Stream it:
|
Own it:
|
With: Anna Magnani, Odoardo Spadaro, Nada Fiorelli, Dante, Duncan Lamont, George Higgins, Ralph Truman, Gisella Mathews, Raf De La Torre, Elena Altieri, Paul Campbell, Riccardo Rioli, William Tubbs, Jean Debucourt
|
Written by: Jean Renoir, Jack Kirkland, Renzo Avanzo, Giulio Macchi, Ginette Doynel, inspired by Le Carrosse du Saint-Sacrement by Prosper Mérimée
|
Directed by: Jean Renoir
|
MPAA Rating: NR
|
Language: English
|
Running Time: 103
|
|
Date: 12/02/1952
|
|
|
|
Anna Split
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Critics of the time considered Renoir's color films inferior to his black-and-whites, but that is not necessarily the case, as the full-color, English-language The Golden Coach is one of his greatest achievements. Though the film is a weird mix of light humor and weighty seriousness, it's the centerpiece performance by Anna Magnani that makes all the difference. She's a true force of nature, fighting off three different suitors from three walks of life while trying to make ends meet with her traveling theater show.
I first saw The Golden Coach on a VHS tape, so the 2024 Blu-ray release by Raro was a true eye-opener. Technicolor is notoriously difficult to restore properly, but this disc does a spectacular job; it's truly gorgeous. (It's said to be restored in 2K from original trichrome negatives.) If François Truffaut's praise of the film ("may be Renoir's masterpiece; it is the noblest and most refined film ever made") is true, then it's even more true now. It offers the English soundtrack in 2.0 DTS, plus the alternate French track, and a commentary track by film critic Adam Nayman. Highly Recommended.
|
