Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie Review

A must-see genre classic.

Four Frightened People is a compelling genre classic. The island adventure has plenty of mystery and intrigue. Based on the novel by E. Arnot Robertson, Four Frightened People is a fun diversion with great star-power from Claudette Colbert and Herbert Marshall.

Judy Jones (Claudette Colbert) and Arnold Ainger (Herbert Marshall) join other passengers from a steamer ship in attempting to survive on a dangerous Malayan island. After finding themselves in strange circumstances, the natives of the island test the frightened survivors. The bubonic plague wrecks havoc. Can Judy survive the wrath of the islanders?

Claudette Colbert is a wonderful leading lady. Colbert provides the filmmaking with her sense of exuberant charm and originality. The actress is beautiful and talented: helping the film be more entertaining than it would be without her special grace. Herbert Marshall also provides a strong supporting performance, though he comes second-fiddle to Colbert.

The art direction by Roland Anderson (Reap the Wild Wind, Breakfast at Tiffany's) is stunning. The production efforts help the island setting come to life. There is a sense of fun and adventure to the production sets. The efforts make the genre filmmaking more compelling.

A thrilling adventure.

The costumes by Milo Anderson (To Have and Have Not, The Adventures of Robin Hood) were well designed and well-suited to the characters. Claudette Colbert has an effective costume that suits her beautiful figure nicely. Herbert Marshall looks impressive in his costume as well.

The cinematography by Karl Struss (The Sign of the Cross, The Great Dictator) is visually inventive throughout. The black- and-white visuals provide a mysterious backdrop to the adventure. The film impresses with a compelling cinematographic style.

The music score composed by Karl Hajos (It's a Small World, Call of the Forest), John Leipold (The Big Wheel, Nine Girls), Milan Roder (Souls at Sea, Never Say Die), and Heinz Roemheld (The Lady from Shanghai, The Strawberry Blonde) provides some exciting background music to the adventure. While not a classic score, the music helps make the filmmaking more effective. A solid effort by the composers.

The screenplay by Bartlett Cormack (This Day and Age, The Beachcomber) and Lenore J. Coffee (The Night of Love, Four Daughters) is one of the best elements of Four Frightened People. The script has entertaining dialogue. The characters are well drawn.

Director Cecil B. DeMille (The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments) made an entertaining gem with Four Frightened People. The action-adventure is thrilling. This is an underappreciated classic with great production values. The visual style of DeMille is top-notch. Outstanding filmmaking for a genre production, Four Frightened People is a must-see adventure classic.

Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber, Four Frightened People is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.37:1 full frame. The release has a decent looking print. The scan looks nice and well-detailed. However, the print does suffer from some thin scratches. Black levels are average-at-best and the film could have used a better restoration. Nonetheless, a good encode for a decent scan of the film.

Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono audio track. The lossless audio sounds reasonably good during the presentation. Dialogue is clear and easy to understand. The track does have some background hiss and isn't pristine but it also sounds reasonably engaging.

Optional English subtitles are provided.

Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Audio Commentary by Film Critic Nick Pinkerton

Four Frightened People Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2:04)

The release also includes a selection of trailers promoting other releases available from distributor Kino Lorber: The Sign of the Cross (SD, 1:35), The Gilded Lily (SD, 2:44), The Bride Comes Home (SD, 2:21), Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (SD, 3:08), Arise, My Love (HD, 1:45), Since You Went Away (HD, 1:40), No Time For Love (SD, 2:12), Thunder on the Hill (SD, 2:06), The Good Fairy (SD, 2:46), The Plainsman (SD, 2:21), Union Pacific (SD, 1:28), Reap the Wild Wind (SD, 2:17), and Unconquered (HD, 2:41).

Four Frightened People Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Four Frightened People is an entertaining adventure. Fans of Cecil B. DeMille (The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments) will be thrilled with this under-the-radar gem. A first-rate performance by the beautiful Claudette Colbert steals the show. The Blu-ray has a good presentation and is worth a watch. Highly recommended.