Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		5.0

Wooden Crosses Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 13, 2015

Raymond Bernard's "Wooden Crosses" a.k.a. "Les Croix de Bois" (1932) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe. The supplemental features on the the release include an original trailer for the recent restoration of the film; archival interview with the French director; video interviews with film historians Marc Ferro and Laurent Veray; archival interview with writer Roland Dorgelès; archival documentary footage from Pathe's vaults; stills from the film; and more. The release also arrives with a 44-page illustrated booklet with writings on the film and archival materials. In French, with optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The cemetery

The film opens up with an unsettling shot of a giant cemetery. Its wooden crosses are perfectly aligned, like soldiers waiting to be dismissed. There are hundreds, possibly even thousands of them. Then men of different ages are seen gathering and enthusiastically joining the French Army. There are so many of them that they have to wait hours to sign a piece of paper and receive their uniforms.

Gilbert Demachy (Pierre Blanchar), a law student, is ordered to join a small brigade somewhere in the Champagne region. Soon after, the men are told that they will be dispatched to an area where French and German soldiers are engaged in a fierce battle. While waiting, they drink, dance and talk about the women they have left back home.

Gilbert does not have a lot in common with the older soldiers, but he genuinely likes them. They are simple men -- farmers, cooks, butchers, and small shop owners -- who have stepped up to defend their country and Gilbert admires their patriotism. Had it not been for the war, Gilbert would have never met men like Bouffiou, the fat cook who never washes, or Vieuble, the friendly joker.

The men quickly move from one location to another. Sometimes they replace other brigades, sometimes they clash with small German units that have moved deep into friendly territories.

Eventually, the men enter the Champagne battlefields, and many of them are killed in the trenches. The survivors constantly regroup and try to keep moving forward, but it seems impossible. As time passes by, more and more men die like flies.

It is impossible not to compare Raymond Bernard’s Wooden Crosses to Lewis Milestone’s All Quiet on the Western Front. They are monumental war films, both adapted from tremendous novels, whose pacifist messages will continue to resonate with viewers for as long as cinema lives.

But they are very different films. While Milestone’s film effectively welcomes the viewer into the intimate world of its young protagonists and lets him befriend them, Bernard’s film treats the viewer as an impartial observer. Both also have episodic structures, but the latter is far more chaotic, very much looking like an elaborate documentary feature.

Bernard shot the film with war veterans who did not have to create characters and make them look authentic – all they had to do is remember what they had experienced in the trenches. The massive battle scenes also remain some of the most impressive ever staged for a period war film. (The film features on-location footage from the real trenches of Fort de la Pompelle and Mount Cornillet).

Two different cinematographers lensed the film: Jules Kruger, who also collaborated with Abel Gance on the silent epic Napoleon, and Rene Ribault (Sacha Guitry’s La Poison).

Wooden Crosses was recently restored and reconstructed by Pathe and L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna, with the support of Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC). The new 4K restoration of the film premiered at Cannes Classics in 2014.

Wooden Crosses Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.19:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Raymond Bernard's Wooden Crosses arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French label Pathe.

Wooden Crosses was recently restored in 4K at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna, with the support of Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC). Pathe's new Blu-ray release uses as a foundation the 4K restoration of the film.

The film looks lush and notably healthy. There are select areas of it where it is easy to see that time has left its mark, but it is clear that efforts have been made to rebalance the image as best as possible. In some cases -- most notably during some darker sequences -- some careful denoising adjustments have been applied, but the integrity of the image has not been compromised. Grain is retained and well distributed, though there are some density fluctuations where it could appear either underexposed or overexposed. Obviously, however, these fluctuations can be traces back to the different elements that were used during the restoration process -- the original B negative, nitrate copy of the better known B version of the film preserved at Archives francaises du film, nitrate copy of the B version preserved at Cinematheque francaise, an incomplete copy of the A negative, and a nitrate copy of the A version preserved at UCLA. There are no traces of problematic sharpening corrections. Contrast and color stability are very good. Perhaps the most impressive improvements, however, are in the area of image stability. On the R1 DVD release there are numerous sequences where edge flicker and transition issues are quite easy to spot. During the 4K restoration, virtually all of these issues have been addressed. Finally, debris, scratches, dirt, cuts, and specks have been meticulously removed. The end result is a wonderful and very convincing organic presentation of Wooden Crosses which is guaranteed to remain the film's definitive presentation on the home video market. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. 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 or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Wooden Crosses Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (Mono). Also included is a Descriptive French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. For the record, Pathe have provided optional English and French SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Dynamic intensity is quite limited, but this is hardly surprising considering the fact that the film was produced in the very early stages of the sound era. There are some depth and sharpness fluctuations as well, with the high frequencies in particular occasionally appearing somewhat flat. These fluctuations are most obvious during the large battle scenes where there are plenty of explosions. However, while time is most likely responsible for some of the fluctuations, one has to keep in mind that the filming equipment is also responsible for a lot of the unevenness. This being said, there are no serious balance issues that would affect negatively your viewing experience. Also, there are no pops or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Wooden Crosses Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Blu-ray

• Bande-annonce - restored trailer for Wooden Crosses. This trailer for the recent 4K restoration of the film was used before the film's premiere at Cannes Classics in 2014. In French, not subtitled. (7 min, 1080p).

DVD

• Recontre entre Marc Ferro et Laurent Veray - video interview with film historian and Directeur d'etudes at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales Marc Ferro and Professor Laurent Veray from University of Paris Sorbonne Nouvelle. In French, not subtitled. (32 min).

• La restauration - this documentary feature focuses on the recent 4K restoration and reconstruction of Wooden Crosses. Included in it are interviews with Davide Pozzi (L'immagine Ritrovata director), image restoration specialists Ariane Baudat, Celine Stephanie Pozzi, Matteo Rossi, and Giandomenico Zeppa, and audio restoration specialist Gilles Barberis. In French and English, with imposed French subtitles where necessary. (24 min).

• Les Croix de Bois: Une aventure sonore - in this video interview, Professor of Cinema Studies at University Lumière-Lyon Martin Barnier discusses the production history and brilliance of Wooden Crosses. In French, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Interview de Raymond Bernard - presented here is an archival interview with director Raymond Bernard. In French, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Interview de Roland Dorgeles - presented here is an archival interview with writer Roland Dorgelès. In French, not subtitled. (5 min).

• Pathe-Journal: Les actyalites - archival documentary footage from Pathe's vaults. In French, not subtitled.
  
  1. Le Cinema au service de la paix. (2 min).
  2. Presentation des Croix de Bois - Geneve 1933. (2 min).

• La guerre d'Andre - two documentary featurettes. In French, not subtitled.
  
  1. La Bataille absente, la guerre omnipresente. (14 min).
  2. Le Photographe. (10 min).

• Les dessins de barrere - four featurettes with information about the film's production designs and the French poster artist and cartoonist Adrien Barrere, who worked closely with Pathe and provided sketches for Wooden Crosses. In French, not subtitled.
  
  1. Lhistoire d'Adrien Barrere. (9 min).
  2. La vie quotidienne. (1 min).
  3. Au front (1 min).
  4. Les blesses (1 min).

• Galerie Photos - a collection of stills from the film.

• Booklet - 44-page illustrated booklet with writings on the film, archival materials, and technical notes on the recent 4K restoration of Wooden Crosses. In French.

Wooden Crosses Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I included this very beautiful Blu-ray release of Raymond Bernard's Wooden Crosses on my Top 10 list last year because Pathe and L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna have literally given the film a new life. I really hope that it is a major success for Pathe so that the studio continues to expand its classiques catalog. At the moment I am unaware of any plans for an upcoming North American release, but I assume that at some point Criterion will most likely upgrade their DVD release. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.