6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 5.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.8 |
A young country girl comes to town and works in a brothel in order to help her fiance get the money to start his own business. "Paprika" is the name given to her by the madam.
Starring: Debora Caprioglio, Stéphane Ferrara, Martine Brochard, Stéphane Bonnet, Rossana GavinelErotic | 100% |
Foreign | 97% |
Drama | 22% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.67:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Italian: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Tinto Brass' "Paprika" (1991) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Cult Epics. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers for other Tinto Brass films; promotional materials; and the documentary feature "Welcome to the Whorehouse". In Italian, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.
The arrival
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Tinto Brass' Paprika arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Cult Epics.
The technical presentation is quite underwhelming. It is clear that an old master was accessed with plenty of issues that have also appeared on other problematic releases of Brass films. The framing isn't convincing. It appears that some zooming was performed and as a result there is missing information from the top of the frame. (The same obvious framing issue is also present on other releases of Brass films that were sourced from old masters). Also, the entire film is filtered and as a result depth and in many cases even clarity are compromised. Shadow definition is very problematic, with many of the darker sequences looking very flat. Colors are weak and there are entire ranges of nuances that are missing. The only good news here is that there are no traces of any sharpening adjustments and image stability remains good from start to finish, but the film never really looks even remotely pleasing. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Italian Dolby Digital 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.
A lossless track would have been preferable as Riz Ortolani's soundtrack is excellent and it has a very particular role, but the lossy track is far from disappointing. It has decent depth and clarity remains surprisingly good throughout the entire film. The overall range of nuanced dynamics is modest at best, but the only areas where there is notable dynamic movement are the ones where Ortolani's music enhances the intended atmosphere. There are no pops, audio dropouts, or distortions to report.
Cult Epics deserves a lot of credit because without its efforts Tinto Brass' films will likely never be upgraded to Blu-ray in the United States. However, it is disappointing to see that there are no proper masters for them. I thought that after Blu-ray established itself at least Brass' best films will be remastered, and we would see lavish special editions on the market, but it appears that no one in Italy has been willing to give them the attention they deserve. Paprika is Brass' best film and while it is good to have a local Blu-ray release, I must say that the technical presentation is rather underwhelming. If you really want to have it in your collection, it is probably best to wait for a sale of some sort.
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