The Assassin (L'assassino) – Arrow Academy (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1961
Director: Elio Petri
Writers: Pasquale Festa Campanile, Massimo Franciosa, Tonino Guerra, Elio Petri
Cast: Marcello Mastroianni, Micheline Presle, Cristina Gaioni, Salvo Randone, Andrea Checchi, Francesco Grandjacquet, Marco Mariani, Franco Ressel

Release Date: April 18th, 2017
Approximate running time: 98 Minutes 14 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: LPCM Mono Italian
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B / Region 1,2 NTSC
Retail Price: $39.95

"Released within months of Fellini's La Dolce Vita and Antonioni's La Notte, Elio Petri's dazzling first feature The Assassin (L'Assassino) also stars Marcello Mastroianni, this time as dandyish thirtysomething antiques dealer Alfredo Martelli, arrested on suspicion of murdering his older, far wealthier lover Adalgisa (Micheline Presle). But as the increasingly Kafkaesque police investigation proceeds, it becomes less and less important whether Martelli actually committed the crime as his entire lifestyle is effectively put on trial." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "The digital restoration of L'assassino was made from the original camera negative which was missing the first and last roll, and from a first- generation interpositive. These two elements were scanned at 2K resolution for this restoration. The grading was carried out by referring to the original print version that was held by the production company Titanus in the archives of the Cineteca di Bologna. The sound was extracted from a 35mm negative and digitally remastered. The work was carried out at the L'Immagine Ritrovato laboratory in 2011."

The Assassin (L'assassino) comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 37 GB

Feature: 26.7 GB

The bulk of the transfer was sourced from the original camera negative, while the opening and closing reels had to be sourced from a first-generation inter-positive. The contrast and black levels look very good for the majority of the time. Though grain structure looks natural, it tends to vary in thickness from scene to scene. And outside of a few minor moments where the image looks a tad too soft, the image generally looks crisp throughout. Of course, the opening and closing reels are the sections that look the weakest.

Audio: 4.25/5

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Italian with removable English subtitles. Though range-wise things are limited, dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and the score sounds appropriately robust. Also, there are no issues with distortion or background noise.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (3 minutes 45 seconds, LPCM mono Italian with removable English subtitles), an with Italian cinema expert Pasquale Iannone titled Elio Petri and L’Assassino (9 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English subtitles, no subtitles), a documentary titled Tonino Guerra: A Poet in the Movies (51 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with non-removable English subtitles), reversible cover art, and a forty page booklet (limited to first pressing) with cast & crew information, an essay titled Elio Petri’s L'assassino written by Camilla Zamboni, Contemporary Reviews, an essay about Italian cinema titled Italian Cinema: a Castrated Elephant written by Elio Petri, and information about the transfer.

Included with this release is a DVD that has the same content as the Blu-ray included as part of this combo release.

Summary:

The Assassin (L'assassino) was co-written and directed by Elio Petri, whose other notable films include The 10th Victim, A Quiet Place in the Country, Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, and Property Is No Longer a Theft. Key collaborators on The Assassin (L'assassino) include screenwriters Tonino Guerra (L’Avventura, La Notte, L’Eclisse) and Pasquale Festa Campanile (Hitch Hike), cinematographer Carlo Di Palma (Blow-Up, Identification of a Woman), composer Piero Piccioni (Contempt, Camille 2000), and editor Ruggero Mastroianni, a frequent collaborator of Federico Fellini and Luciano Visconti. L’Assassino is also known under the alternative title The Ladykiller of Rome.

The Assassin (L'assassino) is a different kind of Italian thriller that owes more to Franz Kafka's literary works than to the black-gloved killers who were about to become synonymous with the Italian thriller by the mid-1970s. 

At the core of The Assassin (L'assassino) is a murder mystery where the police are quick to rush to judgment and, in the process, forever change an innocent man’s life. The majority of the story is told through the protagonist, who is brought to the police station a few minutes into the film and spends the majority of it there. Once in custody, the protagonist is put through a series of usual interrogations in the hope of breaking him and ultimately forcing him to confess. Along the way, most of the backstory is filled in as flashbacks retrace the events as the protagonist remembers them.

Content wise The Assassin (L'assassino) would deal with themes that would run rampant throughout Elio Petri’s other films, most notably isolation and corruption. In the grand scheme of things, he was doing more than simply creating cinema; he was using cinema to explore how society was changing around him.

Without a doubt the most striking aspect of The Assassin (L'assassino) is its stunning cinematography. Every frame is exquisitely composed for maximum effect. So not only do the visuals create a tremendous amount of atmosphere, but they also offer up additional subtext to what the characters are saying. A few standout moments visually include a scene where the police commissioner interrogates the protagonist and the hotel manager at the bottom of a spiral staircase at the place where the murder happened. Another standout visual moment is the scene where the protagonist is put in a room by himself after arriving at the police station, and on the other side of a one-way mirror is the police commissioner watching his very nervous move.

Marcello Mastroianni (8 1/2) has been cast in the role of this film’s protagonist, a man named Nello Poletti, and he turns in yet another remarkable performance. He effortlessly conveys all the right emotions as his character tries to maintain his sanity as his world crumbles around him. Another performance of note is Salvo Randone in the role of the police commissioner. And the remaining cast members are all more than adequate in their respective roles. Ultimately, The Assassin (L'assassino) is a first-rate thriller that does a superb job walking that delicate line between what is real and what is fiction.

The Assassin (L'assassino) gets an excellent release from Arrow Academy that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a trio of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer