Breakfast At Tiffany's 50th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Review

 Is it better to marry for money, or for love, if one must choose between one or the other? That is the theme at the core of Breakfast At Tiffany’s, the celebrated 1961 film based on the novella by Truman Capote. Holly Golightly(Audrey Hepburn) is a party girl looking for the right millionaire to marry in Manhattan. Paul Varjak(George Peppard) is a struggling writer and a kept man who moves into the apartment above Holly’s and falls into her sphere of influence. Capote’s novella about New York in the 1940s was updated to the early 1960s and adapted for the screen by George Axelrod(The Seven Year Itch). Capote wanted Holly to be played by Marilyn Monroe, which is a fascinating thought, although it may be impossible now to conceive anyone other than Audrey Hepburn in this role.   

BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S

50^th Anniversary Edition BLU-RAY

Studio: Paramount

Year: 1961

Rated: Not Rated

Film Length:1 hour, 55 minutes

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English Mono Dolby Digital, French Mono Dolby Digital, Spanish Mono Dolby Digital, and Portuguese Mono Dolby Digital

Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese

Release Date: September 20, 2011

The Movie

Holly Golightly(Audrey Hepburn) is a party girl and a free spirit capable of giving her body but not her heart. Holly meets Paul Varjak(George Peppard), a struggling writer who has also sacrificed true love for the sake of expediency. Paul’s "sponsor" is 2-E(Patricia Neal), an older woman who cohabits with Paul whenever her husband is out of town. The cast also includes Buddy Ebsen, Martin Balsam, and Mickey Rooney.  Cartoon fans should watch for the brief appearance by Alan Reed, who plays gangster Sally Tomato.  Reed had also played a gangster in Blake Edwards' He Laughed Last and is better known today as the original voice of Fred Flintstone.

Breakfast At Tiffany’s was directed by Blake Edwards(The Pink Panther, S.O.B., Victor/Victoria) and the film contains a number of Edwards’ directorial flourishes, the most obvious influence apparent in the slapstick and farcical aspects of the celebrated party scene. Almost anyone watching the cocktail party at Holly’s apartment would want to go to that party, and we do get to attend the party vicariously by watching the film. Edwards expanded on the slapstick in this scene when he wrote and directed The Party just 7 years after Breakfast At Tiffany’s. Thankfully, Peter Sellers’ Hrundi V. Bakshi in The Party is not nearly as offensive and grating as Mickey Rooney’s depiction of Japanese American landlord Mr. Yunioshi.

Paramount Pictures deserves credit for its effort to address the elephant in the room. The studio could have snipped Rooney’s scenes out of the picture, or digitally altered his appearance and dialogue, and it would be almost the same film, albeit a censored version. Another studio might have done just this, or simply released the film uncensored in every other part of the world except North America. Instead, Paramount has taken the high road by addressing the historical context of racial stereotypes by creating the featurette Mr. Yunioshi: An Asian Perspective and given us the film complete and uncensored. Treatment of this issue as an educational opportunity helps to ensure that history will be remembered without being repeated. Rooney’s overly broad portrayal of Mr. Yunioshi is the only real misstep in the film.

Would Breakfast At Tiffany’s be so well remembered without the Academy Award winning song Moon River? Johnny Mercer wrote the words and Henry Mancini composed the music for Moon River. Mancini was a frequent collaborator with Blake Edwards and created the music for most of Edwards’ films. Mancini had previously created the jazzy theme song for Edwards’ Peter Gunn TV series (and later theatrical film Gunn) and went on to create the memorable Pink Panther theme song, among other highlights in a career that included Orson Welles' Touch of Evil and even the theme song to the NBC Mystery Movie. Mancini also won the Academy Award for Best Music Score for Breakfast At Tiffany’s.

Video

Breakfast At Tiffany’s appears on Blu-Ray in its original 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The various DVD releases of this film have all been severely wanting for video quality. Thankfully, Ron Smith participated in the restoration of this film for this release and the results are astonishing. Even the opening credits have exquisite video presentation, which is remarkable when you consider that the film stock in credit sequences is typically several generations more removed from the original negative than the rest of the film, and the credits usually suffer as a result. Colors are warm and vibrant without being garish. Film grain is appropriately present without obscuring contrast and fine detail. This is reference quality for a 1961 film.

Audio

English speakers may choose between the original restored English mono in Dolby Digital or the English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. My preference was the DTS-HD Master Audio which conveyed Henry Mancini’s film score with noticeably richer tones. Both options have crystal clear audio with no apparent defects in audibility of dialogue, music, or sound effects.

Special Features

Breakfast At Tiffany’s has been released in a multitude of various DVD versions, which ran the gamut from no special features at all to many choices. Thankfully, all of the previous special features of the various editions have been ported over to this release even though no new special features were created specifically for this Blu-ray.

Thankfully, the special features created in 2008 for the 2009 DVD were created in high definition and are included in HD for the first time in this release. The remaining special features were included on the 2009 disc but were created originally in 2005. The special features in high definition are designated with "HD."

The special features include all of the following:

Commentary by Producer Richard Shepherd: Shepherd co-produced this film with Martin Jurow and produced this commentary in 2005.

A Golightly Gathering(HD)(20:26): Surviving cast members featured in the celebrated party scene were reunited in 2008 and interviewed for posterity at a new party that is noticeably tamer than the party in the film.

Henry Mancini: More Than Music(HD)(20:57): Mancini’s family members are interviewed regarding the man behind the music.

Mr. Yunioshi: An Asian Perspective(HD)(17:30): Actors and representatives from the Media Action Network For Asian Americans provide commentary about the stereotypes in this film, as well as others like The World of Suzy Wong, and discuss the historical context of Asian stereotypes and discrimination.

The Making Of A Classic(16:13): Cast and crew, including director Edwards, were interviewed in 2005 for this featurette.

It’s So Audrey: A Style Icon(8:15): People who knew and admired Ms. Hepburn are interviewed regarding her regal sense of style.

Behind The Gates: The Tour(5:49): Paramount page Heather Weingart offers a brief look behind the scenes at Paramount Studios in Hollywood.

Brilliance In A Blue Box(6:03): John Loring, design director for Tiffany & Co. provides a history of the New York institution.

Audrey’s Letter To Tiffany(2:25): Audrey Hepburn graciously agreed to write the foreword to a written history of Tiffany & Co. published on its 150^th anniversary in 1987. John Loring reads the text of that letter.

Original Theatrical Trailer(2:37): This trailer looks great although not restored to the same full extent as the film, which makes one appreciate the quality of restoration on this BD.

Photo Galleries: There are 3 categories, The Movie, Production, and Publicity, which may be viewed using the left and right selection arrows on your remote control.

Conclusion

Breakfast At Tiffany’s is an entertaining, episodic, romantic film that stands the test of time because its themes are universal and relevant to every generation. The acting, production, and film score include contributions from some of the greatest talents in film history. The video and audio presentations are as close to perfection as one could reasonably hope. Seeing this film in high definition makes one appreciate the large number of exterior shots that were filmed on location in New York City of 50 years past. The special features are fairly comprehensive, especially given that most of the principals are no longer around to provide new material for this 50^th Anniversary Edition. Breakfast At Tiffany’s on Blu-ray is recommended for fans of romantic films and fans of just films in general.