Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Journey to Italy Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 4, 2015

Roberto Rossellini's "Journey to Italy" a.k.a. "Viaggio in Italia" (1954) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of the British Film Institute. The supplemental features on the disc include Canadian filmmaker Guy Maddin's short film "My Dad is 100 Years Old"; audio commentary with filmmaker and academic Laura Mulvey; audio commentary film scholar Adrian Martin ; and the Italian-language version of the film. In English or Italian, with optional English SDH and English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

On the road

Note: Journey to Italy is part of BFI's The Roberto Rossellini Ingrid Bergman Collection Blu-ray box set.

A wealthy English couple arrives in a small town near Naples to arrange the sale of a beautiful villa they have inherited from a deceased uncle. They don’t know how long it would take to find a buyer, but hope to have a good time and enjoy each other’s company.

While spending time together, seemingly for the first time in years, Katherine (Ingrid Bergman, Stromboli, Europe ’51) and Alex (George Sanders, All About Eve, Rebecca) begin to realize that they don’t truly know each other. At first the discovery surprises them, later on it frustrates them.

Inspired by the natural beauty of the area, Katherine decides to be spontaneous and entertain herself in ways that encourage Alex to suggest that perhaps she is to blame for their frustration. Shortly after, the two proceed to hurt each other in ways that prove to be surprisingly effective.

Before they can find a buyer, Katherine and Alex conclude that a divorce is imminent. However, in front of their hosts they continue to be as polite with each other as they were on the day when they arrived at the villa.

Journey to Italy, arguably Roberto Rossellini’s best film, is a fascinating study of a relationship tested by honesty. It is also a film about the magical power of nature’s beauty and the way people respond to it.

The film is divided into two contrasting halves. In the first the focus of attention is on the gradual collapse of a seemingly perfect marriage between two people who have mastered the art of communication. The exchanges between Katherine and Alex are always respectful, constructive, free of tension. But the more the camera observes their interactions, the clearer it becomes that their words are deceiving. They are a facade hiding frustration and disappointment.

The second half is dedicated to Katherine and Alex’s relationship with nature. Taken out of their comforts zones for the first time in years, the two begin to rediscover emotions and feelings that have been suppressed by their marriage. The raw beauty of nature then slowly forces them to reevaluate their lives.

The attention nature receives while Katherine and Alex struggle to understand how they truly feel about each other is what makes Journey to Italy such a difficult film to categorize. On one hand, it is a very modern film whose characters’ authenticity is unquestionable. On the other hand, as the gap between Katherine and Alex widens nature effectively becomes the third important character in the film and almost succeeds in shifting its focus elsewhere.

Journey to Italy was initially criticized and dismissed by Italian critics, but outside of its home country it was greeted as a groundbreaking film. In France, after seeing the film director Jacques Rivette proclaimed: "The arrival of Journey to Italy has suddenly made all other films look 10 years older".

Note: Criterion’s Blu-ray release of Journey to Italy uses as a foundation a new restoration of the film undertaken by Cinecitta Luce, the Cineteca di Bologna, the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, and the Coproduction Office. The release also reintroduces the original English-language opening credits which have been meticulously restored.

Journey to Italy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.32:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Roberto Rossellini's Journey to Italy arrive son Blu-ray courtesy of the BFI.

The following text precedes the film's opening credits:

"The digital restoration of the English version of Viaggio in Italia was based on the original camera and sound negatives and on a vintage interpositive preserved at Cinecitta Digital Factory. The images were scanned at a resolution of 2K. After the scanning process, the images were then digitally stabilized and cleaned to eliminate the imperfections of time: blemishes, specks, lines, scratches and splice marks. The grading attempted to return the brilliance and richness of the original photography. Following its acquisition, the sound underwent a digital cleaning process, as well as the reduction of noise caused by usage and wear over time, whilst at the same time maintaining the dynamics and characteristics of the original sound. The restoration was realised by Cineteca di Bologna at the L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratory in 2012."

Clearly, the release is sourced from the same restoration Criterion accessed when they prepared their Blu-ray release of Journey to Italy in 2013, but here the film looks very different. While some of the basics are fairly similar -- when there is plenty of natural light, for instance, detail and clarity can be quite good -- large parts of the film now look unusually dark and oversaturated. To be perfectly clear, the black levels are pushed up so much that the resulting crushing-like effects have eliminated existing detail. You can see how dramatic the discrepancies are if you compare screencaptures #5, 11, 13, and 14 with screencaptures #1, 21, 23, and 24 from our review of the Criterion release. Some of the darker/nighttime footage can be quite problematic as shadow definition is seriously destabilized. Also, I spotted some light vertical stretching (see screencapture #14). The good news here is that there are no traces of problematic degraining adjustments, but the crushing-like effects are difficult to ignore. Finally, there are no serious stability issues to report in our review. All in all, considering how beautiful the restoration is, I have to say that this is a very underwhelming technical presentation of Voyage to Italy. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free Blu-ray release).

Journey to Italy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0 and Italian LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the English version and optional English subtitles for the Italian version.

English track: I did some direct comparisons with the lossless English track from the Criterion release. While depth and clarity are virtually identical, on the English LPCM 2.0 track occasionally some extremely light background hiss makes its presence felt. On the lossless track from the Criterion release the hiss is eliminated and the audio is even slightly better balanced. (If you have both discs, you can compare the sequence where Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders enter the hotel around the 00:08:23 mark).

Italian track: The Italian track is very good, though I noticed the light background hiss popping up here and there. It never becomes distracting, but it is easy to hear. Balance is good. This said, I encourage you to see the film with the original English track.

Journey to Italy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Viaggio in Italia - presented here is the Italian-language version of Journey to Italy. In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (01:23:15/LPCM 2.0/1080p).

• My Dad is 100 Years Old - an unusual short film/tribute to Roberto Rossellini directed by Canadian filmmaker Guy Maddin and staring Isabella Rossellini. In English, not subtitled. Black and white. (18 min).

• Audio Commentary (2003) - in this audio commentary, filmmaker and academic Laura Mulvey discusses the production history of Journey to Italy and its placement in Roberto Rossellini's body of work, the film's mixed reception (and specifically the fact that initially only the critics from Cahiers du Cinéma were able to properly deconstruct the film), its visual style, the nature of the evolving relationship between Katherine and Alexander, etc.

• Audio Commentary (2007) - in this audio commentary, film scholar Adrian Martin explains why the more accurate translation of Roberto Rossellini's film is actually Journey in Italy, and discusses the fact that the director did not have a particularly good script to work with, the film's visual style, its "tourist" qualities (with specific comments about the manner in which Naples and the surrounding areas are filmed), the role Neapolitan music has in the film, etc.

Journey to Italy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Journey to Italy is included in the BFI's The Roberto Rossellini Ingrid Bergman Collection three-disc Blu-ray box set. The release is sourced from the excellent 2012 restoration of the film, but the technical presentation is rather underwhelming. If you can play Region-A discs, my advice to you is to consider importing Criterion's 3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman four-disc box set.