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

ADDITION: Kino Blu-ray (September 2021): Kino have transferred Claude Chabrol's Bluebeard to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "4K Restoration from the Original Camera Negative". Unfortunately the source does not translate well to 1080P. It can look very clunky, faded in the first 1/4 of the film, uneven and occasionally very flat. Some of the film can look very acceptable but much of it is hampered by the elements, or perhaps the original production - regardless, it is certainly far from the heights of the format.  

NOTE: We have added 50 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Kino use a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel track (16-bit) in the original French language. Bluebeard, surprisingly, has no aggressive moments - none of the murders are graphically or explicitly shown. The audio is authentically flat without necessity for depth. The score is by Pierre Jansen (Claude Chabrol's Blue Panther, Line of Demarcation, The Third Lover, Ophelia, Ten Days Wonder, Le Boucher, La femme infidèle and Les Biches to name a few). Kino offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Kino Blu-ray offers a new commentary by Kat Ellinger. She talks about the French poet Charles Baudelaire, Peter Sutcliffe aka the "Yorkshire Ripper", The fairytale of the same name, Chaplin's Monsieur Verdoux, the history behind the real "Bluebeard of Gambais" - Henri Désiré Landru, the French serial killer, who murdered at least seven women in the village of Gambais between December 1915 and January 1919.

Kat relates the court case, the infamous fireplace and how the film references much of the known story - but very subtly. She identifies many of the cast - famous but in brief appearances, almost cameos, in the film as the murdered women but also Jean-Pierre Melville as Georges Mandel. She discusses some of the cast; Charles Denner, Michèle Morgan, Danielle Darrieux and Hildegard Knef plus much on director Chabrol and the complicit wife, the arrogance of lead and the oddness of his appeal. She shares that Giulietta Masina (Fellini's wife) was cast to be one of the women but fell ill before production. Kat fills the 2-hour commentary with interesting details and I felt that I learned a lot. There are also a handful of trailers but none for Bluebeard.

Claude Chabrol's Bluebeard is a strange film - uniquely differing from other films about serial killers - focusing on complex and lesser-explained details, symbolism and innuendos of eroticism - ex. the flower representing a stroked vagina, oral sex by bending over and eating raspberries out of his hand as well as other subtleties. After listening to Kat Ellinger, I understand significantly more about the history that Bluebeard is based, the authenticity, the curiosities of the subtext - giving me a more appreciated viewing experience. I had never seen this Chabrol's Bluebeard and am glad I did - despite the inherent weakness of the Kino Blu-ray video that may reflect on why it has not reached this format previously. Fans keen on the history of the subject and Chabrol-completists should indulge.

Gary Tooze