NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Kino Blu-ray (May 2019): 

Ritrovat'ed!

Jacques Rivette’s 1966 film "The Nun" (aka "La religieuse") arrives on Blu-ray thanks to Kino Lorber, under their Kino Classics sub-label. This is a 4K restoration from the original lm negative. The Blu-ray is dual-layered, and the 1.85:1 1080p image has a maxed out bitrate. The booklet contains these notes on the restoration:

"The 4K image and sound restoration, developed in partnership with the CNC, the French Cinetmatheque and the Franco-Americon Cultural Fund was made from the original negative. The work has been handled by the laboratory L'IMMAGINE RITROVATA under the supervision of Ms. Veronique Manniez-Rivette. "

This Ritrovata restoration is very reminiscent of their recent offerings (The Tree Of Wooden Clogs, The Color of Pomegranates, Death in Venice) in that the film has quite a heavy green cast to most of the dimly-lit scenes (with the white parts of the habits looking greenish-blue). After some time passed, this palette seemed less intrusive but is still prominent - see the screen captures below. The teal-leaning hue does briefly disappear during a scene outside in the sunshine. To be fair, I have no idea if this palette is faithful to the original theatrical presentation, and I should restate the endorsement of Ms. Veronique Manniez-Rivette. The back of the Blu-ray package has photos of scenes from the film that have none of this greenish-blue-gray look at all. Strange. The film has a soft look to the image, with appropriate amounts of grain.

"The Nun" features a 24-bit lossless 2.0 mono DTS-HD Master audio track. Dialogue is clear and audible, and the various echoes and drafty breezes create a real sense of isolation imposed on the cloistered sisters. The interesting percussive score is thanks to composer Jean-Claude Eloy (who also composed the score for Rivette's 1969 film "L'amour fou"). There are optional English subtitles on this Region 'A'-locked Blu-ray.

Film critic Nick Pinkerton provides a commentary for the film. Pinkerton covers a wide-array of topics, from the censorship issues the film faced, to the film's origins in fact and fiction. "Suzanne Simonin, La Scandaleuse", is a new 30-minute making-of documentary. The film's trailer is also included, as is a trailer for "La Prisonniere" (also out from Kino Classics). Dennis Lim (director of programming at the Film Society of Lincoln Center) has a very informative essay included in the accompanying booklet, entitled "Twisted Sister".

This new 4K restoration of Jacques Rivette’s "The Nun" features an impressive transfer, although it is somewhat marred by Ritrovata's odd green/blue/gray tinting. If this is the intended look of the film, I do apologize, but with Ritrovata constantly transferring films to look this way, one must suspect that something is awry. The film, on the other hand, is powerful and moving, something that no transfer could ever destroy. The Blu-ray extras are very helpful to contextualize the film, especially with Pinkerton's commentary, Lim's essay, and the making-of documentary. Recommended to fans of Rivette, with the greenest of caveats. 

Colin Zavitz