QUIET DAYS IN CLICHY (1970)
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Label: Blue Underground
Rating: Not Rated
Duration: 91 Minutes
Region Code: Region-Free
Video: Dolby Vision HDR 2160p Ultra HD Widescreen (1.66:1)
Audio: Uncompressed English 1.0 DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Director: Jens Jørgen Thorsen
Cast: Paul Valjean, Wayne Rodda, Ulla Lemvigh-Mueller, Avi Sagild, Louise White
Based on the controversial novel by American author Henry Miller Quiet Days in Calichy (1970), is a loosely autobiographical hang-out film that follows the sex-fueled exploits of Henry Miller stand-in Carl (Wayne Rodda), a struggling American writer living in Paris, and his horny European flat mate Joey (Paul Valjean), both of whom are cash-strapped hedonistic free-spirits. Being broke doesn't preclude them from picking up a non-stop stream of lusty women at bars and restaurants though, and they seem quite content in their pursuit to screw 24-7. This has about much plot as your average 70's porn film, with the two men seeking the company of women, mostly prostitutes, with Joey having a thing for young women, which is evidenced when he brings home a fifteen year-old runaway named Colette (Elsebeth Reingaard) who loves to cook and screw. Things get a bit sketchy when her parents show-up to collect her, with the duo hightailing it to Luxemburg for a bit before returning to Paris for more orgiastic adventures.
That's pretty much the entire film, an artful French new wave style black and white softcore hangout film with a couple of hardcore penetration inserts thrown in. It's an attractively shot film, with some cool arthouse touches like thought bubbles and text that pop-up onscreen, but it's aimless and the story doesn't have much to say other than to explore Henry Miller's hedonistic male fantasies, but at least the main characters are charming (questionable morality aside) and the film offers an interesting parade of nude, attractive women having sex with these goofy guys; who are so horny they're willing to forgo food for sex. After giving all their money to the whores of Paris they are reduced to eating out of garbage bins while fantasizing about well-stocked shelves of food shops. The film also features songs by Country Joe McDonald, the singer of the psychedelic Woodstock-era rock band Country Joe and the Fish, with lyrics that explicitly tell the tales of Carl and Joey.
Audio/Video: Quiet Days in Clichy (1970) arrives on 4K Ultra HD with a new 4K 16-bit restoration from its recently discovered uncut & uncensored original fine-grain negative in 2160p Ultra HD widescreen (1.66:1) with Dolby Vision HDR color-grading. It simply looks fantastic, the source is largely unblemished and organic looking, only marred by some faint vertical lines. The 4K Ultra HD resolution showcases excellent fine detail and textures in the close-ups, film grain is very finely resolved, and the HDR Dolby Vision enhances the monochromatic presentation with deeper blacks and affords it a more layered contrast. Audio comes by way of an uncompressed English DTS-HD MA 1.0 mono. The track is clean and free of distortion, the dubbed dialogue and songs from Country Joe MacDonald, singer of Country Joe and the Fish, sound pretty great.
Onto the extras, on the UHD we only get 6-min of Deleted Scene and the 4-min Theatrical Trailer - both of which are new. All other extras are found on the accompanying Blu-ray, which I am pleased to reveal is not a recycle of the previous release, but the superior remastered version in 1080p HD. On the Blu-ray we have the same Deleted Scene and Trailer, plus we also get archival extras by way of the 12-min Songs of Clichy – Interview with Country Joe McDonald, the 17-min Dirty Books, Dirty Movies: Barney Rosset on Henry Miller – Interview with Henry Miller’s editor and publisher Barney Rosset, another 25-min “Midnight Blue” Interview with Barney Rosset from the Midnight Blue public access program. Also new are three Image Galleries that explore movie poster & stills, book covers, and historical court documents. Additionally I found a pair of Easter Eggs tucked away on the Blu-ray main menu, these amount to 6-min of additional Interview segments with Barney Rosset. The 2-disc 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray release arrives in an oversized, black, dual-hubbed keepcase with a Reversible Sleeve of Artwork, plus a Limited Edition Embossed Slipcover, exclusive to the first pressing.
Special Features:
Disc 1 (4K UHD Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras
- NEW! Deleted Scene (6 min)
- NEW! Theatrical Trailer
Disc 2 (Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras:
- Songs of Clichy – Interview with Country Joe McDonald
- Dirty Books, Dirty Movies: Barney Rosset on Henry Miller – Interview with Henry Miller’s editor and publisher Barney Rosset (17 min)
- “Midnight Blue” Interview with Barney Rosset (25 min)
- NEW! Deleted Scene (6 min)
- NEW! Theatrical Trailer (4 min)
- NEW! Poster & Still Gallery
- NEW! Book Cover Gallery
- NEW! Court Documents
- Easter Eggs: 2 Additional Interview Segments with Barney Rosset (6 min)
Blue Underground give this once-banned, horny-hangout flick a gorgeous UHD presentation that sure to appeal to fans of hedonistic softcore cinema and lovers of erotic arthouse.
Screenshots from the Blue Underground Blu-ray (2022):
Extras:
