No way!!! Gigi, you just made my day! I thought this one might never see the light of day. Hopefully Koch will do this film some justice...I'm generally not too impressed by their product. This is an amazing, if difficult film. Hopefully this release could turn more people onto it...
Whoa, whoa, whoa. BIG news!! I just recently saw Hiroshima Mon Amour, my first exposure to Resnais, and was completely blown away. He is so thoroughly underrepresented on R1 DVD. Bring on Marienbad, Rialto!
MURIEL is a fascinating film. Despite not understanding it first time around it did reveal itself upon subsequent viewings. What I found intersting was the fact that despite seeming to be full of flashbacks and flashfowards it is actually strictly chronological. Resnais uses long scenes with huge jump cuts [e.g. the dinner served and a quick cut to dessert being eaten] and then edits together a string of very short scenes. Like Godard we become conscious of the film as medium while watching a film as story. Unlike Godard Resnais technique remains objective - no characters talking to camera or unorthodox camera movements. It is all in the editing and this gives us a fresh experience of time itself. Is "time" the theme of this film?
DVD Features:
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.66
Audio:
Dolby Digital - French
Subtitles - French
Additional Release Material:
Featurette - Alain Resnais Featurette
Trailer - Original Theatrical Trailer
Holy shit - you're not wrong! That is one ugly motherfucker of a dvd cover. Lucky I don't care about such things otherwise there is no way I would have that monstrosity sitting on my shelf.
I'd be happy with this dvd if it came in a dustbin bag.