Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 29, 2013

Screened at the Cannes Film Festival, Claude Miller's "Therese Desqueyroux" (2012) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Artificial Eye. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film and a making of featurette. In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Therese Desqueyroux

L’Esperance, Summer 1922. Best friends Therese Larroque (Alba Gaïa Bellugi) and Anne de la Trave (Matilda Marty-Giraut) are enjoying the beautiful weather. One day, Anne tells Therese that she will be her brother’s wife. It is only a matter of time.

Six years later, Therese (Audrey Tautou, Amelie, Delicacy) is getting ready to marry Bernard Desqueyroux (Gilles Lellouche, Point Blanc, Little White Lies). Therese loves Bernard, but she also understands that she is marrying him for his pine trees. After the Larroque and Desqueyroux families combine their wealth, no one in the area will be able to compete with them.

After the wedding, Therese begins to realize that she is locked in a life she never wanted. Bernard seems happy but only because he is now the head of a powerful family. Occasionally they make love, but the emotions and feelings that should be shared by two people in love are missing. Therese tries her best not to show her frustration.

Meanwhile, Bernard’s sister, Anne (Anais Demoustier, Elles, Last Winter), falls madly in love with a handsome but poor young man (Stanley Weber, Le premier jour du reste de ta vie). When Bernard discovers that Anne plans to marry him, he urges Therese to talk to her and convince her that she and the Desqueyroux family deserve better. Therese envies their relationship because it is fueled by pure passion, which has been missing in her relationship with Bernard.

Therese’s frustration culminates in a tragic act that nearly collapses the Desqueyroux family. The family’s honor is defended, but Therese is forever isolated from it.

Claude Miller’s final film, Therese Desqueyroux, is based on Nobel Prize winner François Mauriac’s famous novel of the same name, which also inspired the great Georges Franju (Eyes Without a Face) to adapt and film it in 1962. During the same year, Franju’s film won Best Actor (Philippe Noiret) and Best Actress (Emmanuelle Riva) Awards at the Venice Film Festival. (Edith Scob and Sami Frey were also part of the great cast).

Unlike Mauriac’s novel, which begins with the end, Miller’s film follows the events that lead to the collapse of the Desqueyroux family chronologically. The new structure prevents the audience from prematurely judging any of the main characters. Until the third and final act, the focus of attention is strictly on Therese’s struggle to meet the expectations of the two powerful families while at the same time quietly questioning their views and morals. So when she is eventually confronted and then isolated, the audience understands exactly what has motivated her actions.

Like most Miller films, Therese Desqueyroux is a fluid, very elegant piece in which the camera loves to observe the main characters. Quite often it is looks that reveal how they feel, not words. Together with the consistent pacing, the technique creates a sense of intimacy that never leaves the film.

Tautou is terrific as the disillusioned Therese who struggles to be the wife everyone expects her to be. However, Lellouche frequently looks too distant as well as too soft to be the ambitious head of a wealthy family.

Miller and his regular director of photography Gérard de Battista (La petite Lili, Un secret) shot Therese Desqueyroux with the Arri Alexa camera. Many of the panoramic vistas boast a wide range of soft but very beautiful natural colors.

Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Claude Miller's Therese Desqueyroux arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Artificial Eye.

Filmed with the Arri Alexa camera, Therese Desqueyroux looks mighty impressive on Blu-ray. During close-ups definition and clarity are simply fantastic, allowing one to see even exceptionally small details (see screencaptures #1 and 2). The panoramic shots boast tremendous depth and fluidity. In fact, even where natural light is restricted clarity is absolutely terrific (see screencaptures #3 and 10). There is a wide range of warm but beautifully saturated colors. Most are so well balanced that many of the occasional stills in the film look like digital photographs. There are no serious transfer-specific anomalies. Image stability is also outstanding. Finally, when blown through a digital projector the film remains tight around the edges and pleasingly crisp from start to finish. Indeed, this is a wonderful presentation that makes viewing this elegantly lensed period drama quite the experience. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French LPCM 2.0. For the record, Artificial Eye have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

The 5.1 lossless track is guaranteed to impress viewers who appreciate well mixed tracks with a terrific range of nuanced dynamics. To be perfectly clear, there are select sequences where it literally feels as if one is placed in the middle of the room where Therese and Bernard question each other. The clarity and subtle changes in dynamic progression are quite remarkable. What makes all of this even more impressive is the fact that the film does not have a prominent soundtrack so all of the subtle nuances are noticeable during standard discussions. For the record, there are absolutely no pops, cracks, distortions or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Therese Desqueyroux. In French, with imposed English subtitles. (2 min, 1080p).

• Memories of Filming - short featurette with raw footage from the shooting of Therese Desqueyroux. In French, with optional English subtitles. (9 min).

Thérèse Desqueyroux Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Director Claude Miller's final film, Therese Desqueyroux, is an elegant period piece that should appeal primarily to viewers who are already familiar with his work. It is quite different from Georges Franju's film, but in my opinion it is just as entertaining. As usual, Artificial Eye's technical presentation does not disappoint. The film looks simply magnificent on Blu-ray. RECOMMENDED.