In 1821, Lucien de Rubempré (César winner Benjamin Voisin) arrives in Paris as a sensitive, and idealistic young poet determined to write a reputation-making novel. Instead, he finds himself swept into journalism, whose influence and reach is booming with the help of the printing press, widely available of late. Under the mentorship of cynical editor Étienne Lousteau (César winner Vincent Lacoste), Lucien agrees to write rave theater reviews for bribes, achieving material success at the expense of his conscience. With this sweeping adaptation of one of Balzac’s greatest novels, Xavier Giannoli crafts a contemporary tale of corruption amidst an early form of “fake news”.
For in-depth thoughts on Lost Illusions, please see my colleague Julia Tong’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
Lost Illusions comes to Blu-Ray in a 1080p presentation that is very beautiful. This is a visually rich film with everything from the most opulent arenas to the sludge of the common man on display throughout where you can see an incredible amount of detail. The transfer maintains the natural appearance of the source format quite handsomely. The film is bursting with vivid colors when thematically appropriate with numerous moments that really pop off the screen within the costumes and the production design. The lower class interiors are typically a more reserved environment that presents with more moderate tones that the presentation represents with great nuance. The white levels are handled admirably, along with the intensely deep blacks that do not appear to fall victim to any compression artifacts. The skin tones look very detailed and natural all around. This presentation is a stunning addition to the Blu-Ray format.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray disc comes with both a DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio track in the original French that conjures a specific mood that transports you to this time period. The film uses music in really fun, effective ways that fill the room with a wonderful intensity. The dialogue comes through crystal clear without ever being overwhelmed by the sound effects or the score. The sound design is as precisely thought-out as the on screen visuals with all of the sounds of the world positioned just right in the mix. The environmental effects create a really impressive soundscape of class chaos. This is not an action-heavy film, but activity in the low end is strong thanks to distinct elements within the soundscape. This is a lovely sounding release that brings the movie to life as well as you could possibly desire. There are optional English subtitles provided.
Special Features
- The Cast On Lost Illusions: A 14-minute featurette in which pairs of performers come together to discuss the themes of the film, the feat of adapting this massive text into an engaging film, the direction of Xavier Giannoli, why the story is so relatable today, background information about their characters, technical details of the production and more.
- The Beauty Of Lost Illusions: A three-minute piece which shows off some of the most interesting shots from the film with the score playing underneath.
- Photo Gallery: A collection of stills from the production of the film are included here.
- Theatrical Trailer: A nearly two-and-a-half minute trailer for the film is provided here.
Final Thoughts
Lost Illusions is an epic adaptation of classic French source material which nimbly balances many different thematic elements thanks to the direction of Xavier Giannoli. Many elements of the plot have never been more relevant as the ability to disseminate information to a mass audience is often challenged on grounds of validity. This world is brought together with great care in both the strong performances and the sumptuous production design. As strong as all of these elements may be, the adaptation slightly stumbles in its insistence on staying true to the source material, most often coming in the form of handholding narration which lessens the visual impact of the filmmaking. Even with these concerns, this film is incredibly effective and worth the time invested in the mammoth runtime. Music Box Films Home Entertainment has given this lovely film a Blu-Ray release featuring a top-notch A/V presentation and a decent amount of special features. Recommended
Lost Illusions will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Music Box Films Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.