7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Reserved, bourgeois college student Charles comes to stay with his devil-may-care cousin, Paul, who lives the fast life in Paris. Sensitive Charles, thrown into the whirlwind of his cousin's social circle, meets pretty Florence at a party and believes he has found true love. When Florence breaks his heart, Charles concentrates on his studies with renewed fervor, but soon tensions between the two cousins take a dark turn.
Starring: Gérard Blain, Jean-Claude Brialy, Juliette Mayniel, Guy Decomble, Michèle MéritzForeign | 100% |
Drama | 94% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
French: LPCM Mono
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Winner of the prestigious Golden Bear Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, Claude Chabrol's "Les cousins" a.k.a. "The Cousins" (1959) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer and an audio commentary by Adrian Martin. The disc also arrives with an illustrated booklet featuring an essay by Terrence Rafferty and a collection of excerpts from Jean-Claude Brialy's memoir "J'ai oublie de vous dire...". In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
How about a drink?
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Claude Chabrol's Les cousins arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"This new digital transfer was created in 2K resolution on an ARRISCAN film scanner from the original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using Revival, Flame, and Smoke, while Digital Vision's DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.
Telecine colorist: Bruno Patin/Eclair, Paris."
Again, I don't currently have a copy of Les cousins on SDVD in my library to comment on how it compares to previous releases. However, I think it is fair to assume that the film has never looked this good before. As it was the case with Le beau Serge, Gaumont's restoration efforts are very impressive, and Criterion's presentation of Les cousins will more than likely be the definitive presentation of the film for many years to come.
Detail is exceptionally strong, and extreme close-ups and panoramic shots look simply beautiful (see screencaptures #4 and 5). Clarity and contrast levels are also pleasingly consistent - though I suspect that brigtness levels have been toned down a bit and contrast levels slightly boosted. Well resolved grain is always present and easy to see, giving the film a lovely organic look. There are no traces of overzealous sharpening. There are no stability issues to report in this review either. Finally, a thorough cleanup has been performed and damage marks and debris removed. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: French LPCM 1.0. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.
The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray disc:
"The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm soundtrack print. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated workstation."
I cannot possibly imagine the audio sounding any better. Considering the type of limitations one should expect to be present, the loseless track's dynamic amplitude is actually surprisingly good. The Mozart and Wagner extracts, for instance, are crisp and free of distortions, while the high-frequencies during the big party in Paul's apartment are not overdone. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and easy to follow.
Claude Chabrol's Les cousins is a beautiful and at times hilarious but also notably cruel film that effectively questions not so outdated notions about success, friendship and love. Recently restored, the film looks simply beautiful on Blu-ray. Let's hope that eventually Les bonnes femmes, Les biches, Les innocents aux mains sales, and La femme infidèle will receive equally impressive Blu-ray releases. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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