The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 31, 2020

Note: This film is available as part of The Complete Films of Agnès Varda.

In the wake (figurative or otherwise) of Agnès Varda’s death last year at the age of 90, quite a bit has rightfully been written about this iconic force in both French and global cinema. Varda’s output includes well over fifty credits as a director (including some television entries as detailed by the IMDb), and aside from listing some of her better known triumphs, many obituaries and/or eulogies about Varda mentioned any number of other biographical data points, including her rather unique position as a woman in France’s nouvelle vague movement, her own feminism which was featured none too subtly in some of her films, and her frequently provocative experimental style. But you know what one of the things that kind of fascinates me personally most about Varda? That she was married for 28 years to Jacques Demy, from 1962 until Demy’s death in 1990. That Varda, often a purveyor of verité infused “realism”, whether that be in outright documentaries or at least ostensibly more “fictional” outings, and Demy, a director whose candy colored, dreamlike and at least relatively "Hollywoodized" musicals with Michel Legrand brought a new luster and gloss to French cinema, managed to make a marital go of it for so long is certainly testament to the maxim that “opposites attract”, even if those oppositional forces in this instance played out at least in part in terms of what kinds of films the two were often best remembered for. If Varda's long marriage to Demy is more than enough reason to celebrate her personal life, her professional life is beautifully feted in this rather astounding new set from Criterion, which aggregates an amazing 39 films (albeit some running as short as a few minutes) to provide what is arguably one of the most insightful overviews of Varda's cinematic oeuvre. Perhaps unavoidably, but also undeniably movingly, these personal and professional sides of Varda merge in at least some of the films in this set, including The Young Girls Turn 25, The World of Jacques Demy, Jacquot de Nantes, and The Beaches of Agnès.

Beaches or at least seaside locations run rampant throughout many of the films of Agnès Varda, and they serve an interstitial function in this documentary that is both literal and metaphoric. While The Beaches of Agnès serves as an overview of sorts of Varda's cinematic oeuvre, it also provides ample evidence of some of Varda's other artistic pursuits, and one way or the other tends to come off as a somewhat leisurely, destination free stroll through history rather than some kind of organized tour, so to speak. That may actually make it all the more endearing, though, especially for those who are attuned to what I might call Varda's "hippified grandma" persona.

While not chronologically the last film in this massive set from Criterion, it makes sense in a way that The Beaches of Agnès is presented as a kind of assumed "wrap up" to the collection, being offered on the release's fifteenth and final disc, since it has an undeniably elegiac tone at times, even though Varda would continue to flourish and make at least a few features and shorts (as well as some television outings) after this film. That said, this certainly gives a nice accounting of some of the highlights of Varda's film career while also starting to delve into her work as both a still photographer and more general art installation exhibitor.

As she almost invariably does in all of the "first person" documentaries included in this release, Varda comes off as generally unpretentious, even when she's attempting to discuss what might be thought of as metaphysical musings about life and Art. There's a heartfelt sweetness to this piece that one has to assume manifested outward from Varda herself.

The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Beaches of Agnès is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of The Criterion Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer (often) in 1.85:1 (as in many of the other compendiums of both Varda's and Demy's films in this set, both archival video as well as actual film clips can of course affect the aspect ratio). This is another release in this set without any prefatory text about a restoration, but the IMDb lists both the Panasonic PV-GS400 and the Sony V1 as having digitally captured what I assume is the contemporary interview sequences, though (again according to the IMDb) everything was ultimately transferred to 35mm for theatrical exhibition. There is therefore a somewhat heterogeneous appearance at times here, with varying levels of clarity, fine detail and even grain structure dependent upon the many different source elements utilized. On the whole, though, things look great throughout this presentation, though some of the beachside material can be just a bit hazy at times. The palette pops extremely well in terms of both the contemporary material and at least some of the color archival material. I was especially struck by the deep teal tones in some of the water that is featured, and fine detail on elements like the texture of some stones on a seawall where some cute kids are fishing in one scene is virtually palpable. There is quite a bit of use of archival black and white material, and contrast is generally very solid in these moments.

The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

You may have had to wade (sorry) through fourteen discs to get there, but The Beaches of Agnès offers the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that many Blu-ray fans have simply come to expect from most contemporary releases. The irony is that the documentary doesn't always offer consistent opportunity to really exploit the surround channels, but there are some nice, bracing moments in this mix where, for example, the roaring surf and wind at the beach swirl around the listener. All of the talking head sequences sound fine, though there are some understandable variances in fidelity as the documentary gets into some of the archival video sources.

The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Around Trapeze Artists (1080p; 9:45) looks at how Varda set up the beach trapeze sequences in the feature. In French with English subtitles.


• Daguerre Beach (1080p; 9:22) looks at the creation of the "beach" in front of her house in the feature (her neighbors must have been thrilled). In French with English subtitles.


• Kelley Conway (1080p; 15:14) features a 2019 interview with Conway where she discusses Varda's approach to self-representation in the feature.


• Trailer (1080i; 00:59)


• Quelques Veuves de Noirmoutier (1080i; 1:12:07) is a Varda documentary adaptation of a video installation she had presented at the Fondation Cartier in Paris. In French with English subtitles.


• Installations (1080i; 1:07:29) focuses on Varda's work as a visual artist. In French with English subtitles.

The Beaches of Agnès Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Beaches of Agnès is another sui generis effort from Varda, one which manages to be both autobiographical and verging on anarchy at the same time. Varda comes across as an accessible genius, and the documentary features both personal and professional information in abundance. Technical merits are solid, and the supplementary package very enjoyable. Highly recommended.