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The Apu Trilogy [Blu-ray]
Coming to 4K UHD by Criterion in January 2024, HERE
Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road) 1955
Aparajito (The Unvanquished) 1957
Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) 1959
Two decades after its original negatives were burned in a fire, Satyajit Ray’s breathtaking milestone of world cinema rises from the ashes in a meticulously reconstructed new restoration. The Apu Trilogy brought India into the golden age of international art-house film, following one indelible character, a free-spirited child in rural Bengal who matures into an adolescent urban student and finally a sensitive man of the world. These delicate masterworks—Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road), Aparajito (The Unvanquished), and Apur Sansar (The World of Apu)—based on two books by Bibhutibhusan Banerjee, were shot over the course of five years, and each stands on its own as a tender, visually radiant journey. They are among the most achingly beautiful, richly humane movies ever made—essential works for any film lover. |
Box Cover |
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CLICK to order from: Coming to the UK, on Blu-ray, by Criterion in May 2020: |
Distribution |
Criterion Collection Spine # 782 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
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Subtitles |
English, None |
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Features |
Release Information:
•
Audio interview with Ray from 1958
(14:30) |
Comments: |
Coming to 4K UHD by Criterion in January 2024, HERE NOTE: These Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. As with Criterion's 2011 Blu-ray of Satyajit Ray's The Music Room (Jalsaghar) we get a monumental package of dramatic video and audio improvement from the existing DVDs of this iconic director's works. To appreciate the stunning advancement of these 1080 transfers should directly go to the director's importance in world cinema:
These are advertised as "New 4K digital restorations of all three films, undertaken in collaboration with the Academy Film Archive at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and L’Immagine Ritrovata." I'll make some brief comments about the individual films and their HD presentations (audio and video) separately, below. Suffice to say the improvement is outstanding - giving this package a huge leg up on the Blu-ray of the year. They each have max'ed out bitrates on the three dual-layered discs. There are optional English subtitles for each feature (see samples below.) The Blu-ray discs are region 'A'-locked. I'll comment on the supplements in rest of this space. On the Pather Pachali Blu-ray we start with 14-minutes of audio recordings from 1958 of director Satyajit Ray reading his essay “A Long Time on the Little Road” and in conversation with film historian Gideon Bachmann. There are also new interviews produced by Criterion from 2013 - 2015 with actors Soumitra Chatterjee (7:14), Shampa Srivastava (16:29), and camera assistant Soumendu Roy (12:34) reminiscing and giving their accounts of the director and filmmaking process. There are also excerpts of the 2003 documentary The Song of the Little Road produced and directed by Priyanka Kumar, musician Ravi Shankar recalls his experiences working with director Satyajit Ray as composer for The Apu Trilogy. On the Aparajito Blu-ray there is a new 12-minute interview with film writer Ujjal Chakraborty from 2013 - discussing the many symbolic details throughout Aparajito. We get an audio interview with Ray from 1958 lasting about 1/4 hour. In August 1958, director Satyajit Ray attended Robert Flaherty Film Seminar in Vermont, on the occasion of the US release of Pather Panchali. By this time Ray, had also completed Aparajito and The Philosopher's Stone, and The Music Room would soon premiere, During the seminar, film critic Gideon Bachmann recorded a conversation with Ray, of whihc audio excerpts are presented here. Making “The Apu Trilogy”: Satyajit Ray’s Epic Debut, a new 38-minute video essay by Ray biographer Andrew Robinson and produced by Criterion in 2015. Robinson looks at the evolution and production of The Apu Trilogy. The Creative Person: “Satyajit Ray,” a 1967 half-hour documentary by Canadian James Beveridge who traveled to Kolkata to film Satyajit Ray at work. It features interviews with Ray, several of his actors, members of his creative team, and film critic Chidananda Das Gupta. The supplements on The World of Apu Blu-ray include a 1/4 hour interview (separately) with Soumitra Chatterjee and Sharmila Tagore produced by Criterion - they talk about Apur Sansar - the film debut for both of them. The Apu Trilogy”: A Closer Look, is a new 45-minute program featuring filmmaker, producer, and teacher Mamoun Hassan. We can see 3-minutes of footage of Ray receiving an honorary Oscar in 1992 from host Audrey Hepburn. There is a new program (choice of both long 12.5 minutes and short 3-minute versions) on the restorations by filmmaker :: kogonada. I found this particularity fascinating with input from Lee Kline and others on the efforts gone through to 'bring back' these films from their damaged quality. Truly awe-inspiring. This package contains a liner notes booklet featuring essays by critics Terrence Rafferty and Girish Shambu, as well as a selection of Ray’s storyboards for Pather Panchali. Calling these films masterpieces seems somehow inadequate. This is one of Criterion's best Blu-ray packages - brilliant and I do feel fortunate and honored to have seen them in such restorations. Our highest recommendation! |
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
(aka 'Pather Panchali' or 'The Lament of the Path' or 'The Saga of the Road' or 'Song of the Road')
directed
by Satyajit Ray
India 1955
With the release in 1955 of Satyajit Ray’s debut, Pather Panchali, an eloquent and important new cinematic voice made itself heard all over the world. A depiction of rural Bengali life in a style inspired by Italian neorealism, this naturalistic but poetic evocation of a number of years in the life of a family introduces us to both little Apu and, just as essentially, the women who will help shape him: his independent older sister, Durga; his harried mother, Sarbajaya, who, with her husband away, must hold the family together; and his kindly and mischievous elderly “auntie,” Indir—vivid, multifaceted characters all. With resplendent photography informed by its young protagonist’s perpetual sense of discovery, Pather Panchali, which won an award for Best Human Document at Cannes, is an immersive cinematic experience and a film of elemental power. *** Considered Calcutta-born director Satyajit Ray's masterpiece, "Pather Panchali" is the first film of his Apu Trilogy (Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar) documenting the life and maturation of one young Indian boy. With themes rooted with universal appeal and understanding we see the pain and tragedy, familial spirit and hands on tutelage of one expressively insignificant individual in our world. Photographic realism so acute you can almost smell the rain soaked Bengali grass as the raga's of Ravi Shankar play in perfect balance with cultural coherence echoing in the distance. A poignant diversion from Bollywood with its poetic intimacy and confident composure. Brilliant, intense, transcendent; cinema made with pure, honest love. |
Theatrical Release: August 26th, 1955
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL vs. Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion Collection Region 'A' - Blu-ray
All DVD Screen caps courtesy of Kevin Yip
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL LEFT 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT |
Box Covers |
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Distribution |
Artificial Eye Entertainment Region 2 - PAL |
Columbia
Tri-Star Region 1 - NTSC |
Criterion Collection Spine # 783 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 1:59:32 (4% PAL speedup) | 2:06:00 | 2:05:52.253 |
Video |
1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.33:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,106,336,249 bytesFeature: 36,839,933,952 bytesVideo Bitrate: 25.00 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video |
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate:
AE
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Bitrate:
Columbia
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Bitrate:
Blu-ray |
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Audio | Bengali (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
Bengali (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
LPCM Audio Bengali 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit |
Subtitles | English, and none | English (non-removable) | English, and none |
Features |
Release Information: Artificial Eye Entertainment Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Special
features:
Chapters 22
NOTE: 3-film set (Apu
Trilogy), each film not sold separately |
Release Information: Studio: Columbia Tri-star Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 DVD Release Date: October 28, 2003 Keep Case Chapters: 12 |
Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,106,336,249 bytesFeature: 36,839,933,952 bytesVideo Bitrate: 25.00 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video On the Pather Pachali Blu-ray:
• Audio recordings from 1958 of
director Satyajit Ray reading his essay “A Long Time on the Little Road”
and in conversation with film historian Gideon Bachmann (14:36) Chapters: 24 |
Comments |
NOTE:
The below
Blu-ray
captures were taken directly from the
Blu-ray
disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray October 15': The DVDs look like mud beside the new Criterion 1080P with max'ed out bitrate. Pristine contrast and black levels. There are still some scenes that are too damaged to bring back - but there are only a small handful (see samples below) and they had zero impact on my viewing. The clarity, crispness and depth are new to this reviewer (who has seen this film at least a dozen times in less-watchable digital incarnations!) The uncompressed monaural soundtrack sounds better than I have ever heard before - eliminating any distractions that the SDs contained. Criterion's subtitles are new, presumably more accurate, translations and differ from the old DVDs. It was like seeing Pather Panachali for the first time - I was blown away.***
ON THE DVDs: The Columbia Region-1
DVD version was based the 1994 restoration effort by Merchant-Ivory
Production. Unfortunately, the disc was apparently transferred from a
low-definition print, and the result looks to be of laserdisc quality
and not good enough for DVD. |
Menus
(Artificial
Eye
- Region 2 - PAL - LEFT vs. Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)
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Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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(aka 'Aparajito' or 'The Unvanquished')
directed
by Satyajit Ray
India 1957
Satyajit Ray had not planned to make a sequel to Pather Panchali, but after the film’s international success, he decided to continue Apu’s narrative. Aparajito picks up where the first film leaves off, with Apu and his family having moved away from the country to live in the bustling holy city of Varanasi (then known as Benares). As Apu progresses from wide-eyed child to intellectually curious teenager, eventually studying in Kolkata, we witness his academic and moral education, as well as the growing complexity of his relationship with his mother. This tenderly expressive, often heart-wrenching film, which won three top prizes at the Venice Film Festival, including the Golden Lion, not only extends but also spiritually deepens the tale of Apu. *** "Aparajito" is the second film of Satyajit Ray's 'Apu Trilogy' (Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar) continues to document the life and maturation of one young Indian boy. The film opens with Apu, son of Harihar and Sarbajaya, wandering and exploring the Temple City of Bananas on the banks of the Ganga (Ganges river) where they reside. The story focuses on Apu leaving the embrace of his family nest to work and become educated in a more modern world than what he has become accustomed in his youth. The struggle to remain separate is exemplified by the dire need of his Mother, Sarbajaya who is deathly ill and depressed She remains desperately lonely in her small village after the death of her husband and departure of her son. Continuing the cycle of life Satyajit Ray continues to explore the inner conflicts of conforming to a more contemporary world than our parents. The strength to overcome our bonding of birth is another universal theme of traditional respect and independent personal advancement. |
Theatrical Release: 1957 - India
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL vs. Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion Collection Region 'A' - Blu-ray
All DVD Screen caps courtesy of Kevin Yip
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL LEFT 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT |
Box Covers |
|
|
Coming to the UK, on Blu-ray, by Criterion in May 2020: |
Distribution |
Artificial Eye Entertainment Region 2 - PAL |
Columbia
Tri-Star Region 1 - NTSC |
Criterion Collection Spine # 784 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 1:44:32 (4% PAL speedup) | 1:50:24 | 1:50:10.604 |
Video |
1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.37:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,485,716,702 bytes Feature: 32,258,365,440 bytesVideo Bitrate: 34.96 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video |
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Bitrate:
AE
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Bitrate:
Columbia
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Bitrate:
Blu-ray |
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Audio | Bengali (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
Bengali (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
LPCM Audio Bengali 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit |
Subtitles | English, and none | English (non-removable) | English, and none |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Artificial Eye Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Special
features:
Chapters 15
NOTE: 3-film set (Apu Trilogy), each film not sold separately |
Release Information: Studio: Columbia Tri-star Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Special
features: |
Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,485,716,702 bytes Feature: 32,258,365,440 bytesVideo Bitrate: 34.96 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video On the Aparajito Blu-ray: • New interview with film writer Ujjal Chakraborty (11:26) • Audio interview with Ray from 1958 (14:30) • Making “The Apu Trilogy”: Satyajit Ray’s Epic Debut, a new video essay by Ray biographer Andrew Robinson (37:45)
• The Creative Person: “Satyajit Ray,”
a 1967 half-hour documentary by James Beveridge, featuring interviews
with Ray, several of his actors, members of his creative team, and film
critic Chidananda Das Gupta (28:59) Chapters: 22 |
Comments: |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray October 15': The screen captures can show you the massive difference. It's hard to believe how I cherished the DVDs - which can now be thrown in the garbage. Brilliant contrast and black levels. I've include a 'scene dissolve' frame and how it looks in the new sequences to show the dramatic improvement. The detail and depth are truly amazing. There are still some minor damage spots cropping up here and there but it is obvious that this is the best these films can look. The uncompressed monaural soundtrack is authentically flat and has dramatic improvement over the SDs hinting at depth and notably crisper. Criterion's subtitle are new, presumably more accurate, translations and differ from the old DVDs. Another reason to celebrate this incredible package.*** ON THE DVDs: The Columbia Region-1 DVD versions of THE APU TRILOGY were based the 1994 restoration effort by Merchant-Ivory Production. The picture quality of all three discs looks to be of laserdisc quality, with the APARAJITO and THE WORLD OF APU discs looking a little cleaner and sharper. The
PATHER PANCHALI and THE WORLD OF APU discs also exhibit "ghosting" effects, apparently due to the use of non-progressive video sources (frame-advance on the DVD player indicates 30 frames a second). The APARAJITO disc, however, shows no ghosting (24 frames a second during frame-advance). |
DVD Menus
(Artificial
Eye
- Region 2 - PAL - LEFT vs. Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)
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Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL TOP 2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC MIDDLE 3) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
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More Blu-ray Captures
Dissolve from one scene to another (shows the extent of the restoration!)
(aka 'The World of Apu' or 'Apur Sansar")
directed by Satyajit Ray
India 1959
By the time Apur Sansar was released, Satyajit Ray had directed not only the first two Apu films but also the masterpiece The Music Room, and was well on his way to becoming a legend. This extraordinary final chapter brings our protagonist’s journey full circle. Apu is now in his early twenties, out of college, and hoping to live as a writer. Alongside his professional ambitions, the film charts his romantic awakening, which occurs as the result of a most unlikely turn of events, and his eventual, fraught fatherhood. Featuring soon to be Ray regulars Soumitra Chatterjee and Sharmila Tagore in star-making performances, and demonstrating Ray’s ever more impressive skills as a crafter of pure cinematic imagery, Apur Sansar is a moving conclusion to this monumental trilogy. *** "The World of Apu" is the third and final installment in the film trilogy of Satyajit Ray's (Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar) Apu has grown to manhood and has been forced to give up his studies and find employment. Unable to find work, he is writing a novel based on his life. In a representation of an arranged marriage Apu nobly stands in for a distraught bridegroom. He had never seen his wife before the ceremony but together they find brief happiness. Tragedy again befalls Apu as his pregnant wife dies in childbirth. His son is brought into the world but blamed by his father for his mothers death. Apu matures, overcomes and sets forth with his boy, Kajal, to Calcutta to continue his adventure and start a new beginning.
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Poster
Theatrical Release: 1957 - India
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Columbia Tri-star - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion Collection Region 'A' - Blu-ray
1) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC LEFT 2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT |
Box Covers |
|
Coming to the UK, on Blu-ray, by Criterion in May 2020: |
Distribution | Columbia Tri-Star Region 1 - NTSC | Criterion Collection Spine # 785 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Runtime | 1:46:32 | 1:46:17.329 |
Video |
1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.5 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s |
1.37:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,936,494,546 bytesFeature: 30,994,618,368 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.81 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video |
Bitrate: |
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Bitrate: Blu-ray |
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Audio | Bengali (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) | LPCM Audio Bengali 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit |
Subtitles | English, None | English, None |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Columbia Tri-star Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1
DVD Release Date: October 28, 2003
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Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 / 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,936,494,546 bytesFeature: 30,994,618,368 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.81 MbpsCodec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Supplements on The World of Apu Blu-ray :
• Interview with Soumitra
Chatterjee and Sharmila Tagore (15:03) • Footage of Ray receiving an honorary Oscar in 1992 (3:03)
• New programs on the restorations by
filmmaker :: kogonada (short 2:49 / long - 12:31 ) Chapters: 20 |
Comments: |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray October 15': Not much more to add from the screen capture comparisons. It's like night and day. Every visual facet is dramatically superior in the restored 4K 1080P and it has more information in the frame. Being the newest of the three - this look the best and has the least, infrequent, irremovable damage marks/sequences. In fact I saw none. Audio is again lossless and original mono. I was shaking my head in disbelief at these HD presentations. For me, package of the year.*** ON THE DVD: Again, slightly better image quality than the first 2 but still many damage spots. A better burned-in font than Aparajito but still there are no Extras and a meager 12 Chapter stops again. Almost insultingly the menus are (barely) animated with a transparent elephant appearing over the chapter. No liner notes. The DVD is also on the expensive side... and they went to NO expense in creating this. Even the cover art is the same as the VHS tapes.I hope to compare these to the Artificial Eye versions which I suspect are superior. It is my opinion that Columbia Tri-Star really dropped the ball when they could have shown homage to one of the all-time great directors. What a shame. I give this disc out of |
Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
1) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 1 - NTSC TOP 2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
More Blu-ray Captures
Box Cover |
|
CLICK to order from: Coming to the UK, on Blu-ray, by Criterion in May 2020: |
Distribution |
Criterion Collection Spine # 782 - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
Search DVDBeaver
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