Diva - Richard Bohringer

directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix
France 1981

The DVD here of Diva are compared to the Blu-ray HERE

Marvellous amalgam of sadistic thriller and fairytale romance, drawing on a wild diversity of genres from film noir to Feuillade serial. The deliriously offhand plot, cheekily parodying Watergates and French Connections, has switched tapes setting a pair of psychopathic hoods on the trail of a young postal messenger, turning his obsessive dream - of romance with a beautiful black opera singer whose performance on stage he has secretly recorded - into a nightmare from which he is rescued by a timely deus-ex-machina (clearly a descendant of the great Judex). The most exciting debut in years, it is unified by the extraordinary decor - colour supplement chic meets pop art surrealism - which creates a world of totally fantastic reality situated four-square in contemporary Paris.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: 11 March 1981 - France

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DVD Comparison:

Lions Gate (Meridian) Region 1 - NTSC vs. Anchor Bay - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Fox Lorber - Region 1 - NTSC

Big thanks to Bill McAlpine for the Anchor Bay Screen Caps!

1) Lions Gate (Meridian) Region 1 - NTSC LEFT
2) Anchor Bay - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE
3) Fox Lorber - Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT

DVD Box Covers
Distribution	Lions Gate (Meridian Collection) Region 1 - NTSC	Anchor Bay Region 1 - NTSC	Fox Lorber Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:57:36	1:57:36	1:57:21
Video	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 4.3 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 7.54 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.64:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.12 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Lions Gate
Bitrate: Anchor Bay
Bitrate: Fox Lorber
Audio	French (Dolby Digital 1.0)	French 5.1 & 2.0. English 5.1 & 2.0	French (Dolby Digital 1.0)
Subtitles	English, None	English or None	English or None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Lions Gate Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.66:1 Edition Details: • Screen specific commentary by director (but all in French) • Featurettes - mostly in French - no subs DVD Release Date: June 3rd, 2008 Keep Case inside cardboard box Chapters 27	Release Information: Studio: Anchor Bay Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.66:1 Edition Details: • Interview with Jean-Jacques Beineix (6 min) • JeanJacques Beineix Bio • Theatrical Trailer DVD Release Date: June 12, 2001 Keep Case Chapters 27	Release Information: Studio: Fox Lorber Aspect Ratio: Widescreen letterboxed - 1.64:1 Edition Details: • Production Notes DVD Release Date: November 10th, 1997 Keep Case Chapters 33

Comments

The DVD here of Diva are compared to the Blu-ray HERE

ADDITION: Lions Gate - Region 1 - NTSC June 08':

NOTE: My Canadian Lionsgate DVD edition differs from other reviewers in the US. MINE CATEGORICALLY HAS FRENCH ONLY MENUS AND NO ENGLISH (SUB or DUB) ON THE EXTRAS. I obviously received some sort of 'Quebecois' edition but the exclusion of English options is ridiculous.

The US edition - sold from the links above - DOES indeed have English-friendly options on the supplements. Make sure you get that one not the one sold in Canada.

These excellent extra features include: a scene specific commentary by director Beneix (about 40 minutes worth). Director-writer Beneix speaks in French but there is a clearly audible English voiceover. There is also "Searching for Diva" which consists of the following interviews (some in English but mostly in French with English voice-overs):

Introduction by Professor Phil Powrie & Eric Grinda (6:22)
Vladimir Cosma (the film's composer) (10:45)
Dominique Besnehard (Diva's casting director) (7:19)
Frederic Andrei (plays "Jules") (5:46)
Anny Romano (plays "Paula") & Dominique Pinon ("Le Curé") (12:01)
Richard Bohringer (plays "Gorodish") (6:52)
Jean-Jacques Beneix (writer-director), 2 - parts (11:00 + 8:33)
Philippe Rousselot (the cinematographer) (6:04)
Hilton McConnico (the film's production designer) (6:50)

The edition is worthwhile if only for the supplements - a lot of effort went into them and it is VERY much appreciated. Great for he many fans of the film!

On the image: As for the Lions Gate image - it has obvious manipulation (see zoomed-in edge enhancement capture below) and is cropped with the Anchor Bay having significantly more information on the right edge. The bitrate is appallingly low and it has lost detail in many sequences. The Anchor Bay shows a bit more noise but the colors are far truer. the Lionsgate is also horizontally stretched (see below)!

This is a fabulously clandestine/cultish film and the extras are wonderful - it's a shame Lionsgate didn't put the same effort into the image stated as approved by director Jean-Jacques Beineix'. He may have approved the source but not the final encode... but I'm sure he approved the viable supplements. The Anchor Bay is much more authentic to the theatrical appearance but the Lionsgate supplements make it very appealing if only for the scene specific commentary and interviews. I hope we see more of these type of relevant compiled extras in the future from Lionsgate and we wish they were as diligent on the image transfer.

***

ON the ANCHOR BAY vs. the Fox/Lorber: This is a pretty easy choice - the newer Anchor Bay is much sharper, anamorphic, has better sound and better Extras. The Fox is interlaced. I see a greenish tinge on the Anchor Bay, but that may be part of the film itself. The Anchor Bay has a little cropping, which I would guess is about 4% in anamorphizing the picture. It is quite negligible. I'll be buying the Anchor Bay myself next order as I quit enjoyed this film.

- Gary W. Tooze

Recommended Reading in French Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)


The Films in My Life by Francois Truffaut, Leonard Mayhew	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	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

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DVD Menus

Lions Gate (Meridian) Region 1 - NTSC




An English title with French dialogue and no English subtitles:

(Anchor Bay - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Fox Lorber - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)

The Lions Gate is horizontally stretched!

(Anchor Bay - Region 1 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Lions Gate (Meridian) - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)

Subtitle Samples