Burt Lancaster’s nuanced performance all the more potent. Acidic, with a few flashes of uneasy sexuality, the movie commences as a mannered story concerning an invasion of privacy, only to ultimately reveal itself as an open wound of feelings and political paranoia, shaped into a compelling sit by an influential, widely beloved filmmaker.
The AVC encoded image (2.35:1 aspect ratio) presentation carries itself gracefully, providing a fresh viewing experience that handles the demands of the soft cinematography satisfactorily. Colors are rich and stable, with the opulence of The Professor's home preserved with hearty reds and golds, while elaborate costuming carries an additional element of varied hues, communicating the generational divide further. Fine detail is scrubbed out to a degree by DNR efforts, but the image retains cinematic flavors, with some facial nuances and make-up additions easy to scrutinize, while fabrics maintain texture. The depth of the production design also makes an impression during this HD event, with the viewer permitted to survey artwork and literary choices, while lens limitation also reveals itself in full. Low-light scenarios bring out some clotted blacks and moderate ghosting issues, but shadow detail is acceptable. Skintones are flush, with pleasing pinks supporting a human feel to these troubled characters. Reel changes are spotted, but the print is largely clean.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix is a blunt affair, befitting a film nearly 40 years old. The frontal sonic push is comfortable, with a heavy isolation of the Italian dubbing, making dialogue exchanges and emotional purgings easily understood. Scoring is supportive, carrying a decent weight to drive home dramatic points, never intruding on the performances or hitting shrill notes common with pictures of a certain age. While a true sense of bass is missing, the mix brings an accurate read of the effort's passive nature, with silence an important component that's preserved well without intrusive imperfections. The track is not dynamic, but realistically simple and effective. And English mix is available as well, presenting Lancaster and Berger's original audio.
Although politics in this combustible Italian landscape provide some sense of disorientation throughout the picture, blood doesn't truly boil until the final act, where The Professor bears witness to confessions and accusations that do little to dissuade his emotional interests. The moments feed into Visconti's passions for barbed conversation and national interests, yet the blast of blame makes "Conversation Piece" feel a little too bottom-heavy, loosening some of its tight grip on intimate matters. However, it's a small price to pay for such an expertly observed feature, which sustains a mesmeric interest in personality and passions emerging from unlikely sources. The textures of still life make an ideal setting for Visconti's vision of yearning.
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