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 S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka "Symphonie pour un massacre" or "Les Mystifiés" or "Symphony for a Massacre" or "The Mystifiers")

 

Directed by Jacques Deray
France 1963

 

In this stylish heist noir from director Jacques Deray, master director of the French crime film, five men tied to businesses with varying degrees of legality pool their money to go in on one huge narcotics deal that can set them up for life - and test their loyalties. Restored in 2K from a 4K scan of the surviving 35MM interpositive (the negative is lost), the film boasts stunning black and white photography, supported by a lush and memorable score. Deray assembled an impressive cast of stars, including Charles Vanel (WAGES OF FEAR), Michel Auclair (THE DAY OF THE JACKAL), future director José Giovanni (TWO MEN TO KILL) who also co-wrote the film, and Jean Rochefort, in a brilliant casting against type from his largely comedic roles up until then. This rediscovered crime thriller is sure to please fans of classic film noir.

***

A band of gangster devises a plan to steal a game contested between two drug gangs of drug traffickers: the five fraudsters will face bigger problems than them.

Posters

Theatrical Release: April 23rd, 1963

Reviews                                                                                                       More Reviews                                                                                       DVD Reviews

 

Review: Cohen - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

Also available from Pathé on Blu-ray (with optional English subtitles):

Bonus Captures:
Distribution Cohen - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime 1:50:18.541        
Video

1.66:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 31,835,085,374 bytes

Feature: 24,851,844,672 bytes

Video Bitrate: 26.81 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

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

Audio

DTS-HD Master Audio French 1641 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1641 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 16-bit)
Subtitles English - burned-in
Features Release Information:
Studio: Cohen

 

1.66:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 31,835,085,374 bytes

Feature: 24,851,844,672 bytes

Video Bitrate: 26.81 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Edition Details:

• The Score of SYMPHONY FOR A MASSACRE - an evaluation of the film by François Guérif, screenwriter and film noir historian, along with Jean Rochefort biographer Jean-Philippe Guerand (28:21)
• Re-release trailer (0:56)


 Blu-ray Release Date: August 30th, 2022
 Standard Blu-ray Case

Chapters 9

 

 

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Cohen Blu-ray (August 2022): Cohen have transferred Jacques Deray's Symphony for a Massacre (aka "Symphonie pour un massacre") to Blu-ray. It states before the presentation that "This film was restored by PATHE in 2016" and "Restored in 2K from a 4K scan of the surviving 35MM interpositive (the negative is lost)." A Blu-ray was released in France, by Pathé, in 2018 HERE cited also cited as a '4K restoration' but it was region FREE, with optional English subtitles. This Cohen 1080P appear to be a decent transfer subject to the inconsistencies of the source, which is surely the same 4K restoration. The opening credits are rough but the image quality quickly improves and it is highly serviceable for a HD viewing with rich grain and surprisingly deep black levels. There isn't much damage nor speckles and I was rather pleased with the video portion of my screening.

NOTE: We have added 26 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Cohen use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (16-bit) in the original French language. Symphony for a Massacre has only a few aggressive sequences that come through with subtlety. The score is by Michel Magne (OSS 117 Vice and Virtue aka "Le vice et la vertu", Monsieur Gangster, Angélique, Angelique and the Sultan) sounding clean and adding some suspenseful flavor to the film. The Cohen Region 'A' Blu-ray has burned-in English subtitles - as they had with their recent Nathalie and The Burned Barns 1080P transfers. We hope this practice doesn't continue but it is likely a function of their licensing of the title / source. 

The Cohen Blu-ray offers the same 28-minute piece found on the Pathé; "The Score of Symphony for a Massacre" - an evaluation of the film by François Guérif, screenwriter and film noir historian, along with Jean-Philippe Guerand, biographer of Jean Rochefort" - found HERE. Cohen add their own, short, re-releases trailer.

Jacques Deray's Symphony for a Massacre is  an excellent 60's French crime thriller centering on money and five criminals, - one of whom is a deceptive traitor. It's seems there is no honor among thieves with the two 'moll' females spared the mercenary behavior (or are they?) - which exposes cold-hearted greed at its core. The Cohen Blu-ray provides a solid presentation with a mark off for the burned-in subtitles. Jacques Deray (Three Men To Kill, The Gang, The Swimming Pool) can craft a film - and is highly appealing to noir aficionados. Absolutely recommended!

Gary Tooze

 

Menus / Extras

 

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Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

Also available from Pathé on Blu-ray (with optional English subtitles):

Bonus Captures:
Distribution Cohen - Region 'A' - Blu-ray


 


 

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