Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

The Story of Adele H. Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 15, 2024

François Truffaut's "The Story of Adele H." (1975) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release incldue archival audio commentary by Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman and vintage trailer. In French, with English subtitles. Region-A "locked".

Is it love or an obsession? It is a little bit both, so the more important question would be which of the two dominates. Actions and reactions, even those that appear impulsive, can be controlled if it is the former. If it is the latter the mind no longer performs as it should and tragedy is inevitable.

Initially, Adele (Isabelle Adjani), the daughter of Victor Hugo, easily creates the impression that she is fully in control of her feelings for Lieutenant Albert Pinson (Brice Robinson). She has arrived in Halifax to rekindle her romantic relationship with Albert and do whatever is necessary to convince him to marry her. Adele believes they were meant to be together and that their love will help them overcome any obstacles life may present as they officially become a couple. It is what all lovers tell each other, it is what they always believe. But it is not long before Adele, while using an alias at the boarding house where she has rented a room, reconnects with Albert, and he declares that their love does not have a future. Albert still has feelings for Adele, but the two have missed their chance, and he has moved on with his life. They part ways, but instead of accepting the end of their romantic relationship, Adele writes to her father and demands his blessing to marry Albert. Had her father given it while they were still in Europe, the trip across the Atlantic Ocean and all the drama before and after it would have never materialized.

This is where Adele’s story begins to change, and it becomes clear that she is slipping into the abyss of madness. What is not yet clear is whether she would have the strength to pull herself out of it and recover.

The remaining material in Francois Truffaut’s film is incredibly interesting to deconstruct. It is also incredibly sad because the longer Truffaut’s camera follows Adele, the more obvious it becomes that her fate is predetermined. Why exactly? Adele’s dominating obsession has reframed her existence as an extension of Albert’s, so the fact that she has been rejected and their romantic relationship is dead no longer has the same resonance with her. The end has completely reset how Adele rationalizes, reacts, and allows the people around her to see and react to everything she says and does. So long as she can be close to Albert and ensure he is happy, she is content, and this feeling she interprets as love. Such an obsession, regardless of whether it may have been spurred by true love, is virtually impossible to overcome if the person struggling with it is not isolated and cared for by medical professionals.

Of course, Adele’s obsession is directly fueled by egoism of the unhealthiest kind which she fails to reject, too. There is a sequence in the film where Adele arranges for a courtesan to meet Albert because she believes that the act will reveal that their love is true and too strong to be corrupted by sex. However, Adele’s entire thought process could not be more indicative of the opposite.

Truffaut’s film has always been promoted as one that recreates true events, which technically is correct because in it a lot of the drama is factual. However, Truffaut’s film really is about Adjani’s extraordinary transformation and ability to convince that her character is authentic. Anyone who may attempt to argue that it is not so is intentionally ignoring the obvious, which is that Adjani is and always has been a bigger magnet than Adele and her tragic story.

The rather subdued appearance of the film is deceiving because it was a large-scale project that took several years to complete. Truffaut and his director of photography, Nestor Almendros, shot much of it at the real locations that Adele visits.

In 1976, Adjani won an Oscar nomination for her performance but lost to Louise Fletcher, who took home the then-prestigious statuette for her contribution to One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

The Story of Adele H. Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Story of Adele H. arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The master that was used to produce this release is old and most unfortunately quite average. It exhibits many of the limitations that are present on the old non-anamorphic DVD release of The Story of Adele H., so if I had to speculate, I would say that it comes from the DVD era. What are some of these limitations? It struggles to accurately reproduce different ranges of shadow nuances, which are crucial in Nestor Almendros' cinematography, so in many areas there is a lot of obvious crushing. In various visuals, and especially during larger panoramic shots, delineation and depth are far from optimal, too. Color reproduction reveals weaknesses as well, though balance is actually very close to where it needs to be. (Several of Francois Truffaut's color films were recently restored in 4K and were given awful modern appearances, so they do not look as they should). On this presentation, there is room for adjustments, the biggest of which should address the noticeable presence of magenta hues, but most primaries and even supporting nuances are set properly. The best news is that there are no traces of problematic digital corrections. As a result, despite the master's limitations, the visuals retain certain filmic qualities. These qualities are simply not as convincing as they need to be. There are no large distracting cuts, debris, marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Story of Adele H. Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. (with a few exchanges in English). English subtitles are included for the French dialog. However, even though they are supposed to be optional, I could not turn them off on my player.

The quality of the lossless track is very good. I pulled out my DVD release and did several tests. On the Blu-ray, the lossless track produces richer, fuller audio, with fine ranges of dynamic contrasts. If the audio is fully remastered, I do not think that there will be dramatic improvements in quality. The most likely improvements will be cosmetic.

The Story of Adele H. Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary was recorded by critics Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman.

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for The Story of Adele H.. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

The Story of Adele H. Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Several of Francois Truffaut's color films were recently restored in 4K and given contemporary appearances that are very disappointing. This release of The Story of Adele H. is sourced from an old master with obvious limitations. However, it may be worth picking up if The Story of Adele H. is set to undergo a similarly disappointing 4K transformation for its 50th anniversary. So, if you can find the release on sale, it is not a bad idea to pick one up for your library. RECOMMENDED.