Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Foreign Correspondent Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 16, 2014

Alfred Hitchcock's "Foreign Correspondent" (1940) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; exclusive new video interview with visual effects expert Craig Barron; new video interview with writer Mark Harris; archival video interview with director Alfred Hitchcock from The Dick Cavett Show; radio adaptation of "Foreign Correspondent"; and more. The release also arrives with an 18-page illustrated booklet featuring James Naremore's essay "The Windmills of War". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

"Someone who doesn't know the difference between an ism and a kangaroo."

Brash American reporter Johnny Jones (Joel McCrea, The San Francisco Story, Sullivan’s Travels) is summoned by his boss (Harry Davenport, Gone with the Wind) and ordered to pack his bags because he is going to Europe to cover the ongoing political crisis on the continent. Surprised and seriously confused, Jones confesses that he does not know much about Europe and the balance of powers there, but his boss quickly explains to him that this is precisely the reason why he is the right man for the job – his mind is fresh and unused. In addition to a brand new expense account, Jones also gets a new name: Huntley Haverstock.

In Amsterdam, Haverstock approaches Dutch diplomat Van Meer (Albert Bassermann, The Private Affairs of Bel Ami), who has signed an important treaty with Belgium that can secure lasting peace for Europe. But before Haverstock can interview him, the diplomat is shot by an assassin who disappears in the Dutch countryside. Haverstock goes after him and quickly discovers that the man is connected to a powerful political organization that wants to redraw the map of Europe.

While chasing the assassin and trying to figure out who are the men he reports to, Haverstock also meets and falls in love with Carol Fisher (Laraine Day, The Locket, The High and the Mighty), a beautiful peace activist whose father, Stephen Fisher (Herbert Marshall, The Fly, The Letter), happens to be one of Van Meer’s key partners.

Alfred Hitchcock’s second American film, Foreign Correspondent, isn’t one of his best, but it might be one of the most entertaining propaganda films ever made. It was completed in 1940, shortly before the Germans started bombing the United Kingdom.

The majority of the film is structured as a romantic thriller but promotes various political views. The good and bad causes are identified early and there is absolutely no need for the viewer to pick sides. For a while what remains unclear is only how long it will take before the main protagonist’s conspiracy theories will begin making sense to the people around him. The part of the film where he is treated as an annoying outsider who routinely complicates things because he is too paranoid is the most entertaining one.

The film begins to stutter towards the end, after the two lovers return to London – some of the character transformations happen very quickly and look very unconvincing; there are dry political statements that also sound quite awkward. Still, it is impossible not to agree that many of the warnings that are recited throughout the film were indeed justified.

Lensed by Polish-born cinematographer Rudolph Mate (Ernst Lubitsch’s To Be or Not to Be, Charles Vidor’s, Gilda), Foreign Correspondent looks surprisingly elegant. Select sequences from the first half, such as the one where the main protagonist hides in the windmill, easily could have been used in a noir film, while some of the special effects in the second half would have been perfect in a big-budget war film. (See Dick Cavett’s outstanding interview with Hitchcock included in the supplemental features section of this release to hear exactly how the legendary director and the great William Cameron Menzies shot the plane crash at the end of the film).

Note: In 1941, Foreign Correspondent was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Rudolph Mate), and Best Effects, Special Effects (Paul Eagler/photographic; Thomas T. Moulton; sound).

Foreign Correspondent 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, Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new digital transfer was created in 2K resolution on a Lasergraphics scanner from the 35mm original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, and jitter were manually removed using MTI's DRS and Pixel Farm's PFClean, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, noise management, and flicker.

The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm optical soundtrack. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated workstation.

Transfer supervisor and colorist: Lee Kline.
Film scanning: Metropolis Post, New York.
Film preparation and evaluation: Michelle Ambruz, Tim Spitzer/Goldcrest Post, New York."

The technical presentation of Alfred Hitchcock's second American film is very impressive. Indeed, there are dramatic improvements in every single area we typically address in our reviews, from definition and clarity to contrast stability to color saturation and balance to overall image stability. Viewers with large screens or projectors who have previously seen the film only on DVD will immediately notice the superior image depth - close-ups and panoramic shots now look clearer and far better detailed, while the blacks, whites, and grays are beautifully rebalanced. There are no traces of excessive degraining corrections. Problematic sharpening adjustments have not been applied either. Predictably, from start to finish the film has a very solid organic look. Finally, it is very easy to see that scratches, debris, and specks have been carefully removed as the film looks exceptionally clean and healthy. All in all, this is a very strong presentation of Foreign Correspondent which will most likely remain the film's definitive presentation on the home video market. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Foreign Correspondent Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

Dynamic intensity is rather limited, but this should not be surprising considering the age of the film. Depth and clarity, however, are very good. Various stabilizations have been performed and hiss and crackle have been removed as best as possible. As a result, the dialog and Alfred Newman's dramatic score are better rounded and crisper. For the record, there are no audio dropouts, pops, or distortions to report in this review.

Foreign Correspondent Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Foreign Correspondent. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Hollywood Propaganda and World War II - in this new video piece, writer Mark Harris discusses the history of Hollywood propaganda films during the war, some of the political messages and stereotypes they helped promote, and some of the reactions the more prominent films generated. In English, not subtitled. (26 min, 1080p).

• Visual Effects in Foreign Correspondent - in this new video interview, visual effects expert Craig Barron (Titanic, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark) discusses the unique special effects used by Alfred Hitchcock in Foreign Correspondent and the contribution of production effects specialist William Cameron Menzies (Things to Come, Gone with the Wind). The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2013. In English, not subtitled. (19 min, 1080p).

• Dick Cavett Interviews Hitchcock - this quite hilarious archival interview with director Alfred Hitchcock, from The Dick Cavett Show, was originally broadcast on June 8, 1972. In it the legendary director discusses the special effects used in Foreign Correspondent, the different reactions to his most popular films, his directing methods and attitude towards actors, the unique relationship between comedy and drama in cinema, etc. In English, not subtitled. (63 min, 1080i).

• Radio Adaptation - this radio adaptation of Foreign Correspondent was broadcast on July 24, 1946. In English, not subtitled. (26 min, 1080p).

• "Have You Heard? The Story of Wartime Rumors" - a war thriller dramatized in still photographs. Alfred Hitchcock created it for Life magazine in 1942. (1080p). A text-format description precedes each photograph. (1080p).

• Booklet - 18-page illustrated booklet featuring James Naremore's essay "The Windmills of War". (Mr. Naremore is the author of An Invention Without a Future: Essays on Cinema, On Kubrick, and More Than Night: Film Noir in Its Contexts).

Foreign Correspondent Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Criterion's new 2K restoration of Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent is impressive. I think that a lot of people will be surprised to see how good the film looks in high-definition 74 years after its theatrical release. Criterion's Blu-ray release also comes with some outstanding supplemental features. The best one is undoubtedly the long and quite funny archival interview with the legendary director. Buy with confidence, folks. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.