Roman de Gare (Crossed Tracks) (2007) |
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General | Extras | ||
Category | Drama |
Main Menu Audio & Animation Theatrical Trailer |
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Rating | |||
Year Of Production | 2007 | ||
Running Time | 100:40 | ||
RSDL / Flipper | RSDL (62:34) | Cast & Crew | |
Start Up | Ads Then Menu | ||
Region Coding | 4 | Directed By | Claude Lelouch |
Studio
Distributor |
Umbrella Entertainment |
Starring |
Dominique Pinon Fanny Ardant Audrey Dana Michèle Bernier Myriam Boyer Zinedine Soualem Boris Ventura Marc Rioufol Thomas Le Douarec |
Case | Amaray-Opaque | ||
RPI | $34.95 | Music | Alexandre Jaffray |
Video | Audio | ||
Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None | French Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) | |
Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 2.35:1 | ||
16x9 Enhancement |
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Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
Original Aspect Ratio | 2.35:1 | Miscellaneous | |
Jacket Pictures | No | ||
Subtitles | English | Smoking | Yes |
Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
Action In or After Credits | Yes |
Where does the line get drawn between thriller and mystery? To be honest I am not really sure, however, this film, from veteran French Writer/Director Claude Lelouch seems to be both and many other genres besides (such as Romance & Drama). To my mind this is one of the film's strengths, defying easy definition. This strength gives the film suspense and makes it intriguing and interesting to watch. The casting and acting are also strong elements of this film especially Dominique Pinon who is a very atypical leading man but again adds significant interest to the film.
The story is difficult to explain and it is probably better to know as little as possible going in. The film opens with a celebrated novelist Judith Ralitzer (Fanny Ardant) being questioned by the police about two murders which she seems to be suspected of being involved in. We then are told (via the radio in a car) that a serial killer has escaped from prison. We then meet a man (Dominique Pinon) who is driving across France from Paris to the south. He stops at a roadside services in the middle of the night for a hot drink. As he drinks a scene unfolds before him in the petrol station. A woman and man drive in and argue loudly. Eventually the man with her drives off leaving her stranded. The man who was watching her approaches and attempts to begin a conversation with her. He offers her a lift. Initially she refuses, concerned about who he is. When she realises her boyfriend is not coming back she agrees to the lift which kicks off an offbeat relationship between the pair. Her name is Huguette (Audrey Dana) and she was heading towards her parents place to introduce them to her fiancé. But is the man giving her a lift the escaped serial killer or someone else? And how is the novelist involved in all of this?
To my mind, both the trailer and the description on the case give away far to much about the plot of this film, somewhat spoiling the effect. I would advise against letting either into your consciousness if you can avoid it before viewing the film. The title, Roman De Gare, roughly translates as Crossed Tracks and the cover displays both titles.
A criticism I would make of this film is that the intriguing and interesting setup is somewhat wasted by what feels like a bit of a routine and clichéd ending, however, this view was certainly not shared by the entire audience in my living room. Regardless, this film is certainly worth your time if you enjoy films which take a different and interesting approach rather than a more obvious 'Hollywood' style.
Recommended.
The video quality is very good but not without issue.
The feature is presented in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced which is the original aspect ratio.
The picture was quite clear and sharp throughout. Shadow detail is very good. The bitrate is high throughout.
The colour was very good with no issues to report.
Despite upscaling to 1080p there was still quite a lot of evidence of aliasing and jagged edges perhaps derived from the film being recorded on digital video. These were especially prevalent on roadside barriers and lines such as at 28:15.
There are subtitles in English. These are a stream rather than burned into the print. They are a little smaller than most but still very legible.
There is a very obvious layer change at 62:34.
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Overall |
The audio quality is good but disappointingly only 2.0.
This DVD contains a French Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack encoded at 192 Kb/s.
Dialogue seemed clear and easy to understand throughout.
The music is a highlight and very much in keeping with the film consisting of French pop songs and some classical style score.
The surround speakers were only really used for some of the music and some mild atmosphere.
The subwoofer was not used in any noticeable way.
Dialogue | |
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Subwoofer | |
Overall |
The extras are 16x9 enhanced.
The menu features music, dialogue and scenes from the movie. It becomes quite annoying if left on for any length of time.
As mentioned above this trailer gives away far to much of the story.
Trailers for four other Umbrella releases
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
This is an All Region release, however other releases are available globally. There is a French Region 2 release (plus a Blu-ray) however despite lots of extras does not seem to be English friendly (no subs). It does however seem to contain the same 2.0 audio transfer (despite advertising 5.1). There is also a Region 1 version which I struggled to find any details of. Without any further information I will have to go for the local version as the best for English speaking audiences.
The video quality is very good.
The audio quality is good.
Only the theatrical trailer in terms of extras..
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Extras | |
Plot | |
Overall |
Review Equipment | |
DVD | Sony DVP-NS708H upscaling to 1080p, using HDMI output |
Display | LG Scarlet 42LG61YD 106cm Full HD LCD. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p. |
Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum. |
Amplification | Pioneer VSX-511 |
Speakers | Monitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Sony SAW2500M Subwoofer |