7.6 C
New York
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Advertisement

The Connection (2014) Blu-ray Review

connection-bluray-coverU.S. Release (Region A Locked)

The Film

[Rating:3.5/5]

The-Connection-BD_03

Writer/director Cédric Jimenez’s film The Connection (La French) is the flip side of the 1971 American classic The French Connection by William Friedkin. As the film begins, we are told that it is “loosely based on real events” and then the screenplay by Jimenez and Audrey Diwan sets about spinning a somewhat confused tale about juvenile court magistrate Pierre Michel (Jean Dujardin) in 1975 Marseille who grows tired of he plague of heroin affecting his city and the kids he sees strung out on a regular basis, so he sets out to take down the local drug lord, the famous “French Connection” Gaëtan “Tany” Zampa (Gilles Lellouche), whose drug business also has him on the radar of the American law. Pierre quickly finds he is up against a more ruthless and violent criminal than he expected.

The biggest pluses for The Connection are the pinpoint historical accuracy in which the film plays out. The clothing, the hair, the cars, the TV shows, even the music– everything in The Connection comes across as authentic, even the look of the film and the 1970s Gaumont logo that opens it isn’t overlooked. Never mind the fact that this film begins in the mid ‘70s and The French Connection, the American side of the story is set a full four years before.

A similarity to the Friedkin film is that The Connection, unlike so many contemporary American crime dramas, forgoes the heavy reliance on violence for something more cerebral, although the film is certainly not without its violence. The opening act starts off with a gunman on a motorcycle shooting a driver on the road. But The Connection is certainly more a thriller than it is a shoot-em-up sort of film. The problem is that it sometimes becomes a little convoluted at times trying to tell its story. It would make an interesting thriller if it remained more precisely honed in on the Marseille scene, Pierre and Tany, but the story unravels a bit as the American mafia and FBI are brought into the fold.

On the whole The Connection is actually a satisfying crime drama, even though it is not perfect, given that it is revisiting a story that was already told so splendidly over four decades ago by the incomparable William Friedkin.

Video Quality

[Rating:4/5]

The-Connection-BD_01

The Connection was shot on 35mm film stock and comes to Blu-ray in an AVC/MPEG-4 1080p encodement on Blu-ray from Drafthouse Films. The film is given a ‘70s period look with a purposely desaturated color palette and slightly softened detailed, but it looks very clean and clear nevertheless. The layer of grain is thin and natural, contrast is strong and the picture is generally bright.

Audio Quality

[Rating:4/5]

The-Connection-BD_02

The Connection comes with a French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/16-bit) soundtrack. Being a crime drama reliant on dialogue and score more than a lot of action, it isn’t very aggressive, but there is good balance and audible atmospherics in the surround channels, clean, full dialogue and wide stereo effects.

Supplemental Materials

[Rating:3/5]

The-Connection-BD_04

There really isn’t much here at all, but the nearly one-hour-long making of may be worth looking at.

  • Digital Copy available through Drafthouse Films.
  • The Making of The Connection (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:51:08)
  • Deleted Scenes (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 00:06:46):
    • Magistrate Michel at Da Costa’s House
    • Tany Meets Peretti
    • Tany Offers the Krypton
    • Pierre and Jacqueline Argue
    • Death of Fabrizio
    • The Secretary
    • Tany and Son
  • Trailers:
    • Red Band Theatrical Trailer (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 00:01:11)
    • Theatrical Trailer (2.35:1; 1080p/24; 00:02:34)


The Definitive Word

Overall:

[Rating:3.5/5]

The-Connection-BD_05

The Connection is a pleasing crime drama that gives us the French perspective on the infamous French Connection, and while it doesn’t quite reach the same heights of that classic, it has its moments. The Blu-ray is of high quality.

Additional Screen Captures


The-Connection-BD_06

The-Connection-BD_07

The-Connection-BD_08

The-Connection-BD_09

The-Connection-BD_10

The-Connection-BD_11

The-Connection-BD_12

The-Connection-BD_13

The-Connection-BD_14

The-Connection-BD_15

The-Connection-BD_16

The-Connection-BD_17

The-Connection-BD_18

The-Connection-BD_19

The-Connection-BD_20

Advertisement

Related Articles

Join the Discussion on TheaterByte!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Stay Connected

301FansLike
0FollowersFollow
184FollowersFollow
1,710FollowersFollow
- Advertisement -

Notice of Compliance with FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 16 CFR Part 255

In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR part 255 guidelines, this website hereby states that it receives free discs and other theatrical or home entertainment "screeners" and access to screening links from studios and/or PR firms, and is provided with consumer electronics devices on loan from hardware manufacturers and/or PR firms respectively for the purposes of evaluating the products and its content for editorial reviews. We receive no compensation from these companies for our opinions or for the writing of reviews or editorials.
Permission is sometimes granted to companies to quote our work and editorial reviews free of charge. Our website may contain affiliate marketing links, which means we may get paid commission on sales of those products or the services we write about. Our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers or affiliate partnerships. This disclosure is provided in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR § 255.5: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Latest Articles