8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.1 |
In a Paris prison cell, five inmates use every ounce of their tenacity and ingenuity in an elaborate attempt to tunnel to freedom. Based on the novel by José Giovanni, Jacques Becker’s Le trou (The Hole) balances lyrical humanism with a tense, unshakable air of imminent danger
Starring: Michel Constantin, André Bervil, Jean Keraudy, Philippe Leroy, Raymond MeunierForeign | 100% |
Drama | 47% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.67:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
French: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region B (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Jacques Becker's "Le Trou" a.k.a. "The Hole" (1960) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the disc include documentary feature produced by Pierre-Francois Glaymann; archival interview with Roland Barbat; exclusive new video interview with actor Philippe Leroy; exclusive new video interview assistant director Jean Becker; and more. In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
The hole
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jacques Becker's Le Trou arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal.
The release is sourced from a strikingly beautiful new 4K restoration that literally makes the film look as if it was shot fairly recently. Frankly, it is painfully obvious that the people that completed it knew exactly what they were doing and were extremely careful when they were working with the digital tools that they had at their disposal. In terms of detail and clarity the improvements are really quite dramatic, and not only during the well-lit footage, but also during the darker underground footage where the prisoners are seen digging. Most close-ups, in particular, look fantastic. The grading is also very convincing -- the blacks are solid and stable, while the nuanced grays and whites appear beautifully balanced. Thee are absolutely no traces of problematic degraining or sharpening adjustments. I would like to mention that during the restoration some specific optimizations were made to ensure that overall image stability is improved as well. Unfortunately, the disc was encoded without specific optimizations and as a result there are a few areas where some compression artifacts sneak in. The most obvious examples are very into the film where one of the main characters are introduced, but there are also some other minor pop-ups that easily could have been avoided (you can see an example in sceencapture #7). My feeling is that most viewers will probably not be bothered by them, but I think that it is a bit disappointing that StudioCanal did not avoid them because this is one of the very best 4K restorations of a classic black-and-white French films that I have seen in a very long time. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provide for the main feature.
The audio has been fully remastered and any traces of age-related anomalies have been effectively removed. I did a few comparisons with my DVD release and I could quite easily tell that in addition to clean up work, specific stabilizations were performed as well. To be perfectly clear, the unevenness that from time to time emerges on older films is simply not present here. Depth and sharpness are excellent as well.
I truly hope that this terrific 4K restoration of Jacques Becker's final film will not remain exclusive to Region-B territories. Le Trou is simply too big of a film, and it would be a shame if it is not made available on Blu-ray in the United States. It was previously released on DVD by the Criterion Collection, so perhaps there is a good chance that the label can again license the rights for it and produce a domestic Blu-ray release. StudioCanal's Blu-ray release has two very good exclusive new video interviews with Philippe Leroy and assistant director Jean Becker, as well as an old but very informative documentary feature. I have to say, however, that the technical presentation should have been more convincing. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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