The River (1951)

[Scottie]

The River Blu-ray

This entrancing first color feature from Jean Renoir—shot entirely on location in India—is a visual tour de force. Based on the novel by Rumer Godden, the film eloquently contrasts the growing pains of three young women with the immutability of the holy Bengal River, around which their daily lives unfold. Enriched by Renoir’s subtle understanding of and appreciation for India and its people, The River gracefully explores the fragile connections between transitory emotions and steadfast creation.

Disc Features
High-definition digital transfer from the 2004 Film Foundation restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
Archival introduction to the film by director Jean Renoir
Around the River, a 60-minute 2008 documentary by Arnaud Mandagaran about the making of the film
Interview from 2004 with Martin Scorsese
Audio interview from 2000 with producer Ken McEldowney
New visual essay by film writer Paul Ryan, featuring rare behind-the-scenes stills
Trailer
PLUS: An essay by film scholar Ian Christie and original production notes by Renoir

New cover by Kathleen Cantwell

[tama]

Looks like we can expect similar or like-wise picture quality results as the French release here:

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-R.../34502/#Review

[javi92]

So glad Criterion is getting around to shoveling some Renoir out the door. About time. Wish they'd upgrade some more 60s Godard titles too.

[pro-bassoonist]

PACKACING SHOTS (More in the review):

The River Blu-ray REVIEW







Pro-B

[mrbrat_Boy]

Watched Jean Renoir’s The River last night. The movie was not entirely engaging, however the intimate story made my heart smile. It was a sensitive coming-of-age story about three young girls; with their respective backgrounds. Narrated by the main protagonist Harriet (Patricia Walters), we are introduced to her whole family and their charming beginnings in Bengal. The initial reels begin with a narration while a rangoli is being made. Colourful and beautifully detailed, the rangoli scene is explained a bit later in movie. However, the rangoli also represents this first colour feature by the director, in which colour is used extensively.

The movie is told in a docu-movie style, explaining Indian culture and sentiments to expound on the happenings in the film. As mentioned above, colour makes the explanations even more vivid, giving the landscapes of Bengal and the Ganges an identity in the movie. The film is basically a time capsule of the era representing the thinking and ideals of that era. The circumstances and sentiments presented are interesting to note, because time has changed so much; you wouldn’t really find teenagers in these situations. Another interesting point is the blending East / West sub cultures.

The performances by main characters are good, and they excel at showing their emotions. Primarily you would expect the story to concentrate on certain characters, however the movie highlights many of the secondary characters circumstances. The neighbour Mr. John has a chance to shine with some excellent dialogue on philosophy and his interesting role.

The PQ on this disc is superb. Criterion have really delivered; the detail and clarity are shining examples of their professional work. The cinematography is beautiful and extensive.

AQ is excellent also; the disc contains and English LPCM Mono track. It is clear and quite enjoyable. During the movie there is a Thillana rendition with a Bharatnatyam dance, I enjoyed that quite a bit.

Movie: 7/10
PQ: 10/10
AQ: 10/10

[howardtaft]

I was wondering if anyone else noticed color temperature instability on this disc? There was frequent shifting between colder and warmer color temperature.
On the other hand, could this be my TV? I have not noticed it on any other films I've watched recently though. It was quite noticeable to me, and my far less picky wife noticed right away when I pointed it out.

Am I crazy? Can LCD TVs do this? The film looks really great, but it was a bit distracting having scenes change from blue to red to blue and back every few seconds. I assume this is a trait of early technicolor processing and no one else is mentioning it for this disc.

[ArnoldLayne56]

Originally Posted by howardtaft

I was wondering if anyone else noticed color temperature instability on this disc? There was frequent shifting between colder and warmer color temperature.
On the other hand, could this be my TV? I have not noticed it on any other films I've watched recently though. It was quite noticeable to me, and my far less picky wife noticed right away when I pointed it out.

Am I crazy? Can LCD TVs do this? The film looks really great, but it was a bit distracting having scenes change from blue to red to blue and back every few seconds. I assume this is a trait of early technicolor processing and no one else is mentioning it for this disc.

Not crazy, it was terribly distracting.

[Lyle_JP]

I still have my Criterion laserdisc of this. I've only watched it once, so probably not worth the upgrade if there are picture instabilities.

[bytor]

I picked this up from the Criterion sale and also noticed the frequent color shifting in a lot of scenes. Does anyone know if the Carlotta release also has this problem?