The Track Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

The Track Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 15, 2022

Serge Leroy's "The Track" (1975) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Camera Obscura. The supplemental features on the release include new program with Jean-Luc Bideau; trailer for the recent 4K restoration of the film; and vintage promotional materials. In French, with optional English and French subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The trackers

In the ‘70s, some French critics were convinced that Sam Peckinpah was becoming the next Sam Fuller, but the former’s reputation as a cult director was permanently established only after he passed away. Also, while Peckinpah was alive his rebellious antics did a lot more to strengthen this reputation than his films. The Wild Bunch and The Getaway were Peckinpah’s biggest hits in Europe, but it was Straw Dogs that genuinely excited the French critics that wanted to promote him as a cult director.

Serge Leroy directed The Track (La Traque) a few years after Peckinpah completed Straw Dogs and the always active speculator in me is convinced that there is an obvious connection between the two. However, Peckinpah had reportedly seen and liked Roger Fritz’s The Brutes (Madchen mit Gewalt) and there is some credible evidence that he considered it an inspiration for Straw Dogs. Does this mean that it makes perfect sense to speculate that the obvious connection I mentioned is actually between The Track and The Brutes? I do not know. France was the biggest market for German films, but even there The Brutes apparently had a difficult distribution history. Then again, if Peckinpah had seen The Brutes multiple times, it was probably not an obscure film.

Why does the connection I mentioned matter? Because if you consider the order in which the three films emerged between 1970 and 1975 -- first came The Brutes then Straw Dogs and finally The Track -- as well as their subject matter and style, it becomes very difficult not to speculate that they are related. There is one more very important detail that supports this theory as well. The Track has an impressive cast of French-speaking actors and an American star who had developed quite a reputation in Europe. Michael Lonsdale, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Philippe Leotard, Michel Constantin, Paul Crauchet, and of course Mimsy Farmer are not the type of actors that would have committed to The Track without evaluating its potential after the controversial reception of Straw Dogs. After all, ‘bad’ films like Straw Dogs have been, and still are, tremendous career boosters.

The Track is set in a remote corner of the French countryside and follows closely a group of middle-aged men who have arranged to spend an entire weekend hunting. In the nearby small town, they all have respectable professions and solid reputations -- one is a public prosecutor, another is a wealthy industrialist, another is a career politician with plenty of important friends in different parts of the country, etc. Before their party begins, they gather in a secluded chalet, eat and drink plenty of wine, and arrange a small betting game in which they pick the lucky hunter that will kill the first wild boar. The betting game is a tradition that has kept their friendship alive for decades. But soon after the men enter the nearby forest, two of them rape a wandering British tourist, and after she wounds one of her attackers and runs away, they begin tracking her down with the intent to make her disappear.

While not as graphic as Straw Dogs and The Brutes, The Track is a similarly disturbing film that leaves the same lasting impression. However, its intensity is managed very differently. Indeed, while in Straw Dogs and The Brutes the intensity of the drama gradually escalates and peaks with the rape acts, in The Track what alters the drama is the peer pressure after the rape act. As a result, there is a different type of paranoia that runs through the The Track as well.

Only Farmer appears a bit shaky in a few scenes where she desperately tries to find a way to emerge from the forest alive. The male cast is outstanding. Long before the hunt is over, the rapists and their friends prove without a shadow of a doubt that they are despicable human beings.

Leroy worked with cinematographer Claude Renoir, who lensed such classic French films as Symphony for a Massacre, La Grande Vadrouille, and The Crucible.

The Track 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 Track arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Camera Obscura.

The Track was recently restored in 4K on behalf of French label Le chat qui fume, so I assume that the folks at Camera Obscura worked with the same French master to produce their release of the film.

I think that the overall quality of the 4K makeover is very good. The entire film has a solid organic appearance and looks spotless. On my system, all key areas that we scrutinize in our reviews looked impressive. My only minor criticism pertains to the color grading job. In some areas, there is a tendency to emphasize warmer primaries -- and specifically warmer green and light cyan while destabilizing blue, gray, and white -- and alter the overall temperature of the film. As a result, trained eyes will easily spot a few odd inconsistencies. For example, in screencapture #28 it almost looks like the man has used red lipstick. In screencapture #7, the green(ish) in the eyes almost pushes out the white. (For reference, something very similar occurs on the 4K restoration of La Grande Vadrouille, though the overall balance of The Track is better). There is a little bit of black crush in a few darker scenes, but it is not at all distracting. Image stability is outstanding. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Track Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French LPCM 2.0. Optional English and German subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is superb. It is very easy to tell that it has been fully remastered because clarity, sharpness, and balance are outstanding. I did not notice any fluctuations to mention in our review either. The film has a music score, but its role is primarily supportive. There are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report.

The Track Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interview with Jean-Luc Bideau - in this recent program, Jean-Luc Bideau, who plays the character of Philippe Mansart, discusses his acting career, initial encounter with director Serge Leroy, and involvement with The Track. The program was produced by French label Le chat qui fume. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (17 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a recent trailer for the new 4K restoration of The Track. In French, with optional English and German subtitles. (2 min).

• Publicity Materials - a collection of vintage promotional materials for The Track. With music.

• Booklet - 16-page illustrated booklet with writing on The Track by Dr. Marcus Stiglegger. In German.

The Track Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Is there a legit connection between The Brutes, Straw Dogs, and The Track? My answer is yes and there is plenty of evidence proving that it is the correct one, but you can decide for yourself. These films were made between 1970 and 1975, deal with the same difficult subject, and are pretty intense, but they do various things differently, so I would say that they are quite unique. All three films have been redone in 4K and are now available on Blu-ray. Camera Obscura's recent release is English-friendly but Region-B "locked". RECOMMENDED.