7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Ex-World War II pilot Frank Enley (Van Heflin) is a respected contractor and family man. Then his troubled, gimp-legged bombardier (Robert Ryan) shows up with a gun and a score to settle. Perhaps neither man is what he seems to be as director Fred Zinnemann (The Day of the Jackal) guides a searing Act of Violence, "the first postwar noir to take a challenging look at the ethics of men in combat" (Eddie Muller, Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir).
Starring: Van Heflin, Robert Ryan (I), Janet Leigh, Mary Astor, Phyllis ThaxterFilm-Noir | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Warner Archive's June lineup leads off strongly with Act of Violence, a small-scale but effective post-war film noir capably led by Robert Ryan and Van Heflin as two former soldiers now at odds with one another. The former plays Joe Parkson, perpetually clad in a trench coat and fedora while sporting a pronounced limp, who's established early on as a desperate man seeking revenge. Joe's target is the assumed good guy Frank Enley (Heflin), a model citizen and family man whose idyllic home life slowly but surely unravels once his "old friend" returns to town. Although the film's second half and resolution don't quite deliver on the promise of an absolutely killer first act, solid performances and terrific cinematography keep Act of Violence uniquely interesting from start to almost inevitable finish.
It's a thrilling sequence indeed, and one whose tension is heightened further when Frank struggles to tell Edith the truth about Joe and why he's being pursued. The apparent "good guy" obviously isn't telling the whole story about his wartime past -- only that Joe was his bombadier and they spent time together in a POW camp. At the risk of sounding like a YouTube click-baiter, what happens next will shock you... but it's important that the secret of Frank's image, or lack thereof, is maintained to see his full character arc unfold. The result is a film that largely maintains interest as its mystery deepens, even if the narrative gets a bit mushy once new characters and threads are introduced.
Act of Violence is almost -- almost -- one of those rare "total package" pictures where everything runs perfectly smooth, only
partially derailing on a few occasions... but certainly not during Frank's near-total breakdown, which literally involves an actual train. The lead and
supporting performances are all very good to great, its cinematography adds a great deal of atmosphere, the original score fits the bill perfectly,
and momentum is largely maintained during a few invariable twists and turns along the way. So while it's certainly not a 5/5 effort, Act of
Violence clearly flirts with greatness on several occasions and this is one of many reasons why Warner Archive's new Blu-ray is a recommended
pickup for new and established fans alike. As usual, A/V merits are very solid and even the bonus features impress, offering a good mixture of
vintage and retrospective appeal that complement the main feature nicely.
Act of Violence's new 1080p transfer is sourced from a recent 4K scan of the best available preservation elements, including what looks to be large portions of the original camera negative if fine detail is any indication. As shown in virtually all of these direct-from-disc screenshots (which, as always, are compressed to .jpg format during the upload process), overall detail and clarity are quite striking in the right lighting conditions, from partly cloudy days (above) to full sun and, of course, no shortage of moody noir nighttime scenes and darkened interiors. During the wide majority of sequences, this 1.37:1 image plays without a hitch and sports only occasional amounts of lightweight compression and posterization on some of the darkest shadows, including some that creep in from the corners. Only small portions of the source material(s) not derived from pristine elements dip in quality briefly (and with momentary stops into low to mid-20Mbps territory, otherwise staying well above 30), but this is basically a best-case scenario almost every step of the way, as once again the image strikes a fairly good balance between a purist-friendly film-like presentation and one that's been carefully scrubbed of almost all age-related wear and tear. I might grade the overall image closer to a 4.25/5 if hard-pressed... but under the circumstances, Act of Violence gets a little courtesy bump.
Save for a few trace moments of hiss and crackle I've got no issues with Warner Archive's similarly solid DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix, whose source material aims lower than the stylish visuals but still hits its mark squarely. Dialogue and background effects are cleanly mixed with no real fighting for attention, leaving plenty of room left over for the appropriately moody original score by composer Bronislau Kaper, whose body of work ranges from the Marx Bros.' almost-classic A Day at the Races to Gordon Douglas' iconic Them! and later epics like Mutiny on the Bounty (1968). This is a fine effort and, as usual, it's paired nicely with English (SDH) subtitles during the main feature only.
This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with vintage poster-themed cover artwork. Bonus features are surprisingly varied and largely ported over from older DVD editions dating back to Warner Bros.' ten-film 2007 boxed set Film Noir Classic Collection Vol. 4, making this one of the more well-rounded Warner Archive Blu-rays in recent memory.
Fred Zinnemann's post-war film noir Act of Violence is a well-acted and rigidly suspenseful character study that deals with unique subject matter for its time. Though it's only lowercase "g" great and note quite an all-time genre classic, the film's unique story and flow are bolstered by several unforgettable sequences that give it a good amount of staying power. Warner Archive's welcome Blu-ray presentation features suitably strong A/V specs and a solid assortment of extras, making this a well-rounded release worth adding to your noir collection. Firmly Recommended.
Reissue | Special Edition
1948
4K Restoration
1948
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1949
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1947
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1942
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1951
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1950
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1946
Gunmen on the Loose
1955
Deluxe Edition
1949