Assassin Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Assassin Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 29, 2023

Peter Crane's "Assassin" (1973) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include new program and audio commentary featuring Peter Crane; new program with screenwriter Michael Sloan; new program with assistant director Martyn Chillmaid; vintage promotional materials; and a lot more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

In the past, I have mentioned on a couple of different occasions that one of my greatest discoveries from the last couple of decades is Mark Lester’s Steel Arena (1973). The late Bill Olsen, who ran Code Red, restored Steel Arena toward the end of 2018, and in early 2019, rather accidentally, I acquired it on Blu-ray. Steel Arena is Lester’s directorial debut but is the kind of special film that usually materializes toward the end of a prolific career. It does not follow any of the conventional rules that determine whether a film is good or bad and has a fearless, very attractive personality. It is about a gang of real daredevils with equally fearless personalities as well, so virtually all the visuals that are preserved in it are one hundred percent real, too. I would concede that Steel Arena is not for everyone, but I think that this adds to its greatness. If it was like the other films about daredevils that were made in America during the 1970s, I would not have thought of it as highly as I do now.

Last week, I began screening the films in The Pemini Organization, a two-disc box set produced by Indicator/Powerhouse Films in 2022, and made another incredible discovery. All three films in this box set are directed by Peter Crane, a British filmmaker who contributed to a lot of different TV projects between the 1970s and 1990s. (One of these TV projects is the popular series Matt Houston with Lee Horsley, which I enjoyed spending time with during the 1980s). My discovery is Crane’s directorial debut, Assassin (1973), which may very well be one of the most stylish low-budget British crime films that I have seen to date. It is a predictably minimalistic film with an offbeat attitude that someone like Jean-Pierre Melville would have greatly appreciated had he called London home and started his career there.

A quick pause because I need to explain exactly what I mean by bringing in Melville’s name and ensure that your expectations are not set impossibly high because of it.

Crane is not as good of a stylist as Melville was but his understanding and use of mise-en-scene are very similar to those of the Frenchman -- or at least they were at the time when he completed Assassin. It is why in Assassin the environment in which the main protagonist is placed and his movement remind me of Melville’s Le Doulos (1963). Also, Assassin and Le Doulos share a similar noirish identity, only one is more British and slightly more contemporary, while the other is more French and slightly more dated. One last thing, which I think is very important, too. The offbeat attitude of Assassin is greatly influenced by an offbeat sense of humor, which reminded me of Melville’s notorious dry sense of humor as well. However, in films like Le Doulos this dry sense of humor is often quite difficult to detect or properly appreciate because certain expressions or descriptions that promote it do not translate well into English.

Ian Hendry plays the assassin in Crane’s film. He is a very reliable professional who does difficult jobs for some shady people taking orders from the highest echelon of the British government. At the beginning of the film, he is contacted with an urgent request to kill a prominent politician (Frank Windsor) because he has become an unsolvable problem for the shady people. The professional reluctantly agrees to do the job and then heads to the perfect location where his target must die. However, while waiting, the professional has a quick rendezvous with a young woman (Verna Harvey) from the bar of his hotel that unintentionally forces him to begin reevaluating the very lonely nature of his work. Then, just a few hours before the target must die, the job is canceled but without the professional’s knowledge. To avoid a massive blunder, two other assassins are urgently dispatched to stop their colleague by any means necessary.

Two-thirds of Assassin are simply top-grade 1970s British crime atmosphere. You could find tiny bits of the same crime atmosphere in some of the British crime films that are included in BFI’s Flipside series, like Man of Violence (1971) and The Big Switch a.k.a. Strip Poker (1968), but Crane’s management of it is, for reasons that are highlighted above, far superior. The rest of Assassin is defined by Hendry’s wonderfully subdued, very attractive performance, which I think has an undeniable Melville-esque quality, too.

Most interestingly, the few splashes of light humor strengthen the atmosphere by making it even more British. Also, the light humor effectively humanizes the professional and the random characters that cross his path.

*According to information supplied by Indicator/Powerhouse Films, Assassin was scanned in 4K and restored at Final Frame Post, London, between October 2019 and March 2022, using the only surviving 35mm film elements -- an original distribution print preserved at the BFI National Archive.

Assassin Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.75:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Assassin arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

According to information supplied by Indicator/Powerhouse Films, Assassin was scanned in 4K and restored at Final Frame Post, London, between October 2019 and March 2022, using the only surviving 35mm film elements -- an original distribution print preserved at the BFI National Archive. I think that the film looks great now. Yes, it is easy to tell that if it was available the OCN would have produced a superior presentation -- because density levels are not optimal -- but the overall quality of the visuals is still lovely. In fact, even in wider panoramic shots or areas where natural light becomes prominent, these visuals retain a terrific organic appearance, so delineation, clarity, and depth are typically very, very good. Of course, you need to keep in mind that the film was not shot with a big budget, so there are plenty of fluctuations that are part of the original cinematography. The color grade is very convincing, too. I think that saturation, in particular, is handled extremely well so that the film retains as much of its 1970s personality. Image stability is very good. There are no traces of problematic digital adjustments. Finally, the surface of the visuals looks very healthy as well. All in all, given the nature of the surviving 35mm elements, I think that the restoration work that was done is as good as it could have been. I was quite impressed with how good the film looked on my system. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Assassin Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I did not encounter any technical anomalies to report in our review. While the soundtrack does not produce any impressive material, I liked Zack Laurence's jazzy score a lot and thought that it sounded great on my system. The dialog is always very clear and easy to follow. In a few areas, I was able to detect small unevenness, but it appears to be inherited.

Assassin Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Restoration Program - this program provides information about the restoration of Assassin that was done at Final Frame Post, London. Before and after comparisons are provided. In English, not subtitled. (5 min).

• Assassin Image Galleries -
  
  1. Promotional materials
  2. Behind the scenes
  3. Script gallery

• Gabriel Hershman: Assassin's Creed - in this new program, Gabriel Hershman, author of Send in the Clowns: The Yo Yo Life of Ian Hendry, discusses the life and cinematic legacy of actor Ian Hendry, who plays the professional hitman in Assassin. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• Martyn Chillmaid - in this new program, assistant director Martyn Chillmaid recalls his work with Peter Crane on Assassin (and to a lesser extent on Hunted). Also, there are some quite interesting and funny comments about Ian Hendry's presence in a particular sequence where he appears slightly inebriated. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• Nigel Hodgson - in this new program, Nigel Hodgson, discusses his involvement with The Pemini Organization. Mr. Hodgson was one of its three founding members (the other two are director Peter Crane and screenwriter Michael Sloan). In English, not subtitled. (29 min).

• Michael Sloan - in this new program, screenwriter Michael Sloan discusses his friendship with Nigel Crane and explains how The Pemini Organization was formed. Also, Mr. Sloan discusses the conception and production of Hunted, Assassin, and Moments as well as Ian Hendry's drinking problem. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Peter Crane - in this new program, director Peter Crane recalls the exact moment when he decided to enter the world of professional photography and consequently the film industry. Also, there are interesting comments about the formation of The Pemini Organization and the films Mr. Crane worked on, and some of the people that helped him make them. In English, not subtitled. (32 min).

• Commentary - in this exclusive new audio commentary, Peter Crane discusses the formation of The Pemini Organization and the production of Assassin with producer Sam Dunn. The commentary features some quite interesting comments about the business and cultural environments in England at the time when Assassin was completed.

• Book - a limited edition exclusive 80-page book featuring extensive extracts from Peter Crane's 'Memories of Pemini', detailing the rise and fall of The Pemini Organization and the production of their three films, extracts from the films' original press materials, archival news articles on Pemini's activities, new writing on In Search of Lebanon, and technical credits.

• Cards - five collectible cards.

Assassin Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Everything that supposedly makes Peter Crane's Assassin a rough film that should have turned out better is exactly what I think makes it a remarkably cool and atmospheric British crime film. Its low-budget minimalistic style, for instance, reminds me of Jean-Pierre Melville's work, while Ian Hendry's oddly jaded professional hitman is simply perfect. Needless to say, I feel that Assassin belongs in the company of The Reckoning, Bellman & True, and Cisco Pike, which are my favorite discoveries from Indicator/Powerhouse Films' catalog. Assassin has been beautifully restored and is included in The Pemini Organisation, a two-disc Region-Free box set. (An identical box set can be purchased in the United States as well. You can see our listing of this box set here). VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.