Quadrophenia Blu-ray release sees new 5.1 mix approved by The Who

The 1979 film Quadrophenia, based of course on The Who’s classic rock opera, gets a director-approved Blu-ray release in the US on 28 August from movie connoisseurs The Criterion Collection.

The coming-of-age film set in the early 1960s featured early performances from Phil ‘Parklife’ Daniels, Ray Winstone and Sting. Franc Roddam directed.

The Blu-ray features a new high-definition digital restoration of the uncut version of the film, an all-new 5.1 surround mix, supervised by The Who (presented in DTS-HD Master Audio), and the original 2.0 stereo track (for the purists).

Other features of the Blu-ray are:

• • New audio commentary featuring director Franc Roddam, and director of photography Brian Tufano
• • New interview with Bill Curbishley, the film’s co-producer and The Who’s co-manager
• • New interview with The Who’s sound engineer, Bob Pridden, discussing the new mix, featuring a restoration demonstration
• • On-set and archival footage
• • Behind-the-scenes photographs
• • Trailers
• • A booklet featuring an essay by critic Nick James, a reprinted personal history by original mod Irish Jack, and Pete Townshend’s liner notes from the album

This new Blu-ray reissue (a DVD version will also be available) can be pre-ordered from The Criterion Collection website. Please note that discs may be region-limited to the US.