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Olivier Assayas is one of contemporary France's most piercing, confident filmmakers. Cold Water, produced in 1994 but long unavailable due to music rights issues, can stake its rightful claim as one of his best films.

Set in 1972, the film stars non-professional actors Virginie Ledoyen and Cyprien Fouquet as teenage lovers Christine and Gilles. They have hardly anything other than their love and even less to lose, turning first to petty shoplifting, then to running away in search of something unknown. Assayas poignantly captures their relationship — and their social struggles at school and with family — with a restlessly roving camera, to a score of music crucial to the times, including tracks by Leonard Cohen, Nico, and Bob Dylan.

Assayas says the film is partially autobiographical, as he was 17 in 1972, shoplifted records, and had conversations with his father that mirrored those Gilles had with his.

Director: Olivier Assayas
Cast: Virginie Ledoyen, Cyprien Fouquet, Laszlo Szabo
Country: France
Genre: Drama

BD50 | 1080p AVC | 01:35:12 | 37.6 Gb + 3% rec
Language: Francais
Subtitles: English

Extras:

• Olivier Assayas - in this new video interview, Olivier Assayas explains how Cold Water came to exist and why he views it as a punk rock version of the '70s. The director also discusses the important role music has in the film. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in New York in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (15 min, 1080p).

• Denis Lenoir - in this new video interview, cinematographer Denis Lenoir recalls his work on Cold Water. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in Los Angeles in 2018. In English, not subtitled. (11 min, 1080p).

• Le cercle de minuit - presented here is a segment from an archival episode of the French television program Le cercle de minuit which features interviews with Olivier Assayas and actors Virginie Ledoyen and Cyprien Fouquet. The episode was broadcast in 1994. In French, optional English subtitles. (12 min, 1080i).