Steve Crook

Four new P&P DVDs from L'Institut Lumière in Lyon
All films use their original soundtracks (so arer mainly in English) with subtitles in French.
Except where stated otherwise, all extras are original for L'Institut Lumière.
Each double DVD has the film on Disc 1 with a preface or presentation followed by some trailers. Disc 2 in each pair contains a set of extra documentaries & films as detailed below.

Note: This is the information that I was sent by L'Institut Lumière saying what they planned to include. I don't know for certain that all of it actually made it through the final cut.


<span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%">Les Chaussons Rouges - The Red Shoes (1948)</span>

Disc 1 - Extras:
Film's Presentation by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 6 min
Trailers: Les Chaussons Rouges - Le Narcisse Noir - 49e Parallèle

Disc 2 - Extras:
Memories of Michael (Part 1) by Thelma Schoonmaker-Powell
(In English with French subtitles); 12 min
A Daring Adventurer (Part 1) by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 20 min
Profile of The Red Shoes
(In English with French subtitles); 26 min; Carlton
One Step Into the Dance by Yourgos Loukos
Interview with Yorgos Loukos, directeur of Lyon Opéra Ballet
(In French with English subtitles); 25 min
+ A luxurious 8 page leaflet


<span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%">Le Narcisse Noir - Black Narcissus (1947)</span>
Film HD remastered version by Granada Media International ltd, first projection at Cannes Classics 2005

Disc 1 - Extras:
Preface by Martin Scorsese
(In English with French subtitles); 3 min 30; Cannes Classics
Film's presentation by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 6 min
Trailers: Le Narcisse Noir - Les Chaussons Rouges - 49e Parallèle

Disc 2 - Extras:
Memories of Michael (Part 3) by Thelma Schoonmaker-Powell
(In English with French subtitles); 12 min;
A Daring Adventurer (Part 2) by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 20 min
Profile of The Black Narcissus
(In English with French subtitles); 26 min; Carlton
Painting with Light
About Jack Cardiff's work on Black Narcissus (By Craig McCall)
(In English with French subtitles); 27 min; Carlton
This is Colour
A demonstration film for Technicolor photographed by Jack Cardiff before his work with M. Powell
(In English with French subtitles); 13 min; BFI collection
+ A luxurious 8 page leaflet


<span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%">Colonel Blimp - The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)</span>

Disc 1 - Extras:
Film's Presentation by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 6 min
Trailers: Le Narcisse Noir - Les Chaussons Rouges - 49e Parallèle

Disc 2 - Extras:
Memories of Michael (Part 2) by Thelma Schoonmaker-Powell
(In English with French subtitles); 12 min;
A Daring Adventurer (Part 3) by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 20 min
Profile of Colonel Blimp
(In English with French subtitles); 26 min (Prod Carlton)
The Making of an Englishman
A documentary by Kevin Macdonald about Emeric Pressburger
(In English with French subtitles); 51 min
+ A luxurious 8 page leaflet


<span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%">49e Parallèle - The 49th Parallel (1941)</span>

Disc 1 - Extras:
Film's Presentation by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 6 min

Disc 2 - Extras:
Preface by Martin Scorsese
(In English with French subtitles); 3 min 30; Cannes Classics
Memories of Michael (Part 4) by Thelma Schoonmaker-Powell
(In English with French subtitles); 9 min
A Daring Adventurer (Part 4) by Bertrand Tavernier
(In French with English subtitles); 10 min
Trailers: Le Narcisse Noir - Les Chaussons Rouges - 49e Parallèle
+ A luxurious 8 page leaflet



I had these on pre-order from Amazon.fr and they emailed today to say they're in the post.

Steve

Steve Crook

PaPAS

theuofc

Gone to Heaven! [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/jump.gif[/img] With the extra documentaries by Thelma Schoonmaker-Powell and Bertrand Tavernier! along with specials like Jack Cardiff's pre-Powell demonstration film for technicolor, etc., I don't mind duplicating the films I already own. I have to have these new DVDs. This is a matter of life and death! [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clapping.gif[/img]

Best,

Barbara

JamesM

Criterion are working on a special edition of 49th Parallel.

theuofc

Don't you wish Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger were alive to see these wonderful editions coming out and the reception people around the world are giving their works. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clapping.gif[/img]

Best,

Barbara

arty-dave

Thank you, Colonel Blimp
[img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/mellow.gif[/img]

Steve Crook

And others [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]

Steve

theuofc

Watch out, or war starts at midnight. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif[/img] [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif[/img]

Best,

Barbara

theuofc

Are you free to say which ones? [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/detective.gif[/img]

Barbara

Steve Crook

Not yet, but I will in good time.

Steve

theuofc

May I ask if there is a difference between ordering the dvds at the L'Institut Lumière site or at Amazon.fr? I just looked at both sites, and the price seems approximately the same. Is it the shipping to the UK that is different, or am I missing something? I thought I'd better check before I place an order.

Thanks, [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsup.gif[/img]

Barbara

Steve Crook

No difference that I know of. It was just that Amazon.fr had a way to buy (or pre-order) them before L'Institut.
I also get a couple of centimes back for every puchase made through the links above [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clapping.gif[/img]

Steve

theuofc

Thanks. I'd forgotten about that. It's an important difference. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsup.gif[/img]

Barbara

Steve Crook

The French DVDs of the Powell & Pressburger films arrived this morning (a late birthday present to myself).

They are very good, but it does help to have at least a smattering of French.

I've just spent a couple of hours going through the extras on the first couple of DVD sets.
Each of the 4 sets (for 49th Parallel, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, Black Narcissus & The Red Shoes) has 2 DVDs.

The first DVD in each set contains the film itself with the original soundtrack (so mainly in English) with French subtitles. Plus an introduction to the film by Bertrand Tavernier (in French with English subtitles). These introductions are actually Bertrand reading a script prepared by our friend, the lovely Natacha Thiéry, while they show various stills and a few clips to illustrate the points being made.
The first disk for BN has an additional intro by Martin Scorsese.
Three of the sets also have original trailers for 49P, BN & TRS

The second disk in each set has Thelma telling of her memories of life with Michael, about 10-12 mins on each disk. These give a good impression of what he was like as a person as well as what he was like as a film-maker.
Then there is a series called A Daring Adventurer running through the second disk in each set. These have Bertrand Tavernier relating his own thoughts about the films (in French with English subtitles), his meetings with P&P and his working with Michael and the influences and effects of the films.
Each second disk also has some addition extras more specific to the film in that set.

The TRS set has Carlton's A Profile of 'The Red Shoes' and a fascinating interview with Yorgos Loukos, director of the Lyons Opera Ballet. Yorgos gives a very good analysis of TRS from a dancers point of view, both contemporary to the film and how it is seen by dancers nowadays. He also talks a lot about the differences between the companies that existed in the old days and the way that the members of those companies were treated and compares that to the way that dance companies work today. He thinks that Moira got the job in TRS for her looks (& her red hair) more than for her dancing ability. In fact the only dancer he really seems to admire in the film is Massine, and that's as much for his history and experience as for what he actually did in the film. But don't get me wrong, he loves the film. Because it's still, he says, one of the few dance films that's actually about dance, rather than backstage relationships. He greatly admires all the trickery, the varying camera speeds, the special effects, the camera movement and the way the film tries to show what the dancer sees and feels. And of course he loves Anton as Lermontov, seeing in him a great portrayal of Diaghilev and the way that the film portrays collaboration between artists.

The Blimp set has Carlton's A Profile of 'Colonel Blimp' and Kevin Macdonald's documentary The Making of an Englishman where he follows the path his grandfather (Emeric Pressburger) took around Europe before settling in Britain. It's good to see that again, my video copy was getting a bit tatty.

The BN set has Carlton's A Profile of 'Black Narcissus' and Craig McCall's Painting With Light documentary about Jack Cardiff that was on the Carlton DVD of BN. It also has This is Colour, a demonstration film for Technicolor photographed by Jack Cardiff. Yes, the 1942 trade film to introduce the joys of Technicolor. It's the one with lots of pots of paint being spilled and swirling into each other - well, it was sponsored by ICI who made paint.

The 49P set also has an introduction by Martin Scorsese.

Each set comes with a nice little 40+ page booklet with the words in French but lots of pictures, and some of the introductions in the documentaries are in French with no English translations. But when you know who everyone is it's fairly easy to work them out.

The films themselves look to be very good quality and they score 10/10 because although they've used the recent Granada reprint BN they've somehow managed to correct the "Black out" scene so that it actually goes to black! Granada didn't bother with that despite my telling them about it.

All in all a lovely addition to the collection.

The booklets do also mention that they're planning on doing DVD sets of A Canterbury Tale & I Know Where I'm Going! to follow this collection.

Steve

Steve Crook

PaPAS