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S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka 'The Ear')

Directed by Karel Kachyna
Czechoslovakia 1970

 

One gets the impression from Karel Kachyńa’s The Ear that life under the Communists’ boot in Czechoslovakia during the early 1970’s wasn’t all Pilsner Urquell and pretzels. Shot in black and white, Kachyńa’s study of paranoia and desperation was understandably held from release by the Warsaw Pact immediately upon its completion in 1970, and has only been screened for audiences in the last decade or so. It’s worth the wait.

*****

Karel Kachyna's 1970 The Ear is a harrowing tale that interweaves marital discord and surveillance paranoia. With its portrait of a government functionary who spends a sleepless night wondering if he'll be arrested before daybreak, it's no wonder that The Ear had to wait until 1989 for its Czech premiere; the wonder is that it was made at all. The latter, at least, can be explained by the fact that Kachyna's long-time collaborator, scenarist Jan Procházka, was a government official of some standing - which accounts, no doubt, for The Ear's insider perspective, playing as it does with the couple's knowledge of which rooms in their comfortable house are likely bugged and which aren't. As they discuss the arrest of his superior, the couple moves from room to room, opening and closing doors depending on which conversations they want heard and which they don't. (After a long night of drinking and recriminations about their infrequent sex life, he pulls a bear rug from a kitchen cabinet and lays it on the floor, their bedroom assumed to be bugged.) With its escalating marital tensions, The Ear is as much Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as 1984, with a helping of Seconds for the flashbacks to the official party they've just come from, replaying idle chat that seems menacing in retrospect. (Based only on this film, Kachyna might also pass as Czechoslovakia's answer to Polanski.) With its pitch-perfect ending, The Ear is a surprisingly commercial thriller that tangles with dark undercurrents - a movie ripe for rediscovery.

Excerpt from Sam Adams review at the Philadelphia City News located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: June 1st, 1970

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Comparison:

Second Run - Region 0 - PAL vs. Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Box Cover

Distribution Second Run DVD - Region 0 - PAL Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime 1:31:27 (4% PAL Speedup  1:35:15.000 
Video 1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.3 mb/s
PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s

1.33:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 39,369,086,516 bytes

Feature: 29,345,273,856 bytes

Video Bitrate: 34.96 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate:

Bitrate Blu-ray:

Audio Czech (Dolby Digital 2.0) 

LPCM Audio Czech 2304 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2304 kbps / 24-bit
Commentary:

LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit

Subtitles English, None English, None
Features

Release Information:
Studio: Second Run DVD

Aspect Ratio:
Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1

Edition Details:

• Peter Hames introduction (12:30)
• 12-page liner notes booklet with essay and photographs

DVD Release Date: October 3rd, 2005

Transparent Keep Case
Chapters: 10

 

Release Information:
Studio:
Second Run

 

1.33:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 39,369,086,516 bytes

Feature: 29,345,273,856 bytes

Video Bitrate: 34.96 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Edition Details:

A filmed introduction to the film by writer and critic Peter Hames (13:03)
The Projection Booth commentary with Mike White, Ben Buckingham and Martin Kessler
The Uninvited Guest (Nezvaný host, 1969): a short film by Vlastimil Venclík (22:56)
Booklet featuring writing on the film by Peter Hames, author and producer Steven Jay Schneider and journalist and critic Graham Williamson


Blu-ray Release Date:
August 26th, 2019
Transparent Blu-ray Case

Chapters 12

 

 

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Second Run Blu-ray (August 2019): Second Run have transferred Karel Kachyna's The Ear to Blu-ray. It is cited as "a brand new restoration of the film from original materials by the Czech National Film Archive". It significantly advances on the 2005 DVD that was teeming with chroma bug, now we can see is cropped and also vertically stretched. There is still frame-specific damage (see samples below). The layered contrast of the 1080P heightens the film's detail and this is a massive improvement. Bravo Second Run!

On their Blu-ray, Second Run use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original Czech (with some Russian) language. It is another advancement in the film's audio and score by Czech composer Svatopluk Havelka sounding a bit richer and deeper with more consistent dialogue. Second Run offer optional English subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

Repeated from the 2005 DVD is a 13-minute filmed introduction to the film by writer and critic Peter Hames although it is now has no PAL speedup. New is an audio commentary by 'The Projection Booth' with Mike White, Ben Buckingham and Martin Kessler sharing information and thjeir personal feelings about Ucho. It seems well researched and contains value for listeners. The Uninvited Guest (Nezvaný host) is a 23-minute short film by Vlastimil Venclík from 1969 described as "a run-of-the-mill family is terrorized by strangers dressed in military garb who invade their private realm" again focusing on themes of political domination and removal of freedoms. The package contains a booklet featuring writing on the film by Peter Hames, author and producer Steven Jay Schneider and journalist and critic Graham Williamson.

The Ear showcases Karel Kachyna's filmmaking genius and it is one of my absolute favorites from the Czech New Wave. I am so impressed by the advancement over the old DVD. A film so worthy of a, region FREE, Blu-ray release. Thanks again Second Run. A very strong recommendation! 

***

ON THE DVD (2005): How wonderful of Second Run DVD to bring this film out. A very important and dynamically impacting viewing experience. the image is, as expected, directly related to the its clandestine source and the fairly weak print that it was taken from. It doesn't look especially poor and has a 'thick' appearance to it - I noticed frequent 'chroma' (see below). The included liner notes and Hames introduction fill in some of the blanks about the film and Second Run are certainly identifying themselves with some excellent titles and acceptably decent transfers.

Gary Tooze

 


Second Run - Region 0 - PAL

 

Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray


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1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

NOTE: Very prevalent Chroma on DVD

 

 


1) Second Run - Region 0 - PAL  TOP

2) Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 

More Blu-ray Captures
 

 


Light Damage - right side

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


Damage
 

  

 

Box Cover

Distribution Second Run Home Video - Region 0 - PAL Second Run - Region FREE - Blu-ray


 


 

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