The films of Max Ophüls feel like they come from another world: a place more lush, opulent, theatrical and melancholy than our own. Even the ones not set in Habsburg-era Vienna feel like they could have emanated from that elegant time and place, if they’d had access to a sophisticated movie-making apparatus in the late 19th century. Ophüls’ camera seems perpetually, almost compulsively, in motion, always gliding, rising and falling (James Mason once wrote a short poem that observed, “A shot that does not call for tracks / Is agony for poor dear Max / Who separated from his dolly / Is wrapped in deepest melancholy.”)

For a long time, it was difficult to find his movies on DVD, at least in North America, until Criterion put out excellent versions of La Ronde, The Earrings of Madame de… and Le Plaisir. Prior to that, it was only easy to find Lola Montès, which was released in 1999 in a cropped, distorted and altogether poor form. Criterion’s back to the rescue, though, with a beautiful Blu-Ray of that, Ophüls’ last film and his only one in colour.

Telling, in fragments, the true (or, true-ish) life story of Lola Montez, the scandalous 19th-century dancer and mistress to King Ludwig of Bavaria, it’s a fascinating narrative puzzle box, stitched together by a circus act about her life (with ringleader Peter Ustinov), starring her (played by Martine Carol). It’s a glorious, brightly coloured and ruthless story of sex, social advancement and manipulation. As usual, the extras are excellent, including Max by Marcel, a short by Ophüls’ son Marcel, director of The Sorrow and the Pity.

The Sopranos’ secret weapon was always Edie Falco, who matched James Gandolfini blow for blow. It’s good to see her back, as the star of Nurse Jackie, the first season of which is now out on DVD, about an ethically dodgy drug-addicted New York City nurse. The show’s not great, but it’s worth seeing for her alone.