Boudu Saved From Drowning
A Parisian bookseller, Lestingois, fishes Boudu, a vagrant, out of the Seine after seeing the man throw himself into the river.
He befriends the tramp and puts him up at home. Boudu’s coarse and irreverent behaviour shocks the whole household at first but he agrees to change his appearance and Madame Lestingois succumbs to his charms.
Boudu, however, only has eyes for the maid, Anne-Marie, who happens to be the bookseller’s mistress.
Events take a different turn when Boudu wins 100,000 francs in the lottery….
The restoration was carried out through the 2K digitalisation of the original nitrate negative image and a “safety” print.
The original 1.19 aspect ratio has been re-established; this specific ratio was often used in the early days of talking pictures but was soon abandoned in favour of a more rectangular frame.
The restoration of the soundtrack was based on the best available source, a positive exhibition print, as the original elements – incomplete and chemically damaged – were impossible to use.
The original sound negatives of reels 1, 4 and 5 were destroyed by the French Cinematheque in 2002 due to their state of decay.
Boudu Saved From Drowning is released 17th December.