La Notte (1961)

[Scottie]

La Notte Blu-ray

This psychologically acute, visually striking modernist work was director Michelangelo Antonioni’s follow-up to the epochal L’avventura. Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau star as a novelist and his frustrated wife who, over the course of one night, confront their alienation from each other and the achingly empty bourgeois Milan circles in which they travel. Antonioni’s muse Monica Vitti smolders as an industrialist’s tempting daughter. Moodily sensual cinematography and subtly expressive performances make La notte an indelible illustration of romantic and social deterioration.

Disc Features
New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
New interview with film critic Adriano Aprà and film historian Carlo Di Carlo
New interview with professor Giuliana Bruno on the role of architecture in La notte
Trailer
New and improved English subtitle translation
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Richard Brody and a 1961 article by director Michelangelo Antonioni

New cover by Lucien S. Y. Yang

[brandon_260]

Wow, the supplements are pretty light on this one as well. This is the October title I am most on the fence about.

[NoirFan]

The upcoming MoC disc is bare-bones, so any extras are a bonus. Glad this was announced with enough time for me to cancel my MoC pre-order.

[poke smot]

Didn't mind this but I'd prefer zabriskie point and blow up.

[dsman71]

okay Ill bite, this sounds interesting, probably rent it first...Blind buying Criterion titles is financial suicide

[Cvalda]

I love L'Avventura, L'Eclisse and Red Desert, but I've heard this isn't quite up to the level of those. Been waiting years to see it, though, so thanks Criterion.

[Cinemach]

Originally Posted by Cvalda

I love L'Avventura, L'Eclisse and Red Desert, but I've heard this isn't quite up to the level of those.

I don't know where you've heard that from, but that's not the case at all. It's not as immediately formally inventive from the camera perspective as the others maybe, and it lacks their full narrative scope as well, true. But it's the most accessible and sensual film of the informal tetralogy, and possibly the most emotionally engaging as well.

I find that Monica Vitti is at her ethereal best - and, well, sexiest - in this film of the cycle as well, for what it's worth.

Put it simply: if you love those others, you won't be disappointed with this one.

[The Great Owl]

Monica Vitti and Jeanne Moreau in the same movie...

While the rest of you kids are busy watching Spring Breakers, I'm going to be watching La Notte. Yessiree.

This will be a blind buy, but I love Antonioni's L'Avventura and L'Eclisse, so I'm expecting the same of this particular entry into the trilogy.

[Mansinthe]

Originally Posted by NoirFan

The upcoming MoC disc is bare-bones, so any extras are a bonus. Glad this was announced with enough time for me to cancel my MoC pre-order.

meh .. another barebone by moc ?
gonna wait for the criterion release...

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Monica Vitti and Jeanne Moreau in the same movie...

While the rest of you kids are busy watching Spring Breakers, I'm going to be watching La Notte. Yessiree.

This will be a blind buy, but I love Antonioni's L'Avventura and L'Eclisse, so I'm expecting the same of this particular entry into the trilogy.

Greatest "Trilogy" of all Time!!!!

[pwilson794]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Greatest "Trilogy" of all Time!!!!

Hi, I am new to this "trilogy" (recently gotten into Criterion) Do I need to have seen either of the others before this movie? or are they stand alones but kind of themeatically related. like the colours trilogy?

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by pwilson794

Hi, I am new to this "trilogy" (recently gotten into Criterion) Do I need to have seen either of the others before this movie? or are they stand alones but kind of themeatically related. like the colours trilogy?

More the latter... it does benefit from seeing them in order, but you won't be lost without doing do.

[Scottie]

Screw it, I'm going to order L'Avventura and L'Eclisse.

[jamesdevil]

Man those screenshots from the review are tasty. Can not wait for this.

[The Great Owl]

I'm shamelessly double-posting my review, since this might just be my favorite Criterion release of 2013. My mind is blown.



Michelangelo Antonioni's 1961 film, La Notte, brings us along for a day in the life of a husband and wife who both quietly struggle with internal unrest as they visit various sites in the city of Milan. At the time of filming, Milan was a marvel of architectural contradictions, where stately pre-World War II settings were being phased out to make way for comparably austere modern skyscrapers, and this conflict between the past and the future is depicted by the director as an externalized representation of the married couple's subdued dissonance. Early in the film, the wife, played by Jeanne Moreau, takes a long walk though cityscapes to a neighborhood that holds fond memories associated with the relationship, only to find a broken clock on the ground and a wall that literally crumbles in her hands. When her husband, played by the forever calm Marcello Mastroianni, joins her and comments on how the site looks as though it has not changed at all, she replies that it will soon.

Jeanne Moreau is one of the most serenely expressive actresses in the history of film, and I can see the whole world in her eyes as she strolls nonchalantly during her scenes. I have enjoyed a number of films featuring Moreau, such as Touchez Pas Au Grisbi, Elevator to the Gallows, The Lovers, Jules and Jim, and even La Femme Nikita, and she never ceases to command the utmost attention with her gaze and mannerisms. She does not verbally betray her emotions during most of this film as she wanders at her husband's side, but her eyes and her physicality, combined with Antonioni's remarkable use of framing, tell us all that we need to know. Marcello Mastroianni, whom I will always associate with Fellini films, is uniquely charismatic even in this role of a burned-out writer who, by his own admission, now only possesses memories instead of ideas. At an overnight party that forms the crescendo of this story, Mastroianni's Giovanni sidesteps praise for his works and appears indifferent to gracious offers of opportunities. Even when he is drawn to the host's daughter, played by the beautiful Monica Vitti, his disconnect is ever-present. The moments when Moreau and Mastroianni are together onscreen are quiet tour-de-forces, especially with their interactions as they watch a visually striking lounge act, and these sequences continue to reverberate into their mannerisms when they are apart from each other.

La Notte is a film graced with spectacular cinematography and framing. When Jeanne Moreau's Lidia is dwarfed by rigid right-angle modern architecture during her wanderings, the visual adds to the perception of her character as a trapped soul. When Mastroianni is seen by window reflection as he observes Vitti, the transparency of his image speaks volumes. In a film that lacks any semblance of dramatic narrative or action, Antonioni's ability to entrance us by way of the images alone is a commendable feat. As Vitti's character expresses during one scene, it is enough simply to observe.

This Criterion Blu-ray of La Notte is a near-flawless transfer of a black-and-white film that makes the most of the important deep blacks in both the night settings and the dark clothing worn by almost everyone. The audio is spot-on, and I treasured the handful of scenes featuring jazz musicians. Since I loved the informative discussions of critic Adriano Apra that were included in the supplements of the Criterion box set, 3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman, I was immensely pleased to watch his take on La Notte on this Blu-ray, and Apra's reflections made me think of the many ways that this Antonioni films draws influence from Rossellini's Journey to Italy. A second supplement, featuring Professor Giuliana Bruno's comments about the importance of architecture in La Notte, is equally engaging.

[SilentDawn]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I'm shamelessly double-posting my review, since this might just be my favorite Criterion release of 2013. My mind is blown.

[Show spoiler]Michelangelo Antonioni's 1961 film, La Notte, brings us along for a day in the life of a husband and wife who both quietly struggle with internal unrest as they visit various sites in the city of Milan. At the time of filming, Milan was a marvel of architectural contradictions, where stately pre-World War II settings were being phased out to make way for comparably austere modern skyscrapers, and this conflict between the past and the future is depicted by the director as an externalized representation of the married couple's subdued dissonance. Early in the film, the wife, played by Jeanne Moreau, takes a long walk though cityscapes to a neighborhood that holds fond memories associated with the relationship, only to find a broken clock on the ground and a wall that literally crumbles in her hands. When her husband, played by the forever calm Marcello Mastroianni, joins her and comments on how the site looks as though it has not changed at all, she replies that it will soon.

Jeanne Moreau is one of the most serenely expressive actresses in the history of film, and I can see the whole world in her eyes as she strolls nonchalantly during her scenes. I have enjoyed a number of films featuring Moreau, such as Touchez Pas Au Grisbi, Elevator to the Gallows, The Lovers, Jules and Jim, and even La Femme Nikita, and she never ceases to command the utmost attention with her gaze and mannerisms. She does not verbally betray her emotions during most of this film as she wanders at her husband's side, but her eyes and her physicality, combined with Antonioni's remarkable use of framing, tell us all that we need to know. Marcello Mastroianni, whom I will always associate with Fellini films, is uniquely charismatic even in this role of a burned-out writer who, by his own admission, now only possesses memories instead of ideas. At an overnight party that forms the crescendo of this story, Mastroianni's Giovanni sidesteps praise for his works and appears indifferent to gracious offers of opportunities. Even when he is drawn to the host's daughter, played by the beautiful Monica Vitti, his disconnect is ever-present. The moments when Moreau and Mastroianni are together onscreen are quiet tour-de-forces, especially with their interactions as they watch a visually striking lounge act, and these sequences continue to reverberate into their mannerisms when they are apart from each other.

La Notte is a film graced with spectacular cinematography and framing. When Jeanne Moreau's Lidia is dwarfed by rigid right-angle modern architecture during her wanderings, the visual adds to the perception of her character as a trapped soul. When Mastroianni is seen by window reflection as he observes Vitti, the transparency of his image speaks volumes. In a film that lacks any semblance of dramatic narrative or action, Antonioni's ability to entrance us by way of the images alone is a commendable feat. As Vitti's character expresses during one scene, it is enough simply to observe.

This Criterion Blu-ray of La Notte is a near-flawless transfer of a black-and-white film that makes the most of the important deep blacks in both the night settings and the dark clothing worn by almost everyone. The audio is spot-on, and I treasured the handful of scenes featuring jazz musicians. Since I loved the informative discussions of critic Adriano Apra that were included in the supplements of the Criterion box set, 3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman, I was immensely pleased to watch his take on La Notte on this Blu-ray, and Apra's reflections made me think of the many ways that this Antonioni films draws influence from Rossellini's Journey to Italy. A second supplement, featuring Professor Giuliana Bruno's comments about the importance of architecture in La Notte, is equally engaging.

Awesome review Owl! Might have to pick this one up soon, looks like a beautiful Criterion package.

[Scottie]

This has one of the nicest transfers that I've ever seen. Also, the film is out of this world fantastic!

[StonesEGF]

I'd never seen this one before, but picked it up as a fan of Antonioni's other movies. Finally got the chance to watch it this weekend.

Simply put: wow. This is one of the most beautifully shot movies I have ever seen.

It may be my favorite by Antonioni... but really, his films are impossible to rank from my perspective. I am constantly finding new focal points when I watch them, so it's as though I've never seen the same one twice.

[Ray Jackson]

I picked this one up today at Barnes and Noble, but not sure if I want to keep it or not. It was either that or L'Eclisse.

What's the general consensus on La Notte as compared L'Eclisse?

...better or worse?

[JoeBuck]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

I picked this one up today at Barnes and Noble, but not sure if I want to keep it or not. It was either that or L'Eclisse.

What's the general consensus on La Notte as compared L'Eclisse?

...better or worse?

Depends on who you talk to, personally its my favorite of the trilogy but L'Eclisse is damn good too.
On top of that the transfer for La Notte is gorgeous.
I definitely say keep it.