Jane B. Par Agnes V./Kung-Fu Master! (1988, 1987/Cinelicious Pics Blu-ray Set)/When Bette Met Mae (2015/MVD Visual DVD)

Picture: B/C+ Sound: B-/C+ Extras: C+/D Films: B- & C+/B

When famous celebrities get together it can be a big event, but when it is little-known meetings of famous, smart and even powerful women, it makes for a set of must-see releases as follows...

Agnes Varda's has always been an important filmmaker, never sold out and offered a female discourse Hollywood and much of the world has still not caught up with. The artist first known for her French New Wave era work never stopped much like Jean-Luc Godard or (up until his death) Alain Resnais, but got less attention than Resnais. Cinelicious' new home video label has issued two of here films made in the late 1980s back-to-back with international singing and acting icon Jane Birkin. First is Jane B. Par Agnes V. (1988), a semi-documentary, semi-biopic about Birkin's career, work, sexuality, relationships, art and controversies. She is very playful, funny, charming and even fearless in how she partakes in her by-then long-established image.

Made early in what we can recognize as the Music Video era, there are segmented moments that sometimes have music in them, but it is not an MTV film by any means. However, it has many interesting and often highly clever and well-realized segments in which Birkin is the participant. The film even establishes early Varda's presence behind the camera (we see her a few times) and the camera itself; we see it in the frame, reflected in windows, mirrors and even distorted mirrors. This post-modern approach kills any pretense then we get the mostly full color segments in succession and they often work on their own, lead in by the deconstruction that really helps in the long run. Even a black and white Laurel & Hardy send-up comes up with a unique effect.

However, Varda ultimately succeeds in capturing Birkin's persona beyond her sex symbol image (she was still looking good here boldly appears nude here looking good that way too) and the work is so accomplished (she had appeared in Guy Hamilton's underrated film of Agatha Christie's Evil Under The Sun in 1982). I could see its influence on singer/songwriter Annie Lennox (also of Eurythmics), actress Tilda Swinton and filmmaker Sophie Muller. That makes this film at least a minor classic and the near-mint preentation here only elivers that more strongly.

Kung-Fu Master! (1987) starts with a brief send-up of the Karate Kid films, pop culture (which haunts the film in amusing ways) and is titled the way it is on purpose in a way that seems to counter the increasingly vapid, Right-leaning Ninja martial arts films of the time. The young man coming from karate school essentially is precocious in a streetwise way and lands up in a sort of relationship with the characetr played by Birkin. It is not as good as the othger film, but still intereresting and quits while its ahead at 80 minutes, but it also acts as a time capsule, has no problems being a little cynical and that keps it realistic enough. Especially as compared so the many, many phony 1980s Hollywood Reagan-era teen comedies that have aged badly.

Extras include a nicely illustrated booklet on the film including informative text, an essay by Sandy Flitterman-Lewis & a new Varda interview with Miranda July, while each disc adds a new on-camera varda interview and Original Theatrical Trailers.

Wes Wheadon's When Bette Met Mae (2015) is a really interesting, unexpected project that lands up working and took a risk that the makers managed to pull off. Wheadon used to work for the late, great Bette Davis, even bartending events for her. In 1973, she was 65 years old (she lived for many years after) and always wanted to meet another trailblazing, groudnbreak female Hollywood legend: Mae West. She finally got her wish with a meeting at Davis home and in his wisdom (and with permission), was allowed to audiotape the meeting on an old reel-to-reel recorder that was superior to the magentic 4-track (read regular) cassette tapes and 8-track tapes of the period. Miraculously, the tape has survived, though it can show its age, so they have cleaned the tape and added subtitles with a reenactment of the meeting.

The actors playing the people who attended 'simply' (it probably took some rehearsal time to nail it all) and lip-sync while the subtitles clarify any words and partsof the conversation that might not be audible. Though a few little things might not always work about it, it is far more of a success than a failure and for the amazing conversation that transpires where neither legend holds back (from talking shop, to big money to bashing then Screen Actors Guild Ronald Reagan about screwing actors out of TV royalties if they were not big stars in the 1950s!), it weas truly an evening to remember and it is finally revealed. Too bad he ran out of tape. This runs 63 minutes and the tape runs more like 50ish minutes, but they are smart enough to explain certain points for those who might not know all about their histories or Hollywoods. The result is a solid, surprise indie release all serious film fans should check out.

There are sadly no extras.

Both Varda films are presented in 1080p 1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image transfers tthat have been very well restored from the original 35mm FujiColor film negative materials with very impressive results that make them some of the best you'll see on Blu-ray to date. Rarely can show the age of the materials used, so clean, clear and detailed these are. You'll even get a few demo shots.

The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image on Bette mixed the new digital HD shots with archival (usually 35mm black & white film, even though a generation down) film clips and various stills of photographs, posters and the like. This is as good as this is going to look in the format.

The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Stereo lossless mixes on both Varda films are is well recorded, mixed and presented for their age (at least one used Agfa magnetic sound tape) and plays well in Pro Logic-like surround modes as well, but sound just fine otherwise. That makes the restorations on both as clean and clear as we could expect. The lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 sound on Bette is simple stereo, but the main reciording is magnetic mono that were lucky has survived as well as it has.

- Nicholas Sheffo