Rating summary
| Movie |  | 4.0 |
| Video |  | 2.5 |
| Audio |  | 3.5 |
| Extras | | 3.5 |
| Overall |  | 3.0 |
The City of Lost Children Blu-ray Movie Review
Reviewed by Brian Orndorf November 26, 2015
After wowing audiences with 1991’s “Delicatessen,” co-directors Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet revive their blazing idiosyncrasies with 1995’s “The City of Los Children,” which attempts to top their previous collaboration with a new wave of Terry Gilliam-inspired oddity and extremity that’s meticulously designed, with the production absolutely determined to create a screen space crowded with nightmares and misadventures, tilted with defined French style.
It’s easy to appreciate the visual achievements of “The City of Lost Children.” The effort is a breathless display of set construction, visual effects, and costuming, watching Caro and Jeunet go hog-wild with their creation, packing every frame with wicked, grimy details. The film emerges as a black comedy with literary and cinematic influences, but its story always takes a back seat to the circus the helmers are pounding into place. Characters are simply decoration for the production, which shows more interest in shot construction than essential emotionality.
The City of Lost Children Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality
With such outstanding design accomplishments offered during the movie, it's a shame actual HD clarity is somewhat missing from "The City of Lost Children" Blu-ray. The AVC encoded image (1.84:1 aspect ratio) presentation has extreme difficulty with delineation, offering solid blacks for almost anything that isn't blasted with light. Frame information is swallowed, leaving true detail to carefully illuminated close-ups, which carry necessary skin textures and costuming extremity. Colors are intentionally sickly and register as intended, along with skintones. Grain isn't pronounced, with mild filtering present. Some banding and noise are detected.
The City of Lost Children Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix handles comfortably, leading with evocative atmospherics that carry the wetness of the feature, along with echoed environments and metallic interiors. Dialogue exchanges are crisp and defined, handling a forceful range that goes from screaming to soft child-actor subtleties. Scoring is complimentary, carrying the emotional movements of the effort with proper instrumentation.
The City of Lost Children Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras
- Commentary features director Jean-Pierre Jeunet and actor Ron Perlman.
- Making Of (26:07, SD) takes a look at the construction of "The City of Lost Children," mixing interviews with cast and crew (co-director Marc Caro is presented only in shadow) with on-set activity, communicating a sense of production accomplishment and camaraderie. While a larger depiction of filmmaking isn't available here, little samples of Jeunet's work are valued.
- "Les Archives de Jean-Pierre Jeunet" (13:57, SD) is a collection of behind-the-scenes interactions, surveying daily work and casting choices, with audition footage included to communicate a feel for how the performances were ultimately shaped.
- Interview (3:24, SD) with costume designer Jean-Paul Gaultier covers his adoration for Jeunet and Caro and his desire to identify characters through fabrics and color.
- International Teasers #1 (:32, SD), #2 (:36, SD), #3 (:37, SD) are offered, and an International Trailer (1:14, SD) is included.
The City of Lost Children Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation
It's cold to the touch, but vibrancy remains in "The City of Lost Children," which delivers charmingly strange performances and a decent sense of escalation as the plot thickens to a certain degree. Perhaps dramatic appetites aren't satisfied in full, but when it comes to the world-building of Caro and Jeunet, getting lost in their specialized vision is almost enough to please.
