For those of us who are loners, introverts, or live a quiet lifestyle, not going to parties or gatherings and do forth, this movie is for you! rachel, rachel is a 1968 drama film produced and directed by screen legend Paul Newman and starring his wife, Joanne Woodward! The movie also stars Estelle Parsons and James Olson and is based on the 1966 novel A Jest of God by Canadian author Margaret Laurence.
The story focuses on Rachel Cameron (Joanne Woodward, The Long Hot Summer) schoolteacher in Connecticut. She is unmarried and is terribly shy around company. She lives with her dominating mother, Mary (Kate Harrington, Rhapsody in Blue, The Sentinel) and leads a dull life. She is always reluctant about going anywhere for any kind of social gathering, as was the case when she was invited by her friend Calla (Estelle Parsons, Dick Tracy, Bonnie and Clyde) to attend a revival meeting. Rachel goes and has an incredible experience!
Nick Kazlik (James Olson, Moon Zero Two, The Strange Ones) a former high-school classmate and currently a teacher starts to date Rachel. At first, she rebuffs his advances but eventually he does have sex with her, ending her virginity. He just wanted a cheap fling, while Rachel was already preparing a life with him and their future child. He turns away from her saying he is married with a child, but later Rachel finds out that he was full of it. Her inexperience and nativity about relationships and sex unfortunately comes back to haunt her when it comes to Nick.
I think fans from the late 60s and early 70s that will watch rachel, rachel will feel some nostalgia about the times back then. The film was nominated for several awards and won a pair of Golden Globe Awards. Joanne Woodward won for Best Actress and Paul Newman won for Best Director.
Warner Archive has released Paul Newman’s rachel, rachel on Blu-ray, most likely receiving either a 2K or 4K scan of the original camera negative. This video for this release looks outstanding with a nice, cleaned up image without any hint of dirt, debris, and other age-related wear and tear issues detected. Natural grain is present throughout, with colors looking bold and rich. Scenery looks excellent with the image sporting fine details and rich textures. Black levels look quite strong on this Blu-ray. Flesh tones appear to be spot on perfect with plenty of details showing up in close-ups of the actors faces.
rachel, rachel’s DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio sounds adequate, with everything sounding clear. Nothing was all that aggressive or spectacular in the sound department, nor was anything too timid. It was a pleasant listening experience without any popping or hissing sounds. English subtitles are available for this release.
A short featurette called A Jest of God shows a few clips from the film, and but not in good shape, plus a theatrical trailer is included. These are the lone supplements for this Blu-ray.
Despite the lack of extras, fans of this film should most definitely pick this movie up. With stable audio and excellent picture quality rachel, rachel is is another great release by Warner Archive, recommended!
rachel, rachel
Director- Paul Newman
Cast- Joanne Woodward, James Olson, Kate Harrington
Country of Origin- USA
Distributor – Warner Archive / Warner Brothers
Number of Discs – 1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date –9/30/2022