Though already at a very high level, Fencing Pictures still seems to be pushing the envelope. The DVD menu is cleaner than ever, the music is *much* more hip. /You can play each bout with or without commentary./ When you make a selection, the whole menu zooms out and fades to the action.

And it's all about the action: Kleibrink versus Bissdorf, two Germans facing off in the semi-final in a great show of German foil. Kleibrink's promise, speed, and timing meets Bissdorf's enormous well of experience and talent, and they both know each other very well. Kleibrink is comfortable with Bissdorf's long attacks, easily finding low parries and stopping him short. For his part, Bissdorf capably frustrates Kleibrink's long fast attacks, by quickly closing distance and getting inside the point.

The result is a game that starts off with some close-proximity touches, behind-the-head remises (very useful now!), and off-targets. But the end of the first period, 5-8 for Kleibrink, the fencing has opened up as Kleibrink seems to find a tactic to prosecute (tight-handed feints and derobements) and a strategy -- intermix the tight attacks with stop-hits on preparation to keep Bissdorf worried.

The effects of the new timings (we're still thinking of them as new!?) are everywhere. When a fencer goofs -- not making a direct riposte from close distance, say -- his opponent is /right there/ with a fast remise. When a fencer goofs differently -- making an over-committed attack from long distance -- his opponent will be ready with a strong parry and possibly a compound riposte. Another big goof -- all the fencers have gotten very good at suckering opponents into making over-long preparations. The touches are in the errors, as it has always been. When /neither/ fencer goofs, you get tremendous actions, like when you see Bissdorf throwing down with an indirect riposte off a counter-parry -- a level of hand-control that was not seen (and not needed) at the pre-timing change 2004 CIP.

Recommendation for the next movie night at your club: Play the 2004 CIP final, and then follow it with the 2006 CIP final. Compare and contrast.

Kleibrink comes out strong against his much-taller opponent, showing a simple beat-attack that was clearly practiced to land with-or-before the opponent's parry. Then he pulls out an attack with remise, spinning to the side to cause Cassara's riposte to miss. Then he does it /again/! Then, to mess with Cassara, he lands a straight attack (off-target), then an attack-in-preparation that blocks-out Cassara's slow attack.

In the early bout, it's The Kleibrink Show, and he quickly dominates the turgid-seeming Cassara. Cassara has trouble finding a proper blade solution to Kleibrink's quick reflexes, and when he does he misses. At 6-1 Kleibrink, however, Cassara's skill finally begins to re-assert, and Cassara starts finding target as Kleibrink tries to run past. He even lands a Cassara-flick (how we miss those!) from a running attack.

9-7 Kleibrink at the top of the second round, and Cassara comes out of his break with a new set of tactics that let him dominate the actions -- grinding through several off-targets before his point starts landing. Kleibrink knows you can't let Cassara rack up a string of points -- when that happens the Italian is almost unstoppable -- so the German dives into Cassara (twice nailing the Italian's front leg) to interrupt his attacks and eats a red card penalty as the cost.

Cassara fights through Kleibrink's interruptions and soon has the bout 11-10 Cassara. But he's fighting from a creative deficit, unable to shut down Kleibrink completely when the German begins improvising with tempo. The final minutes are a slugfest, 13-13, 13-14, 14-14, with fighty doubling-out and strong ripostes. This year, the final touch is a parry riposte with disengage.

Italy walks out with its strongest line-up, Sanzo, Vanni, Cassara, and the newcomer (super-junior) Baldini on reserve. France produces Le Pechoux, Guyart, Beaudan, and Sintes on reserve.

Yes, it's time for another of those galactic France-Italy team bouts, which France frequently dominates in the face of the Italians' top-level individual rankings. The eternal questions are raised: Will Beaudan annoy Sanzo? Will Cassara outreach Guyart? These fencers are heavily informed about each other -- they take the strip seemingly at every team final -- and the result is always a string of incredible bouts between Olympic Gold medallists and World Champions.

If you are addicted to these DVDs, then you might have a special sort of excitement as Sanzo and Le Pechoux hook up for the first bout. You've seen the history between them... you know how critical the first bout is. You might even feel some of the anxiety of the fencers as they try to get their games to work. Le Pechoux whips out his tremendous, textbook long attacks, Sanzo applies his pitch-perfect timing and distance... the first touch goes to Le Pechoux and his scream says it all.

Watch Cassara/Beaudan -- Cassara has something to prove after the 2005 World Championships. Sanzo/Beaudan for their history. Beaudan's gamesmanship, perhaps annoying to his opponents, is very watchable -- Beaudan doesn't win bouts, rather, he just doesn't seem to lose them. He's too tenacious to ever give up. Watch everything with Le Pechoux, Guyart, and Sanzo. That's pretty much the whole match... so watch it all.

Don't expect a French walkover. After a strong first few bouts, France starts succumbing to Italy, especially with a high-scoring, vituperous bout between Cassara/Beaudan where we see the full evolution of Cassara's game from chase-flick to chase-tip. By the time Le Pechoux hooks up against Vanni, the Italians are leading! And more -- Vanni is able to fight Le Pechoux to a standstill.

After some off-base performances over the last few years, the Italians finally seem to have a reliable second and third string again (while Sanzo is ever-powerful), which they need against the tight, team-oriented French squad. The Cassara/Guyart bout in round 6 is disastrous for the French, and what had been a hard-fought match with a two-point spread becomes a desperate slog the home-town team.

By Cassara/Le Pechoux, round 8, the French are as surly as the Italians usually are by this point. When Cassara's magnificent, tail-bone crushing back-flick finishes the bout, he takes an ironic bow before the booing French audience. It rests on Guyart to recover the deficit against Italy's powerhouse, Sanzo.

Interspersed in the action (and nicely done) are the French Fencing Federation's funny television commercials promoting fencing.

Commentary has been broken out to its own audio track, with a French version by Patrice Menon.

Simone Vanni (ITA), Erwan Le Pechoux (FRA), Cassara and Baldini (ITA).

The replays are "secretly" inserted into the action. Why "secret"? After admiring the very first blur-transition to the slow-motion, you stop noticing that you're seeing the great touches for a second time. The replays range in duration from very short to several seconds long... and yes, they do capture /everything/ important about the touch including the preparations. And when the replay is finished, you're dropped directly back into the action as the referee calls "Allez!". The net result is that there is *very little* dead time in the video -- such as when fencers are walking back to the on guard line. The replays are there when you want them, but hardly noticeable in the flow of the video.