Sandra (Léa Seydoux) is a widowed young mother raising her daughter alone, while also caring for her sick father Georg (Pascal Greggory). She’s dealing with the loss of the relationship she once had with her father, while fighting to get him the care he requires. At the same time, Sandra reconnects with Clément (Melvil Poupaud), a friend she hasn’t seen in a while and, although he’s married, their friendship soon blossoms into a passionate affair.

For in-depth thoughts on One Fine Morning, please see my colleague Julia Tong’s review from its NYFF debut here.

Video Quality

One Fine Morning comes to Blu-Ray in a 1080p presentation in the original 1.85:1 that is simply gorgeous. This is a carefully composed film with many nuanced shots where you can see a stunning amount of detail. There are a plethora of interior sequences featuring intricate production design which provide a nice reference to spotlight the depth at play in the image. The film plays very well with the rich hues on display from the greens of the foliage to certain pops of color within the outfits. The skin tones look very detailed and natural all around. This is a film with a stable color palette that is replicated perfectly here with a pleasing radiance. The highlights are handled beautifully, along with deep blacks that do not appear to suffer from any crush or compression artifacts. There are no obvious signs of any noise or other such digital nuisances. This presentation delivers what you want from a modern film with such lovely cinematography.

Audio Quality

The film comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in the original French that brings this gentle experience to life with a full-bodied richness. Dialogue comes through clearly without being overshadowed by any of the other sounds. The track really comes alive when it comes to the score, permeating the room in a really wonderful way. Activity in the low end is not the most substantial but what is there adds texture to the proceedings.

Environmental effects play a substantial role in the film, and this track brings these elements to life quite favorably. The use of the rear channels to create a fully three-dimensional world works quite well. The directionality is quite precise so sounds always present as natural when coming from their respective points. Sony has delivered the goods here. There are optional English and English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Theatrical Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.

Previews: There are also trailers provided for Return To Seoul, Living, The Son, Compartment No. 6 and Parallel Mothers.

Final Thoughts

One Fine Morning is a very calm and deliberate drama which finds power in the mundanity of life. With every small issue faced by our lead, a bit more texture is added to her life until we have a rich tapestry of experiences in the end. Léa Seydoux plays this role to perfection, and it is rewarding to see her bring a character to life who is not in the throes of something major. She is supported by an incredible ensemble that we do wish had a bit more to do at times. The reserved nature of the movie will not be for everyone, but it is very powerful for those who lean into its rhythms. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray with a strong A/V presentation but next to no special features. If you are a fan of superbly crafted and engrossing international dramas, there is no reason to pass this one up. Recommended

One Fine Morning can be purchased on Blu-Ray directly through MovieZyng or various other online retailers.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Sony Pictures 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.