Paris Blues (1961) Blu-ray Review

When you think of iconic names in cinema history few can beat the amount of amazing films of that of Paul Newman and Sidney Pointier. Alone they bring star power to a film, but put them together and add Joanne Woodward and the great Louis Armstrong to the mix and you have a star-studded film.

Martin Ritt had directed Sidney Poitier and Paul Newman before in Edge of the City(1957) and The Long Hot Summer (1958) respectively. But Paris Blues (1961) would be his only time directing them together. Now 63 years after it's release MGM is given this movies a Blu-ray release.

Synopsis: Ram (Paul Newman) and Eddie (Sidney Poitier) are two jazz musicians living in Paris. When they meet and fall in love with two young American girls, Ram and Eddie must decide whether they should move back to America with them or stay in Paris.

Paris Blues has a wonderful pacing. Switching between great dialogue and awesome musical performances. But this is more than a romantic film, it's a raw look at the 60s music culture and how drugs were a part of that culture! t is a deeply emotional film. It is an extremely well produced film. I don't think Paris Blues gets as much recognition as it should! 

Along with the amazing performances of Paul Newman (Cool Hand Luke), Joanne Woodward (The Three Faces of Eve), Sidney Poitier (In the Heat of the Night). The cast includes, Diahann Carroll (Julia), Louis Armstrong (A Man Called Adam) and Barbara Laage (The Happy Road). That add the fact that the music was composed by Duke Ellington and you have a winner of a film.

MGM have transferred this film to Blu-ray in 1080p and is presented in 1.66:1 aspect ratio. The audio is a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. There is also English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. This transfer really looks nice. The picture is crisp and clean with no signs of digital artifacts.

For me what I always look for in a physical media release is the bonus features. Well sadly there are no bonus features to be found on this release. I would have loved to seen an audio commentary, interviews, or at least a trailer. But a beautiful looking copy of the film is still something to write home about! 

So if you missed out of the previous Blu-ray release of this 60s all-star film and you want to add a Blu-ray release to your collection, you can't go wrong with this Blu-ray! Head over to Moviezyng and order your copy today!


Out of 4 Film Reels (4 Being the Best) the Blu-rat release of Paris Blues receives.....