World Noir Vol 5
Details by Film
The Bandit
Streaming Options
Four Ways Out
Streaming Options
Against the Law
Streaming Options
The Bandit
Returning from war, Ernesto (Amedeo Nazzari, Nights of Cabiria) comes home without a family to welcome him. A chance encounter with a gangster's moll, Lydia (Anna Magnani, Rome, Open City) catapults him to a life of crime. Redolent of American gangster pictures of the 1930s and bathed in chiaroscuro lighting, like many Italian genre films, Alberto Lattuada's The Bandit is a genre hybrid, at once noirish but infused with realism that brings to the fore the desperation of the post-War period. Newly restored, Radiance Films is proud to present this seminal film on any digital format for the first time outside of Italy.
Four Ways Out
A gang of four ordinary men steal two cases stuffed with money from a football ground. They split up to evade capture but misplaced allegiances and nerves threaten their freedom. A Hollywood-style noir by Pietro Germi (The Facts of Murder), Four Ways Out (also known as The City Defends Itself) features the classic tropes of the genre, femme fatales, desperate men and a cityscape that threatens to swallow up its characters. Awarded Best Italian Film at the Venice Film Festival and newly restored in 4K, it is presented on home video for the first time outside of Italy.
Against the Law
A middle class man laundering money for the mob to make ends meet witnesses a murder during a currency exchange. Fingered as the murderer by police, he and his girlfriend attempt to clear his name. A Hitchcockian wrong man thriller in a crime framework, Pietro Germi’s scenario echoes the American noir, with a screenplay co-authored by the former head of Rome’s flying squad, Against the Law was noted for its realism on release where it was a hit with audiences and critics. Starring a charming Marcello Mastroianni in his first leading role, Flavio Calzavara’s under-seen gem is now restored in 4K and released for the first time on any format outside of Italy.
Release Information:
Technical Specifications
Supplements
- Interview with critic Fabio Melelli on Lattuada’s career (2026)
- Alternate English language version of Four Ways Out
- Interview with critic Manuela Lazic on Marcello Mastroianni (2026)
- Limited edition 80-page perfect bound book featuring archival pieces and new writing by critics and experts including Farran Smith Nehme, Pasquale Iannone, Beatrice Loyza and Roberto Curti
- Interview with Evelina Nazzari about her father, actor Amedeo Nazzari (2026)
- Interview with Pietro Germi expert Mario Sesti (2026)
- Interview with Italian film expert Stephen Gundle on Flavio Calzavara (2026)
- Interview with Fabio Melelli and Evelina Nazzari about The Bandit (2026)
- Interview with noir expert Imogen Sara Smith (2026)
- Interview with critic Christina Newland on Anna Magnani