Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Le Cerveau Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 15, 2013

Gérard Oury's "Le cerveau" a.k.a. "The Brain" (1969) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Gaumont. The supplemental features on the release include an original trailer for the film; exclusive new documentary produced by Pierre-Henri Gibert; exclusive new video interview with writer Philippe Durant; documentary film produced by Philippe Durant; and more. In French, with optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

And this is how we steal all the money...

The Brain is a hilarious film with a terrific international cast about four gangsters trying to rob a train transporting approximately $7 million which 14 countries, all NATO members, are sending to Brussels. The first two are Arthur (Jean-Paul Belmondo, Pierrot le fou) and Anatole (Bourvil, Le Cercle Rouge, The Sucker), old friends who have done some not so big jobs together. Early into the film, Anatole helps Arthur break out of a very poorly managed prison. Just by looking at these two digging their way out of the prison one could tell that at some point they will get themselves in a lot of trouble.

The third gangster is Colonel Matthews (David Niven, A Matter of Life and Death), a smart and confident man who has arranged to be in charge with the transportation of the money. Colonel Matthews has already successfully robbed a train, which is why he expects this job to be a walk in the park.

The fourth gangster is Frankie (Eli Wallach, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly), a trigger-happy Italian with connections to the mafia. Frankie has been approached by Colonel Matthews who wants him to launder the money his crew will steal. Frankie has agreed to help, but has designed a very different plan for the stolen money, one that does not include Colonel Matthews.

A series of different episodes reveal how the gangsters become aware of their plans and then proceed to outsmart each other. Needless to say, all of them are presented with some surprising dilemmas that eventually force them to do different mistakes.

Directed by French helmer Gerard Oury, The Brain is a light and very entertaining film that does not break any cinematic boundaries. Its plot, energy and atmosphere are indeed very similar to those of the various other comedies Oury directed during the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. The films with the legendary Louis de Funes, in particular, have plenty in common with The Brain.

The big difference between the rest of the comedies Oury directed, as well as the many other genre films that were produced in France at the time, is the fact that in The Brain the nature of the humor is universal. To be clear, one does not have to be fluent in French or be familiar with French culture to enjoy the film. (Exactly the opposite is true for Georges Lautner's Les tontons flingueurs), another popular ‘60s comedy, as there are plenty of quick one-liners in it that are a lot more effective in French than they are translated into English as well as specific references to classic French crime films that could remain unnoticed).

The cast is very good. However, a few of the principal actors are at times overly enthusiastic. Belmondo and Wallach, in particular, often look like men who have had four or five extra cups of espresso. The legendary Bourvil, on the other hand, is absolutely terrific. Also making an appearance in the film is the very beautiful Italian actress Silvia Monti (Luigi Bazzoni’s The Fifth Cord, Lucio Fulci’s Lizard in a Woman's Skin).

The Brain was lensed by Wladimir Ivanov (camera operator, Barbarella, director of photography, Le sauvage). The chic retro soundtrack was composed by the legendary Georges Delerue (Jean-Luc Godard’s Le mépris, Bernardo Betrolucci’s The Conformist).

Le Cerveau Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.34:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Gérard Oury's The Brain arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Gaumont.

As it is the case with all films that enter Gaumont's Classiques Collection, the transfer for The Brain has been sourced from a brand new master. Generally speaking, the film does look quite impressive. Close-ups frequently convey very good depth (see screencapture #4), while larger panoramic shots also impress with excellent clarity and fluidity (see screencapture #13). Some minor contrast fluctuations are present, but they are indeed inherited. Color reproduction is very good - there is a good range of warm, well saturated and stable organic colors. The best news, however, is that there are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Also, there are no post-production sharpening corrections.
A direct comparison between Gaumont's release and Olive Films' release of The Brain reveals only minor discrepancies in the brightness levels. As far as compression is concerned, Gaumont's release clearly looks stronger - on the Olive Films release there are visible compression artifacts and light noise that are frequently exposed, especially during close-ups, while on the Gaumont release the image is cleaner, with the grain usually being better resolved and free of the noise mentioned above (compare screencapture #12 with screencapture #3 from our review of the Olive Films release). Lastly, there are no large damage marks, debris, cuts, or warps to report in this review. All in all, I definitely prefer the Gaumont release of The Brain, but for some viewers the difference in quality may not be as definitive. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Le Cerveau Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. For the record, Gaumont have provided optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The lossless track opens up the film very well during the shootouts and the chase sequences. Indeed, overall dynamic intensity is good, but you should not expect the lossless track to test the muscles of your audio system. The dialog is stable, well rounded, and free of problematic background hiss. There are no audio dropouts or high-frequency distortions to report in this review either. The English translation is excellent.

Le Cerveau Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

BLU-RAY DISC

• Bande-annonce - original trailer for The Brain. In French, not subtitled. (4 min, 1080p).

• Gerard Oury: La politesse du rire - in this new featurette, writer and director Danièle Thompson (Avenue Montaigne), film critic Philippe Durant, actor Christopher Thompson (La buche), writer Bernard Stora (L'effrontée) and actor Pierre Richard (The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe Collection) discuss The Brain and its style. The featurette was produced by Pierre-Henri Gibert in 2013. In French, not subtitled. (4 min, 1080p).

• De Belmondo a Bebel - new video interview with writer Philippe Durant (Belmondo). The interview was conducted by Pierre-Henri Gibert in 2013. In French, not subtitled. (19 min, 1080p).

DVD DISC

• Un Cerveau en or - documentary film featuring interviews with director Danièle Thompson, writer Marcel Jullian, director, writer and producer Jean-Marie Poire (Les Visiteurs), director Jean-Claude Sussfeld (La passerelle), editor Nadine Muse (Amour), and director Gerard Oury. The featurette was produced in 2007 by Philippe Durant. In French, not subtitled. (36 min).

• Le Cerveau a la loupe - additional footage not included in Philippe Durant's 2007 documentary. In French, not subtitled. (13 min).

Le Cerveau Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Gérard Oury's The Brain is a light and very entertaining caper from the late 1960s. The film is already available on Blu-ray in North America, courtesy of Olive Films, but this English-friendly French release comes with plenty of very informative supplemental features. I think that it is the all-around better release. RECOMMENDED.