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Robert Mitchum Signature Collection in January (1 Viewer)

John Hodson

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From DVD Times:

Warner Home Video have announced the Region 1 DVD release of Robert Mitchum: The Signature Collection for 23rd January 2006. Warner celebrates the career of a classic Hollywood anti-hero with this collection featuring six new to DVD titles including Angel Face, Macao, Home from the Hill, The Sundowners, The Good Guys & the Bad Guys and The Yakuza. The Collection includes never-before-seen bonus footage, vintage featurettes and commentaries and includes such co-stars as Jane Russell, Jean Simmons, Deborah Kerr and David Carradine in films directed by Sydney Pollack, Fred Zinnemann and Vincente Minnelli among others.

Robert Mitchum: The Signature Collection giftset will be available in superslim packaging for $59.92 SRP and the individual titles will be available for $19.97 SRP.

Mitchum was one of Hollywood’s most durable leading men, with a career that spanned more than 50 years and over 120 films. “His laconic, heavy-lidded manner was deceptively casual, disguising a potent screen presence.” (appbio.net) An icon of Film Noir, his career peaked from the late ‘40s through the early ‘60s and his versatility showed equally well in westerns and romantic dramas. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut on August 6, 1917, Mitchum was frequently in trouble as a youth and left home in his teens. He first worked at various jobs including coal miner, ditch digger, professional boxer, among others, before discovering acting at the Long Beach Theater Guild in 1942. Soon after, he debuted in films as an extra. He found superstar success in his roles of macho heroes and villains who talked tough and lived rough, with appeal to both men and women who loved his physical presence, deep resonant voice and sexy bad boy demeanor.

In addition to those in the Collection, Mitchum’s most notable films included Out of the Past, Heaven Knows Mr. Allison, Night of the Hunter, Friends of Eddie Coyle, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep (as Philip Marlowe), Mr. North, Cape Fear and Dead Man. His notable television appearances included the mini-series The Winds of War and its sequel, War and Remembrance.

Angel Face (1952)
Otto Preminger, who showed how to mix a beautiful woman with murder in the landmark Laura, directs this tale of a passion gone haywire. Frank’s (Robert Mitchum) a regular guy with a steady girl and a dream of owning his own garage when he crosses paths with Diane (Jean Simmons). She wants him. Or does she want a fall guy to blame when Diane’s stepmother plunges off a high cliff and leaves her fortune to Diane? Alibis, betrayals, courtroom thrills and the fire of a woman too dangerous to trust and too alluring to resist make Angel Face a film-noir classic. His pairing with Simmons was the first of three.

Features include:
Commentary by author and historian Eddie Muller
Subtitles: English (feature film only)
Languages: English, Français

Macao (1952)
Robert Mitchum’s the cool male -- broad shoulders, hooded eyes and laconic wit. Jane Russell’s the incendiary female -- voluptuous curves, lushly lipsticked mouth and sardonic comebacks. Together they’re two dead-on talented and drop-dead gorgeous stars who brought out the best in each other in His Kind of Woman and Macao, the two gutsy film noirs they made together. In Macao, directed by the legendary Josef Von Sternberg, audiences know they’re in for a dynamite ride from the moment he saves her from a lecherous goon – and she picks his pocket. The story, set in the exotic East Asian port, involves stolen diamonds, undercover New York cops, mistaken identities, double crosses and murder.

Features include:
Commentary by author and historian Eddie Muller, screenwriter Stanley Rubin and actress Jane Russell
TCM Private Screenings with Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell, hosted by Robert Osborne
Subtitles: English (feature film only)

Home from the Hill (1960)
Wade Hunnicutt is a big man who casts a big shadow, one that looms over the Texas backwoodsmen who work his land…over the beautiful, embittered he wife cheats on…and over the sons – one from marriage and one illegitimate – who strive for their father’s respect. Robert Mitchum “gives one of his greatest performances” (Michael Barson, The Illustrated Who’s Who of Hollywood Directors) as Wade, and Vincente Minnelli directs this sprawling, emotionally volatile tale of an epic clash between generations. In early-career roles, George Peppard and George Hamilton costar as Wade’s sons, determined to be their own men, yet in danger of repeating their father’s life-crippling legacy of lust and violence.

Features include:
Theatrical trailer
Languages: English & Français
Subtitles: English, Français & Español (feature film only)

The Sundowners (1960)
Four-time Academy Award® winner Fred Zinnemann directs this warm-hearted tale of 1920 Australia. Robert Mitchum and Deborah Kerr play Paddy and Ida, a devoted couple suddenly at odds. Ida and her son, Sean (Michael Anderson Jr.) want a farm of their own. But settling down is more than Paddy’s untethered spirit can bear. The Sundowners earned five Oscar® nominations including Best Picture, won Kerr the New York Film Critics Best Actress Award and made Mitchum the National Board of Review Best Actor choice for this and Home from the Hill.

Features include:
Vintage featurette On Location with The Sundowners
Theatrical trailer
Languages: English & Français
Subtitles: English (feature film only)

The Good Guys & the Bad Guys (1969)
Robert Mitchum and George Kennedy ease into their roles like long-time saddle pals in this western comedy directed by Burt Kennedy (Support Your Local Sheriff). One (Mitchum) is dedicated to the law, the other (Kennedy) to lawbreaking. Each has seen better days. And each gets to relive them when they team to stop ice-blooded Waco (David Carradine) and his gang of gold thieves.

Features include:
First-Time Widescreen video release [16x9 2.4:1]
Vintage featurette The Good Guy from Chama
Theatrical trailer
Languages: English & Français
Subtitles: English (feature film only)

The Yakuza (1975)
Robert Mitchum is Kilmer in this haunting East-meets-West head-on thriller powered by a team of heavy Hollywood hitters: writers Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver) and Robert Towne (Chinatown) and director Sydney Pollack (The Interpreter). Co-starring Japan’s Takakura Ken and veteran character actor Brian Keith, The Yakuza is a modern film noir in which honor and loyalty become issues of life and death. Violence erupts with the speed of a Tokyo-bound bullet train. And the last thing to die is tradition.

Features include:
Commentary by director Sydney Pollack
Vintage featurette Promises to Keep
Languages: English & Français
Subtitles: English (feature film only)
 

John Stell

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Well, since I want the two noirs and The Sundowners, I may as well get the set - it'd be like getting the other 3 films for free.
 

Armin Jager

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Marvelous collection. Except for The Good Guys and the Bad Guys which I've never heard of absolutely every title is very good AND interesting. Especially THE SUNDOWNERS is a masterpiece but I found the much maligned MACAO also very remarkable.
 

Robert Crawford

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Finally, this is the boxset I've been waiting for. Four of those titles are must buys for me.




Crawdaddy
 

Mario Gauci

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WOW! Now this is what I call a REAL Box Set:)!

Sure, THE GOOD GUYS AND THE BAD GUYS (1969) is an inessential (but still fun) Western but the rest are all very interesting: actually, the only one I haven't watched is THE YAKUZA (1975) which, some 20 years ago, I missed out a screening of on local TV. Still, I've heard good things about it and, after all, how bad can a Sydney Pollack-Paul Schrader-Robert Mitchum collaboration prove to be:)?

As for the others, two vintage noirs and two epic melodramas from four great directors. Truth be told, I've only watched all of them once several years ago so it'll be a pleasure to reacquaint myself with each one of them via Warners' (hopefully) definitive standard:) DVD editions!

Of course, one could always bemoan the lack of THE LOCKET (1946), BLOOD ON THE MOON (1948), THE BIG STEAL (1949) and, particularly, THE LUSTY MEN (1952; which I've never seen) but, hey, there can always be Box Set No. 2, right?
 

MarcoBiscotti

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Great, I just wish it included THUNDER ROAD though!


Mitchum is easily my favorite actor, I can't wait to pick this up!
 

Charles H

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THUNDER ROAD is already available on dvd from MGM/UA/Sony?Fox....etc. THE SUNDOWNERS is a wonderful film with a superb cast (and merits a commentary track from Dina Merrill. Michael Anderson, Jr., and Glynis Johns...but I understand that Mitchum didn't like his performance although he loved working with Deborah Kerr.
 

Craig Beam

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Great news! ANGEL FACE is one of my favorite film noirs... very glad to hear it'll be available on its own.
 

Jim Bur

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I would like to echo the sentiment that it is good to see Angel Face and Macao. However, The Good Guys and the Bad Guys is an extremely poor selection. For classic western fans its a big dissappointment when they had two of the all time classics to choose from namely, Robert Wise's brilliant noir western "Blood On the Moon", and Nicholas Ray's all time great rodeo drama, "The Lusty Men". Even one of the two would have been some solace, but this is a complete shutout as far as good westerns are concerned. It seems that there is somebody at Warners who either doesn't like classic westerns or care or know much about them, as they seem to habitually make poor decisions about which westerns to include. Mistakes that would never be countenanced if it were a film noir or gangster film. c Jim Bur
 

Dale MA

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Fantastic news. Mitchum is a definite favouorite of mine. I'll be picking this up, BTW this is the first we've heard of this set isn't it? I don't believe Warner mentioned it during the HTF chat, unless I missed it. Anyway, nice surprise.
 

Jim_K

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:emoji_thumbsup:


I'm really glad to finally get The Yakuza. One of the better thrillers from that decade (1970's).

Now bring on that Errol Flynn Signature Collection Vol #2 and those Kubrick SE's.
 

Corey

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yeah you missed it because they said one was coming in 2007. i wonder what the first female set is gonna be of the new year?? joan crawford or jean harlow or maybe even esther williams.
 

Eric Peterson

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Awesome news!

I'm not familiar with any of these films, but you gotta love Mitchum. I just read the most recent biography "Baby, I Don't Care" and it was one of the most interesting bios that I've ever read.

Bring it on!
 

Armin Jager

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I recommend it, too. Entertaining reading, very well researched with much interviews done and a convincing chracter study locating Mitchum as hobo. I found it one of the most remarkeble film biographies I've evere read.
Regarding GOOD GUYS I guess they don't want to include such super films like LUSTY MEN in order to have ammunition for a second box set. With five excellent films by five very important directors I can live with one turkey in the box.
 

Ruz-El

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looks like another great boxset from warners. I'll deffinately be pre-ordering it.
 

PaulaJ

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>However, The Good Guys and the Bad Guys is an extremely poor selection.

Hey! For us Carradine Clan Fans, this release is good news as both John and David have supporting roles and the old VHS tape of this Panavision film is -- shudder -- pan and scan. I'm assuming the WB DVD will be have a proper anamorphic widescreen transfer and we'll finally see that pretty New Mexico landscape in all its proper glory.

But yeah, Blood on the Moon definitely needs to be out on DVD. Glad I have that laser disc.
 

ted:r

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Three absolute musts for me: Angel Face, Macao and The Sundowners. And i'll gladly sample the other three. Another wonderful box from the WB. (Hmmm...maybe thats what WB stands for...Wonderful Boxes...!)

Now, if someone could get Paramount to release "The Friends Of Eddie Coyle"...
 

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