7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
US art dealer returns to his native Germany for a visit and is attracted by Nazi propaganda.
Starring: Paul Lukas, Carl Esmond, Peter van Eyck, Mady Christians, Morris CarnovskyDrama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Note: This film is available as part of
Noir Archive - Volume 1: 1944-1954.
While the frequently questionable “expertise” of Wikipedia asserts that film noir lasted from the early 1920s until the late 1950s, my
hunch
is at least some fans of film history would tend to proscribe the idiom’s heyday to a probably smaller window of time beginning at some
point in the
1940s and then extending into some other point in the 1950s. If that proscription is accepted, it might then be arguable that there was
no
better purveyor of film noir than Columbia Pictures during this period. While many of the undisputed classics of film noir came
from other studios, as
in the case of Paramount’s Double Indemnity
(released
on Blu-ray through Universal, due to the vagaries of film catalogs changing hands), or Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s The Postman Always Rings Twice (released on Blu-ray through
Warner Brothers, due to — well, you get the idea), Columbia Pictures managed to churn out a rather significant amount of noir offerings,
albeit often in what would probably be termed the “B-movie” category. Kit Parker Films and Mill Creek Entertainment have now assembled nine of
these rather interesting
Columbia offerings in one three disc package, and for noir fans, there are at least a couple of rather notable films in this first collection (it
looks like Noir Archive Volume 2: 1954-
1956 is due in a few months), as well as some other outings which frankly might be best categorized as oddities.
Address Unknown is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment and Kit Parker films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. This is one of the better looking overall transfers in the set, with a healthy if arguably at times pretty gritty looking grain field, and some very expressively deep blacks, something that really help to elevate Rudolph Maté's impressive cinematography (there is repeated use of shadows falling across faces, which may mask detail levels but which also adds a lot of flavor to the visuals). There's just a bit of image instability during the opening credits, credits which also utilize the swarming San Francisco mist that is a regular part of Escape in the Fog. Some rear projection looks a bit flat, and grain tends to spike at times, especially in close-ups. There's one brief moment at circa 36:47 where things suddenly degrade just for a moment, but it also looks like there's rear projection in this shot (of the inside of a theater), which may play into things. Damage is relatively minor, limited to occasional speckling and dirt.
As with all the other films in this set, Address Unknown features a serviceable DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track, one which capably supports the film's dialogue, occasional sound effects (like a gun firing late in the film), and a somewhat overwrought score by Ernst Toch. There's some low level hiss that's discernable in quieter moments, but no damage of any import.
No supplements are offered on this release.
William Cameron Menzies may go down in film history more for his production design skills than his directorial flair, but he proves himself a rather stylish helmsman in this surprisingly prescient piece. The fact that this film came out in 1944 should easily put the lie to any belief that there simply wasn't an awareness of the prevalence of anti-Semitism in Germany during this era. Technical merits are generally solid, and Address Unknown comes Recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1954
1952
1947
1945
1950
1949
1954
1982
1974
1953
1949
Limited Edition to 3000
1966
1956
1967
1970
Warner Archive Collection
1933
1966
Warner Archive Collection
1966
1973
1965