Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

The Immortal Story Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 27, 2020

Orson Welles died on October 10, 1985 at the age of seventy, just a couple of months before the film version of Out of Africa opened (note that the link points to the pretty problematic first Blu-ray release, since the review of that version was written by yours truly; there’s a better looking release also available). Welles had reportedly considered filming the memoir of “Isak Dinesen” (a pen name for Karen Blixen) at some point, though as with so many other projects that drifted by the famed auteur, Out of Africa never materialized as a Welles film. Welles did have a hand in a screen adaptation of another Dinesen piece, namely this 1968 effort for French television which was culled from a Dinesen short tale included in an anthology collection of hers entitled Anecdotes of Destiny, which according to some online sources was originally published on October 12, 1958, virtually 27 years to the day before Welles expired. The Immortal Story probably won’t be considered “prime” Welles even by diehard fans of the legend, but it has some interesting elements, not the least of which is it is evidently the first Welles offering shot in color. There are some limits to this piece which no doubt sprang from a general lack of funding (a recurring issue in Welles’ professional life, as many will no doubt already know), but there’s still some intriguing style on display here in a kind of wending, soap operatic saga that has certain “meta” elements which may appeal to some.

While the lack of a significant budget may have at least hampered some aspects of The Immortal Story, the television film's biggest problem may simply be a lack of narrative momentum. The plot is something of a shaggy dog story wherein a wealthy, bored and aging merchant named Mr. Clay (Orson Welles) is entranced by an old seafaring yarn about a rich man who "hires" an itinerant sailor to impregnate his wife. Mr. Clay tasks his assistant Levinsky (Roger Coggio) with finding a woman to impersonate Clay's wife in order to make the story come to life, and Virginie Ducrot (Jeanne Moreau) is chosen, even though (or perhaps because) her father was a former business associate of Clay's whom clay ruined, leading to his suicide. In just one of several "meta" aspects, Virginie is initially described as having run off with a sailor, which then refracts into the story once Clay recruits a destitute sailor named Paul (Norman Eshley) to "complete" the charade. It's all rather odd, and is at times weirdly static (with long, uninterrupted takes focusing on one character, often Clay). Still, the film has a really ravishing approach toward color, aided by Willy Kurant's kind of hazily dreamlike cinematography, and the use of some music by Erik Satie adds to the almost fantasy like atmosphere of the film despite some of its admittedly kind of smarmy content.

The Immortal Story Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Immortal Story is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of The Criterion Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.66:1. Criterion's accordion style foldout insert contains the following information on the transfer:

The Immortal Story is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1. On standard 4:3 televisions, the image will appear letterboxed. On standard and widescreen televisions, black bars may also be visible on the left and right to maintain the proper screen format. This new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution from the 35 mm original camera negative and a 35 mm interpositive. Restoration was undertaken in 2K resolution at Eclair | Groupe Ymagis by Gaumont, with the support of the CNC.

The original monaural soundtrack was transferred from the 35 mm sound negatives and restored by L.E. Diapason.

This is by and large a very winning looking transfer, though I'm assuming some of the slight variances seen in color timing and (especially) thickness of the grain field may be due to the two separate source elements listed above. Densities are generally excellent, and the bulk of the transfer exhibits a really nicely vivid palette, albeit one that tends to exploit more burnished tones like regal purples and cool blues at times (there's a kind of odd looking bluish undertone to some scenes which may also be due to the different source elements utilized for this transfer). Detail levels are quite good throughout the presentation, aided by Welles' frequent use of extreme close-ups of faces or at times offering other large objects in the foreground where textures are easily discernable. My score is 4.25.

The Immortal Story Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two versions of The Immortal Story offered on this disc, an English language version and what I'm assuming was the (somewhat shorter) original French broadcast version, both delivered via LPCM Mono tracks. The telefilm is graced with some nice Erik Satie music (though some tempos are kind of unusual, including a rather brisk Gnossienne No. 3 ), and all of the cues sound full bodied without any brittleness or brash upper registers. Dialogue and narration are both presented cleanly and clearly throughout, and I noticed no problems whatsoever with regard to dropouts, distortion or other damage.

The Immortal Story Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Orson Welles (1080p; 42:53) is a kind of intentionally gonzo 1968 documentary by Francois Reichenbach and Frederic Rossif about Welles done for French television and initially planned as a corollary broadcast to The Immortal Story. This does have some fascinating candid footage of Welles, and includes some of Welles' well documented proclivities toward being something of a raconteur. Adding to the surreal aspect is the fact that the documentary is ostensibly in French, meaning that some of Welles' anecdotes are occasionally interrupted by French translation voiceovers.


• Norman Eshley (1080p; 14:17) is a 2016 interview with the actor who portrays the sailor in The Immortal Story.


• Willy Kurant (1080i; 15:00) is a 2004 interview with the director of photography for The Immortal Story.


• Francois Thomas (1080p; 25:14) is a 2016 interview with Welles scholar Thomas, who discusses Welles' longstanding admiration for the works of Isak Dinesen. In French with English subtitles.


• Commentary by Adrian Martin can be accessed under the English Language Version submenu.


• Both an English Language Version (1080p; 58:00) and a French Language Version (1080p; 50:57) are offered.

The Immortal Story Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Welles completists will probably want to check out this odd but kind of weirdly captivating piece. It has some of the hallmarks of Welles' often florid framings, but it's also kind of curiously static a lot of the time. Technical merits are solid, and as usual Criterion has assembled some interesting supplements, for those who are considering a purchase.