Blu-ray Disc Features:
- Rated: Unrated
- Run Time: 1 hours, 43 minutes
- Video: Color
- Encoding: Region 1 (USA & Canada)
- Released: February 16, 2010
- Originally Released: 1964
- Label: Lions Gate
- Note: Introduction by Colin MacCabe, Godard expert
- "Once Upon a Time There Was... Contempt": Documentary on the film
- "Contempt...Tenderly": Documentary on the film
- Converation with Fritz Lang
- "The Dinosaur and the Baby": Discussion between directors Jean-Luc Godard and Fritz Lang
- Trailer
- Special Edition
- Aspect Ratio: Widescreen - 2.35
- Audio:
- DTS HD Master Audio - English, French, Spanish
- Subtitles - Spanish
Performers, Cast and Crew:
Entertainment Reviews:
Chicago Sun-Times - 09/05/1997
"...[Bardot] seems very natural..."
Sight and Sound - 02/01/2004
"Godard's masterpiece works on several levels: as a self-reflexive satire about filmmaking, as a study of relationship in its dying throes and as a reworking of a classical myth."
Total Film - 02/01/2004
"Sardonically scripted, it was shot in luminous Mediterranean locales..."
Los Angeles Times - 07/11/2008
"[A] masterpiece, a poetic, deeply reflective reverie on the interplay between a disintegrating marriage and the problematic filming of THE ODYSSEY in Italy."
Product Description:
Jean-Luc Godard's cynical look at the art of filmmaking follows a screenwriter in his attempts to recount Homer's THE ODYSSEY. Full of insights into the compromises required of filmmakers, as well as autobiographical allusions, especially concerning the failed union of Godard and actress Anna Karina, 1964's CONTEMPT is one of the most widely recognized films about the filmmaking process. It is also considered the film that made Godard realize that lavish productions were not for him, sending him back into a lower-budget world where he could maintain complete control over his films. Shot in glorious CinemaScope by Raoul Coutard, CONTEMPT is a poignant artistic commentary and a dramatic exposé of a dying marriage.
Paul Javal (Michel Piccoli) is struggling with Jeremy Prokosch (Jack Palance), the manipulative American producer financing his big-budget venture, and is frustrated by Fritz Lang (playing himself), the film's egotistical director. Concomitantly, his marriage to his gorgeous wife Camille (Brigitte Bardot) founders, and the emotional distance between them weighs heavily upon him.
Plot Synopsis:
In this cynical look at the art of filmmaking, a director attempts to retell Homer's THE ODYSSEY. He wrangles with his own creative process and the coarse producer's ridiculous demands.
Plot Keywords:
Betrayal |
Character Study |
Marriage |
New Wave (Film) |
Recommended |
Romance |
Showbiz |
Theatrical Release
Production Notes:
- U.S. theatrical release: December 18, 1964.
- The film was re-released theatrically in several US cities on June 27, 1997.
- Filmed on location in Capri and Rome, Italy.
- Jean-Luc Godard's first attempt at big-budget filmmaking sparked major conflicts with his producers, triggering the now legendary nude scene that challenges viewers by boldly removing all sexuality from the situation.
- CONTEMPT was the first time Godard worked with an actress as famous as Brigitte Bardot.
Based on 
