The Legend of the Holy Drinker (Blu-Ray)
Arriving this week on Blu-ray/DVD combo is the 1988 Ermanno Olmi film, “The Legend of the Holy Drinker” (“La leggenda del santo bevitore”). Starring Rutger Hauer and based on the 1939 Joseph Roth novella, the film centers on a homeless man living under the bridges of Paris. Lent 200 francs by an anonymous stranger, he is determined to pay back his debt but circumstances – and his alcoholism – forever intervene.
The release from Arrow Video features a brand new 4K restoration plus New writing on the film by Helen Chambers, author of Joseph Roth in Retrospect: Co-existent Contradictions.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS
- Brand-new 4K restoration from the original negative, produced by Arrow Films exclusively for this release
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations of both the English and Italian versions of the film
- 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and Stereo 2.0 options for the English presentation with optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
- Stereo 2.0 audio for the Italian presentation with optional newly translated English subtitles
- Brand-new interview with actor Rutger Hauer, recorded exclusively for this release
- Interview with screenwriter Tullio Kezich
- Theatrical trailer
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: New writing on the film by Helen Chambers, author of Joseph Roth in Retrospect: Co-existent Contradictions
By: Marc Ferman