Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

Escape in the Fog Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 8, 2019

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.

Escape in the Fog has some elements which may remind some noir aficionados of one of the better remembered noir outings, 1944’s The Woman in the Window, especially with regard to “what’s a dream and what isn’t”, though Escape in the Fog also indulges in more of a “traditional” wartime espionage angle as well. Nina Foch portrays Eileen Carr, a nurse who is recovering from what amounts to a nervous breakdown, and who is troubled by a nightmare where she has visions of a murder by the Golden Gate Bridge. In a plot conceit that might have made for a perfect episode of The Twilight Zone, Eileen is awakened from this nightmare by the very man she “saw” murdered in her dream, a guy named Barry Malcolm (William Wright). Suffice it to say romantic entanglements ensue, and the line between Eileen’s “visions” and what’s actually going on begin to blur rather dramatically, all within the context of a top secret wartime mission.

Escape in the Fog Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Escape in the Fog is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment and Kit Parker Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. While I'm scoring this at 3.0 to indicate it has a few more prevalent problems than some other transfers in this set, the difference is frankly kind of incremental. The biggest problems are due to the use of what I'm assuming are optical effects to create some of the fog, and in the opening sequence especially there are some odd looking problems, with vertical lines running through the image that almost resemble print through. There's also recurrent flicker in some of the fog sequences (as well as the opening credits). The entire transfer looked just a tad dark to me, so that (to cite one example) the blacks of William Wallace's suit tend to become an amorphous whole, without any clear differentiation between the sleeve and body. There's also a brief moment starting at 37:27 that is noticeably softer. Damage is once again mostly limited to speckling and dirt, though a few minor scratches are visible.

Escape in the Fog Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Escape in the Fog features a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track which can sound just slightly muffled in the higher registers when some of what was apparently stock music is utilized, or even when Nina Foch emits a scream or two. While there's the same kind of low level hiss that's noticeable in several other films in this set, there's nothing overpowering, and dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout.

Escape in the Fog Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

No supplements are offered on this release.

Escape in the Fog Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I think Escape in the Fog might have played a bit more intriguingly had the film been more ambiguous about Eileen's "visions" and indeed even about her mental health. This is a kind of weirdly bifurcated entry that tries to dabble in some of the psychological tropes which were then beginning to be utilized in any number of films, while also sticking to a more tried and true story motif of World War II espionage. Video and audio both encounter some minor difficulties, but are generally solid for those considering a purchase.