7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.
Starring: Diane Kruger, Willem Dafoe, Guillaume Canet, Fred Ward, Alexandra Maria LaraForeign | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, French director Christian Carion's "L'affaire Farewell" a.k.a "Farewell" (2009) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-UK. Unfortunately, there are no supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc. In French, Russian, and English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
Listening...
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Christian Carion's Farewell arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-UK.
It appears that this high-definition transfer, like the one NeoClassics Films Ltd. used in the United States, was sourced from the same French master which Pathe first used for their local Blu-ray release of Farewell. Naturally, all three Blu-ray releases look practically identical.
The image is consistently crisp and sharp, with many of the daylight scenes conveying tremendous depth and fluidity. The close-ups - and there are plenty throughout the entire film - are also incredibly detailed. Color reproduction is also very convincing, especially during the outdoor scenes (right before Pierre and Jessica cross the Finnish border, there are some spectacular panoramic shots). As it was the case with the U.S. Blu-ray release, edge-enhancement, halo effects, and ringing patterns do not plague the high-definition transfer. I did not see any serious compression artifacts to report in this review either. All in all, this is a solid, very convincing presentation that does the film justice. (Notice: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (with portions of English and Russian). For the record, Universal Studios-UK have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature (but they could be turned off only when English isn't spoken).
The French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has a wide range of nuanced dynamics that serve Clint Mansell's moody soundtrack very well. I particularly liked the final third of the film where the main protagonists realize that their lives have been irreversibly changed - the music here is excellent, reminding about Stéphane Moucha and Gabriel Yared's soundtrack from The Lives of Others. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. The English translation is excellent.
Unfortunately, there are no supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc.
Christian Carion's Farewell is one of the best spy films I have seen in years. It is intelligent, thought-provoking, and exceptionally well acted. This year, it is one of my favorite films. The Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of Universal Studios-UK, looks and sounds terrific. I am slightly disappointed, however, that there are no supplemental features on it. Regardless, do not miss Farewell. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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