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 S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka "I Accuse" or "Ich klage an" or "Per la patria" or "Yo acuso" )

 

directed by Abel Gance
France 1919

 

Abel Gance's J'Accuse (1919), a politically and stylistically daring anti-war drama produced while the trench warfare of World War I was still grinding up soldiers on both sides of the battle, opens with the title spelled out by the bodies of soldiers striding into formation, like a marching band at a half-time show. Then they collapse, as if dead, to startling effect. Appropriating the cry leveled by Emile Zola during the Dreyfus affair, Gance levels his accusations at war itself.

Excerpt of review from Sean Axmaker located HERE

Theatrical Release: April 25th, 1919 (France)

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DVD Review: Flicker Alley - Region 0 - NTSC

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Distribution

Flicker Alley

Region 0 - NTSC
Runtime 2:45:28
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 7.48 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

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

Audio Silent (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles English, None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Flicker Alley

Aspect Ratio:
Fullscreen - 1.33:1

Edition Details:
• Booklet with three original essays on the film
• Short: Paris During the War
• Short: Fighting the War

DVD Release Date: September 16th, 2008
Keep Case

Chapters 27

 

 

 

Comments

NOTE:  Gance's 1938 version is reviewed on Blu-ray HERE

Let me begin by stating the debt of gratitude that we owe Flicker Alley as well as Turner Classic Movies and Lobster Films for reconstructing and restoring this silent masterpiece. Although various prints of the film existed prior to their reconstruction (including one edited by Gance himself to capture the post-war zeitgeist), none approximated the original 1919 cut with the correct color tints. Here we have the end result of over a year's worth of work restoring the film as close to the original edit as possible, using the best surviving materials and the end result is nothing less than stunning. The image is mostly clear and has a healthy amount of grain. While there is the occasional scratch or artifact, I can't complain and I suspect that it comes closer to the way that the film looked 90 years ago than anything that we've seen in the last few decades.

The audio too is outstanding. The score commissioned from the Robert Israel Orchestra suits the material well and proves to be an ideal accompaniment to the image. The disc features the French overlays with the English subtitles appearing underneath (however, the text of the subtitles often obscure the information at the bottom of the overlay). The short films are certainly of interest, but the real jewel here is the booklet which provides us with two new essays on the film and one on the reconstruction. Overall, this is an outstanding set and one that I can easily recommend without any reservations!

 - Brian Montgomery

 


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DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

 
Distribution

Flicker Alley

Region 0 - NTSC

 

 




 

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