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

ADDITION: Arrow Blu-ray (August 2023): Arrow have transferred Jacques Deray's Borsalino to Blu-ray. It is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. The 1080P image quality is authentically gritty with fine textures but also has strong clarity and moments of depth. The image is clean and looked very pleasing on my system with some green bias in the first half that settles to an earthy brown later in the film. 

NOTE: We have added 58 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Arrow offer the option of linear PCM mono tracks (24-bit) in the original French with an optional English language DUB (un-sampled by this reviewer.) Borsalino has plenty of aggressive moments including a lengthy fist-fight between the protagonists, gunfire, antique cars, arson, horse races, prizefights and more. The mono track carries some surprising bass depth. There is a Ragtime-based 'mechanical piano' score by Claude Bolling (The Day and the Hour, Three Men to Kill, Le Magnifique) very reminiscent of Scott Joplin / Marvin Hamlisch's music in The Sting. It continually establishes the era and supports the action effectively. Arrow offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Arrow Blu-ray offers a new commentary by film scholar Josh Nelson. Josh appreciates the subtleties of Borsalino in physical gestures and the film's self-awareness in the space of the gangster genre, he talks about the socio-politics of the era and, of course, the leading men and director. He's well-prepared and enjoyable to listen to. There is a 12-minute piece on The Music of Borsalino with a new interview with composer and film historian Neil Brand on Claude Bolling’s score. Dressing Down is a new 10-minute interview with film scholar Elizabeth Castaldo Lundén on Jacques Fonteray’s costume designs for Borsalino and Le Magnifique Belmondo is a 13-minute archival extra celebrating the unique talent and career of the beloved French actor. There is also a theatrical trailer, an image gallery and the special edition package has an illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Ginette Vincendeau and an archival piece by Elisa Fulco plus there is a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella, a double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella and six postcard-sized reproduction artcards. 

Jacques Deray's Borsalino has a lot of appeal with Delon and Belmondo - who were fine when filming but did not get along post-production, mostly due to Delon's power as one of the film's producers EX. The listing of Delon’s name first on the film's poster, in opposition to what was contractually agreed. The dispute went to trial and Belmondo wins. Borsalino is loosely based on real-life gangsters Paul Carbone and François Spirito (a proposed title was "Carbone and Spirito".) So it's a French gangster film set in 1930's Marseille and comes off as an occasional buddy-crime film with the pair rising to the top of the city's underworld. It did well in Europe failing to breakthrough to the US market. Very likeable. The Arrow Blu-ray is at their usual excellent standards with solid a/v, a new commentary, featurettes, a booklet and more. For many it will be worth it for the two strong leads, the appealing score and the French gangster genre.

Gary Tooze