'Black Orpheus' Announced and Detailed for Blu-ray

The winner of both the Academy Award for best foreign film and the Cannes Film Festival's Palme d’Or is receiving the Criterion Blu-ray treatment this August.

The Criterion Collection is working on Marcel Camus' 'Black Orpheus' for high-definition release on August 17.

The 1959 film retells the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice in 20th century Rio De Janeiro.

The Blu-ray release will feature 1080p video, uncompressed Portuguese and English monaural soundtracks (with optional English subtitles), and supplements will include: Archival interviews with director Marcel Camus and actress Marpessa Dawn; New video interviews with Brazilian cinema scholar Robert Stam, jazz historian Gary Giddins, and Brazilian author Ruy Castro; À la recherche d'Orfeu negro, a feature-length documentary about Black Orpheus's cultural and musical roots and its resonance in Brazil today; theatrical trailer; and a booklet featuring an essay by film critic Michael Atkinson.

Suggested list price for the Blu-ray has been set at $39.95.

You can find the latest specs for 'Black Orpheus' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under August 17.