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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
Regarded by some as
Federico Fellini’s finest work, and the winner of the first Academy
Award for Best Foreign Language Film, La Strada is a masterpiece
of 20th Century filmmaking. Sold by her impoverished mother to Zampano
(Anthony Quinn), a brutish fairground wrestler, waif-like Gelsomina (Giulietta
Masina) lives a life of drudgery as his assistant. After taking to the
road with a travelling circus, a budding relationship with Il Matto/The
Fool (Richard Basehart), a gentle-natured, tightrope walking clown,
offers a potential refuge from her master’s clutches. Trapped by her own
servile nature, Gelsomina waivers, and Zampano’s volcanic temper erupts
with tragic consequences. *** There has never been a face quite like that of Giulietta Masina. Her husband, the legendary Federico Fellini, directs her as Gelsomina in La Strada, the film that launched them both to international stardom. Gelsomina is sold by her mother into the employ of Zampanò (Anthony Quinn,) a brutal strongman in a traveling circus. When Zampanò encounters an old rival in highwire artist the Fool (Richard Basehart), his fury is provoked to its breaking point. With La Strada, Fellini left behind the familiar signposts of Italian neorealism for a poetic fable of love and cruelty, evoking brilliant performances and winning the hearts of audiences and critics worldwide. |
Posters
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Theatrical Release: September 6th, 1954 - Venice Film Festival
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
Comparison
:Criterion - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Studio Canal - Region 'B' -
Blu-ray vs. Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-rayBox Covers |
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Presently only available in Criterion's Essential Fellini Blu-ray package with 14 films (15-Blu-rays) Bonus Captures: Coming out Individually by Criterion on Blu-ray in November 2021: |
Distribution | Criterion Collection Spine # 219 Region 0 - NTSC | Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray | Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
(click titles for DVDBeaver reviews) This edition (without any extras) is also available in The Essential Art House - 50 Years of Janus Films - a 50-disc celebration of international films collected under the auspices of the groundbreaking theatrical distributor. It contains Alexander Nevsky (1938), Ashes And Diamonds (1958), L'avventura (1960), Ballad Of A Soldier (1959), Beauty And The Beast (1946), Black Orpheus (1959), Brief Encounter (1945), The Fallen Idol (1948), Fires On The Plain (1959), Fists In The Pocket (1965), Floating Weeds (1959), Forbidden Games (1952), The 400 Blows (1959), Grand Illusion (1937), Häxan (1922), Ikiru (1952), The Importance Of Being Earnest (1952), Ivan The Terrible, Part II (1958), Le Jour Se Lève (1939), Jules And Jim (1962), Kind Hearts And Coronets (1949), Knife In The Water (1962), The Lady Vanishes (1938), The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp (1943), Loves Of A Blonde (1965), M (1931), M. Hulot's Holiday (1953), Miss Julie (1951), Pandora's Box (1929), Pépé Le Moko (1937), Il Posto (1961), Pygmalion (1938), Rashomon (1950), Richard III (1955), The Rules Of The Game (1939), Seven Samurai (1954), The Seventh Seal (1957), The Spirit Of The Beehive (1973), La Strada (1954), Summertime (1955), The Third Man (1949), The 39 Steps (1935), Ugetsu (1953), Umberto D. (1952), The Virgin Spring (1960), Viridiana (1961), The Wages Of Fear (1953), The White Sheik (1952), Wild Strawberries (1957), Three Documentaries By Saul J. Turell plus the hardcover, full color 240-page book. |
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Runtime | 1:48:24 | 1:47:47.416 | 1:49:00.075 |
Video | 1.33:1
Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 8.18 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s |
Disc Size: 47,734,344,588 bytes Feature Size: 26,871,005,184 bytes Average Bitrate: 29.99 MbpsDual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video |
Disc Size: 48,630,889,627 bytes Feature Size: 33,199,245,312 bytes Average Bitrate: 36.01 MbpsDual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video |
Bitrate: |
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Bitrate Studio Canal: Blu-ray |
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Bitrate Criterion: Blu-ray |
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Audio | Italian (Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono) , DUB: English | LPCM Audio Italian 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit |
LPCM Audio Italian 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit
Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps |
Subtitles | English, None | English, None | English, None |
Features |
Release Information: Edition Details:
DVD Release Date: November 18th, 2003
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Release Information: Studio: Studio Canal
Disc Size: 47,734,344,588 bytes Feature Size: 26,871,005,184 bytes Average Bitrate: 29.99 MbpsDual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video
Edition Details: Standard (UK) Thick Blu-ray Case inside cardboard slipcase Chapters: 12 |
Release Information: Studio: Criterion
Disc Size: 48,630,889,627 bytes Feature Size: 33,199,245,312 bytes Average Bitrate: 36.01 MbpsDual-layered Blu-ray MPEG-4 AVC Video
Edition Details: • introduction by Martin Scorsese (13:45)
• Federico
Fellini’s Autobiography, a 2000 documentary originally
broadcast on Italian television (55:16)
PLUS: Deluxe packaging, including two lavishly illustrated books with
hundreds of pages of content: notes on the films by scholar David
Forgacs, essays by filmmakers Michael Almereyda, Kogonada, and Carol
Morley; film critics Bilge Ebiri and Stephanie Zacharek; and novelist
Colm Tóibín, and dozens of images spotlighting Don Young’s renowned
collection of Fellini memorabilia Blu-ray Release Date: November 24th, 2020Custom Blu-ray Case (see below) Chapters 26 |
Comments: |
NOTE:
The below
Blu-ray
captures were taken directly from the
Blu-ray
disc.
The package has "New 4K
restorations" but the biggest issue with
La Strada in
the past was the digitization (high-frequency edge enhancement) of the DVDs
going back to Criterion's 2003 SD transfer. As compared to the 2017 Studio
Canal Blu-ray,
the Criterion states at the beginning of the presentation (perhaps
indicating why the running time is slightly longer) : "Restored in 4K
resolution by the Criterion Collection and The Film Foundation at Cineteca
di Bologna's L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratory from a 35mm dupe negative
preserved by Beta Film GmbH. Restoration funding provided by the Hollywood
Foreign Press Association."
The Criterion has a higher
bitrate (max'ed out) than the Studio Canal 1080P, the image has richer black
levels and better grain support. There are differences in the framing and
aspect ratio, but, to my eyes, the Criterion appears more accurate.
Hopefully the matched captures below will give you an idea of the disparity.
NOTE: We have added 53 more large
resolution Blu-ray captures
(in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE
On their
Blu-ray,
Criterion use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original Italian
language with an optional lossy English DUB (just like their DVD
advertised as 'featuring the voices of Anthony Quinn and Richard Basehart'.) The post DUB'ing is, at times, imperfect but that is a function of the
production and many Italian films. The score is by
Nino Rota
(Nights
of Cabiria, Juliet
of the Spirits,
Rocco
and His Brothers,
Death on the Nile,
Il
Bidone,
8
1/2,
I Clowns,
Purple Noon,
The Leopard etc.) adding
another vital layer to the story. Criterion offer optional English
subtitles on their Region 'A'
Blu-ray.
The Criterion
Blu-ray
has included the previous commentary by Peter Bondanella, author of
The Cinema of Federico
Fellini, (recorded for the Criterion Collection in 2003, this
commentary features Peter Bondanella, who was Distinguished Professor of
Comparative Literature and Italian at Indiana University. He was also
the author of
Italian Cinema: From Neorea/ism to the Present and the coeditor
of La strada, the English-language critical edition of the film's
continuity script.), the Scorsese introduction and 55-minute long
2000 documentary originally broadcast on Italian television described as
"For this 2000 documentary, Paquito Del Bosco was given total access
to the RAI (Italian national public broadcaster) archives' holdings of
television interviews with director Federico Fellini. " There is
also a trailer.
NOTE: The deluxe packaging, includes two lavishly illustrated
books with hundreds of pages of content: notes on the films by scholar
David Forgacs, essays by filmmakers Michael Almereyda, Kogonada, and
Carol Morley; film critics Bilge Ebiri and Stephanie Zacharek; and
novelist Colm Tóibín, and dozens of images spotlighting Don Young’s
renowned collection of Fellini memorabilia collector’s set designed by
Raphael Geroni, with new illustrations by Abigail Giuseppe.
Federico Fellini's La Strada
is, a masterpiece - looking marvelous in the new 4K-restoration. I will just state,
as I did with
Nights of Cabiria, that this is an integral part of
Criterion's upcoming
Essential Fellini Blu-ray
package... which is an
obvious front-runner for best of the entire 2020 year.
*** ADDITION: Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray July 17'': The new Studio Canal transfer is on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. It doesn't have the grain I was anticipating but it has some good qualities beyond the much older DVDs. The Criterion has digitization in the form of edge-enhancement - bringing up the detail but this becomes evident upon close inspection or comparing to the HD. The Optimum has an unpleasant waxiness and softness. The 1080P is much brighter, has more detail and more information in the frame - specifically when compared to the Criterion where there is notably more on the bottom, right and left edges. The Studio Canal looks very pleasing in-motion and is very clean. I like the look of this and will compare to other 1080P transfers if they surface, but I was absolutely thrilled to see this on Blu-ray, although more texture would improve the viewing, imo. Studio Canal use a linear PCM mono track (16-bit) in the original Italian. The post DUB'ing is at the weaker end of the spectrum but we accept this from many Italian films. It, frequently, is out-of-sync. The impacting score is by Nino Rota (Il Bidone, 8 1/2, I Clowns, Purple Noon, The Leopard etc.) and sounds bold and powerful in the uncompressed with some, inherent, weakness in the higher-end. There are optional English subtitles on the Region 'B' Blu-ray disc. Studio Canal add some impressive extras starting with an 18-minute select-scene commentary by Chris Weigand (to, what appears to be, a lesser print quality than the 1080P.) There are three different scenes (first street performance and a sequence where Gelsomina and 'the Fool' bond and Zampanò chases him away, the final scene used has a drunk Zampanò beaten in the street, wandering on the beach) and Weigand provides a good background on the production, Masina, Fellini and Quinn - referencing other films. It's a kind to a visual essay and I only wish it was longer - dare I say, a full commentary - as by Peter Bondanella on the Criterion. We get 2 new interviews - one with director Julian Jarrold running shy of 12-minutes describing the personal impact the film had on him and why. There is a rewarding 24-minute interview with Peter Matthews, Senior Lecturer, Film & Television, London College of Communication. He provides details on Fellini, his start after a meeting with Rossellini, neo-realism, and much more. We get The Guardian Interview with Anthony Quinn recorded at the BFI in 1995 running short of 1/2 hour. Also included in delightful, 10-minute, Giulietta Masina 1955 Cannes interview. La Strada is one of Fellini's most beloved films. Unforgettable. Gut-wrenching. The package is the best I have ever seen the film presented - making it even more impacting. Devastatingly so. This is on our Top 100 Desert Island Discs listing. A must own Blu-ray, for the film if nothing more. |
Signal One - Region 'B' - Blu-ray
Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Subtitle Samples
1) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray - TOP2) Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM |
1) Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP2) Optimum - Region 2- PAL SECOND3) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray THIRD 4) Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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High Frequency edge enhancement on the
Criterion DVD
1) Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP2) Optimum - Region 2- PAL SECOND3) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray THIRD 4) Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP2) Optimum - Region 2- PAL SECOND3) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray THIRD 4) Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP2) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray MIDDLE3)Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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1) Criterion - Region 1 - NTSC - TOP2) Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray MIDDLE3)Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
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More full resolution (1920 X 1080) Blu-ray Captures for DVDBeaver Patreon Supporters HERE
Recommended Books on Federico Fellini (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
Federico Fellini by Christopher Wiegand |
Fellini on Fellini by Federico Fellini, Isabel Quigley |
The Cinema of Federico Fellini by Peter Bondanella |
The Films of Federico Fellini (Cambridge
Film Classics) by Peter Bondanella, Ray Carney |
I'm a Born Liar: A Fellini Lexicon by Damian Pettigrew |
Fellini by Lietta Tornabuoni |
Fellini: A Life by Hollis Alpert |
I, Fellini by Charlotte Chandler, Billy Wilder |
Box Covers |
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Presently only available in Criterion's Essential Fellini Blu-ray package with 14 films (15-Blu-rays) Bonus Captures: Coming out Individually by Criterion on Blu-ray in November 2021: |
Distribution | Criterion Collection Spine # 219 Region 0 - NTSC | Studio Canal - Region 'B' - Blu-ray | Criterion - Region 'A' - Blu-ray |
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