Bird with the Crystal Plumage is the debut film by director Dario Argento. It is not the first film in the giallo genre, having been preceded by nearly a decade by Mario Bava’s Blood and Black Lace and The Girl Who Knew Too Much. That being said the film pretty much put the giallo into popular consciousness, and established Argento as the genre’s most popular director (a title he has never lived down).
The film stars Tony Musante as a man who gets trapped between 2 glass panels at the entrance of an art gallery one night just as a murder is occurring. Forced to observe the crime, he is the prime witness, and when the police are unable to solve the crime, he begins to undertake his own investigation, which, of course, brings him to the attention of the killer. Bird with the Crystal Plumage is Argento is top tier Argento. Further, it shows that as a director he was able to debut with a vision that was almost entirely intact from the start. it was a deeply stylish and mature effect that blends great suspense and decent violence to create something that works to this day.
Arrow Video presents Bird with the Crystal Plumage in a 2:35:1 1080p AVC encoded transfer that looks absolutely brilliant. Grain is rendered naturally, blacks are deep, detail is excellent, and colors pop. There are 2 audio tracks mono in English and Italian both are quite solid and accurately depict the soundscapes of the film with the dialogue and Morricone score coming through strongly. Arrow has put together a strong package for this release of Bird… with an informative commentary by author Troy Howarth, a thirty minute featurette on the film, and its history by Diabolique’s Kat Ellinger. We also get a visual essay, and some additional interviews, featurettes, and trailers.
4K UPDATE – 2021 All extras from the excellent prior 2017 release were ported over as was the mono tracks in English and Italian, so what is left is a FANTASTIC NEW Dolby Vision HDR10 4k transfer of the film that brings out details, colors the like viewers have NEVER SEEN BEFORE. I’ve been watching Bird… since a badly purchased VHS ex-rental 25 years ago, and can say this new version will not be beaten for at least a decade (8K possibilities ha). This is currently the upgrade to end all upgrades of this title.