Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.5

La Signora Senza Camelie Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 6, 2011

Michelangelo Antonioni's "La signora senza camelie" a.k.a. "The Lady Without Camelias" (1953) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original Italian theatrical trailer; short introduction and a video interview with film critic and teacher Gabe Clinger. The disc also arrives with a lengthy booklet containing newly translated critical pieces about the film, excerpts with Michelangelo Antonioni, and a lengthy debate between the Italian director and critic Luigi Chiarini on the subject of the film. In Italian, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Don't cry, Clara. Your time will come.

The main protagonist in Michelangelo Antonioni’s La signora senza camelie is a young woman from Milan named Clara Manni (Lucia Bose, Story of a Love Affair), who has come to Rome to become a movie star. She has already appeared in a low budget film and impressed local filmgoers with her beauty and elegance, but the early consensus amongst people in the industry is that she lacks the talent that would help her become a star.

Director Ercole (Gino Cervi, Indiscretion of an American Wife) has hired Clara for his latest film, which features a series of provocative lovemaking scenes. Clara is right in the middle of them, and the film’s producer, Gianni Franchi (Andrea Checchi, Honor Among Thieves), isn’t happy because he is planning to marry her. Gianni isn’t an old-fashioned man, but the idea of other men bedding his future wife in front of the camera is driving him crazy.

The shooting of the film comes to a halt when Clara moves in with Gianni, who is reluctant to let her go back to Cinecitta. Eventually Ercole and Gianni team up again for a 'serious film', which they hope would provide Clara with a new image that will radically transform her career and make her a star. Unfortunately, the film bombs at the box office.

Director Antonioni’s third feature film and second with Bose is as much about a young woman’s quest for identity as it is about the transformation of the Italian film industry from the 1950s. There is a parallel story that focuses on the new 'vices' that have grown strong roots in it and began changing various expectations and standards. Early in the film, Ercole identifies them as politics, religion and sex.

The various debates between Ercole and Gianni about what constitutes a serious film are fascinating. The former passionately argues that the definition is meaningless as long as the film delivers big at the box office; the latter is a traditionalist with a great deal of respect for classic cinema who disagrees and eventually invests in a remake of Joan of Arc.

The only key character without a strong opinion on the subject - at least until the final third of the film - is Clara. Blinded by her desire to become a star, she sacrifices her freedom, and then realizes that success is possible but at a price that she cannot afford to pay.

The film’s message is extremely cynical but incredibly honest. A single scene at the end ties the two stories and strips the entire film from its superficial glamor. For a few minutes Antonioni’s camera observes Clara from afar and then leaves her behind with her thoughts.

Technically, La signora senza camelie is not in the same league with L'avventura, La note and L’ecclise, but it is just as far-reaching and accomplished. It is also an incredibly modern film that effectively debunks common myths and conventional wisdom about success, fame and fortune.

The title of the film, La signora senza camelie (The Lady Without Camelias), is a witty update of Alexandre Dumas’ famous novel La Dame aux camellias (The Lady of the Camellias), which tells the tragic story of a beautiful Parisian courtesan.

La Signora Senza Camelie Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Michelangelo Antonioni's La signora senza camelie arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment.

After years of waiting to get a decent English-friendly SDVD release of La signora senza camelie, which never materialized, we now have a beautiful new Blu-ray release. Quite unbelievable, really. Let's hope that Il Grido, L'Avventura, La notte, and L'ecclise are not too far behind. It would be a very, very special day when they are finally announced on Blu-ray.

La signora senza camelie looks absolutely beautiful. Fine object detail is exceptionally strong, clarity fantastic, and contrast levels a lot better than I expected them to be. Color reproduction does not disappoint either - the blacks are rich and well saturated while the variety of grays and whites are gentle and fresh. The short sequence with the Cafe (see screencapture #5), for instance, looks quite incredible. I did not see any traces of excessive noise reduction - there is a light but steady layer of well resolved grain. I also did not see background flicker, macroblocking patterns, or severe aliasing issues to report in this review. There are a few scenes where some extremely light edge-enhancement is trying to creep in (see screencaptures #18 and 19), but it is never distracting. In fact, in motion it is hardly even noticeable. There are also a few inherited frame skips, but it is fairly obvious that they have been inherited. To sum it all up, the presentation is exceptionally strong, and I could not be any happier with it. (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).

La Signora Senza Camelie Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with small portions of English). For the record, Eureka Entertainment have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.

The Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track is exceptionally strong. It is quite obvious that it has been thoroughly cleaned up and stabilized. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. There are no balance issues with Giovanni Fusco's music score either. Lastly, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or dropouts to report in this review.

La Signora Senza Camelie Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Gabe Clinger Introduction - a short introduction by film critic and teacher Gabe Clinger. In English, not subtitled. (10 min, 1080p).

• Antonioni in the Fifties - Gabe Clinger discusses Antonioni's maturation as a film director. In English, not subtitled. (9 min, 1080p).

• Trailer - In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (1 min, 1080p)

• Booklet - A lengthy booklet containing newly translated critical pieces about the film, excerpts with Antonioni, and a lengthy debate between Antonioni and critic Luigi Chiarini on the subject of the film.

La Signora Senza Camelie Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There was never a quality English-friendly SDVD release of Michelangelo Antonioni's La signora senza camelie. To have the film now on Blu-ray is an incredible treat. Bravo Eureka Entertainment. You cannot afford not to have La signora senza camelie (and Le amiche) in your collections, folks. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.