Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Puzzle of a Downfall Child Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 15, 2020

Jerry Schatzberg's "Puzzle of a Downfall Child" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage trailer for the film; new video interview with the director; new audio commentary by critic/filmmaker Daniel Kremer and critic/podcaster Bill Ackerman; an archival episode of Trailers From Hell with screenwriter Larry Karaszewski; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Broken model

A secluded beach house. A man and a woman in their early forties quietly talk about the past. She looks tired and at times somewhat confused. There is a lot she does not remember well. Next to the man there is a microphone connected to a small tape recorder.

The woman is former fashion model Lou Andreas Sand (Faye Dunaway, Bonnie and Clyde), who struggles with depression and lives alone. The man is Aaron Reinhardt (Barry Primus, Boxcar Bertha), a photographer and Lou’s former lover, who is going to direct his first film. He feels that his time has come and that Lou’s story would make a great film.

As they they begin to discuss Lou's career it quickly becomes obvious that she does not remember well how she entered the world of professional modeling. She recalls bits of important shoots, the faces of some of the powerful people who visited them, a few of the pretentious people who were always there, and some of the strange people who asked her to do strange things -- but not how things happened for her. Or why.

But Lou remembers that she had a great time on the way up, while she was being 'discovered' by various publishers. She also remembers how a lot of people around her encouraged her to dream big. Then one day, after she reached the top, she realized that she had became an object other people wanted to own or be seen with. She discovered that the top was a lonely place, which then gradually became a dark and dangerous place.

The nervous breakdown Lou suffered on the way down was terrible. A few people would show up when she called for help, but no one cared for her, no one really wanted to be with her, and she knew it. The agents, the photographers and the publishers she used to work with no longer needed her because her face had become old. It was then that she left the business and started drinking. Or was it the other way around?

It is time for Aaron to go now because he must catch the last ferry. His meeting with Lou has been illuminating, but not in the way he had hoped because he has discovered that the woman he interviewed isn’t the woman he once knew and fell in love with. Lou is a broken stranger now who has no one to love and nothing to believe in. All she has are memories, some of which are not even hers.

Former fashion photographer Jerry Schatzberg’s first feature film, Puzzle of a Downfall Child, was inspired by a series of recordings he made with his famous model Anne Saint Marie, who suffered a serious mental breakdown. A year after the film premiered in the United States (and received mixed reviews from the local critics), Schatzberg directed The Panic in Needle Park with Al Pacino and Kitty Winn, who won Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

Structured as a mosaic of overlapping memory flashbacks, Puzzle of a Downfall Child is incredibly beautiful and elegant but at the same time cold and unsettling film that offers a glimpse into the highly competitive world of professional modeling. The shooting sessions, in particular, are very nicely done, allowing the viewer to get a real sense of the intense pressure models have to endure in order to be successful.

Dunaway is terrific as the ambitious model who rises to the top and suddenly discovers that she has evolved into an expensive object. She struggles to come to terms with her discovery and on the way down suffers a massive mental breakdown that irreversibly damages her life. Dunaway’s acting in the footage where the model is seen attempting to regain her composure is some of the best she has ever done.

The film is beautifully lensed by cinematographer Adam Holender, who a year earlier had collaborated with John Schlesinger on his Midnight Cowboy. The important soundtrack -- the music essentially separates Lou's dreams and nightmares from reality -- was composed by Michael Small (Klute, The Driver).

Puzzle of a Downfall Child Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Puzzle of a Downfall Child arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

This new release appears to have been sourced from the same restored master that French label Carlotta Films licensed from Universal Pictures and used to produce this Region-B release in 2012. There are some minor improvements that are introduced by the stronger encoding on the new release, plus some extremely small discrepancies in the color settings.

The entire film boasts a wonderful organic appearance and looks very healthy. Delineation, clarity, and depth are very pleasing, but you should keep in mind that the original cinematography introduces different types of density fluctuations and even some minor but notable color shifts associated with light management. The most obvious fluctuations can be observed during the flashbacks (see screencaptures #8, 18, 21, and 22). Close-ups look very strong, especially when they are properly lit (see screencapture #1). I think that some very careful noise/dirt management work was done when the master was prepared, but there are no digital anomalies. The color grading is very convincing, and I think that there are a few nuances here and there that actually look slightly better on this release. Image stability is excellent. All in all, this really is a very fine master that allows the film to look quite wonderful on Blu-ray. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Puzzle of a Downfall Child Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is clear and stable. It does feel a tad 'thin' at times, but it appears that this is basically how it was captured by the recording equipment when the film was shot. If you turn up the volume a bit more than usual, it should very easy for you to tell that the effect isn't introduced by some sort of an encoding anomaly. There are no audio dropouts or distortions to report.

Puzzle of a Downfall Child Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Puzzle of a Downfall Child. In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• Trailers From Hell - an archival episode of Trailers From Hell with screenwriter Larry Karaszewski (The People vs. Larry Flynt, Ed Wood). In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• Alternate Studio-Edit Opening - sourced from a standard definition master. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Interview with Jerry Schatzberg - in this new video interview, Jerry Schatzberg recalls how he became interested in photography and fell in love with cinema, his initial encounter with supermodel Anne Saint Marie, and work on Puzzle of a Downfall Child. There are also some very interesting comments about the proposed editing of the film and all the drama that materialized when different people refused to compromise as well as its reception at home and overseas. The interview was conducted exclusively for Kino Lorber. In English, not subtitled. (16 min, 1080p).

• Audio Commentary - in this new audio commentary, critic/filmmaker Daniel Kremer and critic/podcaster Bill Ackerman offer a great analysis of Puzzle of a Downfall Child -- with some very interesting deconstructions of key sequences -- and discuss its production, Jerry Schatzberg's career, Adam Holender's lighting choices, etc.

Puzzle of a Downfall Child Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Puzzle of a Downfall Child is one of the biggest discoveries I have made since the high-definition format was launched. I first saw it after Carlotta Films released it in France and thought that it was a tremendous accomplishment 'hiding' Faye Dunaway's best work. (How this film remained unknown in the States for decades is a mystery). Kino Lorber's release is sourced from the beautiful restored master that Universal Pictures prepared for the film when it was reintroduced at Cannes Classics a few years ago, and comes with a nice selection of bonus features. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.