Le notti bianche
BUY AT:
See more details, packaging, or compare
Synopsis
Marcello Mastroianni, as a lonely city transplant, and Maria Schell, as a sheltered girl haunted by a lover’s promise, meet by chance on a canal bridge and begin a tentative romance that quickly entangles them in a web of longing and self-delusion. Luchino Visconti’s Le notti bianche, an exquisite adaptation of Dostoyevsky’s “White Nights,” translates this romantic, shattering tale of two restless souls into a ravishing black-and-white dream.
Picture 8/10
Criterion Collection’s original DVD edition of Le notti bianche presents Luchino Visconti’s film on a dual-layer disc in its original 1.66:1 aspect ratio, enhanced for widescreen televisions. The standard-definition presentation is sourced from a high-definition restoration, taken from a scan of the 35mm original camera negative.
Despite the limitations of the format and the age of the restoration (dating back to around 2003), this still remains a fairly impressive presentation. The restoration work has cleaned the image up extensively, with only some minor marks and bits of dirt remaining, while the picture stays largely stable aside from some light pulsing in a handful of spots. Blacks are reasonably deep, though they do tend to swallow some shadow detail, and highlights and whites can occasionally appear a bit blown out. Still, the grayscale range is quite strong for DVD, with fairly smooth gradations that lend the image a pleasing photographic quality, or as much of one as possible.
On that front (and again within the limitations of the format), the image avoids an overly heavy digital look, and looks surprisingly crisp when upscaled. Grain is only faintly present but it's there, and finer details are rendered more cleanly than one might expect.
Overall, while this is no longer the ideal way to watch the film (Radiance’s recent Blu-ray release is a dramatic step up) it remains an impressive effort for its time, and one that has held up remarkably well more than twenty years later.
Le notti bianche - Screen Captures
Audio 6/10
There’s a slight edge to the Dolby Digital mono presentation, but it’s generally clean, with decent range and fidelity. Dialogue comes through clearly, and there’s no significant damage or distracting issues present.
Extras 3/10
This was a lower-tier Criterion release, reflected in a relatively modest set of supplements. They begin with an audio reading of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s White Nights, read by T. Ryder Smith. On disc, the reading plays over a chapter menu, though Criterion also includes it as a downloadable MP3 that can be copied to a computer or portable device, which was a nice touch for the time.
Also included is a 17-minute collection of interviews featuring screenwriter Suso Cecchi D’Ammico, cinematographer Giuseppe Rottunno, costume designer Piero Tosi, and critics Laura Delli Colli and Lino Miccichè. The critics offer general analysis, while the three crew members recall working with Visconti, much of which came down to interpreting his intentions. There’s also some emphasis on the film’s relatively modest budget, made even trickier by casting bigger stars like Maria Schell and, eventually, Jean Marais (who literally just walked in, first asking about playing the lead). The discussion around the sets and costumes is particularly interesting, with Tosi noting that the wardrobe was designed specifically to suit the desired grayscale of the photography.
Rounding things out are roughly five minutes of silent screen tests featuring Schell and Marcello Mastroianni, both individually and together. These appear primarily focused on testing lighting, though something amusing clearly transpired during the test, as the two actors are seen repeatedly chuckling. The disc also includes a five-minute theatrical trailer and a printed insert featuring an essay by Geoffrey Nowell-Smith, author of the BFI book Luchino Visconti.
Ultimately, while it’s a perfectly respectable set of extras, it’s also an admittedly slim collection.
Closing
With a new 4K restoration now available (already put to good use by Radiance on their Blu-ray), it seems likely Criterion will revisit the film at some point. Taken on its own terms, though, this DVD still delivers a solid-looking presentation.
BUY AT:
