77 Police

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sidehacker
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77 Police

#1 Post by sidehacker » Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:07 am

Police

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Maurice Pialat’s Police delivers on the raw promise of its title, insofar as much of its action qualifies as an insistently ‘procedural’ descent into the Paris drugs underworld. But the hyper-real route that the film takes to arrive there, before veering into a zone of dangerous emotional play, contributes to a disorienting, adventurous, and ultimately tremendously exciting experience unlike any ‘police-thriller’ ever before conceived.

The iconic Gérard Depardieu (who also collaborated with Pialat on Loulou, Sous le soleil de Satan, and Le Garçu) plays Mangin, a cop whose brutal method of investigation finds its obsessive outlet in an attempt to crack a Tunisian narcotics ring. It is when Mangin enters into close acquaintance with the defiant Noria (expertly played by Sophie Marceau in one of her first screen roles) that the film proceeds to chart an unexpected, emotionally ambiguous course — and the lines between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, and ‘power’ and ‘freedom’, terminally blur.

Written with Catherine Breillat (director of The Last Mistress, Anatomy of Hell, Fat Girl), but relying in equal measure upon Pialat’s improvisatory control (directing, among others, his star-actress from A nos amours, Sandrine Bonnaire), Police is a genre-defying excursion rivaled only by John Cassavetes’ The Killing of a Chinese Bookie in the pantheon of cinema’s most idiosyncratic thrillers. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Maurice Pialat’s daring 1985 film in a magnificent restored transfer for the first time on DVD in the UK.

2-DISC EDITION:

- New anamorphic transfer of the film in its original aspect ratio
- New and improved English subtitle translations
- 2003 video interview with director and Police co-screenwriter Catherine Breillat, conducted by former Cahiers du cinéma editor-in-chief, and current director of the Cinémathèque Française, Serge Toubiana
- Zoom Sur Police (Zoom Onto Police, a 34-minute documentary by Virginie Apiou about the production of the film
- Vintage screen-tests featuring Maurice Pialat and C. Galmiche, the inspiration for the character of Lambert
- Excerpt from a 1985 episode of Cinéma Cinémas shot during the course of the 17th day of production on Police
- 23-minute video discussion with Yann Dedet, the editor of Police
- The film’s original trailer, along with trailers for other Maurice Pialat films to be released by The Masters of Cinema Series
- 40-page booklet containing a new essay by filmmaker and critic Dan Sallitt, and newly translated interviews with Maurice Pialat

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souvenir
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Re: 77 Police

#2 Post by souvenir » Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:13 am

sidehacker wrote:• The film’s original trailer, along with trailers for other Maurice Pialat films to be released by The Masters of Cinema Series
This is most interesting. Should we clear off 73 through 76 for Pialat also?

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domino harvey
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#3 Post by domino harvey » Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:17 am

Holy smokes. MOC owns 2008, end of discussion.

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sidehacker
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#4 Post by sidehacker » Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:21 am

I was just about to mention that, but it seems too ideal for me to believe. Let's see if MoC were to go chronologically (which it seems they would do) that would make spines 73, 74, 75, and 76 be We Won't Grow Old Together, The Mouth Agape, Graduate First, and A nos amours, respectively. Of course, the TV series La maison de bois could also pop up. Thus, bumping off A nos amours, which has obviously already been covered by Criterion. Even if none of this comes true, it's still extremely exciting. Two Pialat films in one year!

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Oedipax
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#5 Post by Oedipax » Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:29 am

Bravo, MoC! I'm really looking forward to more English-subbed Pialat.

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#6 Post by stephan73 » Thu Jul 03, 2008 2:06 am

MoC page is online!

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What A Disgrace
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#7 Post by What A Disgrace » Thu Jul 03, 2008 7:39 am

domino harvey wrote:Holy smokes. MOC owns 2008, end of discussion.
Seconded. This is fantastic news. Judging from MoC's previous record, I think its safe to assume that the four spines between L'Enfance Nue and Police will be Pialat films; to say nothing of the next two (which could be Sous le Soleil du Satan and Le Garcu).

Am I safe to assume that the MoC discs (and Criterion's A Nos Amours) are virtually identical to the French releases; which I know nothing of? What could we expect from future potential Pialat acquisitions?

jules
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#8 Post by jules » Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:12 am

Great news! MoC is the best! =D>

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Anhedionisiac
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#9 Post by Anhedionisiac » Thu Jul 03, 2008 12:58 pm

Awesome, long live MoC

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Zazou dans le Metro
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#10 Post by Zazou dans le Metro » Thu Jul 03, 2008 2:05 pm

What A Disgrace wrote:Am I safe to assume that the MoC discs (and Criterion's A Nos Amours) are virtually identical to the French releases; which I know nothing of? What could we expect from future potential Pialat acquisitions?
Pretty safe assumption viz. Gaumont edition bonus specs.-
Police (1985), film présenté par Catherine Breillat.
Les bonus :
¤ Scènes coupées et essai / Des images inédites commentées par Yann Dedet (monteur du film).
¤ Zoom sur "Police" (18 ans après), un documentaire de Virginie Apiou, 2002 (35').
¤ Sur le tournage (12') / Un reportage de Cinéma cinémas (1987) sur le 17ème jour de tournage.

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Michael Kerpan
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#11 Post by Michael Kerpan » Thu Jul 03, 2008 4:31 pm

Aw, shucks -- for a second, I thought this might be Tomu Uchida's 1933 film (Keisatsukan / Police / the Policeman).

;~}

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backstreetsbackalright
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#12 Post by backstreetsbackalright » Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:37 pm

This Pialat I have seen - and loved. Double sold! Thanks MoC!!!

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zedz
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#13 Post by zedz » Thu Jul 03, 2008 6:55 pm

More great news.

Not one of my favourite Pialats (when the plot takes over in the second half it's rather 'so what?'), but this might well be Depardieu's greatest performance. The opening scene alone has more energy than some filmmakers' and actors' entire careers.

If these are two pearls in a string of Pialat releases, I owe MoC a round of drinks.

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Cronenfly
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#14 Post by Cronenfly » Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:29 pm

I can't say that I saw MoC tackling a bunch of Pialat so concentratedly (enough to rival their Mizoguchi output, perhaps, though only time will tell just how many titles there will be), but I'm all the happier for it.

peerpee
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#15 Post by peerpee » Fri Jul 04, 2008 1:34 am

The image gallery at the film's website page is made using DVD grabs from the finished MoC DVD9.

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foggy eyes
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#16 Post by foggy eyes » Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:47 pm

These Pialat releases look amazing - I haven't managed to dig deeper than the three English-subbed DVDs yet (Criterion & AE), so consider every one bought. Awesome stuff, MoC.

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Harold Gervais
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#17 Post by Harold Gervais » Sun Jul 06, 2008 3:34 pm

If a film lover were to only buy Masters of Cinema discs it would be reason enough to purchase a region-free player. Great looking release. Thanks.

stephan73
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#18 Post by stephan73 » Sun Jul 06, 2008 4:45 pm

It's now available as pre-order via Play.com!

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#19 Post by Stefan Andersson » Wed Sep 03, 2008 7:17 am

Weren´t there deleted scenes on the French POLICE dvd? I seem to remember this. Pity MoC didn´t port them over (rights problems?).

So maybe no deleted scenes for SOUS LE SOLEIL DE SATAN either
I think there are deleted scenes on the French dvd, sorry if I misremember, perpee!

peerpee
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#20 Post by peerpee » Wed Sep 03, 2008 10:47 am

Stefan Andersson wrote:Weren´t there deleted scenes on the French POLICE dvd? I seem to remember this. Pity MoC didn´t port them over (rights problems?).

So maybe no deleted scenes for SOUS LE SOLEIL DE SATAN either
I think there are deleted scenes on the French dvd, sorry if I misremember, perpee!
The deleted scenes on POLICE are embedded in the 23-minute piece with the editor. Everything's on there.

Stefan Andersson
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#21 Post by Stefan Andersson » Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:09 am

Thank you very much, peerpee (not perpee!)!

Any chance of LE GARCU getting a MoC release?

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domino harvey
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#22 Post by domino harvey » Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:32 pm


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der_Artur
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#23 Post by der_Artur » Fri Sep 05, 2008 6:37 am

domino harvey wrote:Beaver


Be careful, that review is NSFW!

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MichaelB
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#24 Post by MichaelB » Fri Sep 05, 2008 6:49 am

foggy eyes wrote:These Pialat releases look amazing
They do indeed - and I've watched them on a 42" plasma!

Seriously, Nick and co have really excelled themselves here - I'm finding it very hard to find fault with anything in either package: transfers, extras and booklet are all top-notch and go far, far further than I'd ever have imagined for a director who's never exactly been a British arthouse favourite.

I was particularly impressed with the subtitles, which are exceptionally thorough and idiomatic - and I imagine they were quite a challenge to get right.

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#25 Post by What A Disgrace » Fri Sep 05, 2008 6:51 am

golgothicon wrote:
domino harvey wrote:Beaver

Be careful, that review is NSFW!
I came, I saw, and not in that order?

I'm looking forward to these releases for more reasons than Sandrine's nakedness. I've loved the three Pialat films I've seen.

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