In association with

The Crimson Rivers [2001]
from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
starring Jean Reno, Vincent Cassel, Nadia Farès, Dominique Sanda, Karim Belkhadra
directed by Mathieu Kassovitz

Features:

• Anamorphic
• Box set
• Dubbed
• PAL

Editorial Review:

The Crimson Rivers is an openly acknowledged French attempt to make a big Hollywood-style serial-killer thriller. Jean--Ronin(1997)--Reno is Niemans, who while investigating the case of a horrifically mutilated body finds himself partnered with Kerkerian, a younger detective played by Vincent Cassell, (La Haine). Set in beautiful mountain country and shot in CinemaScope by Thierry Arbogast (Leon), it looks fabulous. Kassovitz packs the frame with stylish flourishes from a breathtaking helicopter shot in homage to The Shining (1980), to a lavish stairwell tracking shot inspired by Vertigo (1958). With a sumptuously layered score and some superbly achieved special effects The Crimson Rivers has all the expensive sheen of the American movies it imitates. Unfortunately it also proves Europeans can make films as technically accomplished but ludicrously plotted as Hollywood can: for what begins as a tense and unsettling police procedural, mutates into an action movie where the details make no sense. Even the Boys From Brazil inspired plot is ludicrous. Demonstrating Kassovitz has seen plenty of Brian De Palma and Dario Argento movies, The Crimson Rivers entertains despite its own absurdity, and should see the director following Luc Besson to Hollywood to make even bigger and dumber blockbusters.

On the DVD: Despite not being labelled a special edition this two disc set is one of the most impressive releases on DVD this year; all the more remarkable for being a French film barely seen in UK cinemas. The 2.35-1 anamorphically enhanced transfer is virtually flawless while the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound is superb. Apart from the original French soundtrack there are English and Spanish dubbed versions, and subtitles in 20 languages (including English and French). The first disc includes three trailers, plus three more for other Columbia releases, and two commentary tracks. The first features Reno, Cassel and Kassovitz--all talking at full speed providing a wealth of information. The second--a commentary by composer Bruno Coulais--offers a real insight into the use of music in film as he explains his approach to specific scenes and his overall philosophy of film scoring. This track also features the score isolated in Dolby Digital 5.1, though Colais does talk over the beginning of some cues.

The second disc contains over two hours of documentary material. First is a serious 52-minute making-of, in which cast and director explain how the film was constantly re-written, going so far as to admit it makes no sense. Further documentaries are on "The Scalpel Scene" (26 min) and the "making of the corpse" (9 min) used in the opening scenes. There is seven minutes on shooting the martial arts fight, with or without commentary, nine minutes on shooting the car chase and a section playing the chase alongside the original storyboards, with or without commentary. A documentary on filming the mountain climax (10 min) and a further documentary on creating a digital avalanche (15 min), plus a multi-angle feature presenting the scene as storyboards, edited rushes, special effects or outtakes. The Production Designer archives (13 min) covers the sets. Additionally there is footage from the Far East promotional tour, a poster gallery, filmographies of Cassel, Reno and Kassovitz, the complete storyboards for four sequences, including the never-filmed originally planned opening and a gallery of on-set still photographs. It's a veritable "how to make a blockbuster" on two shiny discs. --Gary S Dalkin

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 3.0 / 5.0

• Better than average...
  I suppose the reason why i liked the original and the sequel is due to the fact both films have a strong leading cast. Sure you'll have seen the formula before which consists of an older, wiser cop partnered with a younger inexperienced one. But if you happen to be a fan of Reno and Cassell then you should find this enjoyable. The location and musical score certainly add something of a positive nature to the final product. Bodies show up and are connected to a prestigious university, a thesis on eugenics... more info

• A great first half gives way to laziness and predictability in the final
  The best detective stories allow their central arc of enigmatic mystery to unravel slowly, leaving behind a trail of clues for the audience to follow. Therefore, it is important when adapting the story to a medium such as film that the clues aren't signalled too early, giving the audience the chance to search in the dark with only a few subtle elements of light to work with. It is also important that the film and its various strands of character, theme and narrative all eventually lead to the same place,... more info

• Suspense, twist, Alpine scenery and much more
  
  A good suspense movie with a good cast for those who are familiar with French actors. It has everything needed for an entertaining thriller, where clues are slowly dropped along the way as the mystery unravels. Whether the events are plausible is another matter, but then again, sometimes one has to suspend belief, when watching a movie.
  There is a sequel with the same name, which is also a mystery, but not as good as this one.

• I like Jean Reno, but...........
  I felt like the Grandad in Homer Simpson when I watched this film - I needed someone to explain it in a loud voice!! Totally confusing & thus disappointing - unlike the normal Jean Reno fare! Rating : 1 star.

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