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81 Variety Lights
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2005 2:16 am
by Martha
Variety Lights
A beautiful ingenue joins a tawdry music hall troupe and quickly becomes its feature attraction in Fellini's stunning debut film (directed in collaboration with neorealist filmmaker Alberto Lattuada). Featuring Giulietta Masina, Fellini's wife and frequent leading lady,
Variety Lights introduces the director's affection for the carnivalesque characters that frequent the cinematic landscape of such classics as
Nights of Cabiria,
La strada, and
La Dolce Vita. Criterion is proud to present
Variety Lights in a beautiful digital transfer.
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Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2005 1:57 pm
by Napier
Well Criterion the cat is out of the bag.Gary Tooze has just posted his dvdbeaver
review of this film.It is not HD sourced!Probably copied from their laser disc. At least we didn't pay $39.95 for it.I feel slighted!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2005 6:31 pm
by BWilson
I can't find Gary's review. Link?
(Edit: Thank you.)
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2005 11:31 pm
by BWilson
Having reviewed well over 100 Criterion DVDs, I had always thought every single one was HD-sourced (we also call this "film-sourced" as opposed to "video-sourced"). Variety Lights, on the other hand, was claimed to be taken directly from the original 35mm fine-grain master (see last large capture for extensive 'combing'). There is a slim chance that it was taken from their old laserdisc. It looks very rough. There is a fine scratch down the center of the screen for many segments of film. It tends to leave and annoyingly return. I also notice shimmering and edge enhancement. Criterion's usual care was not taken for this 2000 release. By their usual high standards, this is quite sloppy. No extras, great subtitles. Nothing along the lines of their other Fellini releases. This is my lowest score ever for a Criterion DVD - *** out of *****
"I had always thought every single one was HD-sourced"
You thought wrong pal. Most of their early releases were not sourced from HD masters. Criterion never claimed to be using HD masters. I respect Gary's site, but how can he not know this?! He actually seems surprised to discover that they used the same D2 source as the laserdisc!
What gives?
Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2005 12:44 am
by Dylan
I don't understand the criticisms of the image, which (especially from the screengrabs) is pretty damn good. Far from the worst image transfer of CC, how about Salo (and I'm sure there are others)? Great film too, by the way.
Dylan
Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2005 8:53 am
by colinr0380
BBC report on the death of Alberto Lattuada aged 90
Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2005 12:33 pm
by lord_clyde
I rented this last Christmas and loved it, but I couldn't afford to buy it at the time. Yesterday I went to the same video store and saw it priced at 1.99!! I checked the sticker from the last rental and it was due back 12/27/2004, meaning I was the last one to rent it. So there is my bargain of the week.
Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2005 4:44 pm
by blindside8zao
I hope you're not talking the Criterion version
Lucky. I did find the Samurai boxed set used at EBgames for 15 dollars though, complete with inserts, so I shouldn't be talking. Unfortunately I haven't found a used criterion DVD there since, except for armageddon and royal tenanbaums.
BTW, enjoy, I really do like this movie.
Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2005 7:47 pm
by lord_clyde
blindside8zao wrote:I hope you're not talking the Criterion version
Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:17 am
by Awesome Welles
Is this going
out of print? or has it said that for a long time, because there certainly seem to be plenty of copies out there...
Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:26 am
by mogwai
You must've missed
this thread.
Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2008 1:15 pm
by Awesome Welles
Yes I did, thanks. I though I wasn't affected due to Studio Canal's licensing deal with Optimum in the UK.
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 5:01 pm
by colinr0380
Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 2:53 pm
by manicsounds
out of print, from a post on DVDTalk
Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 3:13 pm
by Dr. Mabuse
Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 5:10 pm
by kaujot
Criterion themselves announced it ages ago, didn't they?
Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 4:27 pm
by Dr. Mabuse
Checking my archive, you´re correct sir. It was annonuces OOP in november 2007 along with Port of Shadows, Le Corbeau, og Quai des orfevres .
Re: 81 Variety Lights
Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 11:48 pm
by Narshty
The new
Essential Arthouse edition (and Criterion spine re-release?) is described as having a "New, restored high-definition digital transfer". I hope so, because this is one of Fellini's best.
Re: 81 Variety Lights
Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 4:59 am
by R0lf
Can anyone post a review to the new Essential Arthouse release? Is it a new transfer?
Re: 81 Variety Lights
Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 7:41 pm
by knives
Same transfer.
Re: 81 Variety Lights
Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 12:13 am
by domino harvey
It's exactly the same except different liner notes, you got the stick end of the stick
Re: 81 Variety Lights
Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2025 6:14 am
by Matt
After all these years, I finally got around to watching this. And it's wonderful! I loved Peppino De Filippo, a little reminiscent of Raimu in Marcel Pagnol's films, being a sympathetic buffoon. And I appreciated seeing Giulietta Masina doing something other than being aggressively winsome as she is in all the other Fellini films I've seen her in. (I know that's a bad take and I'm watching more or her films with Fellini to prove myself wrong.) I guess I don't have much else to say about it besides "it was nice, I liked it," but that's usually enough for me these days.