ADDITION: Artificial Eye - Region 'B' Blu-ray - June 2016: The new AE 1080P is much brighter than the Criterion Blu-ray. I haven't taken out the magnifying glass but I like the Artificial Eye. We've compared six captures below (some exact frame) and the side-by-side can make the Criterion a bit softer - but that is what brightness does. It's going to be a personal opinion although the Criterion might be the more accurate (the darker usually is). I presume these are different sources but I prefer a variance. I have a feeling the opinions will be strong and we can weigh in further.

NOTE: There is the opinion that the brighter appearance is due to a missing gamma correction from an encoding error. In Blu-ray authoring you often use a lossless Apple Quicktime Pro-Res file as an intermediate between the uncompressed content of an HD-tape-master and the final AVC or VC1 encoding. This Pro-Res file, like most thing made by Apple, has an error that comes with it which is that it brightens the picture. Now, if you encode the Pro-Res file without a gamma correction, your result can be a faulty Blu-ray.

The audio has a linear PCM but only 16-bit and not as technically robust as the Criterion (which is 24-bit). Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov's score still sounds poignant - some may note Ne velyat Mashe - the song played on the gramophone. The AE Blu-ray also offers English subtitles (see sample comparison below) but is region 'B'-locked.

The Artificial Eye exceeds the Criterion in the supplements with an 8-minute selected scene commentary with film Psychoanalyst Mary Wild (as well asan introduction by to this series her), plus we get the same three interviews (almost 1.5 hours worth) as found on their 2002 DVD with actor Evgeniy Zharikov, DoP Vadim Usovand composer Vyaaheslav Ovchinnikov. AE include a 36 page liner notes booklet.

This bodes well for the future AE Tarkovsky Blu-rays. Very solid package, new, valuable, supplement and what appears to be a competnet a/v

***

ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' Blu-ray - January 2013: The Criterion 1080P is brilliant. It seems like we have waited so long with the 2007 Picture-boxing a less satisfying stop-gap to the ultra-impressive image produced on the Blu-ray. The layered contrast and tighter detail significantly make this image quality rise to its most appreciated level. Tarkovsky's film has so many beautiful shots - just rolling one after the other - and the black and white hi-def image is extremely pleasing.

The audio is rendered in a lossless linear PCM track - clean and reasonably crisp with optional English subtitles. Extras duplicate the 2007 DVD; 'Vida T. Johnson (coauthor of The Films of Andrei Tarkovsky: A Visual Fugue) gives a 30 minute video appreciation entitled 'Life as a Dream'. She discusses the significance of Ivan's Childhood in relation to the body of Tarkovsky's oeuvre. There are also two important interviews - one with the actor Nikolai Burlyaev (Ivan) - it is divided into chapters (lead role, screen tests, finding tears, the shoot and true patriot) and runs about 10 minutes in total. We have another with cinematographer Vadim Yusov - longtime Tarkovsky collaborator (Andrei Rublev, Solaris). It is also divided into chapters (visual language, preparation, dream and texture). They also run about 10 minutes in total and have some important information - very valuable. Finally we are given a nice bound 30-page liner notes booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Dina Iordanova and new translations, by Robert Bird, of "Between Two Films," Andrei Tarkovsky's essay about Ivan's Childhood, and "Ivan's Willow," a poem by the director's father, Arseny Tarkovsky.'

Some directors films are so visual (Antonioni) and it seems they were meant to be viewed in the pristine-levels of this new format. I was pretty blown-away by my viewing. Bravo Criterion - our strongest recommendation.

***

ADDITION - Criterion - Region 1- NTSC - July 07': The Criterion DVD is pictureboxed (see our description of 'pictureboxing' in our Kind Hearts and Coronets review), so it immediately gives up some resolution to the compared PAL DVDs - (than simply the standard difference). But as with existing PAL comparisons of Three Film By Hiroshi Teshigahara , the Criterion transfer is superior - sharper and cleaner - vastly improved contrast and detail. They just keep upping the bar! With the framing - I don't see the Criterion losing much, if any.

Criterion have included some wonderful extra features - Vida T. Johnson (coauthor of The Films of Andrei Tarkovsky: A Visual Fugue) gives a 30 minute video appreciation entitled 'Life as a Dream'. She discusses the significance of Ivan's Childhood in relation to the body of Tarkovsky's oeuvre. There are also two important interviews - one with the actor Nikolai Burlyaev (Ivan) - it is divided into chapters (lead role, screen tests, finding tears, the shoot and true patriot) and runs about 10 minutes in total. We have another with cinematographer Vadim Yusov - longtime Tarkovsky collaborator (Andrei Rublev, Solaris). It is also divided into chapters (visual language, preparation, dream and texture). They also run about 10 minutes in total and have some important information - very valuable. Finally we are given a nice bound 30-page liner notes booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Dina Iordanova and new translations, by Robert Bird, of "Between Two Films," Andrei Tarkovsky's essay about Ivan's Childhood, and "Ivan's Willow," a poem by the director's father, Arseny Tarkovsky. Grand indeed and more than hopes could have wished for on all fronts. How could I not recommended?  

ADDITION - MK2 - May 2005 - Well I don't know why but the MK2 - seemingly also a RusCiCo port - is vastly superior to the AE and the Spectrum. It is tighter, although still sports a think black border around the edge, is sharper and has much better contrast. The blown-out contrast boosting of the Artificial Eye and the Spectrum are quite evident. The MK2 offers the same extras as the other two and also an optional French 5.1 DUB. It does still include the mono option. It is very surprising that both Mirror and Andrei Rublev are unimproved ports yet Ivan's Childhood has gotten significantly better from its initial RusCiCo publishing.

- Gary W. Tooze