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Released by: BFI
Released on: 9/19/2011
Director: Barbet Schroeder
Cast: Mimsy Farmer, Klaus Grunberg, Michael Chanderli, Heinz Engelmann
Year: 1969
The Movie:
The feature debut from Barbet Schroeder, 1969's More follows a German college student named Stefan (Klaus Grunberg) who has just finished up his studies and decides to hitchhike to Paris. Here he hooks up with a small time criminal named Charlie (Michael Chanderli) who takes him to a party where he meets a quirky but rather beautiful American girl named Estelle (Mimsy Farmer). Despite Charlie's warning to stay away from her, Stefan is instantly attracted to her and they hit it off over some margaritas. Before they split, however, Charlie steals two hundred francs from her purse that they need for a 'job.' When they make their money back, Stefan uses the stolen money as an excuse to see her again. He pays her back, they smoke some dope and make out and listen to Pink Floyd's Cymbaline, and he notices a track mark on her wrist. She tells him that when she was in New York she used to shoot dope but that it's behind her now.
When Estelle splits for the island of Ibiza for a little getaway and encourages Stefan to join her, a week later he stops foot on the island and has to track down Dr. Wolf (Heinz Engelmann), the man who owns the hotel she's staying in. Once he finds Estelle he talks her into leaving the hotel and crashing at a seaside house he's rented. She agrees and on the way out steals some money and a package from Wolf. Once they get to the house, Stefan realizes that the package contains a load of heroin, a drug he agrees to try with her. Soon enough, he's addicted, both to Estelle and to the drug.
Famous for its Pink Floyd soundtrack (the band is credited as The Pink Floyd in the opening credits and David Gilmour's last name is spelled incorrectly as Gilmore), More is an interesting film. For all its scenes of waterside play and nude sunbathing against the gorgeous landscape of Ibiza, it's quite a dark picture once the heroin is introduced into the story and our two lovebirds fly headfirst into the toils of addiction, itself a metaphor for the way Stefan falls so hard for Estelle. He knows she's bad for him but he just can't shake her, and by giving himself to her completely he is effectively giving himself over to wanton self destruction. He knows better, and this is made quite clear, but he is content to be helpless here. We see their addiction develop quickly but we watch it as an observer, not as a participant - as such, it's an ugly trip. There are no swirling psychedelic lights here or color gels used to romanticize the trip, just two people who should be enjoying their time together sickening themselves with poison.
The film is based around a fairly loose narrative and structure so obviously it's important that the performances are strong enough to carry the picture - and they are. Klaus Grunberg is good as the male lead, showing just enough understandable trepidation that we can buy him in the part but playing the romantic side of things with total believability. Farmer is the real reason to watch the movie, however, and not just because she's frequently nude. Those who only know her from films like Riot On Sunset Strip might be surprised to see her turn in a completely devoted and incredibly real turn here. We completely understand why Stefan falls in love with her, as she's just a bit mysterious and a bit unusual and those qualities make her as interesting as she is attractive. The quality of the acting helps to make up for the fact that some of Schroeder's editing choices appear a bit out of touch with the flow of the film.
Video/Audio/Extras:
More looks very good in this AVC encoded 1.66.1 widescreen transfer presented in 1080p high definition and, according to the BFI's press release, taken from original film elements. There's a fair bit of grain present throughout but not much in the way of actual print damage to note and the colors, if a little muted in some spots, are reproduced quite naturally. Detail is strong, particularly once we get to Ibiza where the old buildings in the background let us take in a lot of texture. Skin tones look good for the most part though some minor noise reduction looks to have been applied in a few spots - the emphasis here though is on minor. There are no problems with compression artifacts or heavy edge enhancement and overall the movie looks very good on Blu-ray. Some shots are more clean and clear and crisp looking than others and a lot of this looks to have to do with the lighting used in the movie, but for the most part, viewers should be pretty happy with the restoration seen here.
The only audio option is an English language 48k/16-bit PCM Mono track, though there are a few scenes in which Spanish and German are spoken on screen. Optional closed captioning is provided in English. The audio here is nice and clean, if a little limited by the original source material. The Pink Floyd music used throughout the movie sounds nice and crisp and it fits in with the storyline really well. Dialogue is also well balanced and clear and there are no problems with any hiss or distortion. This isn't a fancy mix but it doesn't really need to be, it suites the movie very nicely.
NOTE: This review is based on a test disc that does not appear to represent finished retail product.
Extras on the Blu-ray test disc sent for review include a trailer for the feature and trailers for two of Schroeder's other films, The Valley and Maistresse. Menus and chapter stops are also included. This is being released as a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack and the DVD is reported to include a featurette on the movie, but that wasn't included so we can't comment on it.
The Final Word:
Compared to other BFI releases the extras on this disc might seem a little slim, but that's really the only criticism you can levy here against this disc. The transfer is up to their typically strong standards as is the audio quality. The movie itself is well shot, very well acted, and quite engrossing. There's a lot more to this one than just the Pink Floyd soundtrack and it's definitely worth seeking out.
Click on the images below for full size Blu-ray screen caps!
