In what can be seen as the final installment in a trilogy of satirical farces including 8 Women and Potiche, struggling actress Madeleine (rising star Nadia Tereszkiewicz, César award winner for Most Promising Actress for Valeria Bruni Tedeschi’s Forever Young) and her best friend Pauline (Rebecca Marder, the revelation of Sandrine Kiberlain’s A Radiant Girl), an unemployed lawyer, live in a cramped flat and owe five months’ rent. Opportunity knocks after a lascivious theatrical producer who made an inappropriate advance towards Madeleine turns up dead. Madeleine stands trial for murder and ascends to scandalous stardom, with Pauline serving as defense counsel and media circus ringmaster. A new life of fame, wealth, and tabloid celebrity awaits— until the truth comes out. Freely adapted by Ozon from a 1934 play by Georges Berr and Louis Verneuil, THE CRIME IS MINE features exquisite Art Deco-inspired set design by Academy Award nominated Jean Rabasse, costumes and cinematography by long time Ozon collaborators Pascaline Chavanne and Manu Dacosse, and a stellar supporting cast including Isabelle Huppert as a former star of silent cinema channeling Sarah Bernhardt.
For in-depth thoughts on The Crime Is Mine, please see my colleague Phil Walsh’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
The Crime Is Mine comes to Blu-Ray in a fetching 1080p presentation that represents this one impeccably. This is a visually sumptuous film with the various interiors on magnificent display throughout where you can see intricate details. The transfer retains the natural appearance of the source format quite handsomely. The skin tones look very detailed and natural all around. The highlights are handled admirably, along with the pleasantly deep blacks that do not appear to fall victim to any compression artifacts.
The film has a delightful amount of vivid colors with numerous moments that radiate off the screen within the costumes and the production design. There is also some deliberate implementation of black-and-white footage that holds up quite well. Certain lower-class interiors are typically a more reserved environment that presents with more moderate tones that the presentation represents with great nuance. This presentation is a beauty from Music Box Films.
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 distinct atmosphere that transports you to this era. The film uses music in really effective ways that saturate the room with a wonderful intensity. Dialogue comes through crisp and clear without ever being overshadowed by the sound effects or the score. The sound design is as carefully thought-out as the visuals with all of the sounds of the world deployed intently in the mix. The environmental effects create a noble soundscape within this world. This is far from an action-heavy film, but activity on the low end is strong thanks to distinct elements within the soundscape. This is a great release that brings the movie to life as well as you could possibly desire. There are optional English subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Making Of The Crime Is Mine: A great 42-minute featurette in which you get to act like a fly on the wall as you witness the creation of various scenes from the film including shot set up, Ozon working with the performers, costume adjustments, and more.
- Interviews with François Ozon, Nadia Tereszkiewicz, and Rebecca Marder: A 17-minute interview piece in which the three subjects discuss what inspired them to make this film, the themes of the piece, how the film brings new ideas to an older setting, the preparations that went into the film, the shooting locations, and much more.
- Deleted Scenes: A five-minute selection of unused material is provided here in great quality.
- Bloopers: A 19-minute piece of ruined takes, flubbed lines, laughing fits, and more.
- Costumes and Lighting Tests: A nearly seven-minute look at footage shot in preparation for the production of the film.
- Poster Concept Gallery: A collection of posters from the film is included here.
- Theatrical Trailer: A nearly two-minute trailer for the film is provided here.
Final Thoughts
The Crime Is Mine finds director François Ozon at his lightest in years. While we love his impeccable dramatic work, this film is a pleasant reminder that he can get a little silly with it when he wants to without missing a step. For this outing, he brings together a flawless ensemble that completely commits to the period aesthetic and delivers rapid-fire dialogue without a hiccup. The auteur even ensures that there is some critical social commentary woven into the text while we are laughing at the antics on display. While there are some slight pacing issues at points, this is a welcome detour from the filmmaker that we will be happy to revisit again. Music Box Films Home Entertainment has delivered a Blu-Ray release featuring a top-notch A/V presentation and a nice amount of special features. If you are an Ozon fan or a fan of screwball comedies, this is worth a watch without hesitation. Recommended
The Crime Is Mine 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.