Universal digs into the vaults and bring us ten films that immerse us into a world of alienation, despair, cynicism, disillusionment, melancholy, desperation, pessimism, paranoia, moral corruption and ambiguity.
The Film Noir 10 Movie Spotlight Collection gives us a nice mix of major classics of the genre (Double Indemnity, Touch of Evil, Criss Cross, and The Killers), minor classics (This Gun For Hire, The Blue Dahlia, and Phantom Lady), and lesser but very good noir films (The Glass Key, Black Angel, and The Big Clock). The ten movies are spread across six single-sided dvds and packaged in a standard size dvd keepcase. The keepcase has two double-sided hinged trays inside the case for the dvds (no spindles). My copy also had a cardboard slipcover over the case.
The outer case is not clear so here is a a breakdown of the disc contents:
Disc One:
01 This Gun For Hire (1942) is based on the Graham Greene novel ‘A Gun For Sale’ and stars the classic screen duo of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in their first of seven pairings.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean. There are specks of dust here and there but nothing that distracts me from the film.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: A trailer for the film.
02 The Glass Key (1942) is not the 1935 original with George Raft. This remake is based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett and again stars Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in their second pairing.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean. There are specks of dust here and there but nothing that distracts me from the film.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: None
Disc Two:
03 Double Indemnity (1944) is one of the very best films of the film noir genre. I personally rank it second to only The Maltese Falcon. The film is based on James M. Cain’s novella of the same name and stars Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray. Be on the look out for Edward G. Robinson in one of his best roles as a supporting actor. It is amazing to think all three actors were originally not interested in appearing in the film. They all needed to be persuaded to appear in film that turned out to be one of their greatest performances.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks great.
Audio: There are English and Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 mono tracks. They are clear sounding and I have no complaints.
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, and French
Extras: This film has a bunch of goodies…
* Audio Commentary by Film Historian Richard Schickel.
* Audio Commentary by Film Historians Lems Dobbs and Nick Redman.
* A 2 ½ minute introduction by film historian and host of Turner Classic Movies, Robert Osborne.
* Shadows and Suspense: An excellent 38 minute documentary about the film.
* A trailer for the film.
Disc Three:
04 Phantom Lady (1944) is based on the Cornell Woolrich novel of the same name. He written the novel under the pseudonym William Irish.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and is the worse looking in this set. All of the other films are relatively clean looking but this one is loaded with dust specks and scratches. Some of the scenes are not that bad and others are very dirty and look horrible. I’m guessing parts of the film may have been damaged beyond the point of restoration or Universal forgot to clean up this one.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: None
05 The Blue Dahlia (1946) stars Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in their fifth pairing (the third and final on this set). Be on the lookout for Hugh Beaumont (Leave It To Beaver) in a supporting role.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: None
Disc Four:
06 Black Angel (1946) is based on the Cornell Woolrich novel of the same name. Be on the lookout for the great Peter Lorre as Marko the nightclub owner.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: A trailer for the film.
07 The Killers (1946) is partly based on Ernest Hemingway’s short story of the same name and stars Burt Lancaster (his film debut), Ava Gardner, and Edmond O’Brien.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: A trailer for the film.
Disc Five:
08 The Big Clock (1948) is an adaptation of the Kenneth Fearing novel of the same name and stars Ray Milland, Maureen O'Sullivan, and the incredible Charles Laughton. Be on the watch for Elsa ' The Bride of Frankenstein' Lanchester.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: None
09 Criss Cross (1949) is probably my second favorite film in this set and easily ranks in my film noir top ten. The film is based on the Don Tracy novel of the same name and stars Burt Lancaster and Yvonne DeCarlo (better known as Lily Munster).
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:33 full frame transfer. The film is in black & white and looks relatively clean.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH
Extras: A trailer for the film.
Disc Six:
10 Touch of Evil (1958) is loosely based on the Whit Masterson novel, Badge of Evil. It stars Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, and Orson Welles. I should note that this is the 1998 “restored” version of the film. The dvd has a featurette that explains more about this.
Video: The movie is presented in a solid 1:85 anamorphic widescreen transfer. The film is in black & white and looks great.
Audio: The only audio track is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. It is clear sounding and I have no complaints
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, and French
Extras: This film has a bunch of goodies…
* Audio Commentary with Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, and restoration producer Rick Schmidlin.
* Audio Commentary with restoration producer Rick Schmidlin.
* Bringing Evil To Life: An excellent 21 minute documentary about the film.
* Evil Lost and Found: An interesting 17 minute feature about the making of this “restored” version of the film.
* A trailer for the film.
I really enjoyed this set and highly recommend The Film Noir 10 Movie Spotlight Collection.
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Kathryn FitzGibbon
Perfect Christmas gift for the Film Noir lover
Reviewed in Australia on November 25, 2021
