Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 10, 2024

Robert Wise's "Odds Against Tomorrow" (1959) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by author and critic Alan K. Rode; archival program with Harry Belafonte; archival program with actress Kim Hamilton; and vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

As easy as a walk in the park

Desperate men do desperate things, and sometimes the unlucky ones lose everything. This is the simple message of Robert Wise’s classic film noir Odds Against Tomorrow.

An aging player named Dave Burke (a superb Ed Begley) hires two men who urgently need money to help him rob a bank in upstate New York. The first, Johnny Ingram (Harry Belafonte), is a jazz musician who has allowed his gambling debts to cripple his life. After a long series of losses, he has finally been given an ultimatum by a tough loan shark (Will Culuva): pay back what you owe in twenty-four hours, or get a big beautiful hole in the forehead. The second guy, Earle Slater (Robert Ryan), is a vet who has recently realized that he is running out of time to do something meaningful with his life. He’s got a woman (Shelley Winters), but the only thing that he can offer her is his bed.

The men meet in Burke’s apartment, where the old-timer explains to them why the entire operation will be like a walk in the park. His partners seem to trust his plan, but not each other -- Slater does not like working with blacks, while Ingram can’t stand loose cannons with ‘old-fashioned values’. Burke nearly loses them.

After a full day of soul-searching, the men meet Burke again and agree to keep their emotions in check until they finish the job and distribute the loot. For a while, the truce and Burke’s plan seem to work perfectly, but then Lady Luck abruptly changes her mind.

The film is very gloomy, almost to the point of being unbearably depressing, but it also has an unapologetic macho attitude that makes it very attractive. This is the reason why the three men who organize the robbery and then go to work never even remotely appear like cinematic characters, they are just desperate gamblers with serious flaws who have decided to roll the dice and see if they can get away with a bag of cash that can change their lives.

It is essential to make it clear that the gloominess is not a product of intended stylization of the kind that plenty of film noirs rely on when they build their atmosphere. It is achieved while giving Slater and Ingram plenty of time to justify their decision to join Burke, and in the process casually document the fast crumbling of the foundations that their lives are built upon. So by the time Slater and Ingram agree to ignore each other, it is already painfully obvious that these men are so desperate that they are truly ready to risk everything.

Gloria Grahame has a small role as a frustrated wife who is fully aware that Slater has a dark past but nevertheless chooses to make love to him while his partner is away. This is arguably the only melodramatic sequence in the entire film.

Wise secured the services of cinematographer Joseph Brun, who had recently lensed the impressive Cinerama production Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich.

Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Odds Against Tomorrow arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

We have posted reviews of two different releases of Odds Against Tomorrow that are sourced from the same good 2K remaster. The first release was produced by Olive Films for the North American market in 2018. The second release was produced by the BFI for the UK market. However, these releases frame the film differently. The Olive Films release frames it in the correct aspect ratio of 1.85:1, while the BFI release frames it in aspect ratio of 1.33:1.

Kino Lorber's release is sourced from the same 2K remaster that the previous releases used. I did several comparisons with the Olive Films release and could not spot any meaningful discrepancies to address in our review. The overall quality of the presentation is very good. All visuals have a very healthy and very attractive organic appearance. Delineation, clarity, and depth are always very pleasing, too. Some minor surface imperfections remain -- small blemishes, a few nicks here and there, tiny scratches, etc. -- but they are never distracting. I think that the overwhelming majority of viewers will likely miss more than two-thirds of them. The grayscale is very good. Blacks appear solid but not boosted, while all ranges of grays and whites are managed great, which is why black crush is not an issue on this presentation. There are no stability issues. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

It does not appear that additional restoration work has been done on the audio track. The same pops I heard on the Olive Films release of Odds Against Tomorrow are retained here. This being said, all exchanges are still very clear and easy to follow. Stability is good, too.

Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Theatrical Trailer - presented here is a vintage theatrical trailer of Odds Against Tomorrow. In 1.33:1 ratio. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by author and critic Alan K. Rode, who delves deep into the production history of Odds Against Tomorrow and highlights several very interesting changes that were made when William P. McGivern's novel was adapted. There are some interesting comments about Robert Wise and his working methods, as well as the various people who assisted him in making Odds Against Tomorrow and the key locations where the film was shot.

• Q&A Session with Harry Belafonte - this archival session with producer/actor Harry Belafonte was recorded after a screening of Odds Against Tomorrow in Chicago on August 1, 2009. The bulk of the information addresses the social climate at the time when the film was made; the drastic differences between the story that is told in the novel by William P. McGivern and the one from the film; Robert Ryan's persona and his great villains; and the visual style/cinematography of the film. In English, not subtitled. (50 min).

• Post-Screening Q&A with Actress Kim Hamilton: Part One - in this archival film program, Kim Hamilton recalls how she was cast to play her character in Odds Against Tomorrow and what it was like to work with Robert Wise and various cast members. Shot in Los Angeles on April 13, 2007. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Post-Screening Q&A with Actress Kim Hamilton: Part Two - Kim Hamilton quickly addresses several other characters she played in different genre films. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

Odds Against Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There are two kinds of men who willingly risk their lives: the fools who believe that they are invincible and begin playing dangerous games with Lady Luck, and those who have hit rock bottom and are frantically trying to bounce back. Robert Wise's classic film noir Odds Against Tomorrow is about a couple of desperate men who choose to roll the dice to do the latter. It is a very gloomy film, almost to the point of being unbearably depressing, but it also has an unapologetic macho attitude that makes it very attractive. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from the same very good 2K remaster that Olive Films used for its release of Odds Against Tomorrow, but adds several interesting bonus features. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.