8.1 | / 10 |
Users | 5.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
An emotionally fragile governess comes to suspect that there is something very, very wrong with her precocious new charges.
Starring: Deborah Kerr, Peter Wyngarde, Megs Jenkins, Michael Redgrave, Martin StephensHorror | 100% |
Drama | 94% |
Psychological thriller | 45% |
Supernatural | 4% |
Period | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: LPCM Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Jack Clayton's "The Innocents" (1961) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; filmed introduction and audio commentary by scholar Christopher Frayling; exclusive new video interview with cinematographer John Bailey; and new piece on the making of the film, featuring archival interviews cinematographer Freddie Francis, editor Jim Clark, and script supervisor Pamela Mann Francis. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Maitland McDonagh. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
Miss Giddens
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jack Clayton's The Innocents arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:
"This new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on an Oxbery wet-gate film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using Blackmagic Design's DaVinci Revival, Cinnafilm's Dark Energy, and Pixel Farm's PFClean. Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, and noise management.
The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm optical soundtrack print. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. AudioCube's integrated workstation, and iZotope RX 3.
Transfer supervisor: Schawn Belston/Twentieth Century Fox, Los Angeles.
Layout: Janos Pileni, Ulrike Reichold/Cineric, New York.
Scanning: Simon Lund, Adam Wangerin/Cineric, New York.
Restoration: Seth Berkowitz, Shelley Plummer/Cineric, New York.
Colorist: Daniel, DeVincent/Cineric, New York."
The high-definition transfer is one of the very best that I have seen for a black-and-white CinemaScope film. I've done some direct comparisons with BFI's Region-B release of The Innocents and can confirm that there are dramatic improvements in every single area we typically address in our reviews. Detail and image depth are simply superb, with the darker footage in particular now looking far better balanced. What truly impresses, however, is the much improved range of nuanced blacks, grays, and whites. (See screencapture #3, which I believe convincingly demonstrates the far superior color balance the new 4K restoration has produced). Furthermore, grain is beautifully resolved and evenly distributed throughout the entire film. There are no traces of sharpening adjustments. Overall image stability is outstanding. Lastly, there are no damage marks, debris, cuts, stains, dirt, or annoying scratches to report in this review. All in all, this is an absolutely outstanding restoration and technical presentation of The Innocents, which I believe will remain the definitive presentation of the film on the home video market. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-SA or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.
Considering the fantastic sound design, I think that it is essential to view this film with a strong lossless track. Fortunately, the LPCM track is outstanding and opens up the film in all the right places. The overall dynamic intensity is also very good. The dialog is clean, stable, and very easy to follow. Balance is terrific as well -- there are no sudden spikes or drops in dynamic activity. Finally, it is clear to me that additional work has been done to remove hiss and crackle and improve basic stability as best as possible. For the record, there are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report in this review.
This hugely atmospheric film coscripted by Truman Capote, lensed by Freddie Francis, and directed by Jack Clayton is rightfully regarded as a masterpiece of Gothic cinema. Indeed, at times it is genuinely spooky. The Innocents transitions to Blu-ray after a new 4K restoration, which I believe allows one to experience the film as its creators intended. Amongst the supplemental features on the Blu-ray is a brand new and very interesting video interview with cinematographer John Bailey. Don't miss it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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