Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		5.0

La Grande Illusion Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 23, 2012

Winner of Best Overall Artistic Contribution Award at the Venice Film Festival, Jean Renoir's "La Grande Illusion" (1937) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Studio Canal. The supplemental features on the disc include two original trailers; introduction to the film by professor Ginette Vincendeau; video interview with Natacha Laurent from La Cinematique de Toulouse; video interview with film historian Olivier Curchod; video interview with script instructor John Truby; restoration demonstration; Jean Renoir and Jean Tédesco's short film "La petite marchande d'allumettes"; and more. In French, English, German, and Russian, with optional English, German, and French subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Prisoners

The First World War. While scouting an important area, two French aviators, Captain de Boieldieu (Pierre Fresnay, Monsieur Vincent, Le Corbeau) and Lieutenant Marechal (Jean Gabin, Le Quai Des Brumes, En cas de malheur), are captured by the Germans, after their plane is shot down by the highly respected Captain von Rauffenstein (Eric von Stroheim, Sunset Boulevard, Five Graves to Cairo). Shortly after, Boieldieu and Marechal are greeted by Rauffenstein and invited to have lunch with him. Despite the fact that they are enemies, Boieldieu and Rauffenstein, both aristocrats, very much enjoy each other’s company.

Soon after, the Frenchmen are transferred to a large POW camp overpopulated with other French, British, and Russian soldiers of various social backgrounds. There, they quickly befriend the bubbly Jewish banker Rosenthal (Marcel Dalio, The Rules of the Game, Pillow Talk) and a few of his friends, who inform them that they have been digging a secret tunnel and that it is only a matter of time before they use it. Boieldieu and Marechal can’t believe their luck.

But the French Army takes over a key battleground and the German Army is forced to retreat with heavy losses. The prisoners are immediately transferred to a gloomy, heavily guarded castle high up in the mountains.

The castle is run by Rauffenstein, who greets the prisoners and immediately gives Boieldieu and Marechal a quick tour of the place. The tour convinces the two Frenchmen that it would take a real miracle to escape from it. Nevertheless, Boieldieu, Marechal, and the Jewish banker come up with a good escape plan - though the plan can only work if one of them stays behind to distract the guards. Boieldieu proudly agrees to be the decoy.

Jean Renoir’s La Grande Illusion might well be one of the boldest and most provocative war films ever made. Completed in 1937, it offers a fascinating glimpse into a world on the verge of a massive socio-political transformation. Though it may seem otherwise, the focus of attention throughout the film is not on the escape preparations, but on the class division between the German and French soldiers as well as their visions of the future.

The title, Grand Illusion, refers to the belief shared by the two aristocrats, Boieldieu and Rauffenstein, that after the end of the war the old and proper world order would be restored and that their kind will triumph again. It also addresses the notion that people from different social backgrounds can find a common ground when called to defend their country. (Renoir makes it perfectly clear that ordinary French and German soldiers have a lot more in common with each other than they do with French and German aristocrats).

Something else that is worth mentioning is the use of various languages in the film (French, German, English and Russian). To show their supremacy, the two aristocrats often communicate in English, leaving their lowly countrymen clueless about their intentions. While nowadays subtitles are a common feature used in many films, in 1937 they were not.

Note: La Grande Illusion was an instant commercial and critical success in France. In Germany and Italy, however, the film was eventually banned by the Nazi and Fascist regimes. After the Germans occupied France, the film’s original negative was promptly confiscated and shipped to Berlin, where later on the Soviets claimed it and shipped it to Moscow. The negative returned to France in the late 1970s, and was consequently 'discovered' in La Cinematheque de Toulouse.

La Grande Illusion Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Studio Canal.

There are some minor discrepancies between the films in the Studio Canal collection that were released in Europe and then in the U.S. (for example, The Third Man releases by Studio Canal/Optimum Home Entertainment and Lionsgate Films). There are no such discrepancies between the UK and French Blu-ray releases of Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion. Like the French release, the UK release boasts a solid high-definition transfer of the recent 4K restoration of the film, which is guaranteed to please its fans.

I can only echo the comments from my review of the French release. Detail and clarity are indeed dramatically improved, while contrast stability has never been this strong before. Film grain is also very well resolved and evenly distributed throughout the entire film. Additionally, it is clear that after the restoration overzealos sharpening corrections have not been performed. However, the film has been carefully cleaned up and as a result now it looks virtually spotless. (Note: 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. Also, please note that the disc's main menu can be set in one of the following languages: English, French, or German).

La Grande Illusion Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The same audio options from the French Blu-ray release of La Grande Illusion are present on the UK Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and German DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with portions of English, German, and Russian). For the record, Studio Canal have provided optional English, German, and French subtitles for the main feature. (Please note that the German subtitles do not appear when German is spoken, and the French subtitles do not appear when French is spoken).

The French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track gives the film much needed depth and fluidity. Additionally, as mentioned in our review of the French release, it is clear that various stabilizations have been performed, while crackle, pops, and background hiss have been cleaned up as best as possible. ((The only time some extremely light background hiss is noticeable is during the Christmas celebration in the final third of the film). There are no sync issues, high-frequency distortions, or audio dropouts to report in this review.

La Grande Illusion Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: The press materials I received for the UK Blu-ray release of Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion also contain information about the upcoming UK DVD release. Apparently, the DVD release will not have all of the supplemental features from the Blu-ray release. According to my press sheet, the DVD will only contain an introduction by Jean Renoir, the shorts Sur Un Air de Charleston & La Petite Marchande d'Allumettes, and an original theatrical trailer.

• Introduction - Professor Ginette Vincendeau quickly explains why Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion has stood the test of time. In English, with optional French and German subtitles. (13 min, PAL).

• Francois Giroud Remembers Shooting the Film - Francois Giroud, Jean Renoir's script girl, recalls her work during the shooting of La Grande Illusion. Footage from the castle where the prisoners are taken during the second half of the film is also included. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (11 min, PAL).

• The Original Negative... - in this wonderful featurette, Natacha Laurent from La Cinematique de Toulouse discusses La Grande Illusion and its fascinating history and talks about the film library she manages. (La Cinematique de Toulouse has the largest collection of Soviet and Russian films outside of Moscow and owns the original negative for Jean Renoir's film). In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (12 min, 1080/50i).

• Success and Controversy by Olivier Curchod - in this video piece, film historian and Jean Renoir specialist Olivier Curchod discusses La Grande Illusion and its fascinating history. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (23 min, 1080/50i).

• John Truby Talks About La Grande Illusion - in this video piece, script instructor John Truby discusses La Grande Illusion. In English, with optional French and English subtitles (5 min, 1080/50i).

• Restoring La Grande Illusion - restoration demonstration with various side-by-side comparisons using footage from the film. (4 min, 1080p).

• Trailer (1937) - the original 1937 trailer for Le Grande Illusion. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (5 min, PAL).

• Trailer (1958) - the original 1958 trailer for Le Grande Illusion. With an introduction by Jean Renoir. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (6 min, PAL).

• The Little Match Girl (1928) - Jean Renoir and Jean Tédesco's short film La petite marchande d'allumettes, inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's tale and shot at the Vieux Colombier Studios. Music only, with French intertitles and optional English and German subtitles. (32 min, PAL).

La Grande Illusion Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The UK Blu-ray release of Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion looks and sounds as impressive as the French Blu-ray release. More importantly, however, all of the supplemental features from the French release have also been transferred to the UK release. Now, if for some strange reason you might have considered getting the upcoming DVD release, please take a look at the short note in the supplemental features section of this review. Finally, Studio Canal are also releasing this beautiful new restoration of Jean Renoir's film in cinemas across the UK on April 6th (the Blu-ray streets on April 23rd). If you reside in the UK or will be visiting in April, I encourage you to see the film theatrically. It truly looks magnificent. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.