A big plus is that it also has Lamorisse's The Red Balloon in HD - albeit with some issues (SEE COMPARISON HERE) and two excellent French documentaries (with English subtitles). On Albert Lamorisse's life story is Mon Pere Etait un Balloon Rouge (My Father Was a Red Balloon) running over 50-minutes and L'Enfant Qui Ne Sourait Pas - is a 45-minute portrait of Alain Emery. Both are in SD.

NOTE: While the Blu-ray is technically region FREE - the documentaries are in PAL and North American players may not play the extras.

With The Red Balloon , and great extras - plus the reasonable price it makes for an enticing purchase. I really enjoyed watching this in an un-picture-boxed, high-definition transfer. It's definitely worth seeing again in the higher resolution despite the flaws.

NOTE: Sent by Richard Waara in email: "This weekend as I reviewed White Mane, looking for what I could use as a clip from it in the coming up But oh remembrance for a fallen comrade, it suddenly dawned on me that I was looking at another work of art, one of the finest children's films that has ever been made, that had been made flawed by unconscionable men.The full-length version (47 minutes) of White Mane is, in my opinion, better than The Red Balloon. I originally saw White Mane many years ago on television in SF. I was stunned by it. I was in my twenties and between memories of my childhood and becoming a so-called adult. It acted as a bridge between those two worlds and told me that there are ideals that we have in our childhood that we should maintain all our life and ultimately are worth dying for. White Mane was that rarest of children's films, a film by a director who dared to say something that could possibly traumatize its audience but with a message that was as true as childhood can be. Years later when I later discovered that both White Mane and The Red Balloon were coming out on laser disc, I rushed out to buy a copy. As the movie started to play there was an ominous date that had been added after the original date of the film. I can't remember what the exact wording was but it somehow suggested a possible new version of the film. As this version of the film came to an end, what had been alluded to became clear. This version of the film it turned out ended one minute right before the ending of Criterion's current version (40 minutes long) as both horse and boy escape to the narrow slip of land on the right. One can see it and a similar slip of land to the left that they are swimming toward. All the framing that occurs in this section is building up to an inevitable escape. As an innocuous voiceover rhapsodies their escape, the film abruptly ends. I was so outraged back then that I immediately returned the disc to the dealer where I had gotten it. The clerk appeared bemused about how worked up I was and believe me I was. Unfortunately I have been forced to relive that outrage today.This is again a case of the adult world trying to destroy the last remaining dreams of our youth. I can only speculate that the film was deemed too unsafe for the young to see. It might traumatize them. If there was only the possibility that this film existed in a way that it could. The only noticeable difference from that version and the current version that has been released by Criterion is an added minute of the real ending of the film. But what about the seven missing minutes in between the two endings? What about the integrity of the voiceover that was written by James Agee? Was that footage possibly destroyed so that the original film could never be restored? If it was, this has to be among one of the most heinous crimes ever perpetrated in the history of cinema." (Thanks Richard!)

***

ON THE DVD: NOTE: This Criterion transfer is again pictureboxed (see our description of 'pictureboxing' in our Kind Hearts and Coronets review). Criterion have included a thick black border around the edge of the frame to counter overscan on production-made television sets.

Like The Red Balloon, this is advertised as 'released by Janus Films, in association with the Criterion Collection' and is a single-layered, progressive DVD that bears the professionalism of the latter organization, although it has no spine number. The 1:33 ratio film is clean and very bright with minimal noise. Contrast is exceptionally strong retaining the heavy 'white' emphasis of the film and detail is somewhat stronger than The Red Balloon. Aside from the original French mono (mostly a narration), there is an English DUB provided - I assume, extensively for the sake of children. There are also optional English subtitles (see sample below) This short runs exactly 40 minutes long and is a wonderful tandem piece to The Red Balloon.  

Released simultaneously on April 29th (along with White Mane) are Paddle to the Sea (Bill Mason, 1966) and The Red Balloon (Albert Lamorisse, 1956).

There is a trailer and some liner notes with an essay by Michael Koresky. Criterion have stated in their blog that they may 'SE' this title along with The Red Balloon this year. If so, I'm sure we will compare but at this price - it is an easy purchase to show my young boys. 

Gary W. Tooze