Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Shake Hands with the Devil Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 24, 2022

Michael Anderson's "Shake Hands with the Devil" (1959) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive new video program with actor Don Murray as well as vintage remastered trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The American

Dublin, 1921. A city at war. This is a story of men and guns. Hard men, brave men. Violent men. The story of the war between the Black and Tans and the Irish Republican Army. It is 1921. A year of total war. A year of decision.

After the crystal-clear introduction, the viewer meets Kerry O’Shea (Don Murray), an American who has come to Dublin to earn a medical degree. But one night O’Shea witnesses the accidental murder of his best drinking pal and despite vowing to avoid the ongoing war becomes involved with an underground group led by Professor Sean Lenihan (James Cagney). Having spent many hours in his classroom, O’Shea is shocked to discover that Lenihan is an even better fighter than he is an educator. To avoid further trouble, O’Shea then agrees to be transported to a coastal village and from there secretly head back to America.

But while waiting with members of the underground group, O’Shea is drawn in a secret operation that does not go as planned and transforms him into a big target. Much to Lenihan’s delight, he then changes his mind and decides to stay in Ireland to fight for The Cause. However, in the midst of all the drama, O’Shea has an encounter with a beautiful English hostage, Jennifer Curtis (Dana Wynter), who unexpectedly steals his heart and forces him to once again reconsider his priorities.

Michael Anderson’s Shake Hands with the Devil blends fact and fiction quite nicely, but this is probably the main reason why history buffs will find plenty of issues in its narrative. The most obvious such issue will almost certainly be the depiction of the peace proposal and consequently The General’s (Michael Redgrave) simplistic explanation of what is at stake and how it can be lost if Lenihan and those that share his views reject it. Simply put, it is very basic material that sums up the drama that is at the center of the film with just a couple of sentences. However, and this is something this writer wants to make perfectly clear, because the film does not attempt to carefully deconstruct the nature of the Irish ‘troubles’ and the exact politics that were associated with them, there is plenty of room to put the spotlight on the simple human drama that ordinary folks from the rivaling sides endured. This is essentially what the relationship between O’Shea and Curtis conveys – it was virtually impossible to remain neutral even if one tried one’s best.

The leads are very convincing. Murray appears reserved at first but after the death of his friend becomes appropriately outspoken. There are plenty of fine nuances in his performance that make the transformation of his character look very authentic. Cagney is fittingly unhinged and full of hatred for the enemy. Like Murray, Wynter is essentially an outsider as well, so even though she sees the ‘troubles’ from the opposite side, her take on it and the misery it fuels is virtually identical. Redgrave easily leaves the impression that he is a pragmatic leader with a grand vision too, though he should have been given more time before the camera. Sybil Thorndike has a fine cameo as the somewhat exotic Lady Fitzhugh.

The use of beautiful authentic locations gives the film a sense of vintage grandness as well. This isn’t to imply that the cinematography produces visuals that rival what is done with similar locations in David Lean’s black-and-white films, but there is certainly some rather striking content.

Anderson worked with cinematographer Erwin Hillier. A couple of year earlier, the two collaborated on the classic war drama The Dam Busters as well.

Shake Hands with the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Shake Hands with the Devil arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from a solid recent 2K master. Indeed, even though there are minor density and even clarity fluctuations that pop up here and there, the overall quality of the visuals is quite impressive. I projected the film and thought that from start to finish it retained a very fine organic appearance. Also, the master is graded very well. There is quite a bit of darker indoor and nighttime footage and as you can tell from our screencaptures the balance between the blacks, whites, and grays is very good. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. Also, there are no stability issues. All in all, even though trained eyes will recognize a few inherited limitations that an elaborate restoration would have addressed, the current technical presentation of Shake Hands with the Devil is very pleasing. (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).

Shake Hands with the Devil 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.

I did not encounter any anomalies to report in our review. The audio was very clear, clean, stable and easy to follow. Dynamic intensity is good for a film from the late 1950s, but keep in mind that there are plenty of inherited limitations. A few are quite easy to recognize during the outdoor footage where occasionally the sound quite thin.

Shake Hands with the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - presented here is a remastered vintage trailer for Shake Hands with the Devil. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Interview with Actor Don Murray - in this exclusive new video interview, actor Don Murray, who plays the young American Kerry O'Shea, explains how he entered the film industry and discusses his involvement with Shake Hands with the Devil. Also, there are some quite interesting comments about the real locations where the film was shot and how they affected its ambience. In English, not subtitled. (9 min).

Shake Hands with the Devil Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Shake Hands with the Devil puts the spotlight on a familiar issue, the Irish 'troubles', but its message I think is universal -- during a time of war, it is virtually impossible to remain neutral. Shake Hands with the Devil reminded me of The Outsider in which the main protagonist is once again an American who is forced to choose a side. Tony Luraschi's film is a masterpiece, so if you don't have it yet in your library, consider picking it up with this release. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.