Film Noir - LIST

For anyone looking for Dark Waters; which has been OOP...

Image Entertainment is re-releasing this title on 09-20-05 as per DVD Empire.

- Walter.

Some may be interested in our comparison... and recent reviews of House on 92nd Street and Somewhere in the Night...

BFI - Region 2 - PAL "Whirlpool" vs. 20th Century Fox (Fox Film Noir) - Region 1- NTSC

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/

Best,

The insert with the September releases lists The Dark Corner, Where the Sidewalk Ends, and No Way Out for December (which, incidentally, would give them the same lineup of directors twice in a row). Of course, the insert with the previous set listed Kiss of Death for September, so it's not exactly trustworthy.

The insert also has a rebate form -- $5 back with the purchase of three Fox film noirs, so keep your receipt.

Update on my Kino's Scarlett Street news above. David Kalat of All Day Entertainment posted this news on his website:

Speaking of DVD commentaries, this was already posted in 20th Century Fox's 'Film Noir Classics' DVD Series topic, but I think it's worth repeating. From Eddie Muller's page:

I'll be thrilled to finally get a nice looking copy of Scarlett Street. All the existing copies right now look terrible.

It's official:



To be released on November 22nd. And according to Eddie Muller:

"That Scarlet Street poster is a reillustration and slight reconfiguration of the original art. In almost all the 1945 paper, Robinson was tinted green -- the color of jealousy, don't you know. And Duryea's duds were blue, not biege. And Joan Bennett looked like Joan Bennett. Still, I'll take it over a photo montage. At least they're trying to retain the original spirit. And I've seen the print they're using -- it's pristine. Should be great."

Sounds like a most worthwhile double dip...

Oooh (smacks lips), at last! 'Pristine', my favourite DVD word next to 'cheap'...

Can't wait for that Scarlet Street!

While I'm here I'll recommend Aki Kaurismaki's Juha. Based on a tragic novel, this could just as easily be labeled a noir: a farmer's wife is lured away from her husband by a seductive stranger who forces her into a life of prostitution. It's then up to her crippled, ax-wielding husband to set her free. Downbeat naturally, but a real delight - this was filmed as a black and white silent feature! Offbeat and highly recommended to noir buffs. (Available on a R2 Finnish DVD.)

Edit: looks like Kino is also releasing Lang's The House By the River along with SS.

re: Scarlet Street - Yes!

Hopefully Lang's similar Woman in the Window will make an appearance on R1 DVD in the near future.

Thanks Steve...

Also being released November 22nd:

Another addition...

Geneon Entertainment - Region 1 - NTSC "The Big Combo" vs. Image Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Alpha - Region 0 - NTSC

Just a note to watch out for these new releases from Geneon Entertainment... although at the prices that they are selling I don't suppose many of you were expecting very much. As well as no menus nor even a decent keepcase their products are rife with flaws - They could only be considered a purchase as a stopgap until, one day, the specific film is re-released with some care. The discouraging thing is these are great films that must have slipped into PD (Anthony Mann's God's Little Acre being another - recently compared)

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/

Best,

One more...

Anchor Bay - Region 0 - NTSC "The Spiral Staircase" vs. MGM - Region 1 - NTSC

MGM sneaks by a cheapo transfer... keep your old Anchor Bay!

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/

Have a great weekend!

Best,
Gary

In a recent post on The Blackboard discussing the present state and popularity of film noir, "FE" (Fast-Eddie Muller) posted some very interesting news:

1) That another major studio besides Warners and Fox will soon start releasing classic noir;

2) The titles in Warners' Film Noir Collections, Vol. 3 and Vol. 4 will knock you out with how great (and smart) they are;

3) Last year more than 1100 people in San Francisco came to a Tuesday night screening of "The Locket" and "Decoy";

4) Fox has green-lighted "13," a television series created in the spirit of classic film noir...


Re: 1), do you think this means Universal is going to release another wave or perhaps Columbia is going to once again start digging? Paramount have a few titles on the horizon but they don't have nearly as many stashed compared to the other two studios.

H.

Great news Herb! Good to know WB will make more waves of its film noir collection. And I am very curious and excited to know which major studio this is, and which titles they are going to release.

I hope they feature a volume with nothing, but RKO titles starring Robert Mitchum.

I think it's either Paramount or Universal. Both studios have some real gems. Paramount has some of my favorite titles.

• Dark City (1950)
• Union Station
• The Turning Point
• I Walk Alone (Like "TSLOMI" I think they still control it)
• The Big Carnival
• The File on Thelma Jordon
• Sorry, Wrong Number (An improved DVD presentation)
• Appointment with Danger

Crawdaddy... I was just thinking about that the other day, certainly one of the biggest stars of RKO deserves his own collection. Especially considering how many fabulous noirs he appeared in.

Really, this is good news either way. Even if it is Columbia (assuming done properly), the amount of unreleased titles from them as well as United Artists is huge. Universal also has a ton of popular noirs. Paramount releases of I Walk Alone, The File On Thelma Jordon and The Turning Point would make my month, as the three are among my list (of many) favorites.

My only suggestion for more upcoming Warners noir box sets would be to cut down on the amount of time we have to wait for them to come out. Good to hear that they've already committed to at least two more volumes, although I doubt any of us expected the series to stop any time soon.

So much Noir, so little time!

That's all very exciting news for classic fans. I really hope it's Universal. I think they have the most stashed away, and I know when they gave it their first attempt it hadn't caught on as it has now, so maybe they saw the light that when it's done right they do sell well.

On Dangerous Ground has to be in one of the sets coming..I'm getting tired of people seeing my poster of it and asking if I have it..and having to say no..lol. I know it is available , but I don't want a Pal version.

If the studio alluded to turns out to be Universal, I sure hope they don't cram a bunch of good noir titles on a set of often-faulty DVD-18 discs. They should either improve their quality control on DVD-18 manufacture, or put them on DVD-9 discs.

That fear aside, my mouth waters at the prospect of the mystery studio being either Universal, Paramount or Sony. If it turns out to be Sony, we could be looking forward to R1 releases of such films as:

HUMAN DESIRE
THE KILLER THAT STALKED NEW YORK
THE SNIPER
M (1951)
711 OCEAN DRIVE
NIGHTFALL
5 AGAINST THE HOUSE
SCANDAL SHEET
THE LINEUP
THE BROTHERS RICO
THE RECKLESS MOMENT
FRAMED
THE DARK PAST
CONVICTED
SHOCKPROOF
PUSHOVER
BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND DAWN
THE NIGHT HOLDS TERROR
DRIVE A CROOKED ROAD
MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS
WOMEN'S PRISON
SCREAMING MIMI
MURDER BY CONTRACT
OUT OF THE FOG
THE WHISTLER series
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW
99 RIVER STREET
KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL (pristine print)
HE RAN ALL THE WAY
CANON CITY
STORM FEAR
SHIELD FOR MURDER
THE GIRL IN BLACK STOCKINGS
THE UNDERWORLD STORY
THE CAPTIVE CITY
THE KILLER IS LOOSE

Would love to see a Universal box set of Robert Siodmak directed noirs!

or just a Siodmak box set period.

Including The Dark Mirror

Here's my top five picks of noirs yet to be released in Region 1:

The Reckless Moment (Ophuls)
Underworld USA (Fuller)
Phantom Lady (Siodmak)
On Dangerous Ground (Ray)
The Woman in the Window (Lang)

Hey guys,

I'm new to the forum, but happy to be here Though I've only started watching Film Noir recently, I've been an enthusiast for a long time. I always knew I liked the dark, dimly light street scenery of old 30s and 40s movies, I just never knew there was an actual "term" for it! So, needless to say I have a lot of catching up to do.

I have a question. The dvd companies are starting to take a huge interest in Film Noir by the way they're releasing titles on dvd. Do you guys feel that Noirs are better left unrestored? Does the rough a/v add to the gritty feel that the film is supposed to add? Do you think restoration takes away from this effect? I'm just curious.

If anyone is here in the Philadelphia area, I'm looking into organizing a monthly gathering of Noir enthusiasts. Let me know if you're interested in throwing some ideas around.

Thanks all!!!!

Gary S.

Looks like Kino's Scarlet Street is shaping up to be a most worthwhile double dip:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=18285

Good news...

Image Entertainment - Region 0 - NTSC "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" vs. Paramount - Region 1 - NTSC


Image Entertainment




Paramount



The Paramount DVD comes out next Tuesday.

Best,
Gary

My copies of The Strange Loves of Martha Ivers and Detective Story came in early. I've only watched Detective Story so far, but it looks just as good as that screenshot from Ivers.

Unfortunately, the same shipment contained a copy of Whispering City, mentioned earlier in the thread, and ye gods it looks awful, like a chalk drawing that's been partially rubbed out. That'll teach me to buy from Alpha.

Hi all,

I'm a little late in viewing some of these but just wanted to express my thoughts on the titles. This last week I've been watching a lot of noir. I've caught:

Born to Kill
Crossfire
Narrow Margin
Clash by Night
The Set-Up
The Street With No Name
and Somewhere in the Night

I really enjoyed Born to Kill and Crossfire. I'm really getting into Robert Mitchum. I'll have to go back and watch Out of the Past. I also enjoyed Street With No Name and Somewhere in the Night. The latter had a D.O.A feel to it. I personally love movies where you have no idea what the hell is going on.

The Set-Up I didn't enjoy. It didn't feel like Noir at all and I couldn't get into it. It really felt like a play. Based on a poem!!?? WTF!

Narrow Margin was awesome. From the very beginning of the movie the plots develops. There isn't a wasted second. It's a short movie but it packs a punch. I love the economy of the film. I have no problem with long movies but this one shows that you don't always need three hours.

Clash by Night blew me away. What a fantastic, great, perfect movie. Probably more melodramatic then your average Noir but the characters were so well played and the script so well writen, how could you not like this movie. Marilyn had a great role as did her on screen fiance, Joe. Joe's little speech at the end was terrific. I can't say enough about this movie. In fact, I decided to buy Scarlet Street as a blind buy later this month. If Fritz Lang's direction is as good in that movie as in Clash I should enjoy it. You can never have enough Edward G. Robinson either.

I can't wait for the next Fox Noir titles and for the next Warner Noir box set. Is there any word yet as to what titles we can expect in volume III?

By the way, as a Canadian I am so happy to see that we are now getting Turner Classic Movies. It's about time that we have a reasonable channel for movies on TV. I now have a reason to watch TV again.

bye for now. must watch more movies

Greg

Turner Classic Movies is great in terms of selection, and everything is OAR, which is VERY nice. But the quality of the image is about on par with a good VHS tape -- ie, rather low resolution -- to the point where I can only suffer through it if I know something is not available on DVD.

EH?!?

Since when and with what cable provider??

I was considering DirecTV for TCM alone...

Is this a local thing or nation-wide?

Marco,

I believe that is Shaw cable that has picked up the contract with TCM. I'm not sure, but does Shaw only provide for the west coast? You are probably SOL in Quebec. Call your cable provider and ask them to pick up TCM. If enough people ask then maybe they will get it. You can always hope.

Greg