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(aka 'Identification of a Woman')
Antonioni is of course best known for such films as "Blow Up", "L'avventura", "The Red Desert", and "The Passenger"." I have been asked the question: "Isn't this one of Antonioni's minor works?" The purpose of this brief article is to argue the contrary and urge lovers of his films to take this one very seriously. It is incredibly rich and not in any way second class in comparison to his other great works.
This film is his last before his debilitating stroke in 1985; he was just 70 when it was released.
And it was his first film shot in Italy, with Italian actors and themes, in some 18 years. After "Il Deserto Rosso" (1964), he made an extended series of remarkable films all shot outside of his native Italy: "Blow Up", "Zabriskie Point", "Chung Kuo", and "The Passenger". It is of great interest to see him back in his native country. Excerpt from Bruce Winstein's article at DVDBeaver located HERE |
Poster
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Theatrical Release: September 17th, 1982 (Toronto Film Festival)
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Comparison:
Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL LEFT vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
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Distribution | Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL | Criterion Collection - Spine #585 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 2:04:40 (4% PAL: Speedup) | 2:10:30.239 |
Video | 1.85:1
Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 7.14 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s |
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 39,893,625,225 bytes Feature: 38,239,856,640 bytes Codec: MPEG4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps |
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate: DVD |
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Bitrate: Blu-ray |
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Audio | Italian (Dolby Digital 2.0) | LPCM Audio Italian 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit |
Subtitles | English, None | English, None |
Features |
Release Information:
Edition Details: • none |
Release Information: Disc Size: 39,893,625,225 bytes Feature: 38,239,856,640 bytes Codec: MPEG4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps Edition Details:
• A booklet featuring an essay by critic John Powers and a 1982
interview with director Michelangelo Antonioni by critic Gideon Bachmann |
Comments: |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - October 11': Typical for Criterion they have one soft-pallet on the colors but heavier black levels - this brings up sharpness and the 1080P visuals exhibit some nice depth. Textured grain is evident. The Bongo edition looks good for SD but flatter, softer and more video-like beside the Criterion Blu-ray. Criterion skin tones seem to have warmed and the SD has a bluish/green tinge to it. I have never seen this theatrically but suspect the Criterion is more accurate with the overall appearance. Criterion render their typical mono linear PCM track - again advancing beyond the SD - although subtly. There is still appears to be some minor sync-speed issue but it is not pervasive. There are optional English subtitles on the region 'A'-locked disc. This is the first Criterion release for some time that has gone bare-bones on the digital supplement-front. There is a trailer but nothing more and the package contains a booklet featuring an essay by critic John Powers and a 1982 interview with director Michelangelo Antonioni by critic Gideon Bachmann. Nice to see this without the PAL speedup and as clear and sharp - I definitely enjoyed the film more than a couple of years back. Identification of a Woman has really grown on me and I appreciate seeing it in 1080P. This lower tier Criterion pricing package is recommended - Antonioni fans won't want to miss out! *** ON THE DVD: There are some very good things about this Mr. Bongo Films edition of this, previously unreleased, Antonioni film. It is in the correct aspect ratio of 1.85:1. It is dual-layered, anamorphic and even progressive. Picture quality is not bad at all - a shade glossy at times with some minor moiring. Overall, I'd say I was pleasantly surprised and quite happy with the end result of the image transfer. Detail, contrast and colors all seem very competent. It's not perfect but it's vastly better than I was anticipating having never seen anything from Mr. Bongo before. Listed as part of a 'TRIBUTE TO ANTONIONI SERIES' could we be too selfish to wish for the also unreleased Il Mistero di Oberwald (The Mystery of Oberwald) in the near future? I thought the 2.0 channel audio had a few sync issues but I couldn't really nail an example and there are optional English subtitles in a larger-than-usual font. Again acceptable if imperfect.
Unfortunately, it was reported that this DVD edition would have some extra features but alas there are none. Still, I am very pleased to actually be able to see this Antonioni film on an English-friendly DVD. Certainly fans of the director should also be pleased that the transfer is so adept although supplements would have been the 'icing on the cake'. I'm still mulling over the film - it has an intangible quality that I was enjoying very much. I must watch it a least a few times. Until something superior comes along this DVD edition is certainly recommended at this very reasonable price! |
Menus
Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL
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Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
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CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Subtitle Sample
Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL TOP vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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Screen Captures
Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL TOP vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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More Blu-ray Captures
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DVD Box Cover |
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Distribution | Mr. Bongo Films - Region 0 - PAL | Criterion Collection - Spine #585 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Michelangelo Antonioni films on DVD (NTSC) - CLICK COVERS or REVIEW BUTTON for more information
Recommended Books for Michelangelo Antonioni reading (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
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That Bowling Alley on the Tiber: Tales of a Director by Michelangelo Antonioni |
Antonioni, Or, the Surface of the World by Seymour Chatman |
My Time With Antonioni: The Diary of an Extraordinary Experience by Wim Wenders, Michael Hofmann |
Antonioni: The Poet of Images by William Arrowsmith, Ted Perry |
Antonioni by Sam Rohdie |
The Films of Michelangelo Antonioni (Cambridge Film Classics) by Peter Brunette, Ray Carney |
Michelangelo Antonioni by Seymour Chatman, Paul Duncan |
L'Avventura (B.F.I. Film Classics) by Geoffrey Nowell-Smith |