’Round Midnight - Criterion Collection (Blu-Ray)
Round Midnight is a love letter from director Bertrand Tavernier to the heyday of bebop and the Black American musicians who found refuge in the smoky underground jazz clubs of 1950s Paris.
In a sui generis, Oscar-nominated fusion of performer and character, legendary saxophonist Dexter Gordon plays Dale Turner, a brilliant New York jazz veteran whose music aches with beauty but whose personal life is ravaged by addiction. Searching for a fresh start in Paris, Turner strikes up an unlikely friendship with a struggling single father and ardent jazz fan (François Cluzet) who finds his life transformed as he attempts to help the self-destructive musician. Herbie Hancock’s evocative, Oscar-winning score sets the mood for this definitive jazz film, a bittersweet opus that glows with lived-in, soulful authenticity.
Region B Blu-ray : Australian compatible
- New 4K digital restoration, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack.
- Alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack, presented in DTS-HD Master Audio
- New interview with jazz and cultural critic Gary Giddins.
- New conversation with music producer Michael Cuscuna and author Maxine Gordon, widow of musician Dexter Gordon.
- Before Midnight, a 1986 behind-the-scenes documentary by Jean Achache
- Panel discussion from 2014 featuring Cuscuna, Maxine Gordon, director Bertrand Tavernier, and jazz scholar John Szwed, moderated by jazz critic and broadcaster Mark Ruffin.
- Performance from 1969 of “Fried Bananas” by Dexter Gordon, directed by Teit Jørgensen.
- New English subtitle translation and English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
- PLUS: An essay by scholar Mark Anthony Neal.