"Russian Ark" Pyramid Region 5 PAL vs Wellspring Region 1 NTSC

(aka "Russian Ark" or "Russian Ark - Eine einzigartige Zeitreise durch die Eremitage" or "Russkij kovcheg")

directed by Aleksandr Sokurov
Russian 2002

A visually hypnotizing cinematic feat, Russian Ark is Alexsandr Sokurov's spellbinding ode to St.Petersburg's State Hermitage Museum in Russia. Shot in one fluid 90 minute take using High Definition video cameras, the photography floats and careens through the lavish corridors of the museum, examining its architectural details while following a dreamlike plot. A cast of 867 actors, thousands of extras and three live orchestras supply the action of the film. Through the sheer determination of the director, or possibly a miracle, the first-ever single screen, single-take full-length feature was created.

From an interview with Alexander Sokurov
I’m no theoretician, I’m a practical director. I have never had any desire to uncover anything new. This idea of the long, unbroken shot has existed for years. I never do anything new...I am interested only in classical form and content. In the professional world, much of the art has been utterly forgotten and therefore my conduct is sometimes seen as radical, but it’s simply that I remember a lot... the very fact of art itself is unshakeable; art was perfected long ago. Here, shooting in a single take is an achievement in formal terms, but more than that it is a tool with the aid of which a specific artistic task can be resolved. It’s just a tool.

Posters

Theatrical Release: 22 May 2002 (Cannes Film Festival)

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DVD Comparison:

Pyramid Home Video - Region 5 - PAL vs. Wellspring - Region 1 - NTSC

Big thanks to Andrey Diment for the Region 5 - PAL captures!

(Pyramid Home Video - Region 5 - PAL - LEFT vs. Wellspring - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Pyramid Home Video Region 5 - PAL	Wellspring Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:35:09 (4% PAL speedup)	1:39:06
Video	1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 5.71 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s	1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 5.74 NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s
Bitrate: Pyramid NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Wellspring
Audio	Russian (Dolby Digital 5.1)	Russian (Dolby Digital 5.1), Russian (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
Subtitles	NONE	English, French and none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Pyramid Home Video Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Main title - 1.35.12 (as reported by powerdvd) Interview - 0.03.18 "One Take Movie" documentary - 0.27.15 Trailer (Russian) - 0.0.15 Trailer (US) - 0.02.12 Making of Russian Ark - 0.06.53 There is a 4-page booklet DVD Release Date: Unknown Super Jewel Case Chapters 25	Release Information: Studio: Wellspring Media, Inc. Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by producer Jens Meurer • Non-anamorphic widescreen theatrical trailer (2:17) • In Russian with English subtitles • In One Breath - Making-of (43:24) • Mon Paradis interviews (47:31) • Interviews (6:07) • Widescreen anamorphic format DVD Release Date: September 9, 2003 Keep Case Chapters: 28
Comments:	The colors of these two anamorphic issues are virtually identical, which is a positive sign. The Wellspring image is les sharp and very slightly cropped in comparison to the Pyramid Region 5 version. The Extras are in favor of the Wellspring which really went to town with some long shorts ('Making of' and 'interviews'). The big issue is that the Pyramid version does not have English subtitles, so it can easily be dismissed by most people ( as they don't speak Russian), but its nice to compare the two to see that the colors and aspect ratio have been manitained. - Gary W. Tooze

DVD Menus

(Pyramid Home Video - Region 5 - PAL - LEFT vs. Wellspring - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)