A Special Day (1977)

[pro-bassoonist]

A Special Day Blu-ray REVIEW



It is great to see that Ettore Scola, one of the true (remaining) giants of Italian cinema, is finally in the Criterion Collection. Hopefully, we will see more of his films soon. The new 4K restoration is stunning



There is only one film from Scola on Blu-ray in the U.S., but if you are interested in his work these releases from Gaumont are Region-Free and English-friendly. Wonderful films. I also included Scola's directorial debut, Let's Talk About Women, which is out only on DVD in France. It is English-friendly, but this release has been very difficult to get. So track down a copy now if you want it. The film is as entertaining as Dino Risi's Il Sorpasso, which Scola scripted. Again with Vittorio Gassman





Pro-B

[Oniros]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

It is great to see that Ettore Scola, one of the true (remaining) giants of Italian cinema, is finally in the Criterion Collection. Hopefully, we will see more of his films soon. The new 4K restoration is stunning

There is only one film from Scola on Blu-ray in the U.S., but if you are interested in his work these releases from Gaumont are Region-Free and English-friendly. Wonderful films. I also included Scola's directorial debut, Let's Talk About Women, which is out only on DVD in France. It is English-friendly, but this release has been very difficult to get. So track down a copy now if you want it. The film is as entertaining as Dino Risi's Il Sorpasso, which Scola scripted. Again with Vittorio Gassman

Thanks for sharing! Unfortunately, he passed away last week. The only film I've seen from him is Ugly, Dirty, and Bad (finally, coming out on BD later this year) and I really liked it. I'll make sure to check this one out soon.

[Namuhana]

I blind-bought this during B&N's November sale and I think it might just be the best movie I watched last year (or, at least in the top 5). It's seriously wonderful filmmaking.

[chane]

Despite the technical quality of their releases, Criterion are despicably indifferent to numerous pleas to 1.) Stop disabling BD player zoom functionality. 2.) Include original English dubbed soundtrack (e.g. "Special Day").

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by chane

Despite the technical quality of their releases, Criterion are despicably indifferent to numerous pleas to 1.) Stop disabling BD player zoom functionality. 2.) Include original English dubbed soundtrack (e.g. "Special Day").

Those aren’t pleas. No one wants a terrible dub.

[uncledougie]

While I agree that decently translated subtitles are by far the best way to view a foreign language film (and I highly recommend A Special Day, which I’ve loved since its theatrical release period), there are times when at least a well dubbed version can be called for. For instance, I have a good friend who truly appreciates and enjoys international cinema (Fellini most especially, but also Kurosawa, Bergman, Truffaut, etc), but his eyesight has become severely compromised due to diabetes side effects. So anymore he simply cannot keep up with fast moving subtitles, even those with larger font styles. So a choice of subtitles, dubbing or original language w/o subtitles would be ideal. That way everyone is accommodated.

[Laserguy]

Originally Posted by uncledougie

While I agree that decently translated subtitles are by far the best way to view a foreign language film (and I highly recommend A Special Day, which I’ve loved since its theatrical release period), there are times when at least a well dubbed version can be called for. For instance, I have a good friend who truly appreciates and enjoys international cinema (Fellini most especially, but also Kurosawa, Bergman, Truffaut, etc), but his eyesight has become severely compromised due to diabetes side effects. So anymore he simply cannot keep up with fast moving subtitles, even those with larger font styles. So a choice of subtitles, dubbing or original language w/o subtitles would be ideal. That way everyone is accommodated.

Some of us like having the English dub track (as an option) for nostalgic reasons, because that's how we originally saw the film. Not just kung fu and Godzilla movies, but some art films as well. I was disappointed that Kino's otherwise exemplary Lina Wertmuller releases were missing the English dubs I remember from their HBO showings back in the 1970's, although I believe (of course) the Italian tracks are the preferred way to view them.

[trevrox]

Anyone know how the Criterion compares to the one in this release? https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Sophi...lu-ray/222542/