7.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
It is now 1968, and the mischievous and perpetually love-struck Antoine Doinel has been dishonorably discharged from the army and released onto the streets of Paris, where he stumbles into the unlikely profession of private detective and embarks on a series of misadventures.
Starring: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Delphine Seyrig, Claude Jade, Michael Lonsdale, Harry-MaxForeign | 100% |
Drama | 71% |
Romance | 20% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.67:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
French: LPCM 2.0 Mono
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Nominated for Oscar Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Francois Truffaut's "Stolen Kisses" a.k.a. "Baisers volés" (1968) arrive son Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Artificial Eye. The supplemental features on the disc include an original French trailer for the film; introduction by Serge Toubiana, president of Cinémathèque française; filmed archival message to French moviegoers from Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard; and an audio commentary with scenarist Claude de Givray and actress Claude Jade. In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
"Antoine Doinel, Antoine Doinel, Antoine Doinel... "
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, François Truffaut's Stolen Kisses arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Artificial Eye.
It is obvious that the high-definition transfer has been struck from a good master, but the technical presentation is rather underwhelming. In most close-ups and sequences with plenty of light there are visible compression artifacts. Some of these artifacts clearly affect fine detail and grain does not appear well resolved (see screencaptures #1 and 17). On smaller screens the artifacts could be fairly easy to ignore, but the larger your screen is, the more distracting they will be. Color reproduction is very good. There is an excellent range of healthy browns, blues, greens, reds, yellows, and blacks. Edge-enhancement is not an issue of concern. Overall image stability is excellent. Also, there are no large cuts, debris, damage marks, stains, or dirt to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French LPCM 2.0. For the record, Artificial Eye have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.
Dynamic intensity is limited, but clarity and depth are excellent. In fact, Antoine Duhamel's score opens up the film far better than expected (the R1 DVD release creates the impression that the score has primarily a supportive role). There are also random sounds and noises that are far easier to identify now. The dialog is crisp, stable, and easy to follow. The English translation is excellent.
Next to Artificial Eye's Blu-ray releases of Francois Truffaut's The 400 Blows, The Soft Skin, Jules & Jim, and Shoot the Pianist, Stolen Kisses looks a bit underwhelming. It uses a high-definition transfer which was clearly struck from a good master, but the encoding is not as convincing as it should have been. If you view your films on a big screen or project them, I recommend that you find a way to rent this release first and see if you like the technical presentation. RENT IT.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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