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Blu-Ray : Must Own
Ranking:
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Release Date: July 20th, 2010 Movie Release Year: 1948

The Red Shoes

Overview -

The Red Shoes, the singular fantasia from Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is cinema’s quintessential backstage drama, as well as one of the most glorious Technicolor visual feasts ever concocted for the screen. Moira Shearer is a rising star ballerina romantically torn between an idealistic composer and a ruthless impresario intent on perfection. Featuring outstanding performances, blazingly beautiful cinematography by Jack Cardiff, Oscar-winning sets and music, and an unforgettable, hallucinatory central dance sequence, this beloved classic, now dazzlingly restored, stands as an enthralling tribute to the life of the artist.

OVERALL:
Must Own
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
BD-50 Blu-ray Disc
Video Resolution/Codec:
1080p/AVC MPEG-4
Length:
133
Aspect Ratio(s):
1.33:1
Audio Formats:
English LPCM Mono
Subtitles/Captions:
English
Special Features:
A booklet featuring an essay by Ian Christie
Release Date:
July 20th, 2010

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

It says something that no less than three major motion pictures in 2010 directly referenced Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's 1948 film 'The Red Shoes.' In the circles of film fanatics, the movie is a fetish object – something to be obsessed about and replayed, over and over and over again – and it crops up from time to time in current films, but 2010 was some kind of banner year, with the winks and nods front and center.

In Martin Scorsese's 'Shutter Island,' there's a shot of a spiral staircase, and the camera movement (and the staircase itself) is a nod to a moment in 'The Red Shoes,' while two other films took less specific, but more thematic approaches. In both Edgar Wright's 'Scott Pilgrim vs. the World' and Darren Aronofsky's 'Black Swan,' the line between reality and fantasy is blurred in the same way that it is in 'The Red Shoes.' 'Scott Pilgrim's' takeaway is more impressionistic while 'Black Swan' seems more rooted in direct homage since it takes place in the world of ballet (and it shares some similar story beats and structural frameworks).

But what makes 'The Red Shoes' such a memorable cinematic artifact?

Well, for one thing, the film is drop-dead gorgeous. The tale of a ballerina (Moira Shearer) who lands the lead in a ballet version of Hans Christian Anderson's fable 'The Red Shoes' (about a pair of enchanted shoes that transform the wearer into an uncannily skilled dancer), it's a story of excess, fame, and psychological instability. (All chestnuts of Hollywood storytelling.) But what really makes it so striking is the photography by cinematographer Jack Cardiff. In 'The Red Shoes' colors don't just pop, they leap off the screen and into your lap.

It's more than just the look of the film, though, that has people coming back for more. (When it was recently booked for a limited engagement in New York's Film Forum there were lines around the block for virtually every screening.) No, it's so much more than that.

'The Red Shoes' is trickily meta-textual for its time, too, weaving both the Hans Christian Anderson story and the story of the tortured and ultimately undone ballerina together in a way that is compelling and cutting edge while never being show-offy. The way the elements of the story are braided together – the on stage magic (uncannily brought to life with the most rudimentary and effective special effects tools) with the heartbreaking behind-the-scenes melodrama, which involves a love triangle with the ballet company's overseer (Anton Walbrook) and the newly installed conductor (Marius Goring) – is downright brilliant and the way that the two layers of reality breakdown as the film progresses is nothing short of jaw dropping. It helps, too, that the music is so compelling, with Brian Easdale's music serving as a sturdy backbone to both planes of existence.

The movie doesn't merely resonate because it looks so damn amazing, but because thematically it still manages to impress and dazzle. Powell and Pressburger (know as The Archers) made a number of noteworthy films during their career, but 'The Red Shoes' is an especially spectacular accomplishment. One of the film's many themes is the idea of immortality through art. And you know what? They accomplished it. Just ask Darren Aronofsky, Martin Scorsese, and Edgar Wright.

The Blu-ray: Vital Disc Stats

'The Red Shoes' dances onto high definition courtesy of the good folks at the Criterion Collection. An earlier edition of the movie had been a staple of the collection (which explains the low spine number - #44), but this is a jazzy new version, complete with new supplements. The movie and its special features are housed on a 50GB Blu-ray disc and everything that's on the disc here is also available on the DVD package. It's housed in an extra-chunky Criterion box and is Region A locked.

Video Review

Ranking:

'The Red Shoes' comes equipped with an 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 transfer (maintaining the original 1.37:1 theatrical aspect ratio) that does nothing short of make your eyes pop out of your skull.

As you'll see elsewhere on the disc, a lot of care and attention has gone into the restoration of the movie's image, and according to the accompanying booklet: "This new high-definition digital master was created from the 2009 4K digital restoration made from the original Technicolor negatives and optical tracks."

In short: it's one of the greatest transfers available on Blu-ray. The transfer shouldn't be based on realism, since there are such fantastical elements of the story in play, but skin tones generally look great, while colors zoom off the screen, detail is unbeatable, and the entire presentation shimmers like a new penny.

This is a noticeable upgrade from the original release, with the image looking deeper, richer, and more glorious. The image looks sparkly clean, too, with many imperfections painstakingly removed but without (thankfully) the impression that it was scrubbed too clean – it looks presentably filmic and absolutely amazing.

Audio Review

Ranking:

There is only one audio option on 'The Red Shoes,' an English LPCM Mono track (with optional subtitles). While not as drop-your-soda shocking as the video transfer, the audio is pretty outstanding as well.

You're not going to get a whole lot of range out of a mono track, but for the most part, it sounds great – you can hear all the dialogue with a sharp crispness, the music fills out fairly well, and the sound effects and other embellishments are sparkly too. But the real asset of the audio track is how CLEAN everything sounds – there isn't any foggy background hiss, or pops or crackle or anything like that.

Those of us that had the original release will notice a big improvement over the previous edition; things just sound richer and more dynamic. And that's enough for me.

Special Features

Ranking:

The extras package on this disc is a winning combination of old material from the original Criterion release and brand new supplements. It's more or less the definitive package on the film and in addition does a fascinating job of explaining how the movie was painstakingly restored. The booklet contains an essay from film critic David Ehrenstein called "Dancing For Your Life."

  • Audio Commentary The commentary here, a holdover from the original release, is a must-listen and, if you choose only one extra to indulge in, it should be this one! Participants in the track are film historian Ian Christie, stars Marius Goring and Moira Shearer, the aforementioned genius cinematographer Jack Cardiff, composer Brian Easdale, and some dude named Martin Scorsese (who pops up frequently on this disc). Virtually every angle that the film can be viewed from – as a participant, performer, passionate fan – is explored, beautifully.
  • The 'Red Shoes' Novel Another OG special feature, this time it's an audio recording that the Criterion Collection commissioned in which the velvety voiced Jeremy Irons reads excerpts from the Archers' 1978 novelization of the movie. You can even watch the movie with the audio recording going on. Outstanding.
  • Restoration Demonstration (HD, 5 minutes) In this brief documentary, Scorsese, who was instrumental in getting the film restored (and having that restoration seen), explains the process in which the film was cleaned up. In short, the film was shot using a tri-color strip film so the film had to be restored three times, with each color being cleaned up individually and then composited. It was grueling work, for sure, but it paid off. Big time.
  • Profile of the Red Shoes (27 minutes, HD) This good but not exactly extensive documentary, produced in England in 2000, features interviews with historian Ian Christie, cinematographer Jack Cardiff, camera operator Chris Challis, and family members of various members of the movie's creative team. Overall, it's gripping but there is still stuff left to be explored – thank heavens for that commentary track!
  • Thelma Schoonmaker Powell (15 minutes, HD) Michael Powell's widow is Thelma Schoonmaker, Martin Scorsese's long time editor and close collaborator. She talks about her relationship with one half of The Archers, the reference hidden within 'Shutter Island,' what it took to restore the film, and what they're working on restoring next ('Colonel Blimp').
  • Stills Gallery Broken down into a few sections – Cast and Crew; Filming in London; Filming in Paris; Filming in Monte Carlo; Deleted Scenes (black-and-white); Production and costume designs. Worth flicking through.
  • Scorsese's Memorabilia If you don't scream "Me wanty!" at least once during this gallery, then you aren't a real movie geek. Scorsese has tons of stuff – not after-the-fact promotional stuff, either (although he does have that) but things that were actually IN the movie – including the actual red shoes! It's gotten to the point where his famous friends know to give him 'Red Shoes'-related material as presents. A must-watch.
  • The Red Shoes Sketches (HD, 16 minutes) One of the coolest special features, this is a little animated montage based on production designer Hein Heckroth's original color storyboards. It's set to Brian Easdale's score but you can also watch it with Irons' gooey reading of the original fairy tale, or side-by-side with the film. Like everything else on this disc, it's crazy awesome and a loving testament to the power of the original film.
  • Trailer (HD, 3 minutes) The original trailer, which sells the spectacular aspects of the film but not its subversive elements (of course). Fun but not necessarily a must-watch.

Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's 'The Red Shoes' is an undeniable classic beloved by film fans (and filmmakers) the world over – a tale of passion, love, and madness set against a truly theatrical backdrop. But it's not just a visual spectacle but an emotional one, too. Criterion, using a newly minted print of the film, has put together a dynamite package worthy of the amazing film – from the pristine visuals and audio to the fine collection of extra features, many of them shared with the original release but all of them worth watching. This is a Must Own if there's ever been one.