Red Desert (1964/Criterion Collection Blu-ray)
Picture: B Sound: C+ Extras: B Film: B
After
being out of print on DVD in the U.S. for many years, Criterion is
finally reissuing Michelangelo Antonioni’s Red
Desert on Blu-ray and DVD. We recently
looked at an import DVD version, which will tell you more about the film if you
are not familiar with it, as this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/9523/The+Red+Desert+(1964/Madman+DVD
Now we’ll
look at the new Blu-ray and it is more of a companion than replacement for the
Madman DVD, but a film as important as this is going to have several versions
with extras that examine its legacy, meaning and impact.
The 1080p
1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image is a new High Definition master totally
different than the one essentially being used in Europe
and elsewhere that surfaced on the Madman DVD and BFI Blu-ray, and that is
welcome news. I was not happy with the
color on that transfer at all and here, the pale look is gone, though this is a
little darker than expected. As well, we
see a little more grain than we would have seen in a dye-transfer Technicolor
print and the color is not always vibrant like such a print. On the other hand, this is the warmest
presentation of the film to date and while the similar transfers from BFI and
Madman were green with some blues, this print has more… red!
The
booklet explains that this comes from a 2K transfer (via the Spirit HD 2K
Datacine) from the original camera negative, which shows the negative as a bit
rough at times, but also some qualities you will not see anywhere else, though
I expect some to be harsher on this transfer.
Director of Photography Carol Di Palma’s vision may not be totally
realized here, but it is as close as we will be seeing for a while not unlike
the Blu-ray set for the Man With No Name
Trilogy. In all this, any original
dye-transfer print of the film is bound to soar in value.
The PCM 1.0
Mono will show up on home theater systems as a center-channel-only track and it
sounds good for its age and not bad here, but it also shows its age and is
better than the Dolby Digital versions on previous DVD releases (including the
Dolby 1.0 Mono on the very old, harsh U.S. Image Entertainment DVD). The booklet included states the sound comes
from a 35mm optical soundtrack print and transferred at 24-bit digital sound
while cleaned for pops and clicks.
Except for purists who might think the sound is may still be a little
more compressed than expected, it is a solid enough upgrade. However, this is a film with many moments of
silence and an interesting mix of music and sound effects, so some parts did
not even need upgrading at all, but the elimination of any harshness was much
needed.
As noted
above, extras are different here than on the Madman DVD, including a booklet
with tech information, illustrations, and a fine essay on the film by Mark Le
Fanu, brief pieces by Antonioni himself and Jean-Luc Godard interviewing
Antonioni, while the Blu-ray has a fine feature-length audio commentary track
by Italian film scholar David Forgacs, archival interviews with Antonioni and lead
star Monica Vitti, two short documentaries by Antonioni: Gente del Po and N.U.,
the original theatrical trailer and dailies from the original production.
Red Desert is a one-of-a-kind film that
anyone serious on film should see. Now
you have a chance to see it in its first serious edition, but make sure you see
it on Criterion Blu-ray.
- Nicholas Sheffo
