Un Chant d'Amour [DVD] [1950]

The celebrated novelist, playwright and iconoclast Jean Genet wrote and directed this striking meditation on loneliness, brutality and sexual longing behind prison walls (all common themes in his writings), which has been given a well-rounded release in this edition from Cult Epics. Un Chant D'amour has been brought to DVD in its original full-frame aspect ratio of 1.33:1; while the source print is a bit worse for wear in spots, this transfer makes the most of the images, and captures the richness of the photography with striking results. The film is presented silent, but an optional commentary track featuring Kenneth Anger has been included; unfortunately, while the pairing seems inspired, Anger doesn't have much to say about the movie beyond recalling witnessing an early screening (with Genet in attendance), and there are long gaps of silence during the film's twenty-five minutes. The film is prefaced by an introduction from archivist Jonas Mekas, who talks about the film's history and his role in bringing it to the United States. A second disc features two additional films: Genet, a documentary on the author dominated by a long interview with him as well as readings from his work, and Jean Genet, an interview with Genet conducted by Bertrand Poirot-Delpech in which he talks about his interest in radical politics, his writing style and how his criminal life informed his work. Both are in French, with optional English subtitles, and the monophonic audio is mastered in Dolby Digital Stereo, while the images are transferred to disc in the full-frame ratio of 1.33:1. Anyone with an interest in Jean Genet will want to give this package a look -- in addition to presenting the man's only work as a film director, it offers an interesting insight on the author, his life and his work that's potent and fascinating.