The Sheltering Sky (Bertolucci, 1990)

[skuhn8]

Sheltering Sky was ok, but took a massive turn for the worse once Malkovich got sick. it was boring as hell from that point on.

Perhaps you thought the film was about his character, then?

[Galen Young]

A quick question: isn't there also a Bertolucci commentary on the French disc? Is it in French or Italian?

If you're asking about the French disc of The Sheltering Sky, there is in fact a commentary track, in English. Bertolucci talks along with screenwriter Mark Peploe and producer Jeremy Thomas. (I'm inferring since it's not made explicit who is who) This is a gorgeous DVD set, definitely worth getting if you're a fan of the film.

[skuhn8]

there is in fact a commentary track, in English. Bertolucci talks along with screenwriter Mark Peploe and producer Jeremy Thomas.

Is it a worthwhile listen? His commentary on The Dreamers is nearly worthless (and please, let's not launch into a "Well, The Dreamers is pretty worthless!" tangent). Tempted to doubledip on this title as it's definitely a fav.

[John Cope]

Yeah, that is very good news. I'm fascinated to hear Bertolucci's process on this one and will definitely pick this set up; I haven't upgraded since the Warner laserdisc (!) and have been waiting for just such an ideal opportunity. I have to agree with skuhn8 about the commentary on The Dreamers though, and I loved the film.

Anyway, in light of this conversation I recently dug out a great article on Sheltering Sky by David Thomson, which was originally published in Film Comment, and had a look at it again. Thomson makes an eloquent case for the fact that the film is a noble effort but that as an adaptation it is fatally compromised by Bertolucci's vision of the source material and by film form itself. I tend to agree with this reading though it does nothing to lessen my own appreciation of the picture. For me what is great and entrancing about it is that Bertolucci and Bowles are not a perfect fit and that the results of such a collaboration cannot help but be "compromised" due to the conflicting strengths of both artists and their particular understandings of the material. While Cronenberg's take on Naked Lunch and Fassbinder's take on Querelle complemented the difficult literary work they were adapting, Bertolucci basically shaped the source to fit within his own interpretative strategy. Both are perfectly valid routes to go though purists might be put off by either approach.

[Galen Young]

Is it a worthwhile listen?

Haven't heard his commentary for The Dreamers, so I don't know how it compares. There are some long pauses, and Bertolucci does lapse a bit into pointless description of the action as it unfolds. But fortunately Bertolucci, Peploe and Thomas do offer up anecdotes about the production, and the task of adapting Bowles. Perhaps nothing revelatory but fascinating all the same, just for hearing about how this amazing film was made.

[Dr Amicus]

For UK readers, The Sheltering Sky is being given away in The Observer on Sunday.

No idea on quality but for £1.20 (or whatever the paper costs these days) it has to be worth a punt.

And Philip French is one of the best film critics on a UK paper...

[reaky]

Have to disagree on Philip French - although a knowledgeable man, his reviews invariably follow the template of: i) Background information I know about the topic of this film (or occasionally, an antecedent of this film), ii) Lengthy account of the plot, iii) Concluding paragraph containing an evaluative adjective or two (often a worthless one like "intriguing"). I always find myself skipping the middle three or four paragraphs to get to the last few sentences in the hope of learning whether he liked it or not.

Oh, and the Independent On Sunday is giving away VIRIDIANA this week, so no contest on the Bertolucci.

[dave41n]

How does the Aussie Umbrella release compare to the French 2 disc? The relevant caps in the captures thread seem to indicate a port of the French release. Is this the case?

[kinemax]

Any chance this film will get picked up and released by Criterion?

[Matt]

If it's still owned by Warner Bros., probably not. Besides, there are about half a dozen better Bertolucci films that are much more likely.

[John Cope]

Does anybody here own the recently released French Blu? I was going to pick it up as it's the only Blu-ray edition of the film anywhere in the world but according to some reports the French subtitles are fixed during English language audio playback and cannot be removed. If so this pretty much ends it for me unless it's a really magnificent transfer I guess. Otherwise I'll stick with the superior French DVD.

[vertovfan]

Unfortunately, I can confirm that the French subs are indeed forced.

[easydreamer]

There is a Japanese blu release of The Sheltering Sky. I don't own one, but have not seen any Japanese releases with forced subs, so I assume they are not forced.

According to Amazon JP, it contains the audio commentary by Bertolucci, as well as 50 min doc called "Desert Roses", interviews & a making-of featurette. So, it looks like a nice release to own.