Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		5.0

Out 1 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 12, 2016

Jacques Rivette's "Out 1" (1971) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features include the film's edited theatrical version, "Out 1: Spectre", and Robert Fischer and Wilfried Reichart's brand new documentary film "The Mysteries of Paris". The release also arrives with an exclusive perfect-bound book containing new writing on the films in The Jacques Rivette Collection by Mary M. Wiles, Brad Stevens, Ginette Vincendeau and Nick Pinkerton. In French, with optional English subtitles. Region-B "locked".

Decoding the message

Note: Out 1 (the complete version and the edited theatrical version) is included in Arrow Video's upcoming The Jacques Rivette Collection Blu-ray box set.

My first experience with Jacques Rivette’s Out 1 was during the mid-1990s and it was a very frustrating one. A good friend sent me a couple of video tapes with an incomplete version of the film which was overdubbed in Polish. A man basically translated all of the exchanges between the main characters and his voice was recorded on top of their voices. It was absolutely terrible because I could not understand what was being said. The image quality was also horrendous. Obviously, the tapes were not legit, but at the time this was the only way to see the film.

During the DVD era Out 1 remained an incredibly elusive film. Only recently a five-disc set emerged in Germany (via Arte), but the quality of the presentation was once again questionable. In North America, the film remained persona non grata.

Carlotta Films’ upcoming Blu-ray release will change that. For the first time ever Rivette’s complete version of Out 1 -- which is 12 hours and 55 minutes long -- as well as the edited theatrical version, Out 1: Spectre -- which is 4 hours and 15 minutes long -- will be officially introduced on the home video market here. What is even more remarkable is that both versions of Out 1 have been fully restored in 2K under the supervision of cinematographer Pierre-William Glenn.

So what kind of film is Out 1?

At its core Out 1 is a very, very ambitious experimental project. It challenges and breaks all sorts of different narrative rules in the same way some of Jean-Luc Godard’s most radical films from the 1960s do. There is a plot but it is so fluid that different parts of it can be easily rearranged and nothing would change. Basically, the film creates a very unique reality and then welcomes you into it. Here you will meet many different characters -- some you will find easy to get along with, some will puzzle you, and some will quickly annoy you. The confusion you will initially experience and the struggle to understand the conspiracy theory that supposedly brings logic to the chaos will eventually force you to see the film from an entirely different angle. Your imagination will then be unlocked and you will finally realize that the film is not about characters and the evolution of different relationships but about the unique pulse of an era that united, divided and ultimately disappointed a generation of dreamers who genuinely thought that they had the power to make a change.

Viewing Out 1 can truly be a very unusual experience. I would not go as far as to say that it resembles an acid experience, which is how director Claire Denis once described her viewing of the film, but it will definitely make you feel awkward. The film does play with the mind, and even after it ends, it stays with you and forces you to reexamine its “story” over and over again.

The cast list includes many of French cinema’s most prominent actors from the post- 'May 68' era. Michael Lonsdale and Michele Moretti are the leaders of two experimental theater groups. Jean-Pierre Leaud plays an odd character who sends and receives some perplexing secret messages. Bulle Ogier is the owner of a small hippie shop. There are also memorable cameos by the great Eric Rohmer, who becomes a respected Balzac scholar, and Barbet Schroeder.

Out 1 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, Jacques Rivette's Out 1 arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video.

The complete version of Out 1 (12 hours and 55 minutes) is placed on four Blu-ray discs. The edited theatrical version, Out 1: Spectre (4 hours and 15 minutes), is placed on a single Blu-ray disc. Robert Fischer and Wilfred Reichart's documentary The Mysteries of Paris is also placed on the same Blu-ray disc with episodes 6 and 7 from Out 1.

The film was restored in 2K by Technicolor, for Sunshine, with the financial support of CNC. The color grading was supervised by its cinematographer, Pierre-William Glenn.

I could not see any discrepancies between Arrow Video's presentation and Carlotta Films' presentation of the film. Detail, depth, clarity and sharpness levels appear identical. The color values are also identical. I also compared a couple of sequences where there are some small but obvious density fluctuations -- which are part of the original cinematography -- and they also appear identical. Needless to say, as it was the case with the Carlotta Films' release here the film looks notably fresh and very vibrant, undoubtedly the very best it ever has. (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).

Out 1 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The two versions of Out 1 are presented with French LPCM 1.0 tracks. Optional English subtitles are provided for each film.

The film's fluid organic sound design does not support a wide range of nuanced dynamics. However, depth, clarity, and separation are very good. There are no balance issues either. Obviously, the audio has been fully remastered during the recent restoration and there are no age-related imperfections.

Out 1 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Out 1: Spectre - the edited theatrical version of the film is placed on a separate Blu-ray disc. In French, with optional English subtitles. (264 min, 1080p/LPCM 1.0).

• The Mysteries of Paris - this wonderful new documentary film focuses on Out 1's unusual history and revisits key locations where various sequences from Out 1 were shot. Included in it are brand new interviews with cinematographer Pierre-William Glenn, actors Michael Lonsdale, Hermine Karagheuz and Bulle Ogier, assistant director Jean-François Stévenin, and producer Stéphane Tchalgadjieff. Also included are clips from archival interviews with actors Jacques Doniol-Valcroze and Michel Delahaye as well as archival footage with director Jacques Rivette. The film was produced by Robert Fischer and Wilfried Reichart for Fiction Factory. In French, with optional English subtitles. (110 min, 1080p).

• Book - exclusive perfect-bound book containing new writing on the films in The Jacques Rivette Collection by Mary M. Wiles, Brad Stevens, Ginette Vincendeau and Nick Pinkerton. The book is included with the box set.

Out 1 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is no other film quite like Jacques Rivette's Out 1. It is an incredibly ambitious experimental project that has to be seen to be believed. Arrow Video's upcoming release is sourced from Carlotta Films' excellent new 2K restoration of the film which was supervised by its cinematographer, Pierre-William Glenn. The release is part of The Jacques Rivette Collection, which also includes Duelle une quarantaine/Women Duelling, Noroit/Northwest Wind, and Merry-Go-Round/L'engrenage. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.