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The Complete Jean Vigo
À propos de Nice (1930) Taris (1931) Zéro de conduite (1933) L’Atalante (1934)
Even among cinema’s legends, Jean Vigo stands apart. The son of a notorious anarchist, Vigo had a brief but brilliant career making poetic, lightly surrealist films before his life was cut tragically short by tuberculosis at age twenty-nine. Like the daring early works of his contemporaries Jean Cocteau and Luis Buñuel, Vigo’s films refused to play by the rules. This set includes all of Vigo’s titles: À propos de Nice, an absurdist, rhythmic slice of life from the bustling coastal city; Taris, an inventive short portrait of a swimming champion; Zéro de conduite, a radical, delightful tale of boarding-school rebellion that has influenced countless filmmakers; and L’Atalante, widely regarded as one of cinema’s finest achievements, about newlyweds beginning their life together on a canal barge. These are the witty, visually adventurous works of a pivotal film artist. |
(aka "LeChaland qui passe" )
directed
by Jean Vigo
France 1934
Jean Vigo’s
only full-length feature (1934, 89 min.), one of the supreme
masterpieces of French cinema, was edited and then brutally
re-edited while Vigo was on his deathbed, so a definitive
restoration is impossible. But the one carried out in 1990 is
probably the best and most complete we’ll ever be able to see, and
it’s a wonder to behold. The simple love-story plot involves the
marriage of a provincial woman (Dita Parlo) to the skipper of a
barge (Jean Dasté), and the only other characters of consequence are
the barge’s skeletal crew (Michel Simon and Louis Lefebvre) and a
peddler (Gilles Margaritis) who flirts with the wife at a cabaret
and describes the wonders of Paris to her. The sensuality of the
characters and the settings, indelibly caught in Boris Kaufman’s
glistening cinematography, are only part of the film’s remarkable
poetry, the conviction of which goes beyond such categories as
realism or surrealism, just as the powerful sexuality in the film
ultimately transcends such categories as heterosexuality,
homosexuality, and even bisexuality. Shot by shot and moment by
moment, the film is so fully alive to the world’s possibilities that
magic and reality seem to function as opposite sides of the same
coin, with neither fully adequate to Vigo’s vision. Excerpt from Jonathan Rosenbaum's article "30 Great Movies on DVD" located HERE |
Posters
Theatrical Release: September 12th, 1934
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL vs. New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Big thanks to Gregory Meshman and Gary Tooze for the Screen Caps!
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - LEFT 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT
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Distribution |
Artificial Eye Region 2 - PAL |
New
Yorker Region 1 - NTSC |
Criterion Collection - Spine #578 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 1:25:15 (4% PAL speedup) | 1:25:12 | 1:29:14.390 |
Video |
1.31:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.31:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 49,234,218,904 bytesFeature: 16,537,546,752 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 20.99 Mbps |
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate:
Artificial Eye
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Bitrate:
New Yorker
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Bitrate:
Blu-ray
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Audio | French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
LPCM Audio French 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps /
24-bit Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps |
Subtitles | English, (removable) in white | English, (removable) in white | English, none |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Artificial Eye Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details: Chapters 16 |
Release Information: Studio: New Yorker Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details:
DVD
Release Date: April 15, 2003 Chapters 24 |
Release Information: Studio: Criterion
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 49,234,218,904 bytesFeature: 16,537,546,752 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 20.99 Mbps
Edition Details: Transparent Blu-ray case Chapters 1 7 |
Recommended Reading in French Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
The Films in My Life |
French Cinema: A Student's Guide by Philip Powrie, Keith Reader |
Agnes Varda by Alison Smith | Godard on Godard : Critical Writings by Jean-Luc Godard | Notes on the Cinematographer by Robert Bresson |
Robert Bresson (Cinematheque Ontario Monographs,
No. 2) by James Quandt |
Jean Vigo by Michael Temple | The Art of Cinema by Jean Cocteau |
French New Wave
by Jean Douchet, Robert Bonnono, Cedric Anger, Robert Bononno |
French Cinema: From Its Beginnings to the Present by Remi Fournier Lanzoni |
Truffaut: A Biography by Antoine do Baecque and Serge Toubiana |
Check out more in "The Library"
Comments |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - August 11': I have strong suspicions that Criterion's Blu-ray transfer(s) are from a new source OR has been further restored. I usually can use damage marks to help match captures but they weren't the same, or as visible, on the new 1080P transfer. Also the new hi-def appearance had other, different, light damage and scratch marks. It's hard to say with 100% certainty as Criterion may have done some digital improvement and Blu-ray tends to accentuate some damage marks and the, usually less-visible, vertical lines. In my estimation it is from a different or restored source. This must certainly be true of Taris (see compared sample, near bottom, below) as it is dramatically superior in the high-definition presentation beside the Artificial Eye DVD. Compared to the DVDs - the Criterion contrast is superior - it is now from the correct standards source (New Yorker was, obviously not.) Grain is much more visible and despite the imperfections inherent - this looks fabulous in my opinion. Criterion have done an amazing job with these important films.Criterion remain faithful to the original audio with a linear PCM mono track at 1152 kbps 1.0 which sounds, we presume, as good as it can but still suffers from the age of the film and condition. There is a 2001 score by Marc Perrone used for À propos de Nice and it is quite delightful. Once again Criterion improves upon the previous SD editions in the audio department with some perceived depth and strength. Criterion, have optional English subtitles (see sample) with a slightly different translation and the Blu-ray disc is, as always, region 'A'-locked. The supplements are tremendous. We get excellent audio commentaries for all the films by Michael Temple, author of Jean Vigo. There is the option for the, slightly longer, alternate edit of À propos de Nice, featuring footage cut by Vigo. Included is a 98-minute episode of a 1964 French television series, Cinéastes de notre temps, about Vigo and also a 20-minute conversation from 1968 between filmmakers François Truffaut and Eric Rohmer on L’Atalante from "Postface a L'Atalanate" originally shown following a French broadcast of the film. Michael Gondry supplies a very cool 45-second animated tribute to Vigo and a 40-minute, 2001, documentary tracking the history of the film and the savage cuts made to it in 1934 to the more complete version we see today. This is entitled Les voyages de “L’Atalante, made by film restorer and historian Bernard Eisenschitz. There is also a 20-minute video interview from 2001 with Georgian-French director Otar Iosseliani talks about the influence that Jean Vigo had on his own work and there is a linr notes booklet featuring essays by critics Michael Almereyda, Robert Polito, B. Kite, and Luc Sante.
Great to see Criterion offer these Jean Vigo films in their
best a/v transfer - and all available on one
Blu-ray
disc! Plus all the important extras in HD. It's like a
cinephile dream come true and this should make some big
waves in our Year End Poll. L'Atalante remains
one of cinema's all-time greatest masterpieces and to be
able to screen it in your home theater in this vastly
improved presentation is an irresistible enticement.
Strongly recommended!
*** - Gary Tooze |
DVD Menus
(Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - LEFT
vs. New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)
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Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray
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Subtitle Samples
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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Screen Captures
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 2) New Yorker - Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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Taris
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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Zero de Conduite
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL - TOP 3) Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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À propos de Nice
More L'Atalante Blu-ray Captures
Recommended Reading in French Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
The Films in My Life |
French Cinema: A Student's Guide by Philip Powrie, Keith Reader |
Agnes Varda by Alison Smith | Godard on Godard : Critical Writings by Jean-Luc Godard | Notes on the Cinematographer by Robert Bresson |
Robert Bresson (Cinematheque Ontario Monographs,
No. 2) by James Quandt |
Jean Vigo by Michael Temple | The Art of Cinema by Jean Cocteau |
French New Wave
by Jean Douchet, Robert Bonnono, Cedric Anger, Robert Bononno |
French Cinema: From Its Beginnings to the Present by Remi Fournier Lanzoni |
Truffaut: A Biography by Antoine do Baecque and Serge Toubiana |
Check out more in "The Library"
Report Card: