Night and Fog Blu-ray - Alain Resnais

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

(aka 'Nuit et brouillard' or 'Night and Fog')

directed by Alain Resnais
France 1955

Ten years after the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, filmmaker Alain Resnais documented the abandoned grounds of Auschwitz. One of the first cinematic reflections on the horrors of the Holocaust, Night and Fog (Nuit et Brouillard) contrasts the stillness of the abandoned camps’ quiet, empty buildings with haunting wartime footage. With Night and Fog, Resnais investigates the cyclical nature of man’s violence toward man and presents the unsettling suggestion that such horrors could come again.

Poster

Theatrical Release: October 21st, 1955 - France

Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews

Comparison:

Warner - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

1) Warner - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Criterion- Region 1 - NTSC - MIDDLE

3) Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray - RIGHT

Box Covers
Distribution	Warner Brothers Region 0 - NTSC	Criterion Collection Spine # 197 Region 1 - NTSC	Criterion Collection - Spine #197 - Region 'A' Blu-ray
Runtime	30:24	31:49	0:33:05.858
Video	1.37:1Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 3.84 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.37:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 8.3 NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s	1.37:1 Disc Size: 42,818,029,146 bytes Feature Size: 9,963,454,464 bytes Average Bitrate: 35.99 Mbps Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video: 1080P
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Warner
Bitrate: Criterion
Bitrate: Criterion Blu-ray
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)	French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)	LPCM Audio French 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit
Subtitles	English (non-removable)	English, and none	English, and none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Studios Aspect Ratio: Full Screen (Standard) - 1.33:1 Edition Details (for entire "Short: Authority" Disc): • Color, Black & White, Widescreen, Dolby • Commentary by film historian David Shepard on Night and Fog • Commentary by director Natasha Uppal on The Whites • Commentary by director Sasha Wolf on Joe • Commentary by the director and producer on Flying Over Mother • Includes: *A Girl's Own Story* by Jane Campion, *Performance McKean* with Michael McKean, *Night & Fog* by Alain Resnais, *The Whites, Dada, The Iron Giant/Joe* by animator Piet Kroon, *Flying Over Mother* & *Os Camarada* • Full-screen and widescreen letterbox formats DVD Release Date: April 4, 2000 Snap Case Chapters none	Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: Full Screen (Standard) - 1.37:1 Edition Details: • Radio Interview with Resnais • New high-definition digital transfer, with restored image and sound • Excerpts of audio interviews with Alain Resnais from Le Cinéma des cinéastes (1980) and Les Étoiles du cinéma (1994) • New essay about the film by Phillip Lopate • Essay about composer Hanns Eisler by Russell Lack • Crew profiles written by film historian Peter Cowie • Optional music and effects track DVD Release Date: June 24th, 2003 Keep Case Chapters 7	Release Information: Studio: Criterion Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 Disc Size: 42,818,029,146 bytes Feature Size: 9,963,454,464 bytes Average Bitrate: 35.99 Mbps Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video: 1080P Edition Details: • Excerpt from a 1994 audio interview with director Alain Resnais (5:21) • New interview with filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer (15:29) • Face aux fantômes, a ninety-nine-minute 2009 documentary featuring historian Sylvie Lindeperg that explores the French memory of the Holocaust and the controversy surrounding the film’s release (1:38:52) • PLUS: An essay by film scholar Colin MacCabe Blu-ray Release Date: July 19th, 2016 Transparent Keep case Chapters: 5

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray June 16': The Criterion is from a 2015 Restoration from Argos Films with this statement:

Criterion cite it as a "new 4K digital transfer" and is 1080P (my error). It looks amazing - so superior to the previous DVDs. Contrast, colors, detail are all fabulously improved. It really breathes a film-like sense of realism to the visuals for the viewing presentation. Magnificent. There may be a shade of information cropped off the edges but it's a negligible amount. The interlacing did not effect my viewing. The matched screen captures show the impressive image quality of the Blu-ray.

Criterion stay authentic with a linear PCM audio mono track in the original French (narration). It's clean and consistent. The score is by Hanns Eisler (Jean Renoir's The Woman on the Beach, Fritz Lang's Hangmen Also Die!) and also benefits from the uncompressed transfer. There are optional English subtitles on the region 'A'-locked Blu-ray disc.

Extras include a 5-minute excerpt from a 1994 audio interview with director Alain Resnais (as found on the 2003 DVD) plus there is a new, 16-minute, interview with filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer conducted by Criterion in April 2016. Face aux fantômes is a ninety-nine-minute 2009 documentary featuring historian Sylvie Lindeperg that explores the French memory of the Holocaust and the controversy surrounding the film’s release. There is a liner notes booklet with an essay by film scholar Colin MacCabe.

Certainly another must-own - one of the more impacting pieces of cinema you will ever see. The Nazi Concentration Camp images haunt me to this day. The influence is only augmented by the stellar a/v. Our highest recommendation!

***

ON THE DVDs: The big improvement of this new Criterion disc is the color shots and including the original French audio. The Warner version has a blue-ish tinge to the black and white images and the Criterions are much sharper. The Criterion subs don't have the dark grey background that the Warner ones do. The Criterion version still shows some damage, but it is quite acceptable as the archival footage is so old. The color and contrast are way in Criterions favor as are their extensive Extras. Both discs are reasonably priced, but for only $15 this Criterion disc is a MUST HAVE.

- Gary W. Tooze

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(Warner - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Criterion- Region 1 - NTSC - RIGHT)