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- Robert Harris
Lola Montes was a troubled 1955 production. It was the final film directed by the brilliant Max Ophuls, who's previous work, The Earring of Madame de... is one of my personal favorites.
An extremely technical director, best known for his constantly moving camera in a era when cameras were generally locked down, Ophuls made a bold move. Going directly from the classic 1.37:1 aspect ratio, black & white cinematography and monaural audio in Madame de... to 2.55:1 scope, Eastman Color and 4-track magnetic stereo in Lola Montes, one can imagine that his technological hands were more than full.
The film starred Martine Carol in the title role, an actress popular in France for far more frivolous roles. Its premiere left 1955 audiences unprepared and apparently unwilling to take on a film that jumped back and forth in time, and was not a simple bit of colored cinematic froth.
The background story of Lola Montes is all about filmmaking, cinema history, unavailability and sizzle. The greatest problem has been that for the past half century no one has been able to see it. Further, the film's reputation, outside of those "in the know," has been based not upon reality, but upon reports of public sentiment at the time of release and of later emasculated cuts of the film.
The sizzle here, and this is true and accurate sizzle as opposed to the stuff of publicists like any purported "restoration" of Scorsese's Gangs of New York for Blu-ray, begins with a film that failed at the box-office, was shot in three versions, English, French and German, was cut from an original running time of 114 minutes, to a French version running 110 and later to only 90 minutes.
Very little (or none) of the filmmaker's intent survived later versions.
In the late '60s the film was restored to it's 110 minute version by new owners which was a major step in the right direction.
The good news is that with a new digital toolbox, and funding from the Thomson Foundation, all surviving film elements were brought to Technicolor in Burbank, where images were harvested, and meticulous digital reconstruction and restoration were performed. Likewise, the many audio elements were digitally harvested, and cobbled together to create a new, clean and cohesive recreation of the original stereo mix. I use the term "cobbled" here not as a derogatory term, but for accuracy and flavor. Bits and pieces were apparently gathered as needed from varying disparate elements to film in holes toward a meticulous final product.
I'm not certain that one should jump into Lola Montes without a bit of background into its progenitors. To that end, I would highly suggest that one begin with viewings (rentals, if necessary) of La Ronde (1950) and Le Plaisir (1952), and then move on (and I suggest purchase) of The Earrings of Madame de... (1953)
You're then at least partially prepared for what many consider to be one of the wonders of the cinema -- Lola Montes.
The fact that it's now available on Blu-ray from Criterion (the other three suggested titles are also available from Criterion, but in standard definition), makes it finally available to the masses after 55 years wasting away in tattered bits and pieces and in obscurity.
As the digital restoration was harvested from a myriad of elements of different qualities and generations, the final result is not transparent to the original, but in taking advantage of our current technologies, it brings us very close to where one would wish to be. That needs to be said, as nitpicking of occasional problems serves no purpose. We're exceedingly lucky to have what we have.
As a final note, I'd love to see Ophuls' 1948 Letter From an Unknown Woman on Blu-ray. It may currently be controlled by Viacom, which could place it on the Paramount label.
Very Highly Recommended.
RAH
An extremely technical director, best known for his constantly moving camera in a era when cameras were generally locked down, Ophuls made a bold move. Going directly from the classic 1.37:1 aspect ratio, black & white cinematography and monaural audio in Madame de... to 2.55:1 scope, Eastman Color and 4-track magnetic stereo in Lola Montes, one can imagine that his technological hands were more than full.
The film starred Martine Carol in the title role, an actress popular in France for far more frivolous roles. Its premiere left 1955 audiences unprepared and apparently unwilling to take on a film that jumped back and forth in time, and was not a simple bit of colored cinematic froth.
The background story of Lola Montes is all about filmmaking, cinema history, unavailability and sizzle. The greatest problem has been that for the past half century no one has been able to see it. Further, the film's reputation, outside of those "in the know," has been based not upon reality, but upon reports of public sentiment at the time of release and of later emasculated cuts of the film.
The sizzle here, and this is true and accurate sizzle as opposed to the stuff of publicists like any purported "restoration" of Scorsese's Gangs of New York for Blu-ray, begins with a film that failed at the box-office, was shot in three versions, English, French and German, was cut from an original running time of 114 minutes, to a French version running 110 and later to only 90 minutes.
Very little (or none) of the filmmaker's intent survived later versions.
In the late '60s the film was restored to it's 110 minute version by new owners which was a major step in the right direction.
The good news is that with a new digital toolbox, and funding from the Thomson Foundation, all surviving film elements were brought to Technicolor in Burbank, where images were harvested, and meticulous digital reconstruction and restoration were performed. Likewise, the many audio elements were digitally harvested, and cobbled together to create a new, clean and cohesive recreation of the original stereo mix. I use the term "cobbled" here not as a derogatory term, but for accuracy and flavor. Bits and pieces were apparently gathered as needed from varying disparate elements to film in holes toward a meticulous final product.
I'm not certain that one should jump into Lola Montes without a bit of background into its progenitors. To that end, I would highly suggest that one begin with viewings (rentals, if necessary) of La Ronde (1950) and Le Plaisir (1952), and then move on (and I suggest purchase) of The Earrings of Madame de... (1953)
You're then at least partially prepared for what many consider to be one of the wonders of the cinema -- Lola Montes.
The fact that it's now available on Blu-ray from Criterion (the other three suggested titles are also available from Criterion, but in standard definition), makes it finally available to the masses after 55 years wasting away in tattered bits and pieces and in obscurity.
As the digital restoration was harvested from a myriad of elements of different qualities and generations, the final result is not transparent to the original, but in taking advantage of our current technologies, it brings us very close to where one would wish to be. That needs to be said, as nitpicking of occasional problems serves no purpose. We're exceedingly lucky to have what we have.
As a final note, I'd love to see Ophuls' 1948 Letter From an Unknown Woman on Blu-ray. It may currently be controlled by Viacom, which could place it on the Paramount label.
Very Highly Recommended.
RAH
. It's very disappointing that his American films are not available Stateside with no pending release in sight. I recently purchased all three from Moviemail UK and look forward to watching them soon.
