Lola Montès

The final work from the great French filmmaker Max Ophuls and one of the most magnificent and expressive color films ever made, Lola Montès arrives on DVD and Blu-ray in this fully restored edition of the 1955 original. Ophuls frames the true story of notorious courtesan Lola Montes, “the world's most scandalous woman,” as a circus spectacle with Lola (Martine Carol) as the center-ring attraction. Her exploits, re-created in garish pieces of big-top cabaret narrated by the ringmaster/MC (Peter Ustinov), are contrasted with offstage moments of tender candor and poignant flashbacks to her “notorious” affairs with artists, composers, politicians, and royalty, from Franz Liszt (Will Quadflieg) to King Ludwig of Bavaria (Anton Walbrook). While Carol is hardly the most passionate or electrifying of stars, she nevertheless effectively captures the sad core of the woman who loved well, if not too wisely, while Ophuls' gliding camerawork creates a cinematic ballet as he intimately weaves together the various strands of her bittersweet story. Beautifully mastered from a 2008 restoration, DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by scholar Susan White, the new half-hour-plus documentary Max by Marcel from son Marcel Ophuls (an assistant on Lola Montes), the archival 1965 French TV program Max Ophuls ou le plaisir de tourner with collaborators discussing the man and the artist, footage of Carol demonstrating various hairstyles from the film, and a booklet featuring an essay by critic Gary Giddins. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. (S. Axmaker)