If you enjoy film noir movies from the 1940's and '50s, then this is a great set. The box set contains 5 movies. The picture quality overall is near perfect - all in glorious black and white. Here are my reviews of the 5 movies:
OUT OF THE PAST
The storyline of this movie revolves around a rural gas station owner in Nevada named Jeff Bailey (Robert Mitchum). Bailey is dating a sweet and innocent girl named a Meta Carson (Jane Greer). One day a man comes to town looking for Bailey. As it turns out, Bailey has a secret past as a private detective who was once hired to find a beautiful and dangerous woman named Kathy Moffit (Jane Greer) for a corrupt millionaire named Whit Sterling (Kirk Douglas). The assignment went wrong in many ways, but Bailey is coerced back to do one more job for Sterling. From this point on there is an elaborate and convoluted scheme of deception and betrayal.
Overall, the film has a great film noir look to it and the story is gripping. Mitchum does a stellar job as the cunning detective and Jane Greer is absolutely irresistible. Kirk Douglas also sparkles in this movie. It's also worth noting that this movie was later remade in the early '80s starring Jeff Bridges and Rachel Ward in "Against All Odds".
The DVD quality is near pristine overall, but some small specs of film deterioration could be seen once in a while during the course of the movie. The only bonus feature is commentary by film noir author James Ursini.
Movie: A
DVD Quality: A-
THE ASPHALT JUNGLE
The basic plot of the movie is that a highly educated convict Doc Erwin Riedenschneider (Sam Jeffe) is just released from prison. He then organizes a team of dubious characters to rob a million dollars worth of diamonds and precious metals from a highly secured jewelry store. Riedenschneider decides he needs some muscle or a "hooligan", so he hires a big countryboy named Dix Handley (Sterling Hayden). Also, they include the financial and "fencing" services of a wealthy criminal attorney named Lon Emmerich (Louis Calhern). From that point on there is plenty of suspense and drama as the big heist unfolds.
This movie was directed by Hollywood legend John Huston. The story itself isn't the greatest in my opinion, but the look of the movie captures the full artistry of noir film making. The movie was filmed in the seedier part of urban Los Angeles. The use of shadows and local lighting in dingy inner city settings make this movie a cinematic masterpiece. My only personal criticism of the film is that Sterling Hayden character was miscast. He played the role of the tough guy but seemed to be too easygoing and lacked ruthlessness. The Doc Riedenschneider and Lon Emmerich characters carried this movie into the upper echelon of noir crime films with their intelligent, yet immorally criminal schemes. We also get to see some limited viewing of a young and very beautiful Marilyn Monroe.
The DVD transfer is excellent overall and very sharp. On occasion some very minor film deterioration can be observed. The picture quality is razor sharp. The look of the movie (just about all it was filmed at night ) is gorgeous. There is bonus commentary by author and noir expert Drew Casper and actor James Whitmore.
Movie: A-
DVD Quality: B+
THE SET-UP
The Set-Up is a real-time boxing movie. In other words, it's a 72 minute movie that shows a continuous 72 minute story. The star is Stoker Thompson (Robert Ryan) who's a 35 year old boxer in the twilight of his less than glorious career. Even though he's taken some bad beatings of late, he still remains confident that he still has a promising future ahead of him. The plot involves Stoker's manager accepting a $50 bribe that will insure that Stoker will lose tonight's fight against a young and up-and-coming boxer. But since the manager is too cheap and too certain that Stoker will lose anyway, he fails to let Stoker know that a fix is on. The rest of the movie progresses on with gripping suspense and drama with plenty of boxing action.
I really liked this movie a lot. The name of the town where the story takes place is Paradise City, but its the furthest thing from utopia. The dingy boxing arena is in an old area of town surrounded with rundown hotels, bars, dance joints and arcades. Just about all of the main characters and the boxing patrons in the movie are unlikable people, but the underlying theme for everyone is optimism - trying to win an expensive item in an arcade game, or placing a bet on a boxing match or winning a boxing match - all hoping for a better future.
The DVD transfer is superb. There are virtually no signs of film deterioration throughout the entire film. The black and white tones are pure and the picture is razor sharp. The use of shadows and directed light is magnificantly done. The dark, urban setting works magic in this film. There is bonus commentary by director Robert Wise plus added comments by Martin Scoresese.
Movie: A-
DVD Quality: A
MURDER, MY SWEET
The storyline of this movie is that a private detective, Phillip Marlow (Dick Powell), gets involved in the recovery of a stolen jade necklace. The job initially seems simple, but the investigation gets more convulated and dangerous as time goes on. During the job, Marlow encounters two very attractive women (Claire Trevor and Anne Shirley) who also make the movie very watchable.
Overall, its a beautifully filmed movie. It clearly has the classic film noir style, but the substance of the plot gets so complicated that at times its too hard to follow, and finally has to end by explaining a lot of the twist and turns. It's a lot more of a murder-mystery movie than an crime-action film. I still strongly recommend this movie, but if you are like me, you will probably have to watch it twice to pickup all the subtle details of the story.
The DVD quality is excellent overall, but some small specs of film deterioration could be seen once in a while during the course of the movie. It's not a perfect picture presentation, but near perfect. The only bonus features are commentary by film noir author Alan Silver and the original theater trailer.
Movie: B+
DVD Quality: A-
GUN CRAZY
The story starts with a teenage boy named Bart who is obsessed with guns. He's so obsessed that he has to steal one and gets caught and goes to reform school for four years. After finishing school he does four years in the army as a shooting instructor and then finally comes back to his hometown and sees his old friends. Bart (adult character played by John Dall) then goes with his friends to a carnival and sees a shooting exhibition by an attractive young blonde woman named Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins). He beats her in a shooting contest and then joins the act. From that point on, it sets the stage for strange romance, plus some action and adventure with the gun-happy couple.
This DVD was one of five DVD released by Warner Brothers in the Film Noir Classics Collection Volume 1. Unlike the four others, the acting and script seemed second rate compared to the other four. The main character Bart, didn't seem very convincing in his role. Also, the movie has the feel of one of those teen explotation movies from the 1950's preaching the evils of firearm use rather than a dark, crime film. But overall, the movie is still very watchable and at times quite entertaining.
The DVD picture quality was terrific. It was very rare to see a spec of film deterioration anywhere in the movie. The sound was satisfactory. The only bonus is commentary by Glenn Erickson.
Movie: B-
DVD Quality: A
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