8.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Four ex-cons hatch one last glorious robbery in the City of Light.
Starring: Jean Servais, Carl Möhner, Robert Manuel, Janine Darcey, Pierre GrassetDrama | 100% |
Foreign | 94% |
Film-Noir | 29% |
Crime | 11% |
Heist | 3% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
French: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region B (locked)
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Winner of Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival, Jules Dassin's "Du rififi chez les hommes" a.k.a. "Rififi" (1955) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Films. The supplemental features on the disc include original theatrical trailer; video introduction to the film by French cinema scholar, critic and author Ginette Vincendeau; video interview with director Jules Dassin; and Q & A session with director Jules Dassin. In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
Are you interested?
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jules Dassin's Rififi arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Films.
The high-definition transfer the British distributors have used for their Blu-ray release of Jules Dassin's legendary gangster film is beautiful. In fact, it is the very best high-definition transfer I've seen used for a Blu-ray release of a classic B&W French film on both sides of the Atlantic.
Fine object detail is exceptional. The image has remarkable depth and fluidity, while contrast levels are simply superb. Naturally, close-ups and larger panoramic scenes look stunning. Color reproduction is also fantastic - the blacks are rich and well saturated, while the variety of grays and whites look natural and healthy. I was particularly impressed by the various club scenes from the first half of the film. Edge-enhancement is never an issue of concern; neither is macroblocking. I also did not spot any aliasing patterns or artifacting plaguing the transfer. Excessive noise corrections have not been performed either. As a result, there is a fine light layer of grain that is present throughout the entire film. Lastly, aside from a few inherited shaky frame transitions there are no serious stability issues to report in this review. Also, I did not see any large scratches, marks, stains, debris, or flecks. All in all, Jules Dassin's Rififi is clearly the best release in Arrow Films' unique film catalog. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B 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, Arrow Films have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.
Similar to the video treatment, the audio treatment is very impressive. The French LPCM 1.0 track opens up the entire film quite well - Georges Auric's music score has received a strong dynamic boost, while the dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. What also impresses is the fact that background hiss, which many of these classic French gangster films are plagued with, is very effectively addressed (I recently saw Ralph Habib's La loi des rues, featuring the great Jean-Louis Trintignant and Silvana Pampanini, and the film was practically unwatchable because of the overwhelming background hiss). Finally, the English translation is indeed very good.
British distributors Arrow Films have put together a fantastic package for Jules Dassin's Rififi. In fact, I feel confident stating that this is their best Blu-ray release to date. I hope Criterion find a way to license the high-definition transfer Arrow Films have used so that North America could also get a Blu-ray release of this legendary film. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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À bout de souffle / Vintage World Cinema
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