Les Aventuriers (Japan release) impressions

[kannisto]

I got this one today as well.

Pics:


Video: 2.35:1 AVC
Audio: French mono DD+, Japanese mono DD+
Subtitles: Optional Japanese
Extras:
- Interview with director Robert Enrico
- Interview with Joanna Shimkus at Cannes Film Festival 2006
- Featurette on composer Francois de Roubaix
- Original trailer with selectable French and English audio tracks (in HD)
- Original trailer "remix version" (in HD)
- Alternate opening and ending (both in HD)
- Cast & crew bios in Japanese text

No English audio/subtitle for the main feature. Main menu is in English though, but some of the sub-menus in Japanese.

PQ looks pretty beatiful for a movie that is 40 years old. Pleasantly detailed and film-like, natural looking. Sound is mono, dialogue sounds pretty clear. I haven't seen any other presentations of this film so can't really compare to any other version. Didn't watch this one yet, just took some peeks.

[ahsoka]

I'm curious about the movie itself and when you have watched it I'd be interested to hear your thoughts about it. My French isn't that good but I might get this one if it's good. I used to watch a lot of French movies a few years ago, especially comedies like the "Gendarme" and "Fantomas" movies. Tati in HD would be nice.

I'd like to get this Les Gendarmes HD DVD box although it seems to be out of stock at Amazon France. I'll probably order it when it becomes available. There are some other France-only titles that are tempting to get at the same time.

[Njål]

Originally Posted by ahsoka

I'd like to get this Les Gendarmes HD DVD box although it seems to be out of stock at Amazon France. I'll probably order it when it becomes available. There are some other France-only titles that are tempting to get at the same time.

It seems to be available from Fnac (and at a couple of € less). From my experience they're comparable to Amazon France for service, and sometimes have titles/stock not available at Amazon.

On another note, several titles have decreased in price at Free Record Shop Netherlands (for instance, the Reservoir Dogs HD DVD is now only €14.99).

[ahsoka]

Originally Posted by Njål

It seems to be available from Fnac (and at a couple of € less). From my experience they're comparable to Amazon France for service, and sometimes have titles/stock not available at Amazon.

Thanks for the suggestion! Didn't know about Fnac but it looks like it's a good site and yes it's cheaper too. I might get it from there instead after the holidays.

[kannisto]

Originally Posted by ahsoka

I'm curious about the movie itself and when you have watched it I'd be interested to hear your thoughts about it. My French isn't that good but I might get this one if it's good. I used to watch a lot of French movies a few years ago, especially comedies like the "Gendarme" and "Fantomas" movies. Tati in HD would be nice.
...

I watched "Les Aventuriers" today. It's a very delightful movie and tragic at times as well. It's about sense of freedom and adventure and friendship, quite uplifting but it has some surprising tragedy in it as well. I didn't know much about the movie before watching it but I was positively impressed It takes place in quite many locations (Paris, Congo, coastal village somewhere in France) and has interesting aviation, racing and diving elements too. Alain Delon, Lino Ventura and Joanna Shimkus make up a great trio and they have very good chemistry in the movie. The music in the movie is quite memorable and good as well, in a simple but striking way. The tone of the movie takes some surprising turns and made a big impact by being quite unpredictable while never losing its touch.

The slight problem for me watching the movie was that I don't know more than very basics of French language and I can't read Japanese well enough to follow the subtitles fluently so I watched it with the Japanese dub track. However, there were a few scenes that were not dubbed so the audio was in French at times (though I guess it was only a couple of minutes of the whole duration overall). I tried to read the Japanese subs at those points. In any case, it was quite easy to follow the movie even without understanding every bit of the dialogue.

This would be highly recommended for those who can follow the movie in French or Japanese and who can appreciate older films

[ahsoka]

Originally Posted by kannisto

I watched "Les Aventuriers" today. It's a very delightful movie and tragic at times as well. It's about sense of freedom and adventure and friendship, quite uplifting but it has some surprising tragedy in it as well. I didn't know much about the movie before watching it but I was positively impressed It takes place in quite many locations (Paris, Congo, coastal village somewhere in France) and has interesting aviation, racing and diving elements too. Alain Delon, Lino Ventura and Joanna Shimkus make up a great trio and they have very good chemistry in the movie. The music in the movie is quite memorable and good as well, in a simple but striking way. The tone of the movie takes some surprising turns and made a big impact by being quite unpredictable while never losing its touch.

The slight problem for me watching the movie was that I don't know more than very basics of French language and I can't read Japanese well enough to follow the subtitles fluently so I watched it with the Japanese dub track. However, there were a few scenes that were not dubbed so the audio was in French at times (though I guess it was only a couple of minutes of the whole duration overall). I tried to read the Japanese subs at those points. In any case, it was quite easy to follow the movie even without understanding every bit of the dialogue.

This would be highly recommended for those who can follow the movie in French or Japanese and who can appreciate older films

Thanks for your views about the movie. It sounds like something I'd enjoy. Like both so called "Foreign/World" movies and older ones. The story with the drama and adventure in various locations seems interesting. With a good PQ it should be nice to have in any HD collection.

The only thing holding me back is the lack of English subtitles. Since my French is quite poor, I'd probably have to choose the Japanese audio over the French one. It's certainly not an ideal option for me but after watching hundreds of Japanese language movies over the past few years, I'm much more familiar with that than French.

Anyway, a while back I decided to only buy the titles that i REALLY want but I think this one should be a worthy purchase.

[kannisto]

Originally Posted by ahsoka

Thanks for your views about the movie. It sounds like something I'd enjoy. Like both so called "Foreign/World" movies and older ones. The story with the drama and adventure in various locations seems interesting. With a good PQ it should be nice to have in any HD collection.

The only thing holding me back is the lack of English subtitles. Since my French is quite poor, I'd probably have to choose the Japanese audio over the French one. It's certainly not an ideal option for me but after watching hundreds of Japanese language movies over the past few years, I'm much more familiar with that than French.

Anyway, a while back I decided to only buy the titles that i REALLY want but I think this one should be a worthy purchase.

I'm also trying to cut back on buying too much discs. At least the first months of the year are usually a bit slower with new releases so that helps in a way. I do think this one is definitely worth getting though as long as the language is not too much of a problem! Some of the scenes in the movie are very memorable as is the music as well.