Moulin Rouge (1952)

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MichaelB
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Moulin Rouge (1952)

#1 Post by MichaelB » Wed Jul 31, 2019 7:32 am

Confirmed as an 18 November release:
John Huston’s acclaimed Toulouse-Lautrec biopic Moulin Rouge (1952) receives its Blu-ray premiere. This new 4K restoration, which premiered in the Cannes Classics strand at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, brings stunning new life to the film’s exquisite production design and Technicolor photography, which brilliantly evoke Lautrec’s unique vision of Montmartre, Paris.

Set in 19th century Paris, despondent artist Toulouse Lautrec (José Ferrer), frustrated by his physical handicaps, seeks solace in the drink, dance and distractions offered up at the infamous Moulin Rouge nightclub. An encounter with a young girl in desperate need of help (Colette Marchand) brings hope to his lonely life but, in the lusty atmosphere of the Belle Époque, romance can quickly turn to rivalry... 


Directed by two-time Oscar winner John Huston (The African Queen, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre) the film went on to be nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning two for Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. This stunning 4K restoration brings new life to the film’s exquisite production design and Technicolor photography, brilliantly evoking Lautrec’s unique artistic visions.

• Newly restored in 4K and released in the UK on Blu-ray for the first time
• Newly recorded commentary with continuity supervisor Angela Allen
• **FIRST PRESSING ONLY** Fully illustrated booklet with new writing on the film and full film credits
• Other extras TBC

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domino harvey
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Re: Moulin Rouge (Huston)

#2 Post by domino harvey » Wed Jul 31, 2019 8:46 am

Hell. Yes. One of the most-needed Blu-Ray upgrades I can think of for a stunningly beautiful film

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Cremildo
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Re: Moulin Rouge (Huston)

#3 Post by Cremildo » Wed Jul 31, 2019 11:09 am

Most excellent news. I've wanted to upgrade this gem for a long time. The old MGM DVD doesn't seem to do it much justice.

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MichaelB
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#4 Post by MichaelB » Tue Oct 29, 2019 10:39 am

Full specs announced:
Moulin Rouge
Directed by John Huston
José Ferrer, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Collette Marchand

Dual Format Edition release on 18 November 2019 and simultaneous release on BFI Player and iTunes


Nineteenth-century Paris comes colourfully to life in this lavish, high-kicking, gorgeously shot portrait of tormented artist Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, directed by screen-legend John Huston. On 18 November 2019, a new 4K restoration of Moulin Rouge comes to Blu-ray for the first time in the UK, released by the BFI in a Dual Format Edition with a simultaneous release on BFI Player and iTunes.

Extras include Images of Paris in Silent Films, a selection of rare films from 1900-1925, preserved in the BFI National Archive and a new commentary by Angela Allen, a long standing associate of John Huston and script supervisor on Moulin Rouge.

Friend and chronicler of the eccentric characters who populate fiery Paris night spot the Moulin Rouge, Toulouse-Lautrec (José Ferrer, Cyrano de Bergerac) sips cognac and wears his disability lightly as he sketches the dancers who feature in his vivid works. But when he becomes embroiled in a turbulent relationship with a vivacious prostitute, he turns to the bottle and frustrated passion, love, heartbreak and painful self-discovery beckon in bawdy, bohemian Paris. Beautifully framed by the camerawork of award-winning cinematographer Oswald Morris (Fiddler on the Roof), this heartrending drama is played out against the lush strains of Georges Auric’s evocative score.

Special features
• Restored in 4K from the original 35mm nitrate negative;
Images of Paris in Silent Film (17 mins): a selection of rare early films, spanning the years 1900-1925, reflecting different aspects of life in Lautrec’s adopted home, from the vaults of the BFI National Archive;
Lightning Sketches: Posters, Printing and Caricatures in Silent Film (21 mins): artists use new cinematic technology to bring their topical cartoons to life in this collection of archival oddities from the earliest days of animation and the popular press;
Lautrec (1974, 6 mins): Lautrec’s characters dance playfully through this lovely short animated film which celebrates his life and work;
• Commentary by Angela Allen (2019): the longstanding associate of John Huston and Moulin Rouge script supervisor discusses this film and many others across an eclectic career in this new commentary recorded specifically for this release;
• Image gallery;
• Illustrated booklet (***first pressing only***) containing an essay by John Oliver, a biography of John Huston by Dr Josephine Botting, notes on the special features and cast and credits.

Product details
RRP: £22.99 / Cat. no. BFIB1362 / Cert 12
UK / 1952 / colour / 114 mins / English language with optional hard-of-hearing subtitles / original aspect ratio 1.37:1 / BD50:1080p, 24fps 2.0 mono audio (48kHz/24-bit) / DVD9: 25fps, Dolby Digital 2.0 mono audio (48kHz/16-bit)

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domino harvey
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#5 Post by domino harvey » Tue Oct 29, 2019 10:46 am

Is that that John Oliver?

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MichaelB
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#6 Post by MichaelB » Tue Oct 29, 2019 10:52 am

Probably not, unless he's been keeping very quiet about his extracurricular writing activities.

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tenia
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#7 Post by tenia » Tue Nov 19, 2019 12:36 pm

Beautiful new restoration of the movie, though the soundtrack has difficulties supporting the on-screen action. It often sounds flat, with a general volume which is too low to begin with, but it mostly seems to be lacking in the mid and high range, resulting in a muddled track that doesn't help on both the opening musical numbers and the more dialogues-driven rest of the movie.

The movie felt very on-and-off to me. I'm especially not convinced by the casting overall, which often fails to properly convey emotion and just seem too mechanical in their deliveries.

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tenia
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#8 Post by tenia » Wed Nov 20, 2019 3:25 am

That's what the technical text panel opening the restoration says.

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Finch
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#9 Post by Finch » Wed Nov 20, 2019 6:17 pm


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Randall Maysin
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#10 Post by Randall Maysin » Fri Nov 22, 2019 7:29 am

MichaelB wrote:
Tue Oct 29, 2019 10:39 am
Commentary by Angela Allen (2019)
Would love to hear what she has to say about The Man Who Would Be King, or even Pandora and the Flying Dutchman. Undoubtedly she has fascinating stories about both!

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JamesF
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#11 Post by JamesF » Fri Nov 22, 2019 11:35 am

I interviewed her at her home for Arrow's release of Carol Reed's The Running Man earlier this year, and can testify to that - even after the cameras switched off, she spent a good few hours telling my crew and I some fascinating stories about Huston and others. Bet this commentary will be a treat.

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antnield
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#12 Post by antnield » Sat Nov 23, 2019 2:48 pm

A full breakdown of the short film selections:

Images of Paris in Silent Film

Panorama Around the Eiffel Tower (1900, Warwick Trading Company, 1 min)
Paris Street Scene (1900, 1 min)
Panorama of the Paris Exhibition No. 3 (1900, Hepworth and Co., 1 min)
The Paris and St Louis Expositions (1904, Edison Studios/American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 12 mins)
Gaumont Graphic 313: The Paris Sensation (1914, Gaumont Graphic, 1 min)
Topical Budget 152-1: Balloon Accident at St Cloud (1925, Topical Film Company, 1 min)

Lightning Sketches: Posters, Printing and Caricatures in Silent Film

Tom Merry, Lightning Cartoonist, Sketching Kaiser Wilhelm II (1895, R.W. Paul, 1 min)
The Bill Poster (1899, Charles Goodwin Norton, 1 min)
Employees of Co-Operative Wholesale Society Printing Works, Longsight, Manchester (1901, Mitchell and Kenyon, 2 mins)
Anti-German War Cartoons (1915, Charles Goodwin Norton, 5 mins)
Studdy’s War Cartoons (1915, Gaumont Company, 6 mins)
Dicky Dee’s Cartoons No 3 (1915, Anson Dyer, 5 mins)
First World War Cartoon – Joiffre (1915, 1 min)

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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#13 Post by therewillbeblus » Tue Dec 03, 2019 10:30 pm

I absolutely loved this, and am left wondering how it remained a gap in my John Huston viewings for so long. Ferrer is a chameleon of an actor and sells his character well as a complicated man barely hanging on yet conveying a strange confidence halfway between humble acceptance and completely giving up on life, a vast gap that he somehow nails. Marchand inversely plays a chameleon within the film, a resilient yet poisonous tormentor to Ferrer’s vulnerable loner, puncturing the emotional hole he’s desperate to fill. Flon is perfect as a self-conscious complement, and watching her and Ferrer shyly yearn to blossom and share their love in scenes together is one of the film’s many beautiful and tragic assets. The journey of the narrative is one that layers socialization and culture atop loneliness without pretending that they can cure the ennui of isolation without deeper, intimate connection, instead wisely serving to heighten this realization. The wonders of art and the pleasures of culture cannot compete with human connection, but they can make life worth living for a little while.

I began watching a rented MGM DVD a few weeks ago and promptly ejected it after falling in love with the first twenty minutes while preordering the BFI to watch it right, a choice I don’t regret. This is a lovely restoration of a beautiful film.

britcom68

Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#14 Post by britcom68 » Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:34 am

Moulin Rouge just announced as part of the 2020 Cinema Revival festival at the Wexner Center, here in Columbus OH. If anyone is interested, the Feb 29, 2020 7:30 PM showing will have introduction before the film by Grover Crisp.

Here are the specs on the film showing itself, courtesy of Wexner site:
Restored in 2019 by The Film Foundation in collaboration with Park Circus, Romulus Films, and MGM with funding provided by the Franco-American Cultural Fund; Directors Guild of America (DGA); Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA); Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique (SACEM); and Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW). Print restored at the Cinéric, Inc., laboratory from the original Technicolor trichrome nitrate negative.

https://wexarts.org/film-video/moulin-rouge

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Aunt Peg
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Re: Moulin Rouge (1952)

#15 Post by Aunt Peg » Fri Dec 27, 2019 8:59 am

Just watched this tonight and it was like seeing the film for the first time having only ever seen it on a faded VHS tape back in the early 1990s. Yet another jaw-dropping beautiful restoration. One of the great releases of 2019.

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