New 4K restoration of Marcel Carne’s 1938 classic titled ‘Le Quai Des Brumes’.
Following on from the world premiere at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, Studiocanal release the 4K restoration of Marcel Carne’s influential film.
The film stars Jean Gabin and Michelle Morgan as doomed lovers as an army deserter (Jean) who seeks refuge in a forgotten town on the eve of a world war. As love sparks between the misbegotten pair, Jean seeks redemption with Nelly (Morgan).
Atmospherically shot by Eugene Schufftan evoking early film noir and marking a huge influence upon future Hollywood treasures such as Casablanca; this married with the pinpoint production and set design by Alexandre Trauner, the film became a huge marker for La Nouvelle Vague or French New Wave in the late 1950s.
Helped by a precisely plotted tale, Gabin plays Jean as a forerunner for Eastwood’s Man with No Name – a stranger in a strange town who does not back down from the would be opportunistic gangsters who he brushes aside with his forthrightness.
In Morgan’s Nelly, he finds a love he did not know he was capable of and the chemistry between the pair (Morgan was 19 when she shot this) is smouldering on the silver screen. Morgan is helped by her iconic costume design with her inspired beret and raincoat.
Shot with precision and detail, the restoration is a great treat for cinephiles returning to this film or those hoping to boost their film knowledge by enjoying of cinema’s great early works.
Extras on the disc include a featurette (The Poetry of Misfortune), an introduction by Ginette Vincendeau and alternate credits.
Released by Studiocanal 4K on Monday 13th October in the Vintage World Cinema collection.
My thanks to them for the review opportunity.
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