Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Blindfold Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 17, 2017

Philip Dunne's "Blindfold" a.k.a. "New York Express" (1965) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British label 101 Films. There are no standard bonus feature on the disc, but there is a reproduction of an original theatrical poster. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

There is a man I would like you to see

On a beautiful day in New York City, Dr. Bartholomew Snow (Rock Hudson) is approached by a high-ranking general (Jack Warden) who asks him to examine a former patient who has suffered a serious nervous breakdown. Soon after, while wearing a blindfold, the doctor is flown to an undisclosed location referred to only as Base X.

It turns out that the sick man (Alejandro Rey) is a government scientist who has been working on a top-secret project, which is why the general and a whole bunch of other high-ranking military officials are concerned that he could become an easy target for various dangerous foreign players. It is why they have also been keeping him at an undisclosed location, hoping that his condition will gradually improve, and eventually he will be able to resume his duties. The doctor immediately recognizes the patient, but after he examines him, it immediately becomes clear that it would take a long time for him to recover.

Meanwhile, back in New York City, the patient’s sister, Vicky (Claudia Cardinale), concludes that the doctor has kidnapped her brother and begins working on a plan to get him arrested by the police. The plan collapses when the doctor convinces a group of naïve detectives that he and Vicky are lovers and that their relationship isn’t working as it should, which is why the beauty is desperately trying to destroy his reputation. Around the same time, a CIA agent working undercover enters the doctor’s office and reveals to him that the general is a foreign agent who is desperately trying to get his former patient to reveal important government secrets to him. The confused doctor then decides to team up with his angry ‘lover’ and do whatever it takes to save her brother. Of course, the two do not know where to look for him because the only clues that they have to work with are some scattered noises from the doctor’s journey to Base X.

Philip Dunne’s final film was released in 1965 and actually fits very nicely between Stanley Donen’s Charade (1963) and Arabesque (1966). The main concept behind all three is essentially the same: two characters, played by big stars, with completely different goals in life become a team and go against some very bad people with some very bad intentions. The circumstances under which they meet are different, but the rest is pretty much the same. There is plenty of well-paced action, a good dose of humor with a few splashes of old-fashioned romance, and enough decent twists to keep the audience guessing for a while.

Donen’s films are a bit more exotic and ultimately flashier, but there is good chemistry between Hudson and Cardinale and this film never becomes a bore. The second act is where the plot could have been opened up even more to give the two stars better opportunities to shine, but once their opponents are identified, there is indeed plenty to like.

The footage from the swamp is terrific, and some of these giant alligators look pretty damn scary. It would have been great to find out exactly how Dunne and cinematographer Joseph MacDonald shot it with the two stars running around, but unfortunately, this release does not have any archival features from Universal’s vaults.

Blindfold Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Philip Dunne's Blindfold arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 101 Films.

The release is sourced from an older master that was licensed from Universal Pictures, but I have to say that it is amongst the better ones that I have seen emerge from the studio's vault. Indeed, while the film can certainly look fresher and more vibrant, there are no traces of recent digital adjustments of the kind that have wrecked numerous Universal Pictures catalog releases. On the contrary, while a bit uneven the film actually has a fairly pleasing organic appearance, and delineation and depth range from good to often quite good. Some of the darker footage reveals some light crush, but there are no big distracting anomalies. The age of the master shows in the color palette -- the primaries should be better saturated and ideally there should be a wider range of nuances -- but balance is still quite good. Image stability is very good. Lastly, there are a few minor flecks, but you won't see any big cuts, damage marks, torn or warped frames. My score if 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Blindfold Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The audio does not appear to have been recently remixed, but I thought that the quality of the lossless track was very good. Indeed, there is nice depth, clarity is good, and the overall balance is very consistent. The film's original sound design is also pretty good, with a few segments where Lalo Schifrin's score definitely makes an impression.

Blindfold Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Poster - included with this release is a reproduction of an original theatrical poster for the film.

Blindfold Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

You will probably enjoy Philip Dunne's Blindfold if you like Stanley Donen's Charade and Arabesque. It is an old-fashioned action thriller that bets heavily on the chemistry between its two stars, Rock Hudson and Claudia Cardinale, and basically delivers what it promises after the opening fifteen or so minutes. This very recent release from 101 Films is sourced from a pretty decent master, but it comes only with a giant poster for the film. RECOMMENDED.