ARMY OF SHADOWS (1969, Blu-ray released January 11, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
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How is it that a classic of French cinema remained hidden from North American audiences for decades? Jean-Pierre Melville‘s stunning Army of Shadows (L’armée des Ombres) received a full restoration in 2004 and was finally released on this side of the Atlantic two years later. For those passionate about the director and the film, this new Blu-ray edition from Criterion is well worth the upgrade from the studio’s already excellent 2007 DVD release.
Army of Shadows is all tension and atmosphere. Melville unveils his moments carefully, following a small band of intrepid resistance fighters struggling against the Nazi regime and their own morals in occupied France. Though the story is an adaptation of Joseph Kessel‘s 1943 book of the same name, the director takes liberties, building the film into a more personal work through his own experiences in the resistance during the war. It’s precise in its pacing, with an overwhelming feeling of melancholy. But there is action and suspense aplenty. And in every escape, every brush with a bullet, every moment of uncertainty we feel the scythe of the grim reaper at our backs, and the futility of life in wartime. It’s a brilliant balancing act, these thrills at war with Melville’s somber intensity, handled with aplomb by a remarkable cast who breathe desperate life into every well-rounded, often tragic character.
Army of Shadows looks extraordinary on Blu-ray. Colour and detail are improved from the previously available DVD edition. From the liner notes:
- “Supervised by director of photography Pierre Lhomme, this high-definition digital transfer was created on a Spirit Datacine from the original 35mm camera negative, restored by Studio Canal. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter, and flicker were manually removed using MTI’s DRS system and Pixel Farm’s PFClean system, while Digital Vision’s DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.”
There are two audio tracks to choose from on the disc: French LPCM 1.0 and French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Both are exceptional in clarity with the DTS-HD being the more dynamic of the two. From the liner notes:
- “The monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the 35mm magnetic tracks. The stereo track was created by Studio Canal from the original stems. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube’s integrated audio workstation.”
Extras are plentiful and, for the most part, extraordinary. I found the commentary track by film historian Ginette Vincendeau (recorded for the British Film Institute in 2006) to be quite dryly delivered but informative. She covers a lot of ground in the track (including the director’s history with the Resistance, the Kessel novel and Melville’s other works) but retains the sound of someone reading an uninteresting book throughout. There are a series of short documentaries, interviews and clips from television programs, all excellent and well worth watching, including 31-minutes of excerpts from the French television program “L’invite du dimanche” (1969), the documentary “Melville et “L’armee des ombres” and a 15-minute sit-down with cinematographer, Pierre Lhomme.
As much as I am fascinated with the art of making films, I found the most moving features to be those dealing directly with the French resistance. The 35-minute “Le journal de la Resistance” – footage shot by twelve cameramen on the ground as Parisians force the Germans out of their city – is at times gut-wrenching while always fascinating. Excerpts from the 1973 television program “Ouvrez les guillemets” feature actual members of the resistance recalling their struggles during the occupation.
Special Features:
- High-definition digital transfer of the 2004 restoration, supervised by director of photography Pierre Lhomme with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- Optional DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- Audio commentary featuring film historian Ginette Vincendeau
- Interviews with Lhomme and editor Françoise Bonnot
- On-set footage and excerpts from archival interviews with director Jean-Pierre Melville, cast members, writer Joseph Kessel, and real-life Resistance fighters
- Jean-Pierre Melville et “L’armée des ombres” (2002), a short program on the director and his film
- Le journal de la Résistance (1944), a rare short documentary shot on the front lines during the final days of German-occupied France
- Film restoration demonstration by Lhomme
- Theatrical trailers
- PLUS: A booklet featuring essays by critic Amy Taubin and historian Robert O. Paxton, as well as excerpts from Rui Nogueira’s Melville on Melville
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