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[COLOR= black]Last Tango in Paris (Blu-ray)[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
Studio: MGM
Year: 1973
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 1080p AVC codec
Running Time: 129 minutes
Rating: NC-17
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 English; Dolby Digital 2.0 mono Spanish, French, German, others
Subtitles: SDH, French[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Region:[/COLOR][COLOR= black] A
MSRP: $ 19.99[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Release Date: February 15, 2011[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black] Review Date:[/COLOR][COLOR= black] February 26, 2011[/COLOR]
The Film
4/5
Of all the quality films branded with an X-rating during the early years of the MPAA’s newly established rating codes (Midnight Cowboy, A Clockwork Orange, The Devils), Bernardo Bertolucci’s Last Tango in Paris is likely the most renowned. Bertolucci’s emotional sado-masochistic drama features daring (for its time) discussions and explorations of formerly taboo subject matter while delving into the personal lives of two troubled souls, people who for one reason or another need each other at a specific moment in time and once that time has past, find themselves completely asynchronous in their needs. Raw, real performances from the two principals give gravitas to scenes which today might seem less shocking or revealing than they were when the film was first released. The NC-17 rating the film now sports seems wildly over reactive to what’s actually on the screen.
After the suicide of his wife Rosa, widower Paul (Marlon Brando) has such grief and anger over what she has done to his life that he can only work through his feelings in a series of anonymous sexual and emotional encounters with a twenty-year old actress (Maria Schneider) whom he meets while renting the flat where they eventually have their rendezvous. Though she has a filmmaker boy friend (Jean-Pierre Léaud) who’s shooting Jeanne as the centerpiece in what we understand today would be a reality series for television, she’s fascinated by Paul initially because of the anonymity of their relationship obviously hoping that later she can learn about him. No names are exchanged, and though he wishes there to be nothing between them but sex, feelings and memories begin to invade their encounters in spite of their best efforts, and at various times, each of the two participants in these clandestine encounters find themselves grappling with feelings of love for the other.
Bernardo Bertolucci’s story (script co-written with Franco Arcalli) takes the usual emotional shortcuts depriving us of some seemingly central scenes as the two people’s feelings go through a metamorphosis that gives the film its primary moments of interest. (The sex scenes, notorious in their day, are much tamer now than much of what is shown in R-rated modern movies.) Still, what we get, particularly from Marlon Brando, are some harrowingly unprocessed feelings bubbling to the surface. His grief comes at unexpected moments, and when it happens, it’s unblinkingly real. A lengthy monologue in the room with the corpse of his wife puts the actor through the emotional wringer going through the stages of grief in a master class of improvisational acting. Bertolucci has a few other tricks up his sleeve. He stages a fun counterpoint moment where the two lovers are making grunting noises at each other only to quickly cut to a zoo where the director Tom is filming one of the daffy scenes for his reality program. Bertolucci picks up the pace as the film reaches its climactic scenes at the ballroom and afterward as the rules for the game are attempted to be changed with tragic results. Where the film had been taking a leisurely route to its “last tango” through much of the movie, its final quarter hour virtually leaps forward in galvanizing fits and spurts.
Having won (and refused) the Oscar the previous year as Best Actor for The Godfather, there was no way the Academy would have honored Marlon Brando for his work in Last Tango (he was nominated) though for my money this is the superior performance. He’s not only heartbreaking in the scenes of grief and infuriating yet noble in his callous treatment of his wife’s family and friends, but as we see him emerge from his anguish, his lighter demeanor and eagerness to begin again takes years off his face and body language. Maria Schneider has less skill to bring to the table in a monstrously difficult role (especially having to act about half of the part in English), but she’s still very effective as the young, inexperienced girl having to handle her conflicting emotions with the two men in her life with no one to turn to for guidance. Jean-Pierre Léaud lacks maturity for the role of the filmmaker, and the relationship between him and Schneider never rings true. Maria Michi as Rosa’s mother and Massimo Girotti as Rosa’s lover do well with their limited scenes.
Video Quality
3.5/5
The film’s original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 is faithfully rendered in this 1080p transfer using the AVC codec. The film has always looked rather murky and dirty on previous home video releases, so the clarity and cleanliness of this transfer is a great relief. Sharpness in close-ups is nicely achieved though long shots and some medium shots display an irritating softness with a lack of real detail. Flesh tones appear very natural though reds appear somewhat off elsewhere in the transfer. There’s a hint of flicker early on, and there is moiré to be glimpsed as the camera moves past some sheer curtains later in the movie. Black levels are nicely maintained with only an occasional shot where mottled blacks crush out decent shadow detail. Subtitles for dialogue spoken in French are presented in white and are very clear and easy to read. The film has been divided into 32 chapters.
Audio Quality
3.5/5
The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track delivers a solid soundtrack with only slight problems with hiss on random occasions and distortion present only when Gato Barbieri’s jaunty music sometimes enters the scene with overly enthusiastic volume levels. Dialogue comprehension isn’t usually a problem though the ADR work though much of the film is noticeable if not very distracting.
Special Features
1/5
The film’s theatrical trailer is presented in 1080p and runs 1 ½ minutes.
In Conclusion
3.5/5 (not an average)
Last Tango in Paris may disappoint those fooled by its lurid reputation or the NC-17 rating this disc now sports. It’s actually a thoughtful film about lost souls struggling to make their world into a place where they can continue to exist marked by excellent performances from its two leads and a Blu-ray transfer that is unquestionably the best the film has ever looked on home video.
Matt Hough
Charlotte, NC
[COLOR= black]Last Tango in Paris (Blu-ray)[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
Studio: MGM
Year: 1973
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 1080p AVC codec
Running Time: 129 minutes
Rating: NC-17
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 English; Dolby Digital 2.0 mono Spanish, French, German, others
Subtitles: SDH, French[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Region:[/COLOR][COLOR= black] A
MSRP: $ 19.99[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black]Release Date: February 15, 2011[/COLOR]
[COLOR= black] Review Date:[/COLOR][COLOR= black] February 26, 2011[/COLOR]
The Film
4/5
Of all the quality films branded with an X-rating during the early years of the MPAA’s newly established rating codes (Midnight Cowboy, A Clockwork Orange, The Devils), Bernardo Bertolucci’s Last Tango in Paris is likely the most renowned. Bertolucci’s emotional sado-masochistic drama features daring (for its time) discussions and explorations of formerly taboo subject matter while delving into the personal lives of two troubled souls, people who for one reason or another need each other at a specific moment in time and once that time has past, find themselves completely asynchronous in their needs. Raw, real performances from the two principals give gravitas to scenes which today might seem less shocking or revealing than they were when the film was first released. The NC-17 rating the film now sports seems wildly over reactive to what’s actually on the screen.
After the suicide of his wife Rosa, widower Paul (Marlon Brando) has such grief and anger over what she has done to his life that he can only work through his feelings in a series of anonymous sexual and emotional encounters with a twenty-year old actress (Maria Schneider) whom he meets while renting the flat where they eventually have their rendezvous. Though she has a filmmaker boy friend (Jean-Pierre Léaud) who’s shooting Jeanne as the centerpiece in what we understand today would be a reality series for television, she’s fascinated by Paul initially because of the anonymity of their relationship obviously hoping that later she can learn about him. No names are exchanged, and though he wishes there to be nothing between them but sex, feelings and memories begin to invade their encounters in spite of their best efforts, and at various times, each of the two participants in these clandestine encounters find themselves grappling with feelings of love for the other.
Bernardo Bertolucci’s story (script co-written with Franco Arcalli) takes the usual emotional shortcuts depriving us of some seemingly central scenes as the two people’s feelings go through a metamorphosis that gives the film its primary moments of interest. (The sex scenes, notorious in their day, are much tamer now than much of what is shown in R-rated modern movies.) Still, what we get, particularly from Marlon Brando, are some harrowingly unprocessed feelings bubbling to the surface. His grief comes at unexpected moments, and when it happens, it’s unblinkingly real. A lengthy monologue in the room with the corpse of his wife puts the actor through the emotional wringer going through the stages of grief in a master class of improvisational acting. Bertolucci has a few other tricks up his sleeve. He stages a fun counterpoint moment where the two lovers are making grunting noises at each other only to quickly cut to a zoo where the director Tom is filming one of the daffy scenes for his reality program. Bertolucci picks up the pace as the film reaches its climactic scenes at the ballroom and afterward as the rules for the game are attempted to be changed with tragic results. Where the film had been taking a leisurely route to its “last tango” through much of the movie, its final quarter hour virtually leaps forward in galvanizing fits and spurts.
Having won (and refused) the Oscar the previous year as Best Actor for The Godfather, there was no way the Academy would have honored Marlon Brando for his work in Last Tango (he was nominated) though for my money this is the superior performance. He’s not only heartbreaking in the scenes of grief and infuriating yet noble in his callous treatment of his wife’s family and friends, but as we see him emerge from his anguish, his lighter demeanor and eagerness to begin again takes years off his face and body language. Maria Schneider has less skill to bring to the table in a monstrously difficult role (especially having to act about half of the part in English), but she’s still very effective as the young, inexperienced girl having to handle her conflicting emotions with the two men in her life with no one to turn to for guidance. Jean-Pierre Léaud lacks maturity for the role of the filmmaker, and the relationship between him and Schneider never rings true. Maria Michi as Rosa’s mother and Massimo Girotti as Rosa’s lover do well with their limited scenes.
Video Quality
3.5/5
The film’s original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 is faithfully rendered in this 1080p transfer using the AVC codec. The film has always looked rather murky and dirty on previous home video releases, so the clarity and cleanliness of this transfer is a great relief. Sharpness in close-ups is nicely achieved though long shots and some medium shots display an irritating softness with a lack of real detail. Flesh tones appear very natural though reds appear somewhat off elsewhere in the transfer. There’s a hint of flicker early on, and there is moiré to be glimpsed as the camera moves past some sheer curtains later in the movie. Black levels are nicely maintained with only an occasional shot where mottled blacks crush out decent shadow detail. Subtitles for dialogue spoken in French are presented in white and are very clear and easy to read. The film has been divided into 32 chapters.
Audio Quality
3.5/5
The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track delivers a solid soundtrack with only slight problems with hiss on random occasions and distortion present only when Gato Barbieri’s jaunty music sometimes enters the scene with overly enthusiastic volume levels. Dialogue comprehension isn’t usually a problem though the ADR work though much of the film is noticeable if not very distracting.
Special Features
1/5
The film’s theatrical trailer is presented in 1080p and runs 1 ½ minutes.
In Conclusion
3.5/5 (not an average)
Last Tango in Paris may disappoint those fooled by its lurid reputation or the NC-17 rating this disc now sports. It’s actually a thoughtful film about lost souls struggling to make their world into a place where they can continue to exist marked by excellent performances from its two leads and a Blu-ray transfer that is unquestionably the best the film has ever looked on home video.
Matt Hough
Charlotte, NC
