7.8 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Frenhofer, a once-famous artist hasn't painted in ten years. His last work, possibly his masterpiece, La Belle Noiseuse (the beautiful annoyance) remains unfinished. When another artist and his girlfriend Marianne visit, the beautiful and fiercely intelligent young woman inspires Frenhofer, and she reluctantly agrees to be his new model.
Starring: Michel Piccoli, Jane Birkin, Emmanuelle Béart, Marianne Denicourt, David BurszteinForeign | 100% |
Drama | 84% |
Erotic | 23% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
French: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
While La Belle Noiseuse is on its surface the story of a painter reconnecting with his creative spark after meeting a kind of “new, improved” Muse of sorts, it’s the opening heraldic if stringent array of brass on the soundtrack which instantly sets a fascinating if slightly discordant mood for the film. The perhaps anachronistic score is culled from Igor Stravinsky’s remarkable piece called Agon, a ballet which was choreographed by George Balanchine, but which has maintained a concert life of its own shorn of the dance element, and which offers some intriguing subtext for the film (more about that later). If you’re a fan of etymology, you may already know two words where Agon, which means struggle or contest, shows up — protagonist and antagonist, but kind of interestingly the struggle co-writer and director Jacques Rivette depicts in this long and languorous exploration of creativity doesn’t really involve a villainous type throwing up obstacles for a hero, instead focusing on a more internal struggle as an elderly artist tries to reignite his passion for both life in general and painting in particular. But Stravinsky’s angular, piercing music would seem to be a rather odd counterpoint to what some viewers unused to Rivette’s shall we say unhurried approach to unspooling his story may feel as they wend their way through a film that takes around four hours to unfold. As Richard Suchenski mentions in a commentary included on this two disc set as a supplement, Rivette intentionally loved drawing things out cinematically, convinced that the sheer act (if it can be called an act) of sitting in a theater and watching a film for extended periods of time created its own psychological “reality”, and there’s no disputing the fact that for those willing to surrender to the slow, insistent rhythms of La Belle Noiseuse, the film creates an almost hypnotic allure, even if not that much actually “happens” over the course of its rather long running time. La Belle Noiseuse won the Grand Prix at 1991’s Cannes Festival, and it remains one of the more highly regarded films from Rivette’s career, but it is one of those viewing experiences that may not appeal to everyone, even those accustomed to some of the eccentricities of this particular director or even Art House fare in general.
La Belle Noiseuse is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Cohen Film Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Touted as having been sourced from a new 4K restoration, this is another stellar presentation of a cult item from Cohen, one with an appealingly organic appearance throughout, and nicely delicate levels of fine detail in the many close-ups employed. The palette is nicely suffused, and the film's prevalence of blue tones is rendered quite beautifully. Grain can look just slightly thick in some of the darker moments (quite a bit of the film takes place in the somewhat dimly lit studio of Frenhofer), but never really encounters any resolution issues.
La Belle Noiseuse features an LPCM 2.0 mono track in the original French with forced English subtitles (more about that in a moment). The track has no problems supporting the bursts of Stravinsky's music, and similarly renders the dialogue without any problems. Fidelity is fine throughout, and there are no issues with distortion or dropouts. My one issue is that the subtitles are in white and Rivette frames several scenes with lighter tones predominating in the bottom of the frame, making reading a bit of a challenge at times.
Disc One
For those who can get beyond a traditional "and then what happened" mentality when watching a film, La Belle Noiseuse can be a rewarding, if long gestating, experience. There's a rather interesting subtext of hints of madness at times ("noiseuse" is defined as meaning "nutty" at one point in the film), but emotions are played pretty close to the vest throughout, leaving a lot to be read between the veritable lines. La Belle Noiseuse is probably not a film for everyone, even for those who may like Rivette, but for me personally it has long struck me as a rather potent meditation on creativity and inspiration within the context of passing time. Cohen has provided a release with nice technical merits and some appealing supplements. Highly recommended.
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