The Name of the Rose – Second Sight Films Blu-ray Review

There’s something about a monastery full of secrets that just works as a setting for a murder mystery, and few films have ever done it as well as Jean-Jacques Annaud’s The Name of the Rose. Second Sight Films’ new release gives Umberto Eco’s medieval whodunnit the kind of home video treatment it’s long deserved.

Released in 1986 and based on Eco’s acclaimed 1980 novel, the film is set in a remote Italian abbey in 1327, where Franciscan friar William of Baskerville (Sean Connery) arrives with his young novice Adso (Christian Slater) to attend a theological conference. Before the debate can even get started, a monk turns up dead at the bottom of a tower, and William, a former inquisitor with a sharp eye for observation, is asked to investigate. As more bodies pile up, the trail leads William and Adso deeper into the abbey’s labyrinthine library and its guarded secrets, all while the fearsome Inquisitor Bernardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham) arrives and threatens to derail everything with his own brand of justice.

Connery is magnificent here, playing William with a dry wit and a twinkle that keeps the film from ever feeling too dour despite the grim subject matter, it’s not hard to see why people talk about this as one of his best performances. Slater, in only his second film, holds his own as the wide-eyed Adso, and Ron Perlman is unforgettable as the twisted, half-feral hunchback Salvatore (again, unbelievably just his second movie role). Then there’s F. Murray Abraham, coming off the back of Amadeus, bringing real menace to Bernardo Gui without ever tipping into pantomime villainy.

What really sells the film though is the sheer atmosphere of the thing. Tonino Delli Colli’s cinematography and Dante Ferretti’s production design turn the abbey into a genuinely oppressive, candlelit world, you can practically smell the place. Annaud shot largely on location in Italy and Germany, and it shows, there’s a tactile, lived-in quality to every corridor and cell that a soundstage alone could never quite replicate. James Horner’s score threads through it all beautifully, understated when it needs to be and genuinely stirring when the mystery finally starts to unravel.

Special Features & Packaging

Second Sight’s presentation here is a real treat for fans of the film. There’s a new commentary from James Marsh alongside the archival track with Annaud himself, and a run of newly filmed interviews covering the film from just about every relevant angle, Annaud reflecting on the production, Christian Slater looking back at his early role, Ron Perlman on playing Salvatore, and screenwriter Andrew Birkin discussing the adaptation. There’s also a dedicated feature exploring Eco’s novel itself and its journey to the screen, which is a nice touch for anyone coming to this without having read the book.

The Name of the Rose remains a genuinely gripping, atmospheric piece of filmmaking forty years on, and one of Connery’s finest performances to boot. Second Sight have put together a set that does the film proper justice, both in terms of presentation and the depth of the extras. Well worth picking up.

Special Features

• New audio commentary by James Marsh – This is the commentary by James Marsh who’s a film critic. If you’ve read my reviews before, you’ll know I’m not a massive fan of critical commentary’s as it’s just more opinion about the films which you’ll get on Podcasts, Youtube, or the internet generally. Having said that, Marsh keeps it interesting, his voice is clear and the volume’s good. Interesting enough if you don’t already know much about the film.

• Audio commentary with Director Jean-Jacques Annaud – Annaud is French, but speaks English more clearly than me. This is an insightful look into the film, straight off the bat he’s discussing when, where, how and why shots were created. You may find yourself being surprised by some of the information he imparts.

• Charm of Humanity: a new interview with Jean-Jacques Annaud – 38 minutes in the company of Arnaud. Nice clear audio, nicely lit room in a house type interview. A thoughtful, calmly paced interview, Arnaud looks like he’s enjoying reminiscing about the film, as well as the source material. Second Sight usually get these interviews spot on, and this continues that trend. I hope it continues the trend of every interview on the disc being shorter than the last too.

• A Boy and His Dog: a new interview with Actor Christian Slater – Yes, 23 minutes for the next interview. This is an interview with Slater who discusses the film. Starts with how it was just his second feature at the age of 15 or 16. He goes into various things nobody else could, even to what he listened to while filming.You may come away with a tip for if you’re ever growing your hair back after having a Monk style.

I always think of Christian Slater as effortlessly cool. This does nothing to change my mind to this fact. It’s quite odd, I think, that this interview made me smile for no particular reason. Slater just radiates happiness.

• Bringing the Mustard: a new interview with Actor Ron Perlman – 22 minutes. Second Sight not letting me down on the interview timings. Perlman is intelligent, clear and much more gregarious than his face suggests. Really good interview, this one’s a little more in the “interview set” style. Considering this is a 40 year old film, the memories are right there, which suggests how much the film meant to the people involved at the time. Love these interviews where people give insight into the overall processes happening during casting or filming. Salvatore is a hell of a character and he discusses how he found the character. Learn about non language of languages, make up, other cast members all the stuff you want in a retrospective. Given his performance, this being just his second film is mind blowing. Great interview.

• Liquidating the Disk: a new interview with Writer Andrew Birkin – Almost bucking the trend, but technically 33 seconds shorter so thanks Second Sight. This is an interview where the setting couldn’t say “creative’s room” any more if it tried. I found the setting a fascinating general insight into the mind of a writer. Discusses crafting the story around the source material, the other credited writer and how writing screenplays has changed over the years. Remember 5 1/2 inch floppies? Another great interview

• The Abbey of Crime: Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose – 45 minute German TV making of, covers rehearsals, interviews with cast and crew and all the usual behind the scenes goodies. It’s in German with English subtitles, and I turned it off at first as I thought it was a disc error, so don’t do that. It’s a great little making of and another great addition to the disc (and I’m an idiot).