Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 6, 2015

Gérard Krawczyk's "Héroïnes" (1997) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Gaumont. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film and new video introduction by director Gérard Krawczyk. In French, with optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The friends

Best friends Johanna (Virginie Ledoyen, A Single Girl) and Jeanne (composer and singer Maïdi Roth) are not satisfied with their lives. They are both singers and dream of becoming stars, but in the small mining town where they live no one seems to care about music.

During the town’s summer ball, Johanna’s new friend, Luc (Marc Duret, The Big Blue), sees her performing with Jeanne and immediately realizes that they have the potential to become big -- really big. Then he uses all of his savings and helps them record a song in a studio whose owner, Jasper (Dominic Gould, Marie Antoinette), agrees to let them do a promo tape despite the fact that they don’t have the money to pay for it.

Around the same time, Johanna and Jeanne decide to enter a popular singing contest, but discover that they can register only as individual performers. Johanna then enters alone with a song Jeanne has composed and everyone instantly falls madly in love with her. But she has a secret that only Jeanne, Jasper, his new assistant JP (Saïd Taghmaoui, La Haine) and a few of the people working with them are aware of.

The first half of the film is very sweet and charming. Johanna and Jeanne appear full of energy and it seems like their bond could not be stronger. A single look is all they need to know exactly how the other feels. Their music is pure and honest.

But success forces the two girls to make decisions that push them apart. They begin questioning each other's sincerity and eventually their love for music. Johanna also becomes addicted to drugs and her attitude towards Jeanne changes. It is here that the tone of the film also changes dramatically. There is still plenty of light humor and many beautiful songs, but the film becomes quite cynical. Johanna is allowed to continue performing even though everyone around her can see that the drugs are destroying her and it is only a matter of time before the industry abandons her.

The finale is beautiful and it allows for a couple of different interpretations. The most obvious one is arguably the best one.

The chemistry between Ledoyen and Roth is very good. When success alters their relationship they undergo character transformations that never seem questionable. Only during the funeral Ledoyen’s reaction appears slightly over the top. The intensity on display during the big stage performances also feels very authentic.

The film’s biggest strength is Roth and Laurent Alvarez‘s fantastic soundtrack. Roth performs all of the big hits that give the film its identity. The best ones are the melancholic “Est-ce que tu seras la”, “L’heroine”, and “Envie de te suivre”. There is a CD release of the soundtrack which includes additional very good songs performed by Roth that are not heard in the film.

Heroines is directed by Gérard Krawczyk, who is probably best known on this side of the Atlantic for the action comedy Wasabi and the three Taxi films that came out after Gérard Pirès' blockbuster.

Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Gérard Krawczyk's Heroines arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Gaumont.

I don't have a DVD release of this film in my library, but it is quite easy to tell that the film looks very healthy now. Close-ups and wider panoramic shots boast excellent depth and clarity (see screencaptures #1 and 8). The outdoor footage, in particular, looks terrific. During the music performances, some of which are rather dark, depth remains very good. Colors are lush and stable. Overall image stability is also outstanding. In fact, viewers with larger screens and projectors will be quite impressed with the tightness of the image. My one and only criticism here pertains to the fact that the transfer is encoded with the black levels slightly elevated. Still, the end result is certainly very pleasing. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English and French SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

I viewed the film with the 2.0 track and liked it a lot. Clarity is outstanding and fluidity very pleasing. There are some extremely minor depth fluctuations during the stage performances, but they appear to be part of the film's original sound design. The dialog is exceptionally crisp, stable, and very easy to follow. The English translation is excellent.

Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Bande-annonce - original trailer for Heroines. In French, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Presentation du film par Gerard Krawczyk - new video presentation of the film by Gérard Krawczyk. In French, not subtitled. (10 min)

Héroïnes Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Two good friends rediscover what truly matters in life after one of them becomes a big star in Gérard Krawczyk's Héroïnes. The film has a fantastic soundtrack with some phenomenal songs written and performed by French singer Maïdi Roth. As far as I know it was never released on DVD in the United States, so Gaumont's Region-Free and English-friendly Blu-ray release should make Roth and Virginie Ledoyen fans very happy. RECOMMENDED.