Nostalghia Blu-ray Review

Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release of "Nostalghia" features a 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer in a 1.66:1 aspect ratio, marking a significant improvement over previous DVD and VHS releases. While serving as the best home video presentation of the film to date, it unfortunately leaves room for enhancement. The high-definition transfer, remastered from archival 35mm elements, retains a natural 35mm grain structure and presents no signs of edge enhancement or excessive compression. Despite this, the image does reflect its age, with recurring specks, small scratches, and minor debris occasionally visible throughout. Some scenes, particularly close-ups, reveal impressive fine detail and texture that were previously unnoticed.

The transfer captures Tarkovsky's bleak and subdued color palette effectively, ranging from stark monochrome to various muted hues. However, there are instances where the clarity appears somewhat soft and the grain strikes as slightly noisy. Contrast is relatively low to maintain the film's intentionally melancholic and nearly colorless aesthetic, resulting in a dark and drab quality dominated by grays. Black levels are consistently deep, bolstering the dramatic imagery without introducing significant digital artifacts.

Overall, while Kino Lorber's presentation is commendable for its respectfulness to the source material and its faithful reproduction of Tarkovsky's powerful visuals, it lacks the meticulous frame-by-frame restoration one might expect from higher-end distributors like The Criterion Collection. Minor digital tidying could have attenuated the general grubbiness and occasional distractions. Nevertheless, this release stands as a noteworthy improvement until a future 4K version addresses these lingering imperfections.

The audio presentation of "Nostalghia" on Blu-ray features an LPCM 2.0 track in Italian and Russian, accompanied by optional English subtitles in easy-to-read white lettering. The track, akin to the print, exhibits age-related artifacts such as a low-level hiss, occasional light crackling, and some static characters that are consistently detected throughout. Despite these minor detriments, the dialogue remains clear and well-balanced, albeit slightly thin at times, ensuring that the primary narrative elements are conveyed effectively.

Notably, the uncompressed LPCM 2.0 codec enriches Tarkovsky's adept use of music, with classical compositions like Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 sounding bold and jarring, adding significant context to the film's atmosphere. The film's sound design—featuring isolated effects such as falling rain, footsteps, creaking doors, and distant bird calls—remains impactful and nuanced, enriching the somber tone without overwhelming the dialogue or music. Though the mix is serviceable rather than exceptional, the balance between the various audio elements ensures an immersive auditory experience.

While not without its flaws, including the recurrent background hiss and static pops, the LPCM 2.0 track ultimately maintains the integrity of Tarkovsky's vision. The subtle interplay of ambient sounds and music is delicately powerful, providing a compelling, if not perfect, auditory accompaniment to this cinematic masterpiece.

The Blu Ray extras for "Nostalghia" on the Kino Lorber release are surprisingly limited, detracting from the full potential of this brilliant film. Despite the obvious desire for scholarly commentary and archival interview footage from director Andrei Tarkovsky, the disc only includes a high-definition trailer. The absence of comprehensive supplementary materials such as the documentary "Voyage In Time" made by Tarkovsky and screenwriter Tonino Guerra, deprives viewers of deeper insights into the making of this cinematic gem.

Extras included in this disc:

• Theatrical Trailer: High definition trailer of "Nostalghia" with LPCM 2.0 sound.

Shot in Italy in 1982, Nostalghia is Andrei Tarkovsky's penultimate film and his first produced outside of the U.S.S.R., marking the beginning of his self-imposed exile. This deeply introspective work explores profound themes of longing, isolation, and cultural disconnection through the journey of Andrei Gorchakov (Oleg Yankovsky), a Russian poet researching the life of an 18th-century composer. Gorchakov's disinterest in Italy’s iconic art reflects his emotional detachment and inability to feel at home in a foreign land—a sentiment every expatriate can relate to. His growing obsession with Domenico (Erland Josephson), a reclusive mathematician fearing the apocalypse, further accentuates his own feeling of alienation.

Tarkovsky employs his trademark contemplative style, relying on mood and imagery rather than traditional narrative arcs. The film is marked by long, meticulously framed takes and slow camera movements that create an almost hypnotic rhythm. This deliberate pacing is complemented by the film’s visual and atmospheric elements—the pervasive gray shadows, the recurrent use of water, and surreal sequences that blur the lines between memory and reality. Particularly striking scenes include a rain-filled decaying house and an old cathedral drowning in water, emphasizing the film’s overarching theme of sorrow. The climactic scene features a nearly nine-minute unbroken shot of Gorchakov attempting to carry a lit candle across a drained hot spring, embodying his struggle and determination against an indifferent world.

Complementing the visual artistry are philosophical dialogues exploring themes of art, religion, and existential despair. These, combined with occasional dramatic crescendos—such as Domenico's fervent speech and Gorchakov’s candle-carrying quest—underline the film's introspective nature. Though Nostalghia’s unconventional approach and slow pace might be challenging for some viewers, it profoundly evokes a sense of melancholy and yearning reflective of its title. This is a film that, much like its protagonist, navigates an enigmatic emotional landscape, making it a unique and deeply touching cinematic experience.

Andrei Tarkovsky's "Nostalghia" is a deeply evocative exploration of longing and disconnection, epitomizing the director's unparalleled ability to convey abstract emotions through visual storytelling. The film's narrative complexity and slow, deliberate pacing may prove challenging for some viewers, but it unmistakably fosters a profound emotional resonance. Tarkovsky’s intricate use of visual metaphors and ambient soundscapes demands an attentive viewing experience, rewarding patience with a hauntingly poetic reflection on separation and yearning.

The new Blu-ray edition from Kino-Lorber strives to honor the film’s aesthetic integrity. While the video transfer reveals some age-related imperfections, it still manages to capture the delicate, ethereal quality of Tarkovsky's cinematography. The audio, though exhibiting signs of wear, adequately preserves the haunting sound design integral to the film’s atmosphere. The edition is somewhat sparse in supplementary materials, offering only a trailer, which may disappoint those looking for more in-depth contextual content or retrospectives.

Andrei Tarkovsky's second-to-last film captures the sublime feeling of longing that aches in the back of our brains whenever we're away from who and what we love. Nostalghia is a beautiful—if difficult—experience, slow and overwhelming and jarring in unexpected ways, and its influence is perhaps most fully felt in the recent films of Terrence Malick, which deal with similar intangibilities of existence. Kino-Lorber's new Blu-ray edition is not quite as comprehensive—or cleaned up—as it could be, but this release belongs in every cinephile's collection. Highly recommended.