7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.9 |
A simple country girl is torn between the honest farmer who loves her and a corrupt nobleman.
Starring: Nastassja Kinski, Peter Firth, Leigh Lawson, Tom Chadbon, Lesley DunlopDrama | 100% |
Romance | 28% |
Period | 11% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
French
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 4.5 | |
Overall | 5.0 |
Winner of three Cesar Awards, including Best Film and Best Director, Roman Polanski's "Tess" (1979) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailer for the film; documentary film by Serge July and Daniel Ablin; three featurettes with various interviews with director Roman Polanski, producer Claude Berri, makeup artist Didier Lavergne, costume designer Anthony Powell, and actor Leigh Lawson, amongst others; and a documentary film on the making of "Tess". In English, with imposed French subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.
Tess
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Roman Polanski's Tess arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe.
Recently restored by Pathe/Eclair Group and Le Diapason in 4K, with the entire restoration supervised by director Roman Polanski, Tess looks simply stunning on Blu-ray. Detail and clarity are truly exceptional, while depth is often extraordinary (see screencaptures #2 and #11). The nighttime sequences look particularly good as even though light is restricted definition is still fantastic. What impress the most, however, is the fantastic range of beautiful colors, all of which look incredibly natural. The warm and gentle yellows, in particular, are simply terrific. Furthermore, there are no traces of excessive degraining corrections. Sharpening adjustments have not been performed either. Needless to say, Tess has a very strong and consistent organic look. Compression is also solid. Lastly, there are absolutely no damage marks, scratches, debris, or warps. All in all, had I not already submitted my Top 10 list for the year, Tess would have definitely appeared on it. Pathe's restoration of the film is simply magnificent. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your Ps3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Pathe have provided imposed French subtitles for the English audio version of the film (they cannot be turned off during if the English track is selected). The French subtitles appear inside the image frame.
The audio treatment is every bit as impressive as the video treatment. The lossless English track has a fantastic range of nuanced dynamics (even when the wind blows, the clarity and crispness of sound are terrific) that open up the film in all the right places. Surround movement is unlikely to impress most viewers, but those who appreciate subtle effects without the aggressiveness of modern big budget productions will be enormously pleased. The dialog is crisp, clean, and easy to follow. The imposed French subtitles are rather disappointing, but this is a release produced for the French market so French speakers shouldn't have a problem with them.
Ever since Tess was screened in the Classics section of the Cannes Film Festival, I've been looking forward to the inevitable Blu-ray release. I am happy to report that the 4K restoration is simply magnificent, while Pathe's presentation of the film is everything I hoped it would be. This white limited edition digibook is also incredibly stylish. If you are a French speaker, place your order now. Clearly, this is one of the year's best French Blu-ray releases. Let's hope that the upcoming BFI release of Tess will look just as impressive. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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