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

ADDITION: Radiance Blu-ray (March 2025): Radiance have transferred Luis Buñuel's Viridiana to Blu-ray. It is part of their Nothing is Sacred: Three Heresies from Luis Buñuel with Viridiana (1961), The Exterminating Angel (1962) and Simon of the Desert (1965) released in December 2024 that we never got around to covering as the year-end poll was dominating most of my time. It is still available in the 3-disc set but I suspect it will be coming out in a standard Blu-ray edition and individually at some point. I will try to get to the other two films as time permits. We reviewed the Criterion DVD back in 2006, HERE. It had more damage than we have become accustomed to and I saw some infrequent and uncharacteristic brightness boosting. This 1080P is darker which suits the film experience and, if I recall correctly, has the same softness at the 10-minute mark - for all of 30-seconds (see HERE) that was on the Criterion. Certainly the Blu-ray is a well-overdue upgrade that fans will appreciate. .

NOTE: We have added 52 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Radiance use a linear PCM dual-mono track (16-bit) in the original Spanish language. Viridiana has few effects. The score was by Gustavo Pittaluga (The Young and the Damned) is a subtle yet pivotal part of Buñuel’s masterpiece. It perceptively it shapes the film’s unsettling vibe mirroring Buñuel’s restraint, avoiding melodrama in a film that’s already dripping with irony. Pittaluga curated pieces like Mozart’s Requiem Mass in D Minor and Handel’s Messiah, weaving them into the film’s fabric to amplify its satire and tension. It sounds authentically flat and flawless via the uncompressed. Radiance offer optional English subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Radiance Blu-ray offers a new (2024) commentary by Michael Brooke. Brooke’s commentary is a deep dive - detailed, scholarly, and packed with context. He explores Buñuel’s surrealist roots, the film’s production under Franco’s regime, and its Palme d’Or win at Cannes. He’s got a knack for connecting Viridiana to Buñuel’s broader career, like his Mexican exile films or early works with Salvador Dalí, without losing sight of the movie’s specifics - like the infamous Last Supper scene with the beggars. His tone is dry but engaging, leaning on historical anecdotes (e.g., Buñuel’s sly defiance of censorship) and thematic analysis (the clash of idealism and human nature). As usual, 'excellent', Michael. Included is Anthony Wall's 1983 film, The Life and Times of Don Luis Buñuel, shot in Spain in 1961, which paints Buñuel as both artist and exile. The documentary also covers his late-career French renaissance: Belle de Jour (1967), with Catherine Deneuve as a housewife-turned-prostitute, and The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972), Buñuel's dreamlike satire that nabbed an Oscar. It doesn’t shy away from his contradictions - Catholic upbringing clashing with atheism, or his love of martinis and pranks (he once fired a prop gun at friends for laughs). Critics like it for its archival depth - rare stills, early film snippets - but some find it a tad dry, lacking the flair of Buñuel’s own work. It also touches on that film’s scandal - it won the Palme d’Or but got banned there for its Last Supper parody. This excellent, feature-length, documentary frames it as Buñuel thumbing his nose at Franco’s censorship, a recurring theme of defiance. It offers the option of a new (2024) ten-minute introduction to The Life and Times of Don Luis Buñuel by Wall - nice addition. Also included is a newly filmed 11-minute appreciation for Viridiana by Chinese-born American filmmaker Lulu Wang (The Farewell) and it's great to hear her personal appraisal of Viridiana, analyzing its themes and its influence on and relevance to filmmakers in the modern era. We also get a 3/4 hour interview with Buñuel from 1964 recorded for French TV’s Cinéastes de notre temps - also on the Criterion DVD. It was shot in n his Buñuel's hometown of Calanda, Aragon, in Spain. Lastly is a gallery with 16 high quality stills. The limited edition 3-film Blu-ray package includes an 80-page book featuring new writing by Glenn Kenny, Justine Smith, Lindsay Hallam and David Hering, as well as archive material.  

Luis Buñuel's Viridiana is a dark, satirical gem, the director's first film shot in Spain since his exile after the Spanish Civil War. It stars Mexican actress Silvia Pinal - who is in all three films in Radiance's Blu-ray set (also Sam Fuller's Shark!) - as titular 'Viridiana', a novice nun on the brink of taking her vows, who visits her wealthy, reclusive uncle, Don Jaime (Buñuel regular Fernando Rey - in a career spanning over 150 films,) at his decaying estate. Don Jaime’s a creep - he’s obsessed with Viridiana, partly because she resembles his dead wife. He drugs her, nearly assaults her, and later hangs himself with a jump rope after she rejects him. Guilt-ridden, Viridiana inherits the estate alongside her cousin Jorge (Francisco Rabal - Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, Sorcerer) and ditches the convent to turn the place into a refuge for local beggars. Things spiral when the beggars - crude, ungrateful, and chaotic - trash the house in a drunken orgy, complete with a mock 'Last Supper' set to Handel’s "Hallelujah Chorus." Viridiana confronts controversial themes of religion / blasphemy / depravity / class / power etc. It's a masterpiece and I am thrilled with Radiance Blu-ray - solid a/v upgrade - expert commentary - feature-length documentary - interview - appreciation and more. Most serious Buñuel fans must already own it - regardless it has our highest recommendation.

Gary Tooze