Deported Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Deported Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 28, 2022

Robert Siodmak's "Deported" (1950) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critic Daniel Kremer; new program with critic Christina Newland; archival promotional materials; and short film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

After wasting five years of his life in Sing Sing, American gangster Vic Smith (Jeff Chandler) is deported back to his native Italy. Shortly after the local authorities restore his real name, Vittorio Mario Sparducci, he is handed his new identification papers and informed that he must spend the next thirty days in Marbella, a small town about an hour away from Siena, where he was born. After the quarantine is over, he would be free to move across the country.

On the way to the train station, Vic shares a taxi with Gina (Marina Berti), who quickly warms up to him and invites him to her place to meet her mother. However, instead of meeting Gina’s mother, Vic is reintroduced to his angry former partner, Bernie (Richard Rober), who has arrived in Naples to reclaim his share of the $100,000 they stole together back in New York. After Vic gives him a black eye and convinces him that he left the money behind, Bernie calms down, but vows to keep an eye on him and figure out a way to get paid what he is owed.

In Marbella, Vic is enthusiastically greeted by his uncle, Armando (Silvio Minciotti), who thinks that he will be representing the American government’s interests in Italy. Vic is then introduced to some of the town’s most important residents, including the young and beautiful Contessa Christine di Lorenzi (Marta Toren), who has spent the last couple of years mourning the loss of her husband and helping the poor. Vic immediately makes a positive impression on the Contessa and a few days later asks her to go out with him.

While the Contessa interprets it differently, Vic’s interest in her turns out to be part of a simple yet brilliant plan to sneak into the county the $100,000 a friend is keeping for him back in New York -- at least until he unexpectedly begins to fall for the Contessa and realizes that the plan may require a major adjustment.

One does not have to look too hard to realize that Robert Siodmak’s Deported behaves like a close relative of Federico Fellini’s Il Bidone. There isn’t a legit connection between these films, but the manner in which they place their American stars in a foreign environment and then utilize crime and humor to reveal how Italy is evolving after WWII is practically identical. Of course, it quickly becomes obvious that Deported is directed by a foreigner too, which is why the social commentary that is channeled through it isn’t of the same quality as the one that emerges in Il Bidone.

The other obvious weakness of Deported is the chemistry between its stars. Chandler is quite good as the exiled American gangster who just wants to start a new life with the stolen money, but except for Rober the supporting actors behave as if the man behind the camera is the great Pietro Germi. To be clear, it is not that the narrative cannot absorb a small dose of old-fashioned melodrama, but Chandler shines in a very particular manner and the supporting actors very rarely respond to it as they should. As a result, from start to finish it looks like Chandler does his best to keep the film in noirish territory, while the supporting actors are working hard to legitimize it as a conventional melodrama.

The director of photography was William Daniels, who lensed such macho film noirs as Brute Force and The Naked City. However, his stylistic preferences in Deported are so different that it is virtually impossible to link these films in any meaningful way.

Deported Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Deported arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

In the United States, Deported had its high-definition debut in 2021 via this release produced by Kino Lorber. This Region-B release is sourced from the same master that Universal supplied to Kino Lorber.

I like this master quite a lot. It gives the film a very strong and very attractive organic appearance, so even on a large screen the visuals are usually lovely. Is there room for meaningful improvements? Yes. There are a few minor density fluctuations that affect delineation and depth. From time to time nicks and blemishes pop up as well, so the surface of the visuals can be healthier. Grain exposure can be more convincing as well. So, if fully restored the film can look healthier and have an overall better-balanced appearance. However, aside from a superior dynamic range that will strengthen your perception of depth, I don't think that this film could look any better. I projected it again last night and think that my initial take on the current master was perfect -- the basics are solid and the film looks almost as good as it can. Any additional improvements will have a minimal impact on the overall quality of the visuals. My score is 4.25/5.00. (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).

Deported 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.

The lossless audio is excellent. All exchanges are very clear and easy to follow. Balance is very good as well. Understandably, the dynamic contrasts that emerge throughout the film are quite weak, but this is how the original soundtrack was finalized. There are no encoding anomalies to report in our review.

Deported Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Daniel Kremer.

• Return to Europe: Christina Newland on Robert Siodmak - in this exclusive new program, critic Christina Newland discusses the production history of Deported and its placement in Robert Siodmak's body of work. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Image Gallery - a collection of original promotional materials for Deported.

• A Salute to France (1944) - a short film about three Allied soldiers -- an American (Burgess Meredith), an Englishman (Philip Bourneuf), a Frenchman (Claude Dauphin) -- set to cross the Channel. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles. (36 min).

• Book - a limited edition exclusive 120-page book with new essays by Iris Veysey, Jill Blake, Karen Hannsberry, Sabina Stent, Sergio Angelini and Walter Chaw, extensive archival articles and interviews, new writing on the various short films, and film credits.

Deported Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Here's what I think the original concept for Deported was: get some of the best that American film noir offers and blend it with some of the best that Italian Neorealism offers in a story about an American gangster who must rebuild his life in the place where he was born but barely remembers. Not bad. However, the party that was supposed to do the crucial blending did not quite get the formula right. I would not say that the film is a misfire, not at all, but it needed clearer vision and better polish work. As it is, it just feels like most of the time Jeff Chandler is struggling to keep it appear at least partially legit. Abandoned is included in Indicator/Powerhouse Films' six-disc box set Universal Noir #1. RECOMMENDED, but you will need to be a Chandler fan to enjoy it.