300-329; 354-357 Columbia Noir #1-6

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domino harvey
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#101 Post by domino harvey » Thu Feb 04, 2021 11:50 am

My own writeup from the Noir thread
domino harvey wrote:
Sun Aug 04, 2013 12:20 pm
the Dark Past (Rudolph Mate 1948) Baldfaced cash-grab in the wake of Spellbound, this like Open Secret is a ripoff that wisely takes its cues from a film which isn't very good, making the bar to be better not particularly high. And this one clears it. William Holden and his amazing haircut star as a crazed killer so tough that he holds an entire bougie dinner party hostage for no particular reason. Only calm psychoanalyst Lee J Cobb can deescalate the situation by examining in detail a recurring dream Holden has. I've seen some amazing films from this decade that exploit an audience's misunderstandings of psychology, but this might be the most gobsmacking of all in terms of blatant fantasy approaches to the discipline!
Until I saw 1945’s Bewitched, I believed the Dark Past to be the most absurd of the Hollywood psychology scare films, but this looks like a medical case study in comparison to that loony lark!

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knives
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#102 Post by knives » Thu Feb 04, 2021 1:17 pm

I’m firmly in Domino’s camp. Criterion had it and the other adaptation up some time ago and outside of the historical aspects they’re not good, but not the worst thing I’ve ever seen either.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#103 Post by therewillbeblus » Thu Feb 04, 2021 1:54 pm

I don't think it's even close to the worst thing I've seen (we have the same score listed on Letterboxd), so unless I'm misinterpreting you, you're "firmly" in the camp of someone who likes the film vs someone who doesn't when you don't like it either. Not that it matters who shares what opinion, but I'm actually trying to understand your reasoning.

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domino harvey
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#104 Post by domino harvey » Thu Feb 04, 2021 3:22 pm

I don’t think it’s much of a movie, just that it’s a better one than the movie it is ripping off. And it’s certainly a film I reference more than many other much better movies

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#105 Post by Jonathan S » Thu Feb 04, 2021 3:47 pm

The Dark Past is a direct remake of Columbia's own Blind Alley (1939), which was based on a 1935 Broadway play by James Warwick. I suppose Spellbound and the other films in the post-war psychobabble cycle (plus the concurrent vogue for what we now recognise as "film noir") may have created the climate for a remake but my recollection is that the two Columbia adaptations - and presumably the original play, which I don't know - are very similar in content.

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knives
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#106 Post by knives » Thu Feb 04, 2021 3:58 pm

They’re basically identical outside of book ends in the later film.

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domino harvey
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#107 Post by domino harvey » Thu Feb 04, 2021 4:02 pm

Interesting, I’ll have to give Blind Alley a look. Certainly films before the noir cycle kicked in exploited misunderstandings about psychology for fear-mothering entertainment, but you might be right Jonathan S that this was just an existent property in a good position to cash in on Spellbound’s popularity

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#108 Post by knives » Thu Feb 04, 2021 4:07 pm

The early film is slightly better, but it really is a case of two different showings of the same play.
therewillbeblus wrote:
Thu Feb 04, 2021 1:54 pm
I don't think it's even close to the worst thing I've seen (we have the same score listed on Letterboxd), so unless I'm misinterpreting you, you're "firmly" in the camp of someone who likes the film vs someone who doesn't when you don't like it either. Not that it matters who shares what opinion, but I'm actually trying to understand your reasoning.
My reading comprehension must be way off today.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#109 Post by mteller » Fri Feb 05, 2021 1:11 am

For me The Dark Past is the biggest stinker in this box. A lot of Freudian mumbo jumbo. The Sniper and Between Midnight and Dawn are both very good, the other three are okay. Not enough for me to buy this set, but that's usually the case with noir boxes. If I could construct my own "greatest hits" of these three, it would be:

Murder by Contract
The Sniper
The Lineup
Between Midnight and Dawn
Framed
The Mob

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tenia
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#110 Post by tenia » Fri Feb 05, 2021 12:58 pm

Blu-ray.com
The 2 latest reviews, Tight Spot and Murder by Contract, are technically a bit all over the place.

Firstly, it's interesting that Svet writes "after going through all of the discs in the Columbia Noir #2 box set, I have to conclude that dual-layer discs with higher bitrates are needed for proper technical presentations." despite no other disc from the set having its compression pointed out as perfectible.

Secondly, it's logical it hasn't because, well, it's not too blame : the masters are. Svet is seeing "looser grain structure" that "need strong encodes to make the grain appear as tight as possible". So not only does he seems to think what he's seeing on screen is a consequence of a non-optimal compression (it's not : it's just older dated HD masters with their typically thicker grain), but he's also wrong on how compression works : it's easier to work with looser grain structure, because it means less high frequencies, which in turn means lesser requirements in bitrate and fine tuning (because the high frequencies likely to block if poorly compressed aren't here to begin with). Also, it seems that Svet is still solely basing his opinion on compression by judging on the bitrate-meter : while Tight Spot has the lowest AVB of the boxset (and quite an unusually low AVB : 20 Mbps), it's because it contains several dark sequences (allowing for a lower bitrate) and several dupey sequences (that don't require the same bitrate than other sequences), but the rest of the movie has a 25-27 Mbps, which is quite enough, especially since it's been encoded at FiM so I don't doubt the encoder's options have been fine tuned enough.

Finally, he also seems to believe Murder by Contract has been restored in 2K and makes a specific point to highlight the result is surprisingly disappointing. I'm wondering where he found this info because the booklet states it's "sourced from Sony’s High Definition remasters" exactly like the 5 other movies and PH's product page states it's a "High Definition presentation" (in opposition to a 2K or 4K restoration). It thus makes its analysis of the PQ quite non-sensical, since he's basically applying the analysis grid of a newer 2K restoration on a dated HD master, which makes him mismatch dupey shots and thick grain for DNR (not that he's wrong about the master not looking very healthy though).

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#111 Post by MichaelB » Sat Feb 06, 2021 10:34 am

Slant Magazine on Columbia Noir #2.

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Re: 300-311 Columbia Noir #1 and #2

#112 Post by Calvin » Wed Feb 10, 2021 8:08 am

swo17 wrote:
Fri Nov 13, 2020 7:20 pm
For those with the Columbia DVD sets, here are the redundancies currently filled by UK boutiques:

I
The Sniper
The Big Heat (Indicator)
5 Against the House (Indicator)
The Lineup (Indicator)
Murder by Contract (Indicator)

II
Human Desire (MoC)
Pushover
The Brothers Rico
Nightfall (Arrow)
City of Fear

III
My Name Is Julia Ross (Arrow)
The Mob (Indicator)
Drive a Crooked Road (Indicator)
Tight Spot (Indicator)
The Burglar

IV
So Dark the Night (Arrow)
Johnny O'Clock
Walk a Crooked Mile
Between Midnight and Dawn
Walk East on Beacon
By my reckoning there are now only 5 of these unaccounted for - Pushover, The Brothers Rico, The Burglar, Walk a Crooked Mile, and Walk East on Beacon. Those plus Knock On Any Door could be our line-up for Noir #4 but there are plenty of other titles in the Sony vaults that Indicator can hopefully pick up.

It's not noir but I wonder if Indicator might pair Knock On Any Door with its sequel, Let No Man Write My Epitaph, starring Burl Ives, Shelley Winters and Ella Fitzgerald (who performs several songs in the film). I don't think its had a release since VHS.

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Re: 300-311 Columbia Noir #1 and #2

#113 Post by rapta » Wed Feb 10, 2021 7:33 pm

Calvin wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 8:08 am
By my reckoning there are now only 5 of these unaccounted for - Pushover, The Brothers Rico, The Burglar, Walk a Crooked Mile, and Walk East on Beacon. Those plus Knock On Any Door could be our line-up for Noir #4 but there are plenty of other titles in the Sony vaults that Indicator can hopefully pick up.

It's not noir but I wonder if Indicator might pair Knock On Any Door with its sequel, Let No Man Write My Epitaph, starring Burl Ives, Shelley Winters and Ella Fitzgerald (who performs several songs in the film). I don't think its had a release since VHS.
If they did Knock on Any Door separate to the noir sets, surely they'd just do a 'Columbia Noir: The Bogart Years' set and include it alongside Dead Reckoning, Tokyo Joe, Sirocco and The Harder They Fall? Admittedly that doesn't add up to six, as has been the trend for the general Noir sets (I previously posited they could include Sahara and make it a 'Bogart at Columbia' box, but they've already name-dropped Nicholas Ray so it seems Knock on Any Door will be as part of these box sets).

And yes, those five noirs are the ones remaining from those boxes, but worth noting up to half the films in each set so far weren't in those four Columbia DVD sets (eight in total, to be exact). Therefore likely titles for the next two/three volumes along with the aforementioned would be the following: Address Unknown, Mr. Soft Touch, Two of a Kind, Night Editor, Women's Prison, Assignment Paris, Man in the Dark, Ladies in Retirement, The Case Against Brooklyn, Blind Alley, Key Witness, Over-Exposed, The Long Haul, Bad for Each Other, The Glass Wall, The Killer That Stalked New York.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#114 Post by swo17 » Wed Feb 10, 2021 7:44 pm

Yeah, here's an updated list:

For those with the Columbia DVD sets, here are the redundancies currently filled by UK boutiques:

I
The Sniper (Indicator)
The Big Heat (Indicator)
5 Against the House (Indicator)
The Lineup (Indicator)
Murder by Contract (Indicator)

II
Human Desire (MoC)
Pushover
The Brothers Rico
Nightfall (Arrow)
City of Fear (Indicator)

III
My Name Is Julia Ross (Arrow)
The Mob (Indicator)
Drive a Crooked Road (Indicator)
Tight Spot (Indicator)
The Burglar

IV
So Dark the Night (Arrow)
Johnny O'Clock (Indicator)
Walk a Crooked Mile
Between Midnight and Dawn (Indicator)
Walk East on Beacon

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Re: 300-311 Columbia Noir #1 and #2

#115 Post by Calvin » Fri Feb 12, 2021 8:19 am

rapta wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 7:33 pm
And yes, those five noirs are the ones remaining from those boxes, but worth noting up to half the films in each set so far weren't in those four Columbia DVD sets (eight in total, to be exact). Therefore likely titles for the next two/three volumes along with the aforementioned would be the following: Address Unknown, Mr. Soft Touch, Two of a Kind, Night Editor, Women's Prison, Assignment Paris, Man in the Dark, Ladies in Retirement, The Case Against Brooklyn, Blind Alley, Key Witness, Over-Exposed, The Long Haul, Bad for Each Other, The Glass Wall, The Killer That Stalked New York.
True. And there's plenty more beside those as well - Pickup, Reign of Terror / The Black Book, Losey's M, Sign of the Ram, Angels Over Broadway, the list goes on. It will ultimately depend on how many sets Indicator has planned +/- materials available from Sony.

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Re: 300-311 Columbia Noir #1 and #2

#116 Post by rapta » Fri Feb 12, 2021 11:52 am

Calvin wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 8:19 am
rapta wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 7:33 pm
And yes, those five noirs are the ones remaining from those boxes, but worth noting up to half the films in each set so far weren't in those four Columbia DVD sets (eight in total, to be exact). Therefore likely titles for the next two/three volumes along with the aforementioned would be the following: Address Unknown, Mr. Soft Touch, Two of a Kind, Night Editor, Women's Prison, Assignment Paris, Man in the Dark, Ladies in Retirement, The Case Against Brooklyn, Blind Alley, Key Witness, Over-Exposed, The Long Haul, Bad for Each Other, The Glass Wall, The Killer That Stalked New York.
True. And there's plenty more beside those as well - Pickup, Reign of Terror / The Black Book, Losey's M, Sign of the Ram, Angels Over Broadway, the list goes on. It will ultimately depend on how many sets Indicator has planned +/- materials available from Sony.
I figured they might do Losey's M as a separate release if they can get it. As far as I can dell, the Sidonis disc got a wobbly encode, so hopefully they could improve on it. I'm certain it must be on their radar, with the number of Losey titles they've covered already!

The Black Book/Reign of Terror would also be appreciated. I almost mentioned it myself but figured it might be a slight departure from the time and setting of the films across these sets (I would assume Address Unknown would be more acceptable as it had a wartime setting). Who knows though, it's still likely to get a release either in one of the sets or separately. In fact I'd be surprised if they missed it!

The Sign of the Ram would be great! I had forgotten that one for some reason. Angels Over Broadway a must too. I did consider Pickup but then thought they might do a Hugo Haas set consisting of Pickup, Strange Fascination, One Girl's Confession, Bait. Seems like an interesting figure and perhaps therefore deserving of more specific focus than these compilation sets.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#117 Post by M Sanderson » Mon Feb 15, 2021 5:52 pm

Losey’s M would be amazing.

But I was under the impression Indicator didn’t have any more Loseys planned. Although I might be wrong, and bearing in mind circumstances do change.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#118 Post by Ribs » Tue Feb 16, 2021 12:43 am

When did they make that claim? Because the giant jump in spine numbers for these sets indicate they’ve been licensed in the scheme of things fairly recently compared to most other releases we’ve been getting from Indicator, so if that claim was before even mid-last year I have doubts it would still apply, if not even for this one title and this set but that they have literally near a hundred titles in the queue.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#119 Post by The Fanciful Norwegian » Tue Feb 16, 2021 1:56 am

I don't think Columbia has the rights for Losey's M. I haven't seen the Sidonis disc (which looks like wax city from the caps I've seen), but the version that occasionally plays on TCM has no mention of Columbia or any other studio and the copyright notice at the end is for Harold Nebenzal, son of its producer Seymour Nebenzal. The U.S. copyright database shows that Harold renewed the copyright in 2013 using the copyright restoration provision of GATT. This doesn't mean Indicator couldn't release it, but it wouldn't be a Columbia license.

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#120 Post by MichaelB » Tue Feb 16, 2021 4:51 am

M Sanderson wrote:Losey’s M would be amazing.

But I was under the impression Indicator didn’t have any more Loseys planned. Although I might be wrong, and bearing in mind circumstances do change.
No, you’re quite right - Indicator releases have all been set in stone from the label’s foundation in 2016 and anything said by any label rep will remain the gospel truth for all eternity, no matter how long ago it was said.

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HJackson
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#121 Post by HJackson » Tue Feb 16, 2021 5:25 am

The Sidonis disc has forced French subtitles, right? I tried putting up with that for the French blu of House of Strangers and found them far more intrustive and distracting than I'd convinced myself they would be.

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domino harvey
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#122 Post by domino harvey » Tue Feb 16, 2021 10:04 am

MichaelB wrote:
Tue Feb 16, 2021 4:51 am
M Sanderson wrote:Losey’s M would be amazing.

But I was under the impression Indicator didn’t have any more Loseys planned. Although I might be wrong, and bearing in mind circumstances do change.
No, you’re quite right - Indicator releases have all been set in stone from the label’s foundation in 2016 and anything said by any label rep will remain the gospel truth for all eternity, no matter how long ago it was said.
This response seems highly disproportionate to the comment that instigated it

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#123 Post by MichaelB » Tue Feb 16, 2021 11:04 am

I'd say "wholly proportionate" myself, but I was trusting that M Sanderson and anyone else reading it had a sense of humour.

Seriously, though, cleaving rigidly to something I said several years ago is as pointless as... well, retrospectively calling me out when I said back in 2017 that Indicator had no plans regarding The Pirates of Blood River (which had just been released by Twilight Time). Obviously, Indicator did subsequently put it out in early 2020, but it wasn't licensed until a good two years after the TT disc came out.

(Incidentally, nothing should be interpreted as any kind of tease about Joseph Losey's M, for which there are currently no plans.)

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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#124 Post by swo17 » Tue Feb 16, 2021 11:40 am

It just seemed perhaps a little mean-spirited is all. Although I might be wrong

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tenia
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Re: 300-317 Columbia Noir #1-3

#125 Post by tenia » Tue Feb 16, 2021 6:06 pm


HJackson wrote:The Sidonis disc has forced French subtitles, right?
I checked back my review of it and yes, they're forced.
The restoration is heavily filtered too and have a grading making it looks like it's sourced from a 4th generation copy or an exploitation print. I was quite unimpressed by it when I saw it theatrically and then again on BD.

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