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Martha
 Post subject: 278 L'eclisse
PostPosted: Wed Dec 22, 2004 3:08 pm 

Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 8:53 pm
Location: all up in thurr
L'eclisse

Image

The conclusion of Michelangelo Antonioni's informal trilogy on modern malaise, L'eclisse (The Eclipse) tells the story of a young woman (Monica Vitti) who leaves one lover (Francisco Rabal) only to drift into a relationship with another (Alain Delon). Using the architecture of Rome as a backdrop for the couple's doomed affair, Antonioni reaches the apotheosis of his modernist style, returning to his favorite themes: alienation and the difficulty of finding connections in an increasingly mechanized world.

Special Features

- New, restored high-definition digital transfer
- Audio commentary by Richard Pena, program director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center, in New York
- Michelangelo Antonioni: The Eye That Changed Cinema, a 56-minute documentary exploring the director's life and career
- Elements of Landscape, a new, 22-minute video piece about Antonioni and L'eclisse, featuring Italian film critic Adriano Apre and longtime Antonioni friend Carlo di Carlo
- New and improved English subtitle translation
- Plus: a 32-page booklet featuring new essays by film critics Jonathan Rosenbaum and Gilberto Perez, along with reprinted excerpts from Antonioni's own writings about his work

Criterionforum.org user rating averages



Last edited by Martha on Tue Nov 29, 2005 6:15 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Dec 22, 2004 4:23 pm 
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Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 1:56 pm
Location: Dublin
I've been waiting for this one for a long time... The blurb seems to imply that the 'informal trilogy on modern malaise' might be completed with a future CC release of LA NOTTE... Let's keep fingers crossed...

MA: THE EYE THAT CHANGED CINEMA docu - I wonder where this comes from?
And I answer my own question...
Quote:
MICHELANGELO ANTONIONI - A VISION THAT CHANGED CINEMA (2001)
ITALY

A tribute to film maker Michelangelo Antonioni and his films as from vast material on file preserved by the RAI library, gathered from television and radio. The film is structured in chronological order and follows the steps of the director in the most important times of his life, from his first neo-realistic documentaries to the Oscar for his contribution to the history of cinema in 1993. Between these two extremes, we see him making his celebrated films, his encounter with censorship in The Vanquished, his disillusion after the preview of The Adventure, the Gold Palm for Blow-up, the American experience in Zabriskie Point, the stroke that made it impossible for him to work for many years and, finally, the long-awaited return in Beyond the Clouds. His film biography includes statements by Tonino Guerra, Monica Vitti, and Enrica Antonioni.

director
SANDRO LAI

production company
RAI CINEMA - Piazza Adriana 12 00193 Roma, Italy - Tel: 39 06 684 701 Fax: 39 06 687 2015.

world sales
RAI TRADE - Via Umberto Novaro, 18 - 00195 Rome -Italy - Tel:0039 06 37 498473 - sottile@raitrade.it

55 minutos minutos
Col, Black and white
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vertovfan
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Dec 22, 2004 8:21 pm 
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Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 7:46 pm
N.U. and When Love Fails (Antonioni's segment from Love in the City) would be wonderful extras... I hardly dare to hope they fall under "more". In any case, L'Eclisse is one of my favorite films of all time - hallelujah!
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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Dec 23, 2004 6:22 am 
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Yes, there should be quite a bit of room on the 2nd disc, should they choose to fill it with 'more'....
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Martha
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Dec 23, 2004 9:08 am 

Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 8:53 pm
Location: all up in thurr
Any day that involves added more Alain Delon to the Collection is a fantastic one.

Plus, you know, the movie's alright.
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paa400
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sat Dec 25, 2004 12:20 pm 

Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 10:22 pm
Now I can fianlly throw out my crappy dubbed VHS copy.
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GringoTex
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Dec 28, 2004 2:49 pm 
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ellipsis7 wrote:
I've been waiting for this one for a long time... The blurb seems to imply that the 'informal trilogy on modern malaise' might be completed with a future CC release of LA NOTTE... Let's keep fingers crossed...


How is the available dvd of LA NOTTE?
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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Dec 28, 2004 3:03 pm 
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Location: Dublin
Not so hot - it's early Fox Lorber - non anamorphic widescreen, with not fantastic resolution, flatness and a pretty poor transfer and ragged source print. There are no extras either.

L'AVVENTURA was a classically great picture quality CC release, and I agree that the glimpses of L'ECLISSE on Scorsese's MY VOYAGE ITALY give an idea of the kind of luminous quality and detailed resolution that we can expect on the upcoming CC release...

The Fox Lorber LA NOTTE DVD is better than nothing at all, but a CC release for it would be a million times better... It would do justice to the film, which Fox Lorber does not!

RED DESERT, also OOP and originally on Image DVD, would also benefit greatly from the CC treatment to give a proper presentation of Antonioni's first colour film, and the incredible way in which he manipulates it...

Footnote: most bizarre is watching the what MA did with the colour grading of the video MYSTERY OF OBERWALD on NTSC VHS being coverted into PAL...
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vertovfan
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 08, 2005 11:08 am 
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There was a VHS release from Connoisseur Video many years back that was pretty decent. But it went out of print long ago - I had to scour ebay to find it (and it was well worth it)!
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Lino
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sat Jan 08, 2005 11:53 am 
"Without obsession, life is nothing"
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Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 6:18 am
Location: Sitting End
That's the one I had and later sold when DVDs starting taking the market by storm. And how I regret it now...but I guess the wait is FINALLY over and worth it every penny!
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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:16 am 
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Location: Dublin
Appeared until recently in a reasonable PAL VHS edition released by 'Arthouse Original' in an EU Media Programme supported release, with Janus Films logo at head of film... OOP now for a couple of years...
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David
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 9:08 pm 
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Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2004 6:05 am
I've always had a really hard time with the male characters in Antonioni's films, especially L'Eclisse. I sat through the whole movie hoping nothing would develop between Delon and Monica Vitti.
In my eyes many of the female characters in Antonioni's movies is trapped in a patriachal society and is trying to escape from the men ( perfectly illustrated both on the cover and also the opening scene in the film).
I've never read anything about this aspect anywhere, which seems very odd to me.
EDIT:
Reading through this post now, I'm really ashmed how over-simplified this was. What I was trying to say had to do more with the main problems often discussed about Antonioni’s films – the shallowness of society, of relationships and lack of communication etc... In this he often uses women as protagonists, because I think he personally feels they are closer to their feelings and are more aware of the problems the suffer from. While men, on the other side, easier take refuge in sex, shallow relationships etc...Not that this behavior is decided by nature, but because they are trapped in constructed roles, given by their culture


Last edited by David on Thu Feb 10, 2005 10:47 am, edited 5 times in total.

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souvenir
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 12:13 pm 
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Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 12:20 pm
I just noticed this is no longer listed as being two discs on the Criterion site.
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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 12:24 pm 
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Location: Dublin
I don't think it was ever referred to as a 2 disc on the actual L'ECLISSE pages on the CC site... That info came from an earlier item in the 'News' section of the site. So there's no evidence that the situation has changed... I'm still expecting 2 (as also shown on Amazon's page)!
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BWilson
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Feb 24, 2005 6:47 pm 

Joined: Mon Nov 15, 2004 6:06 pm
Is it just me or did they change the cover?
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David
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Feb 24, 2005 7:51 pm 
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Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2004 6:05 am
BWilson wrote:
Is it just me or did they change the cover?


You're completely right. They changed it a while ago. Here's the member's comments and the old cover.
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oldsheperd
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2005 4:15 pm 
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Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2004 5:18 pm
Location: Rio Rancho/Albuquerque
Back cover is up on dvdempire.

I likey. Real silver nitrate-y look.
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Steven H
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2005 4:30 pm 
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Location: NC
So it *is* two disc, they've changed the 22 min extra title from The "Sickness of Eros" to "Elements of Landscape", and "more!" I guess means "excerpts from Antonioni's own writings about his work".

Strange. Wonder what else hasn't been updated on the site.
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Subbuteo
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 12:35 pm 
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Location: Hampshire, UK
Nice beaver review

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDReviews10/eclisse_.htm
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ellipsis7
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 12:54 pm 
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There's going to be enough CC DVDs in March competing for Criterion DVD of the Year, let alone in full 12 months...

I'm really looking forward to seeing L'ECLISSE, having been bowled over by THE RIVER, and expect the same from JULES ET JIM...
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Lino
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 12:54 pm 
"Without obsession, life is nothing"
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Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 6:18 am
Location: Sitting End
Wow! Just look at those pictures! I am flaberghasted! I can't wait to own this one! Top marks everyone!
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javelin
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 4:26 pm 

Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2004 4:21 pm
Location: Berkeley, CA
Agreed, Annie - Antonioni has the most amazing eye for composition. And that image quality - I can't wait.
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Napier
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 4:53 pm 
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Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:48 am
Location: The Shire
I just finished watching this!WOW!!I thought I was blown away by The River!!This is phenomenal!This was my first time viewing this DVD as well as the film itself!Antonioni,Alain Delon,Criterion= =D> Can't reccomend this one enough!
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swingo
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 5:12 pm 
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Location: Mexico City
I just pre-ordered it, one of the most wished dvds for me...

Axel.
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Gordon
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2005 7:34 am 
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Everything about this set looks awesome. It looks like one of Criterion's finest hours.

I love Antonioni's films and have been checking out a lot of Alain Delon recently (managed to get the French edition of Le Samourai) so this one was a no-brainer.

I doesn't look like we're going to see The Passenger any time soon, so I picked up a DVD-r of it recently that is from the Japanese letterboxed Laserdisc and looks pretty good.

Is the R1 of The Red Desert really as bad as people say it is or should I wait for a better edition?
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