Andrzej Zulawski's La note bleue (1991) Coming Soon from Mondo Vision

[Mark C.]

The limited edition packaging for "La Note Bleue" has to be one of the most beautifully designed that I've seen.

Just bought one of the Limited edition sets, damn pricey but I want it sitting next to my 5 other Limited Edition sets from Mondo Vision. They are all stunning designs

[Rakesh R.]

The limited edition packaging for "La Note Bleue" has to be one of the most beautifully designed that I've seen.

[Ian Jane]

Both versions are now in stock at Diabolik.

http://www.diabolikdvd.com/category/...dition-Blu~Ray[sl]CD-Combo).html

http://www.diabolikdvd.com/category/...-Blu~Ray).html

[Ian Jane]

Nice to see this finally going forward. I actually think the normal releases look better than the huge collector's boxes, but now that I've bought all the other CE's I feel I can't stop.

I agree and have gone with the normal options for all the releases so far. The deluxe ones are nice and all but shelf space is a problem for me.

[SorrelPark]

Pre-orders are up on TOUFAAN
https://www.toufaan.com/

[enandalusiskhund]

Nice to see this finally going forward. I actually think the normal releases look better than the huge collector's boxes, but now that I've bought all the other CE's I feel I can't stop.

[Ian Jane]

That packaging is gorgeous. Not that I expected any less from Mondo Vision at this point but still... damn.

[Tom Clark]

David also said the release date is (supposedly) February 13th and should be up for pre-order in the near future. A nice peek at the special edition:

[Ignatius]

Here's what David M. said about this release over at CriterionForum. I'm glad Mondo Vision is willing to turn down inferior masters in order to release the best possible version. It can't be easy for a small company to spend money preparing extras for a release, only to end up delaying it for 5 years!

This is a personal one for me, because it was a long journey to get it onto BD. Originally, Mondo Vision were supplied with a PAL telecine that was covered in noise reduction (it's been released on DVD in numerous countries). I advised them against releasing it even on DVD and for trying for something better, which was not a popular decision at the time (although Mondo Vision agreed). If we released it, we'd be putting out a watchable but not exactly great version of the film. But by not releasing it at all, we'd be nixing the first ever English-friendly version of the film.

Ultimately, I got the rightsholder to agree to do a new scan under the condition that I'd handle all the restoration and grading work on my own, which they'd also have access to. The only way to get it done really was to give them an offer that was too good to refuse. Fortunately they agreed and we ended up with a gorgeous new scan from the negative to work from.

It took a long time to finish the work because of all my other industry commitments in both BD and the CE industry, but it was in a near-finished state by the end of last year. Andrzej was able to see it before he died, and Andrzej Jaroszewicz was able to point out all the parts I'd graded incorrectly when he visited New York in early 2016 (during the American COSMOS premiere). Quite an experience having a legendary DoP sit in your apartment to check the work. I then did final adjustments to correct the grade to its intended look (I'd graded it too hot, and he explained that the look is supposed to be similar to a Baroque painting).

The release also has what is probably the last video interview with Marie-France Pisier, where she discusses working with Zulawski, among other things. It was shot for the cancelled Mondo Vision DVD version in February 2011, and has been archived ever since. I'm glad this entire thing is finally on its way to people's hands.

[Mark C.]

Looks very nice. Will pre-order this when It goes live.

[Tom Clark]

February 2017!

[Tom Clark]

[Ignatius]

All the Mondo Vision DVDs look great thanks to the work of David Mackenzie, who really knows how to get the best from the format.

Possession went through a whole range of setbacks. According to Mackenzie it was supposed to be one of the first Mondo Vision releases, but he looked at the existing masters and told the company he didn't think any of them were good enough for a 'special edition' release. Then they received an HD master with an ugly tape glitch in the middle of it. Then it turned out the colour correction on the master was a mess, so Mackenzie had to redo it himself. This post he made on CriterionForum back in 2012 gives a good overview of the problems they had with the look of the master.

I'm looking forward to seeing La note bleue and hoping they can afford to put it out on Blu-Ray, though I'm not sure my bank account can take it. Hopefully Silver Globe will follow shortly after - their release was said to be nearly complete before they put it on hold. I suspect a lack of quality masters is holding back films like Diabel and I doubt MV has the funds to facilitate new scans.

[enandalusiskhund]

The Mondo Vision Zulawski project is unprecedented in the home video world in my opinion. An obscure, extremely niche director, badly represented on video, presented with the quality and care befitting high profile directors from prestige labels like Criterion. Or even higher quality I'd say. The physical presentation of the releases is almost unmatched, and the fact that Zulawski himself has been involved right from the start, as well as the general quality of the transfers and encoding, make every release a stellar effort. Even seven years ago, when Mondo released La Femme Publique as their first tiltle, the disc was pushing the limits of what the DVD format is capable of image wise. I've rewatched it in later years on a 60 inch tv set, after becoming spoiled with HD, and it still looks absolutely spectacular. If they indeed release everything they've got the rights for, the whole project will go down as a high point in the history of film on physical media. It is kind of funny though, that the regular digipack releases are going to become the rare collector's items in the future.

[Tom Clark]

You sometimes tend to forget that Mondo Vision probably don't make hardly anything on these releases. Considering the lavishness of the sets, with extremely high quality transfers, packaging and extras, and how long the earlier releases have been in print (I don't believe any are OOP still, after many years?), this whole Zulawski project is probably more of an enthusiast endevour than a serious attempt to make money. So the years long waits for new releases aren't that strange to be honest, but very frustrating of course when you're anxious to get the next one. I hope at least Possession sold well.

No doubt all the Mondo Vision release are passion projects. Lets face it, even though Zulawski's name has become more known over the years thanks in part to these releases and various retrospective's, the fact is his stuff just isn't mass appeal. This just makes MV's efforts all the more admirable. Just the quality of the discs alone give the likes of Criterion a run for their money.

I think the only release of theirs that's currently on the lamb is the digipack of L'amour braque. All the others, even the limited special editions still seem to be fairly easy to find and for reasonable prices as well which is surprising given how stacked they are.

I'd like to hope Possession did well especially considering all the anticipation on various sites like this. I'll be curious to see the numbers for La note bleue once its out seeing as its a fairly low-key title even among some Zulawski fans.

Another thing to remember is Zulawski himself is an active participant in these releases, supervising the transfers and restorations so just getting everything right picture wise is bound to take some extra time. Wasn't color correction one of the things that held Possession back for so long? The blue had to be just the right shade or something. You certainty can't Zulawski for being a perfectionist. I too can find the long waits frustrating but that goes for any company. Ultimately the results speak for themselves and MV's results don't just speak, they shriek just like one of Zulawski's characters.