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

ADDITION: Criterion Blu-ray (August 2020): Criterion have transferred Francesco Rosi's Christ Stopped at Eboli to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "New 2K digital restoration". Approaching a 4-hour running time the 1080P transfer is on a dual-layered disc with a, predictably, modest bitrate. The 1.33:1 image looks pleasing - some of the outdoor cinematography (Basilicata, Italy) is quite impressive in this HD resolution. Interiors are fairly dark - which I presume to be accurate and detail isn't at the forefront as there are a limited number of close-ups. There may be a slight shift in the four segments - running between 50-minutes to 1 hour each with some minor blue-leaning. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation and had no serious issues with the hi-def video. Contrast levels were strong and this is at Criterion's usual high standard.  

NOTE: We have added 60 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. It is authentically flat but clear with consistent dialogue and a gentle score by jazz musician Piero Piccioni (The Light at the Edge of the World, Two Males For Alexa, Fox With a Velvet Tail, Three Brothers, The 10th Victim, Adua and Her Friends, Hands Over the City, L'assassino, The Moment of Truth) supporting the film's, often dour, tone well. Criterion offer optional English subtitles (translated by Michael F. Moore) on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Criterion Blu-ray offers a new 28-minute introduction by translator and author Michael F. Moore. He is a translator. interpreter, and writer who worked on the subtitles for the restored version of Christ Stopped at Eboli, taking into account the dialects of the Basilicata region of Italy, where the film takes place. In this interview. filmed in 2020 for the Criterion Collection, he discusses director Francesco Rosi, author and painter Carlo Levi, and the political and cultural contexts of the film. There is a 25-minute documentary directed by Bouramy Tio Long aired on the French television series Cine regards on July 5th,1978. The program addresses the challenges facing the Italian film industry at the time and includes interviews with filmmakers Francesco Rosi and Elio Petri and actor Gian Maria Volontè. It also features footage from the set of Christ Stopped at Eboli and of Rosi discussing the origins of his adaptation. There are about 25-minutes of excerpt from a 1974 documentary featuring Rosi and author Carlo Levi - these segments are from the August 9th, 1974 episode of the French talk show ltaliques, directed by Michel Random where director Francesco Rosi and author and painter Carlo Levi discuss postwar Italian literature and film, Levi's exile, his 1945 novel Christ Stopped at Eboli, and its political and literary impact. There are also 1/4 hour's worth of excerpts from Marco Spagnoli’s short April 4th, 2014 documentary Unico, in which critic and filmmaker Marco Spagnoli recorded the last on-camera interview given by director Francesco Rosi. In these segments from the documentary Spagnoli created from that interview where Rosi discusses his collaboration with actor Gian Maria Volontè on Christ Stopped at Eboli. There is also a trailer and the package has a booklet featuring an essay by scholar Alexander Stille and a 1979 director’s statement by Rosi.

Francesco Rosi's Christ Stopped at Eboli is brilliant. This is a long film and I suspect that spreading it out over multiple viewings may be even more impacting than how I watched it - straight through without gaps. I was nonetheless blown away by its subtle impact. It's considered Francesco Rosi's (Hands Over the City, Three Brothers, Moment of Truth) best film - which is saying volumes. Like the protagonist - there is a lot of contemplative, helpless, observations in Christ Stopped at Eboli. It is a sad, almost haunting dissertation on oppression. A masterpiece. I was ecstatic to watch this on Criterion Blu-ray - a melancholy and draining cinema experience. I thoroughly enjoyed Michael F. Moore's comments on Rosi and Christ Stopped at Eboli as well as the interviews and documentary excerpts. This is fabulous cinema and the Criterion Blu-ray gets our highest recommendation. Don't hesitate.

Gary Tooze