Barbarella appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This turned into a pretty solid presentation.
Overall sharpness was quite good, as the majority of the film showed solid clarity and accuracy. A few slightly soft elements materialized, but the majority of the flick seemed well-defined.
I noticed no issues with jaggies or moiré effects, and edge haloes were absent. The film came with nice, natural grain and lacked print flaws.
With its wild late 1960s psychedelic background, Barbarella boasted a dynamic palette. The film reproduced the vivid hues in a satisfying manner, as the tones always looked full and rich.
Blacks came across as dark and deep, while shadows demonstrated reasonable clarity. A few were a bit dense, but those were exceptions to the rule. I thought the Blu-ray represented the source well.
In addition to the film’s LPCM monaural audio, the 2023 Blu-ray sported a new Dolby Atmos remix. Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, this became a mixed bag.
On the positive side, overall fidelity seemed strong. In particular, the score boasted nice range, and some effects followed suit with better than average dimensionality.
Dialogue occasionally became a bit edgy, but the lines remained more than adequate given their vintage. Effects also sometimes showed a little distortion, but they also were perfectly fine for their age.
The Atmos soundscape became the main issue here, as it created a somewhat awkward impression. Much of the track focused primarily on the front, and in that regard, it tended to do fine.
I wouldn’t call music truly stereo. Though the score spread across the front, it didn’t show much obvious separation.
Nonetheless, music used the forward channels well enough, as did effects. These popped up from the front sides in a fairly evocative manner.
My concerns emerged when the soundfield blended with additional channels. Not only did this occur sporadically, but also the surrounds simply failed to mesh with the forward speakers well.
Really, the two halves felt oddly disconnected, and the info from the back became a distraction. I thought the Atmos mix offered a potentially compelling alternative but I didn’t love the semi-overbearing soundscape.
Did this mean I preferred the included mono mix? Yes, though I admit that I missed the superior range of the Atmos track.
In particular, music boasted a bit more oomph via the Atmos version. Nonetheless, I felt the Atmos soundscape created too many distractions to work, so I thought the mono mix became the more satisfying accompaniment to the film.
How did this 2023 Arrow Blu-ray compare to the original BD from 2012? The two discs came with similar mono audio, but the Atmos version came new to the 2023. As noted, I still preferred the 1968 monaural but the fresh Atmos track will entice some fans.
Visuals boasted a good upgrade, mainly because the 2023 disc lacked the 2012’s print flaws. I thought the old disc looked pretty good overall, but the 2023 version bettered it.
We find extras spread across two platters, and on Disc One, we open with an audio commentary from film historian Tim Lucas. He brings a running, screen-specific look at the source and its adaptation/path to the screen, cast and crew, music, production elements, genre domains and general thoughts.
A veteran of the format, Lucas brings a generally engaging take on the film. However, he too often simply provides an annotated filmography related to participants.
This means we don’t learn as much about the actual movie creation as I’d prefer. Still, Lucas gives us enough to make this a worthwhile listen.
We also find an Isolated Score Track. It presents the film’s music via LPCM mono audio. It’s too bad the score didn’t get a stereo presentation, but at least it offers lossless material.
Finally, Disc One finishes with both Alternative Opening Credits (2:21) and Alternative Closing Credits (1:16). The former just shorten the film’s start.
This means that we lose much of Barbarella’s intro and strip, as these credits start when the movie’s text appears. It’s a more straightforward opening but it lacks the “tone setting” of the finished film.
As for the closing, they also run shorter, and they come with colored text instead of the white seen in the final credits. Nothing story-related differs between the two, however.
As we shift to Disc Two, we find eight featurettes. Another Girl, Another Planet runs 23 minutes, three seconds and brings an appreciation from critic Glenn Kenny as he discusses aspects of the cast/crew as well as the production and his take on it.
“Appreciation” might imply Kenny just praises the movie, and he does relate his positive feelings toward it. However, he mostly focuses on a more literate view of the film and its genre, so this becomes a worthwhile program.
Barbarella Forever spans 14 minutes, 54 seconds and gives us footage shot during the movie’s 1967 production in Rome. Nothing revelatory emerges but I like our chance to take a brief glimpse behind the scenes.
Next comes Love, a one-hour, 53-minute, 20-second piece. This one features a chat between Tim Lucas and film historian Steve Bissette.
They mainly look at the movie’s comic book roots, with additional info on related publications and films. While we get some good info, 113 minutes feel too long, so the piece can come across as a bit of a slog.
Dress to Kill lasts 31 minutes, 30 seconds. Here we find notes from film scholar Elizabeth Castaldo Lunden.
She examines the clothes of Barbarella, with an emphasis on costume designer Jacques Fontenay and his work. We get ample glimpses of concept drawings and other materials, so along with Lunden’s comments, this turns into an informative piece.
After this we go to Framing for Claude. It fills 17 minutes, 12 seconds with comments from camera operator Roberto Girometti.
He talks about his work on the movie and his relationship with cinematographer Claude Renoir. He gives us a compelling overview of his experiences on the film.
Tognazzi on Tognazzi runs 21 minutes, 56 seconds. Here we locate remarks from Ricky Tognazzi, son of actor Ugo Tognazzi.
The younger Tognazzi tells us of his dad’s life/career as well as his time on Barbarella. We get a fairly engaging chat.
With An Angel’s Body Double, we find a 24-minute, 26-second reel. It involves actor/stuntman/body double Fabio Testi.
The program covers Testi’s work in films and time on Barbarella. It ends up as another mostly worthwhile piece.
Finally, Dino and Barbarella occupies 14 minutes, 27 seconds. Film historian Eugenio Ercolani creates a “video essay”.
The piece looks at producer Dino De Laurentiis’ career and his influence on Barbarella. Ercolani sums up matters succinctly.
In addition to the film’s trailer, US TV spot and three US radio spots, we conclude with an Image Gallery. It involves 88 stills.
We get a mix of publicity shots, ads and elements from the film. Expect a pretty good compilation.
Although Barbarella offers some cheap thrills via sexy shots of Jane Fonda, that becomes about all it has going for it. Campy and dull at the same time, the movie turns into a chore to watch. The Blu-ray delivers very good picture as well as acceptable audio along with a mix of bonus materials. Though I don’t like the movie, this turns into a fine release of it.
To rate this film, visit the prior review of BARBARELLA
