Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 24, 2025

John Schlesinger's "Darling" (1965) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the release include new program with screenwriter Frederic Raphael; archival program with John Schlesinger; new program with Sofia Coppola; trailers; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The dreamer

The similarities between John Schlesinger's Darling and Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita are unmissable. Both films can look strikingly beautiful and elegant, but they can also be uncompromisingly cynical and equally noisy and chaotic. Both films also effectively expose the erosion of the traditional trust between the two sexes during the '60s.

These films, however, have drastically different protagonists. In La Dolce Vita, the great Marcello Mastroianni plays an experienced reporter who has grown tired of spending time amongst social parasites and their hosts in the Eternal City. But because he needs their stories, he cannot abandon them. In Darling, Julie Christie is Diana Scott, a young and beautiful model who wants to reach the people Mastroianni's reporter despises. She also does not like their eccentricities, but understands that she must be present in their world to have the glamorous career she desires.

For Scott, the road to the top is not easy. First, Scott seduces the intellectual journalist Robert Gold (Dirk Bogarde, The Night Porter), who promptly leaves his family, convinced that the two were meant to be together. But when he introduces her to the cynical and powerful advertising executive Miles Brand (Laurence Harvey, The Manchurian Candidate), Scott quickly turns his back on him and rearranges her priorities. Through her new social friend, Scott then meets an extravagant homosexual photographer (Roland Curram, Silent Playground) who helps her enter the film business. Eventually, while shooting a film commercial in Italy, Scott is approached by the lonely millionaire Cesare della Romita (José Luis de Vilallonga, The Burglars) and asked if she would like to become his principessa.

The final twenty or so minutes are what make Darling relevant today. Scott begins reevaluating her life and realizes that her success has come at a hefty price. However, Darling does not condemn her choices and actions. Its message is that the little things that make life worth living create annoying complications, forcing people to doubt themselves and ultimately feel guilty. However, even though in the real world the top could be a lonely place at times, it is still a much better place than the bottom.

Apparently, the idea for Darling came from radio disc jockey Godfrey Winn, who knew an ambitious model that ended her life after having disastrous relationships with several influential ‘sponsors’. Frederic Raphael wrote the screenplay for Darlingand won an Academy Award for it, and later again collaborated with Schlesinger on Far from the Madding Crowd.

Christie also won an Academy Award. However, her first collaboration with Schlesinger was in Billy Liar. After Darling, she became an international star and went on to work with such renowned directors as David Lean (Doctor Zhivago), Francois Truffaut (Fahrenheit 451), Nicolas Roeg (Don't Look Now), and Robert Altman (McCabe & Mrs. Miller).

John Dankworth, who had previously worked with Joseph Losey on The Servant and The Criminal, created the excellent jazzy soundtrack.

*Another terrific film that tells a very similar story about a beatiful model reaching for the top is Antonio Pietrangeli's I Knew Her Well. This year, I Knew Her Well also celebrates its sixtieth anniversary.

Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

StudioCanal's release of Darling is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-B "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray disc and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-24 are from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #27-34 are from the 4K Blu-ray.

Darling made its high-definition debut with this Blu-ray release, also produced by StudioCanal, in 2015. It is the only other release of Darling that I have in my library.

The previous release offers a very nice organic presentation of the film. I think that even a decade later, it is still an enormously satisfying presentation, making it exceptionally easy to enjoy the film. The combo pack introduces a new 4K 16-bit restoration sourced from the best surviving elements. In native 4K, it can be viewed with Dolby Virion and HDR grades. The 4K restoration is also made available on a standalone Blu-ray. (A separate Blu-ray release is also made available for purchase). I viewed the 4K restoration in native 4K with HDR.

The overall quality of the visuals ranges from very good to excellent. However, I have to immediately mention that the previous presentation produced similarly good-looking visuals. I think that in some areas it is easy to see improved sharpness and depth, but elsewhere the uptick in quality is insignificant. For this reason, viewers with very large screens will the ones that are most appreciative of the different types of improvements that emerged in different areas. The grayscale is excellent. Blacks, grays, and whites all look enormously healthy and nicely balanced. The HDR grade handles outdoor and darker indoor footage very well. I did not notice any darker areas with flatness or crushing. On the contrary, I thought that often these areas appeared very sharp and nicely detailed. The 4K restoration offers a noticeably healthier presentation of the film. On the previous release, while not distracting, small blemishes, dirt spots, and specks were often easy to see. Image stability is excellent. I have to mention one more important detail that all viewers will become aware of, including those that view the film only in 1080p on the Blu-ray. There are inherited density fluctuations, and I think that some are slightly more prominent now, primarily because grain exposure is better. In summary, the new 4K restoration offers a healthier and more attractive presentation of the film. However, because the previous presentation was already quite nice, the gap in quality between the two is not huge.

Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English LPCM 2.0 and German LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH and German subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is excellent. All exchanges are very clear, sharp, and easy to follow. I would describe stability is very good, too. However, there are a few areas -- one of them is the big party where 'truths' are revealed -- where some small dynamic unevenness can be noticed. This is an inherited limitation. While I think that modern digital tools can easily eliminate it, it is perfectly fine to have it reproduced by the lossless track. I did not encounter any distortions or audio dropouts to report.

Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Sofia Coppola on Darling - in this new program, Sofia Coppola explains what makes Darling a special film and why she admires Julie Christie's performance. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Let's Call It Darling - in this new program, screenwriter Frederic Raphael explains how he was approached by producer Joseph Janni and John Schlesinger with an offer to pen a screenplay for Darling -- which happened shortly after he had done Nothing But the Best, a film perceived as being classier than A Kind of Loving and Billy Liar -- and the exact moment he suggested the title for the film. Raphael also discusses his ongoing interactions with Schlesinger and the "pressure" to create something "very different, not commercial" with Darling. There are some interesting comments about the casting choices that were made as well. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• After a Fashion: Julie Harris' Costumes for Darling - in this new program, Dr. Josephine Botting discusses costume designer Julie Harris' background and contribution to Darling. In English, not subtitled. (29 min).

• Archival Interview with John Schlesinger - presented here is an extract from an archival audio interview with John Schlesinger, conducted for the British Entertainment History Project (BEHP). Schlesinger quickly addresses the conception of Darling. The content is presented with archival stills. In English, not subtitled. (5 min).

• Stills Gallery - presented here is a collection of behind the scenes stills. Silent. (2 min).

• Costume Designs Gallery - presented here is a collection of original drawings used for different costumes seen in Darling. Silent. (1 min).

• Color Stills Gallery - presented here is a collection of original behind the scenes stills in color. Silent. (1 min).

• Trailer One - presented here is a vintage trailer for Daring. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Trailer Two - presented here is a new trailer for the recent 4K restoration of Daring. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

BLU-RAY DISC

• Sofia Coppola on Darling - in this new program, Sofia Coppola explains what makes Darling a special film and why she admires Julie Christie's performance. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Let's Call It Darling - in this new program, screenwriter Frederic Raphael explains how he was approached by producer Joseph Janni and John Schlesinger with an offer to pen a screenplay for Darling -- which happened shortly after he had done Nothing But the Best, a film perceived as being classier than A Kind of Loving and Billy Liar -- and the exact moment he suggested the title for the film. Raphael also discusses his ongoing interactions with Schlesinger and the "pressure" to create something "very different, not commercial" with Darling. There are some interesting comments about the casting choices that were made as well. In English, not subtitled. (16 min).

• After a Fashion: Julie Harris' Costumes for Darling - in this new program, Dr. Josephine Botting discusses costume designer Julie Harris' background and contribution to Darling. In English, not subtitled. (29 min).

• Archival Interview with John Schlesinger - presented here is an extract from an archival audio interview with John Schlesinger, conducted for the British Entertainment History Project (BEHP). Schlesinger quickly addresses the conception of Darling. The content is presented with archival stills. In English, not subtitled. (5 min).

• Stills Gallery - presented here is a collection of behind the scenes stills. Silent. (2 min).

• Costume Designs Gallery - presented here is a collection of original drawings used for different costumes seen in Darling. Silent. (1 min).

• Color Stills Gallery - presented here is a collection of original behind the scenes stills in color. Silent. (1 min).

• Trailer One - presented here is a vintage trailer for Daring. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Trailer Two - presented here is a new trailer for the recent 4K restoration of Daring. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

ADDITIONAL CONTENT

• Booklet - a 64-page illustrated booklet with writings on the film and technical credits.

Darling 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

John Schlesinger's Darling can be awfully cynical at times. However, this is precisely the reason why it feels so relevant today. Like its young and beautiful protagonist, many of us are brainwashed to relentlessly pursue success, but only a few truly understand what we are after and the price we would have to pay for it. This upcoming combo pack introduces a wonderful new 4K restoration with a fine selection of bonus features, one of which is an exclusive new program with Frederic Raphael, who wrote the screenplay for Darling sixty years ago. If you decide to acquire the combo pack, I strongly recommend grabbing with it a copy of Antonio Pietrangeli's I Knew Her Well, a true masterpiece about another beautiful Italian model pursuing success in the Eternal City, which also celebrates its sixtieth anniversary this year. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.