Gérard Blain and Jean - Claude Brialy star in the first of their collaborations with the great Claude Chabrol. The director's masterful feature debut - ironic, funny, unsparing - is a revelation: another of that rare breed of film where the dusty formula might be used in full sincerity: Le Beau Serge marks the beginning of " the Chabrol touch. "
In this first feature film of the French New Wave, one year before Truffaut's The 400 Blows, the dandyish François (Brialy, of Godard's A Woman Is a Woman, Rohmer's Claire's Knee) takes a holiday from the city to his home village of Sardent, where he reconnects with his old chum Serge (Blain), now a besotted and hopeless alcoholic, and sly duplicitous carnal Marie (Bernadette Lafont). A grave triangle forms, and a tragic slide ensues.
Special Features:
Gorgeous new Gaumont restoration of the film in its original aspect ratio, presented in 1080p HD on the Blu - ray
New and improved English subtitles
Original theatrical trailer
A 56 - minute documentary about the making of the film
L' Avarice (Avarice), Chabrol's 1962 short film
A lengthy booklet with a new and exclusive essay by critic Emmanuel Burdeau; excerpts of interviews and writing by Chabrol; and more.
Les Cousins
Made barely a year after Claude Chabrol's debut Le Beau Serge, Les Cousins featured the earlier film's same starring pair of Jean - Claude Brialy and Gérard Blain, here reversing the good - guy/bad - guy roles of the previous picture. The result is a simmering, venomous study in human temperament that not only won the Golden Bear at the 1959 Berlin Film Festival, but also drew audiences in droves, and effectively launched Chabrol's incredible fifty - year - long career.
In Les Cousins, Blain's character journeys from the country to Paris to crash at the luxurious flat of his worldly and decadent cousin, portrayed by Brialy, during the study period for an upcoming law exam which both have set out to undertake. It becomes clear soon enough that only one of the cousins is terribly committed to his work; as sexual promises and alcohol intervene, the set - up becomes untenable for the provincial, - and a tragic slide ensues.
Special Features:
Gorgeous new Gaumont restoration of the film in its original aspect ratio, presented in 1080p HD on the Blu - ray
New and improved English subtitles
Original theatrical trailer
A 47 - minute documentary about the making of the film
L ' Homme qui vendit la Tour Eiffel (The Man Who Sold the Eiffel Tower), Chabrol's 1964 short film
A lengthy booklet with a new and exclusive essay by critic Emmanuel Burdeau; a new and exclusive translation of a rare text about actress Françoise Vatel provided for this release by its author, the filmmaker and critic Luc Moullet; excerpts of interviews and writing by Chabrol; and more.
The Murderer Lives at 21
An overlooked gem from the golden age of French cinema, master director Henri-Georges Clouzot's debut feature is a deliciously droll thriller that combines comedy and noir in equal measure, and will delight fans of his later work. Released in Blu-ray from a gorgeous new restoration by Gaumont; long-awaited UK home viewing première.
Special Features:
Gorgeous new Gaumont restoration of the film in its original aspect ratio, presented in 1080p HD on the Blu - ray
New and improved English subtitles
A fully - illustrated booklet, including the words of Henri - Georges Clouzot and rare imagery
La Notte
One of the masterworks of 1960s art cinema and one of the very finest by Italian maestro Michelangelo Antonioni, starring Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau – upgraded in a brand new 1080p presentation in the film's original 1.66:1 aspect ratio and with previously censored sequences restored for the first time.
Special Features:
New 1080p presentation of the film in its original 1.66:1 aspect ratio with previously censored sequences restored for the first time
New and improved English subtitles
Original Italian theatrical trailer
56 - page booklet with an essay by film-critic and scholar Brad Stevens, and the transcript of a lengthy Q&A conducted in 1961 with Antonioni upon the film s release.
A Sun-Tribe Myth From The Tokugawa Era
Voted one of the top five Japanese films of all time by the leading cinema journal Kinema junpō, but rarely ever screened in the west, this sparkling new restoration of Yūzō Kawashima's most famous film is an outstanding rediscovery. Released on Blu-ray from a gorgeous new restoration by Nikkatsu.
Special Features:
Gorgeous new Nikkatsu restoration of the film in its original aspect ratio, presented in 1080p HD on the Blu- ray
New and improved English subtitles
A booklet including Shôhei Imamura's tribute to Y ûzô Kawashima, and more.
Masters of Cinema really need to give us more variety. I'm losing interest in them pretty quickly. I'm bored of announcements for slow "classic" early asian drama's and other dull early foreign cinema aswel as silent films.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that they're keeping these films alive and I love foreign cinema, even early films (all the way to the beginning of cinema) but I wish they would spread them out and mix in some more recent (1975+ maybe?) and exciting films.
There are plenty of other great asian and other foreign directors from then, onwards which have titles unreleased that deserve the kind of excellent treatment they give their movies.
If we're to be given slower asian drama's, I wish we were getting new ones aswel. I love asian cinema but there are only a few "classic" asian directors I like, all of which are not being catered to by MoC so unfortunately, I have next to no interest in basically all of the ones they release. There are quite a few great asian directors who started working from the mid-70's (perhaps more from the 80's) onwards that I love and I actually rewatch the movies from these filmmakers from time to time on dvd, but every time I watch it on dvd, while the movie is good, the picture and audio quality is pretty awful which spoils the mood.
I'm pleased that they're releasing the films they seem to favour because there are plenty of people out there who love these movies and have been dying to get them in HD but personally, I no longer get excited about MoC's blu-ray announcements because I've begun to assosiate "Masters of Cinema" with "dull, dusty, slow and boring" which I'm not happy about. I used to get excited about what they were releasing next because even their older films were a little more exciting. If we're to get older films, I wish they would give us some more film-noir, preferrably from America. I would really love to see them release Nosferatu though. That would be wonderful.
Just to clarify, I love silent movies, I love foreign films, I love slower drama's and I love classic films but they need to give me more variety. Every other studio gives us a bit of everything which is great for people like me who have an appreciation for all era's but can't stand being fed so much of the same. I hope they do something about this because I miss the variety we used to get. I don't mean to offend anyone who adore everything MoC gives them, this is of course, my own personal opinion and I respect those who do love everything MoC are releasing.
It's not a problem. I was expecting MoC fanatics to be a little Butthurt. As I said, I never meant to offend anyone and felt my comments and opinions were pretty respectful to both MoC and their fans. Studios welcome constructive criticism so that they can improve and know what people who are willing to buy from them, actually want. I think the work they do is phenomenal and I have a lot of respect for the work they do but its a good deal of the titles they pick that I have a problem with and I'm sure I'm not alone there. Even if we are a minority, we are still potential customers. I've been raised to speak up when I have an issue with something and say exactly what that issue is, while also being respectful which I have been. People can't improve if they're never told what they're doing wrong. Perhaps those who feel the way I do about the titles they pick is too small to make a difference but then again, perhaps not. Who knows? I sure don't but I would like to see MoC continue to do such great work on titles I am actually interested in buying. If every person who thought their voice was too small to make a difference never bother to speak up then nothing would get done. That applies to more than just this. Anyway, here's to hoping we see some changes.
I agree with deepbreathsanddeath, If I didn't know better It looks as though they're releasing their personal favourites with not much thought for customers..
