(aka 'The Devil Probably')
France 1977
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Regarded by many as a masterpiece, Bresson is film tells the story of a young man living in Paris who desires more from life than the glib, superficial truths and material things that are on offer to him. He reaches out to his friends and psychiatrist to provide him with the great answers in life. But his spiritual deliverance remains beyond his grasp until he reaches a bizarre arrangement with a fellow drifter. *** Bresson observes his Parisian student protagonist in numb recoil from a culture, almost a species, compromised beyond recall. As so often in Bresson, the process of detachment ends in deliberately sought death. Here Charles' proxy suicide stands, as Jan Dawson has perceptively noted, both as an affirmation of a purity no longer possible within society, and 'as a portent of the millions of deaths, not self-willed, which must inevitably follow', given the ruthless course of society's crimes. Charles and the two women in his life are offered less as convincing portrayals of life on the student fringe than as indices of a particular state of consciousness. Beside the toughness of Pickpocket, the depth of feeling of Une Femme Douce, the rigour of Lancelot du Lac, The Devil, Probably has a certain opaque quality. Its case is presented rather than argued: one buys its cosmic bleakness or one doesn't, but there is no doubt about the conviction with which it is put. |
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Theatrical Release: June 1977 - Berlin International Film Festival
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DVD Review: Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL
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| Distribution | Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL | |
| Runtime | 1:32:36 (4% PAL Speedup) | |
| Video | 1.33:1
Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 4.42 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s |
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NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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| Audio | French (Dolby Digital 2.0) | |
| Subtitles | English, None | |
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Release Information:
Edition Details: • Bresson
Filmography (text) |
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I have a 'checkdisc' in my possession and can't vouch for it being the same as the final product, but I strongly suspect it will be. Artificial Eye's single-layered DVD of Robert Bresson's, English-language DVD debut of, The Devil, Probably looks quite excellent. The transfer is progressive and in the original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 - colors are muted but consistent, detail and contrast and quite strong. A shade of information seems lost in the darkness artifacts but it is very minor. The image is extremely clean without speckles or scratches. Subtitles seem well translated and the dialogue is clear and audible.
Unfortunately, aside from text screen of Bresson's filmography, we have no digital supplements but regardless this is an important release, effectively adding another 'notch' for nearing completion of another master's oeuvre onto acceptable standard-definition DVD. We are still missing a couple more (namely - Quatre nuits d'un rêveur - 1971 and Une femme douce - 1969) but this, Bresson's second last film, is an essential purchase in my opinion. Artificial Eye consistently display competence and discerning taste in what they release in their catalogue. NOTE: Also coming this same day from AE in the UK are A Man Escaped (Robert Bresson, 1956) and Lancelot du Lac (Robert Bresson, 1974) - our reviews and/or comparisons will soon follow. |
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| Distribution | Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL | |
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Gary Tooze
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