Faces [Criterion Collection]

Overview

"John Cassavetes has been directing films for close to ten years when Faces was released in 1968, but it was the picture that established him as one of America's most original and distinctive talents behind the camera long after he'd earned a reputation as a quirky but charismatic actor. The Criterion Collection have given Faces a new release on DVD, and the disc walks the fine line between accurately capturing the movie's rough, naturalistic look (it was shot on 16mm and lit to give the cast maximum freedom of movement) and cleaning up a film that had suffered at the hands of time and rough treatment. Transferred to disc in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.66:1, Faces often looks grainy and the contrast shifts dramatically from scene to scene, but the film's unvarnished look is purposeful, and the transfer that appears on disc one of this set reflects the vision of Cassavetes and director of photography Al Ruban, and unlike some earlier video releases this shows us the grit that is supposed to be there without the grit that isn't, and it does make a difference. Disc two is devoted to supplementary materials, most notably an alternate version of the opening of the film (running seventeen minutes), which presents the footage in a notably different sequence (it was replaced after the film had screened at the Toronto Film Festival). Also featured is an episode of the French television series Cineastes de Notre Temps devoted to Cassavetes which includes two interviews with the filmmaker -- one shot in California in 1965 while Faces was in production, and other shot in a French television studio in 1968 after it had been released. The interviews are often funny and revealing, though the quality of the archival print is fair at best. And two original documentaries round out the disc -- Making Faces, featuring interviews with actors Gena Rowlands, Seymour Cassel and Lynn Carlin and camerman/editor Al Ruban as they discuss the long process of making the film, and Lighting and Shooting The Film, in which Ruban breaks down the different film stocks, lenses and lighting techniques used to give different scenes in Faces their individual looks. And finally, the booklet includes a short but appreciative essay by Stuart Klawans. Faces has never been a beautiful film to look at, but it's a powerful and moving study of the human heart, and Criterion have helped give the movie a new life on home video; this DVD is it's best presentation yet for film collectors."

Product Details

Release Date:	09/21/2004
UPC:	0037429198827
Original Release:	1968
Rating:	NR
Source:	Criterion Collection
Presentation:	[B&W, Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	2:10:00
Sales rank:	26,672

Special Features

Seventeen-minute alternate opening sequence from an early edit of the film; Episode of the French television series Cinéastes de notre temps from 1968, dedicated to Cassavetes, featuring rare interviews and behind-the-scenes footage; Making "Faces," a 2004 documentary including interviews with actors Lynn Carlin, Seymour Cassel, and Gena Rowlands and director of photography AL Ruban; Lighting & Shooting the film, a short documentary from 2004 in which Ruban explains how he and the crew achieved the distinct look of Faces; A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Stuart Klawans

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Gena Rowlands	Jeannie,Actor
John Marley	Richard
Lynn Carlin	Maria
Seymour Cassel	Chet
Fred Draper	Freddy
Val Avery	Jim
Dorothy Gulliver	Florence
Joanne Moore Jordan	Louise,Louise
Darlene Conley	Billy Mae
Gene Darfler	Jackson
Elizabeth Deering	Stella
Bruce Kirby	Freddie Draper
John Hale	Actor
Midge Ware	Actor
Laurie Mock	Actor
Christina Crawford	Actor
James Bridges	Extra
O.G. Dunn	Comedian
George Sims	Bartender
John Neilson	Actor
Jack Ackerman	Composer

Technical Credits

John Cassavetes

John Cassavetes	Director,Screenwriter
Maurice McEndree	Producer
Don Pike	Sound Effects,Sound/Sound Designer
Al Ruban	Producer

Editorial Reviews

The maturation of his maverick "home movie" ethos, John Cassavetes's Faces (1968) incisively explores the disintegration of an upper middle-class marriage. Shot in 16mm black-and-white, Cassavetes's mobile long takes capture the shifting character dynamics as John Marley's Richard walks out on Lynn Carlin's Maria for a night with Gena Rowlands's prostitute Jeanie, leaving Maria to find temporary solace with Seymour Cassel's young swinger Chet. Punctuating those long takes with extreme close-ups, the actors' brief moments of silent emotional revelation allude to the feelings masked by the jokes, songs, and dances that constitute their interactions. Filmed over eight months and edited over several years, the final form of Faces is hardly off-the-cuff, yet Cassavetes's cinéma vérité style and reliance on improvised performances of scripted lines created a feeling of spontaneous intimacy to match the "realistic," mundane truth of marital boredom. Independently produced by Cassavetes after two frustrating Hollywood experiences, Faces became a critical hit. Along with prizes from the Venice Film Festival and the New York Film Critics Circle, Faces received Oscar nominations for Cassavetes's script and Cassel's and Carlin's supporting performances, confirming Cassavetes's place as one of the most innovative and influential American filmmakers of the 1960s.