8.1 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Young, rich, and obsessed with death, Harold finds himself changed forever when he meets lively septuagenarian Maude at a funeral.
Starring: Ruth Gordon (I), Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles, Cyril Cusack, Charles TynerDrama | 100% |
Romance | 26% |
Dark humor | 14% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: LPCM 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Hal Ashby's "Harold and Maude" (1971) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive video discussion of the film by critic David Cairns and an audio commentary with author Nick Dawson and producer Charles B. Mulvehill. The release also arrives with a 40-page illustrated booklet featuring archival interviews with director Hal Ashby and writer-producer Colin Higgins, a 1971 profile of actress Ruth Gordon, and rare archival imagery. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles. Region-B "locked".
"This world was not my own, so there was nothing much to gain..."
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Hal Ashby's Harold and Maude arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment.
The high-definition appears to have been sourced from the same 2K master Criterion worked with when they prepared their Blu-ray release of Harold and Maude in 2012. Generally speaking, depth and clarity are consistently very pleasing. The outdoor footage, in particular, looks quite wonderful (see screencaptures #4 and 15). Contrast levels remain stable throughout the entire film. There is a good range of soft and very natural colors that look notably healthy. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections and sharpening adjustments. As a result the film has a wonderful and stable organic look. Overall image stability is excellent. Finally, there are no large debris, cuts, damage marks, or stains to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0 (Mono) and English LPCM 2.0 (Stereo). For the record, Eureka Entertainment have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.
I mentioned in our review of the Criterion release of Harold and Maude that I had a difficult time choosing between the two lossless tracks. Again, I lean towards the Stereo track, but in terms of dynamic activity and depth the two are virtually identical. Naturally, I think that the Mono track is just as effective as Stereo track. My advice to you is to experiment with both and see which one you like better. For the record, there are no pops, cracks, hiss, audio dropouts, or distortions to report in this review.
Fans of director Hal Ashby's counter-culture hit Harold and Maude residing in Region-B territories will be very pleased with Eureka Entertainment's upcoming Blu-ray release. It uses a high-definition transfer whose basic characteristics are practically identical to those of the high-definition transfer Criterion used for their release of the film in North America. Also included on this upcoming release is the audio commentary which author Nick Dawson and producer Charles B. Mulvehill recorded for Criterion in 2011. Buy with confidence, folks. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
1931
Digitally Restored
1943
1990
2012
1998
2002
2001
2004
50th Anniversary Edition
1967
1979
Masters of Cinema
2014
Remastered
1987
1960
2003
The Woody Allen Collection
1977
1986
Jules & Jim / Jules et Jim
1962
Indicator Series
1973
Charlie Chaplin
1925
2017