Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Une Femme Mariée Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 15, 2010

Controversial French director Jean-Luc Godard's "Une femme mariée" a.k.a "The Married Woman" (1964) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment. The only supplemental feature on the disc is the original trailer by Godard. An 80-page illustrated booklet, however, complements the disc. With optional English subtitles. Region-Free.

The woman

Charlotte (Macha Meril, Night Train Murders) is a young, modern woman who appears to be in a stable relationship - she has a husband, Pierre (Philippe Leroy, The Night Porter), who loves her dearly, and a beautiful son. Charlotte also has a lover, Robert (Bernard Noel, A Choice of Killers), who she meets when Pierre is away. She does not love him - even though the two have talked about her leaving Pierre - but likes his company.

Pierre suspects that Charlotte might be seeing another man, but has been reluctant to confront her. This could be the right time - if he does not take matters in his own hands now, he may lose her. But how exactly does he do it? What does he say to her?

Charlotte and Pierre make love. Then they start arguing - Pierre slaps Charlotte and then asks her to forgive him; she tells him that he always asks for forgiveness but never forgives. He must be patient; he must trust her and understand that it takes time to mend what has been broken.

Charlotte then goes back to Robert. He is an actor and she wants to know if he acts when she is with him. Is love as important to him as acting? If he had to choose between the two, which one would it be? And why? What does love mean to him? Can he describe love to her?

Shot without a traditional script in approximately four weeks, Une femme mariee is a very interesting film. On the surface, it looks like it recycles familiar themes - infidelity, guilt, responsibility, etc. The frustration each of the three characters experiences throughout the course of the film is closely related to these themes, and their interactions are certainly influenced by it. For example, Charlotte has to decide if she still loves Pierre, and whether it is worth trying to save their marriage. Pierre must find out if he could trust Charlotte, and learn to love her as she wants him to. Robert must convince Charlotte that he does not act when they are together.

But there are also a number of those typically Godardian insinuations that give Une femme mariee a very unique flavor. For example, does Charlotte's obsession with fashion have anything to do with her inability to decide whether she wants to be in a relationship with Pierre or Robert? It is easy to tell what is the right bra, garter belt, or dress to wear; all Charlotte needs to do in order to find out is look at the latest fashion magazines. But how does she find out who the right man to be with is?

Then there are all those intellectual conversations and cynical jokes that further attack the "modern woman" image. In one of the film’s most memorable scenes, Charlotte makes an unfortunate comment after a Holocaust joke that reveals how ignorant she is. Godard quickly moves away from it, but the audience is given a cue - this isn’t a film about relationships.

Legendary cinematographer Raoul Coutard (Two or Three Things I Know About Her) has given Une femme mariee a gentle, surprisingly erotic look. Throughout the film, there are more than a few notably long, beautiful close-ups of Charlotte's naked back, neck and hips. Elsewhere, where the main protagonists gently touch and kiss their bodies, the camera barely moves, almost as if not to disturb them.

In 1964, Une femme mariee was nominated for Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

Une Femme Mariée Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jean-Luc Godard's Une femme mariée arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment.

The high-definition transfer is very pleasing. Fine object detail is excellent, and many of the close-ups look simply gorgeous. The color-scheme also does not disappoint - the blacks are rich and well saturated while the whites and grays are gentle and natural looking. The film grain is intact. I noticed some sharpness fluctuations during the second half of the film - when Charlotte and Robert meet at the airport - but I assume that they are inherited. On the other hand, there are no serious stability issues that I detected. Blown through a digital projector, Une femme mariée looks fantastic. Finally, I did not see any large scratches, stains, debris, or cuts. To sum it all up, this is indeed a fantastic high-definition transfer that will surely make a lot of Godard fans very happy. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL content preceding the main menu).

Une Femme Mariée Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: French LPCM 1.0. For the record, Eureka Entertainment have provided optional white English subtitles for the main feature.

The French LPCM track is solid. The dialog is crisp, clear and very easy to follow. I also did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, or hiss to report in this review. Understandably, the dynamic range is very limited. All in all, the audio treatment is very much on par with the video treatment.

Une Femme Mariée Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Trailer - the original trailer by Godard. (4 min, 1080p).

Booklet - this Blu-ray disc apparently arrives with an 80-page illustrated booklet containing a number of different essays, but I am unable to comment on it at the moment as I did not receive one with my screener. I will, however, update my review once I have a chance to look at it.

Une Femme Mariée Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is fantastic to see that one of Jean-Luc Godard's least known films has been treated with such care and respect - Une femme mariée looks excellent in high-definition. I urge you to add this Blu-ray disc to your collections. It is well worth it! VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.