|
We have started a Patreon page with the hopes that
some of our followers would be
willing to donate a small amount to keep DVDBeaver
alive. We are a tiny niche, so your
generosity is vital to our
existence.
We are talking about a minimum of
$0.10 - $0.15 a day, perhaps a
quarter (or more) to those who won't
miss it from their budget. It
equates to buying DVDBeaver a coffee
once, twice or a few times a month.
You can then participate in our
monthly
Silent
auctions,
and have exclusive access to many 'bonus' High Resolution screen captures - both
4K UHD
and
Blu-ray
(see
HERE).
|
|
Search DVDBeaver |
S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
(aka "Bitter Rice")
directed
by Giuseppe De Santis
Italy 1949
|
During planting season in Northern Italy’s Po Valley, an earthy rice-field worker (Silvana Mangano) falls in with a small-time criminal (Vittorio Gassman) who is planning a daring heist of the crop, as well as his femme-fatale-ish girlfriend, played by the Hollywood star Doris Dowling. Both a socially conscious look at the hardships endured by underpaid field workers and a melodrama tinged with sex and violence, this early smash for producer extraordinaire Dino De Laurentiis and director Giuseppe De Santis is neorealism with a heaping dose of pulp. *** Originally released as Riso Amaro, Bitter Rice was one of the landmark films of the postwar Italian neorealist movement. Silvana Mangano portrays one of hundreds of women toiling slavishly in the Po Valley rice fields. She is courted by two men: respectable Raf Vallone and no-good fugitive from justice Vittorio Gassman. Mangano chooses Gassman, a decision which brings disaster not only to her but to her co-workers. The rice-field scenes are realistic enough to pass muster as documentary footage, though they tend to be undercut in the English-language version by the amateurish dubbing. Critics were unanimous in their praise for Bitter Rice; their words were, however, ignored by the male fans who came to see the film solely on the strength of the now-famous production still of the buxom Silvana Mangano standing in the rice field wearing tight shorts and torn black stockings. |
Posters
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Theatrical Release:
September 18th, 1949 (Cannes Film Festival)Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison:
Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL vs. Criterion Region 'A' - Blu-ray
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - LEFT2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT
|
| Box Covers |
|
|
| Distribution |
Cristaldi Film Region 2 - PAL |
Criterion Collection - Spine #792 - Region 'A' Blu-ray |
| Runtime | 1:44:12 (4% PAL speedup) | 1:49:09.251 |
| Video |
1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
16X9 enhanced |
1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,539,126,646 bytesFeature: 32,001,294,336 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.98 Mbps |
|
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
||
|
Bitrate:
Cristaldi Film
|
|
|
|
Bitrate:
Criterion Blu-ray
|
|
|
| Audio | Italian (Dolby Digital 1.0), Italian (Dolby Digital 2.0) |
LPCM Audio Italian 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit |
| Subtitles | Italian, English, none | English, none |
| Features |
Release Information: Studio: Cristaldi Film Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details:
Chapters
26 |
Release Information: 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 47,539,126,646 bytesFeature: 32,001,294,336 bytes Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Total Video Bitrate: 34.98 Mbps Edition Details:
• Giuseppe De Santis, a 2008 documentary by
screenwriter Carlo Lizzani (52:33) Chapter: 23 |
| Comments |
NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray January 16': I recall that I enjoyed the Italian DVD transfer - many years ago - but even back then seeing the edge-enhancement. It's brittle, boosted and - compared to Criterion's new Blu-ray - is marginally cropped. The 1080P is diffused and contrast a bit muted but it still a gigantic improvement over the old SD. The Criterion is dual-layered with a max'ed out bitrate and probably as good as the film will ever look for home theater consumption. Criterion utilize a linear PCM mono track in the original Italian (24-bit). It is predictably flat with a weaker-than-usual high-end - most likely a factor of the production or source. The score is by Goffredo Petrassi - who only composed for 6 films - including Giuseppe De Santis' Under the Olive Tree. It sounds typical of the era - supportive, fairly unremarkable but another advancement on the SD. There are optional English subtitles on the region 'A'-locked Blu-ray disc. Criterion include a 2008 documentary by screenwriter Carlo Lizzani on Giuseppe De Santis running 53-minutes in Italian with English subtitles. Lizzani was the primary screenwriter of Bitter Rice and a frequent collaborator of De Santis - the discussion covers the career of the director, especially his groundbreaking work in the early days of Italian neorealism. There is also a 6.5 minute interview with Lizzani from 2002 where he discusses the process of writing the script and working with Giuseppe De Santis. Both pieces are very educational. There is also a trailer and the package contains a liner notes booklet with an essay by critic Pasquale Iannone. AI have always been fascinated with this genre and in particular this film always struck me as daring, subversive for its time - and honest and about a locale (Italian rice fields) that I don't ever recall covered before. Criterion's lower-tier pricing should make this a very appealing purchase - certainly you may not ever get to see the film in another venue. The Criterion Blu-ray is one worthy of any Cinephile's digital library. Recommended! -Gary Tooze |
Menus
Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
S
ubtitle Sample
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
|
|
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
|
1) Cristaldi Film - Region 2 - PAL - TOP2) Criterion Collection - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
|
 |
|
|
| Box Covers |
|
|
| Distribution |
Cristaldi Film Region 2 - PAL |
Criterion Collection - Spine #792 - Region 'A' Blu-ray |
Report Card:
|
Image: |
Blu-ray |
|
Sound: |
Blu-ray |
| Extras: | Blu-ray |
CLICK PayPal logo to donate!
|
Gary Tooze
|
|
Many Thanks...