Nicolas Roeg was one of the most distinctive and innovative independent British film directors of the late twentieth century. He made some of the most iconic and daring films of his generation. With Performance, The Witches, Walkabout and The Man Who Fell to Earth he made some truly memorable and compelling narratives. However, Don’t Look Now is, in my mind, his masterpiece.
After their daughter Christine drowns, both John (Donald Sutherland) and Laura (Julie Christie) are bereft. Sometime later, the couple are in Venice whilst their son is away at boarding school. He throws himself into his work restoring churches but she struggles to move on. Laura befriends two elderly sisters (Hilary Mason and Clelia Matania), one of who is blind and claims to be a mystic who can communicate with Christine. She is given a strange warning from beyond the grave.
Don’t Look Now plays with themes of grief, loss and guilt to create an unsettling and febrile drama. Roeg pulls out all the stops, producing one beautiful shot after another. Anthony B. Richmond’s cinematography is sublime. Both Sutherland and Christie are electrifying whilst Pino Donaggio’s score ads a perturbing underbelly. Don’t Look Now is a visionary work which is as powerful today as it was on release in 1973.
Special features:
The 4K Collector’s Edition contains 4 discs including:
- The restored film in UHD for the first time
- The feature on Blu-ray with brand new extras as well as a bonus Blu-ray of extras
- The original Pino Donaggio soundtrack CD.
The Collector’s Edition also includes the theatrical poster, art cards, and a booklet with an essay, an original press interview with Nic Roeg and script extracts from the BFI archive.
All SKUS include the following extras:
- New Pass the Warning: Reflecting on Nic Roeg’s masterpiece: new documentary featuring interviews with David Cronenberg, Danny Boyle, Brad Bird, Andrew Haigh, Stephen Woolley, Peter Bradshaw and more
- New A Kaleidoscope of Meaning: Colour in Don’t Look Now
- New 4k restoration featurette
- Audio commentary with Nic Roeg
- Interviews with Donald Sutherland, Pino Donaggio, Allan Scott, Tony Richmond, Danny Boyle
- Don’t Look Now: Looking Back
- Behind the Scenes stills gallery
Don’t Look Now is released on Collector’s Edition Blu-ray, DVD and Digital by StudioCanal as part of their Vintage Classics collection on 29 July.
