Limelight Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Limelight Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 11, 2015

Charlie Chaplin's "Limelight" (1952) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers for the film; exclusive new video interview with actress Claire Bloom; video interview with actor Norman Lloyd; video program produced by Edgardo Cozarinsky; outtake; and more. The release also arrives with a 40-page illustrated booklet featuring Peter von Bagh's "Portrait of an Artist as an Old Man", Henry Gris' "Hollywood Chaplin", and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

"My only enemy is time"

Charlie Chaplin’s final American film, Limelight, is unquestionably his most personal one. It is a poignant, bittersweet farewell inspired by the screen legend’s only novel, Footlights.

Chaplin is Calvero, an aging clown with a serious drinking problem who lives alone in a tiny apartment somewhere in London's East End. After spending time with friends in a local pub, Calvero returns home and discovers that his neighbor, Thereza (Claire Bloom), a beautiful but lonely ballerina, has attempted to commit suicide. Calvero takes Thereza to his place where she recovers despite the protests of the landlady, who gives her room to someone else because she has been late with the rent.

With Calvero’s encouragement, Thereza also regains her ability to move her legs and eventually begins dancing again. Then she wins an important audition and suddenly becomes the star she always aspired to be.

Meanwhile, Calvero is given a few opportunities to prove that he can still dazzle the crowds, but is unceremoniously rejected and forced to perform small gigs under a different name. Convinced that his best days are behind him, he begins drinking again to numb the pain.

Realizing that the man who saved her life is slowly drifting away from her, Thereza attempts to rebuild Calvero’s confidence. She also begs Calvero to marry her and begin a new life with her far away from the bright lights of the city. Much to her surprise, however, the sad clown encourages her to follow her heart and reunite with the young man (Sydney Chaplin, Chaplin's son) she secretly fell in love with years ago.

There are a few splashes of humor in Limelight, but at its core this is a painfully honest film about the passage of time and the cruel manner in which it alters people’s lives. In many ways it feels like a giant confession that casually sums up the fears of an aging artist who has to accept the fact that his best days are behind him.

Chaplin directed Limelight in 1952, at a time when he was reevaluating his life in a way Calvero does in the film. There is a sense of melancholy that permeates it and a whiff of annoyance that after all time treats everyone equally. There comes a point when success, fame and fortune become irrelevant, and one looks back hoping to rediscover the simple joys that made one’s life worth living.Limelight is precisely about the arrival of this moment and Calvero/Chaplin trying to deal with it.

The performances are excellent. Chaplin looks appropriately heavier and his facial expressions effectively reveal that the aging clown is a vulnerable man who is hurting on the inside. (See the great scene where he slowly removes his makeup and looks straight into the camera). Bloom looks strikingly elegant and energetic, exactly like an inspired young woman who has everything to live for. Chaplin’s son is likeable as the poor but ambitious composer. There is a memorable cameo by the great Buster Keaton, who appears in a wonderful duet with Chaplin.

Twenty years after its world premiere, Limelight won Oscar Award for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score (Charles Chaplin, Ray Rasch, Larry Russell). The film did not open in Los Angeles until 1972 because its creator’s liberal views had compromised his image in Hollywood and Washington D.C.

Chaplin was also awarded an Honorary Oscar for his contributions to film as an art.

Limelight 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, Charlie Chaplin's Limelight arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new restoration was undertaken by the Criterion Collection in collaboration with the Cineteca di Bologna. For the restoration, a new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on an ARRISCAN film scanner from the 35mm original negative at L'Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, Italy. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI's DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, noise management, flicker, and jitter.

The original monaural soundtrack was digitized at 24-bit, using COSP technology, from the 35mm sound negatives. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD, AudioCube's integrated workstation, and iZotope RX4.

Colorist: Russell Smith."

Please note that the screencaptures included with our review appear in the following order:

1. Screencaptures #1-16: Limelight.
2. Screencaptures #17-24: A Night in the Show.
3. Screencaptures #25-28: The Professor.

Limelight: The new restoration is excellent. Despite the fact that time has left its mark, the film looks very healthy and stable (some of the most dramatic improvements are in the area of image stabilization). Image depth is very good as well, especially when there is an abundance of light (see screencaptures #2 and 10). Shadow definition is very convincing and as a result during the darker footage there is a wide range of wonderfully nuanced blacks and grays (see screencaptures #4 and 6). Contrast levels remain stable. Grain is well resolved and visible throughout the entire film. Some minor density fluctuations remain -- and it is very easy to tell that they are inherited -- and occasionally grain stability could vary a bit, but the film has a well balanced organic appearance (compare screencaptures #1 and 14 to see what type of discrepancies are present). There are no traces of post-production sharpening adjustments. Finally, the encoding is very good.

A Night in the Show: The film has been restored by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna and Lobster Films from a polyester fine grain preserved at The Museum of Modern Art (it is presented in 1080p with a Dolby Digital 2.0 track). Excluding some extremely light scratches and vertical lines that pop up from time to time, it looks very healthy and vibrant. Grain is also well resolved and distributed. There are no traces of sharpening or contrast boosting.

The Professor - The technical presentation is quite rough and uneven (the film is presented in 1080i with a Dolby Digital 1.0 track). There are various depth and clarity fluctuations. Additionally, it is easy to see that degraining adjustments have been performed to rebalance the image and possibly even tone down large wear marks.

Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free Blu-ray player in order to access its content).

Limelight Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles have been provided for the main feature.

Unsurprisingly, dynamic intensity is limited, but depth and clarity are very good. More importantly, the music is well rounded and well balanced -- there are no sudden spikes or drops in dynamic activity and the high frequencies are free of distortions. The dialog is stable, clean, and easy to follow. There are no audio dropouts.

Limelight Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers - two original trailers for Limelight. (5 min, 1080i).
  
  1. In English, not subtitled.
  2. In Italian, with optional English subtitles.

• Short Films -
  
  1. A Night in the Show (1915) - the twelfth film Charlie Chaplin for the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company. It is based on the play Mumming Birds, which Charlie Chaplin performed with the Fred Karno Company, first in London from 1908 to 1909, and then when the company toured the United States. Presented with a new score by composer Timothy Brock. (See the video section of our review for additional comments).
  
  2. The Professor (1919) - an uncompleted short by Charlie Chaplin. (See the video section of our review for additional comments).

• Chaplin Today: "Limelight" - this archival video program produced by Edgardo Cozarinsky for MK2 in 2002 takes a closer look at the production history of Charlie Chaplin's Limelight and his controversial image in America at the time when the film was shot. Included in it are clips from interviews with Sidney Chaplin, Charlie Chaplin's son, Bernardo Bertolucci (Last Tango in Paris), and Claire Bloom. In English, Italian, and French, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (27 min, 1080i).

• Chaplin's "Limelight" - in this new video program, Charlie Chaplin biographer David Robinson discusses the long production history of Limelight and the evolution of its script, Charlie Chaplin's relationship with Paulette Goddard, his troubles with America's far right, the music (which was composed before the film was shot), the personal overtones in the film, the uncompleted short film The Professor (which introduced the performing fleas), etc. The program was created exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (22 min, 1080p).

• Claire Bloom and Norman Lloyd - two video interviews. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Claire Bloom - in this new video interview, actress Claire Bloom recalls how she was approached by Charlie Chaplin to play Thereza in Limelight, and discusses the audition process, Thereza's devotion to Calvero and her ambitions, the choreography, the film's reception, Charlie Chaplin's directing style and his controversial image in America, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. (16 min, 1080p).
  
  2. Norman Lloyd - in this video interview, actor Norman Lloyd recalls his initial encounter with Charlie Chaplin, and discusses the visual style of Limelight, Charlie Chaplin's specific directions for the cast during the shooting of the film and the type of period look he wanted to evoke in it, the interactions between the principal actors, the story of Limelight and Charlie Chaplin's relationship with Oona Chaplin, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2012. (15 min, 1080p).

• Outtake - presented here is a scene that appeared in Limelight when the film premiered in London in 1962, but was consequently removed by Charlie Chaplin before the film was distributed worldwide. In English, not subtitled. (5 min, 1080i).

• Charlie Chaplin Reads from Footlights - in this archival audio recording, Charlie Chaplin reads two excerpts from his novella Footlights, which inspired Limelight. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080i).

• Booklet - 40-page illustrated booklet featuring: Peter von Bagh's "Portrait of an Artist as an Old Man", Henry Gris' "Hollywood Chaplin", and technical credits.

Limelight Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Charlie Chaplin's final American film, Limelight, is also his most personal one. It tells the story of an aging clown who is struggling to come to terms with the fact that his best days are behind him. Criterion and the Cineteca di Bologna have restored the film in 4K and the end result is mighty impressive. The Blu-ray release also comes with an excellent selection of supplemental features, including an exclusive new interview with actress Claire Bloom. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.