The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 1, 2025

"The Man in a Looking Glass" (1965) and "Mystery Island" (1966) arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by restorer Jonathan Wood and ITC historian Rick Davy; archival programs with Sue Lloyd and production supervisor Johnny Goodman; vintage promotional materials; trailers; and a lot more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the both films. Region-Free.

The American

John Mannering (Steve Forrest) is his real name. Antiques dealer is his real profession. However, he is better known as The Barron, and when he goes to work, he does a very different type of dealing. The Barron tracks down, confronts, and deactivates targets on behalf of British Intelligence. While he prefers to handle the riskiest dealing alone, The Baron is frequently assisted by his trusted partner, Cordelia Winfield (Sue Lloyd).

The Man in a Looking Glass and Mystery Island are feature films created with material from the popular TV show The Baron. The former combines the original TV versions of two episodes: Masquerade and The Killing. The latter combines the original TV versions of two other episodes: Storm Warning and The Island. This recent release presents both feature films in their original theatrical aspect ratios of 1.66:1. The four TV episodes are also included and presented in their original aspect ratios of 1.33:1.

In The Man in a Looking Glass, aging thief Morgan Travis (Bernard Lee), his daughter Selina (Yvonne Furneaux), and Dr. Harry Revell (John Carson) hatch a plan to steal the Crown Jewels and take out The Baron. The crucial piece of their plan is Eddie (Forrest), an American opportunist, who is built exactly like The Baron and, following a risky plastic surgery, made to look exactly like him, too. After replacing The Baron, the doppelganger, while taking advantage of his impeccable reputation and government contacts, will help the gang enter the underground area where the Crown Jewels are kept and safely steal them. However, soon after the thieves lure The Baron to their lair, a secluded posh villa, he escapes and, thanks to a nifty trick, becomes the doppelganger. Unaware of the switch, the thieves take out Eddie and set the time for the greatest heist that history books will record. But before they go to work, Cordelia appears and nearly blows The Baron’s cover, and then an old friend (Frank Wolf) of Eddie joins the thieves and begins testing him with very tricky questions.

In Mystery Island, while loading precious cargo in Macao, The Baron loses Cordelia and secretly boards the ship where she was last seen. After the ship leaves Macao, The Baron reunites with Cordelia, and the two become aware of a brilliant operation to steal a state-of-the-art American-made space capsule. On the way to an unknown exotic island, the skipper, after revealing that he is the mastermind behind the operation, and his crew neutralize a CIA agent pretending to be working on the ship but gathering information about their brilliant operation. Once the ship reaches its destination, The Baron and Cordelia escape, and, while the space capsule is redirected by the skipper’s partners working inside a hidden satellite station, the brilliant operation begins to fall apart.

Several writers that worked on The Saint -- Harry W. Junkin, Terry Nation, Brian Degas, and Michael Cramoy -- scripted multiple episodes of The Baron. As a result, there are some thematic and stylistic similarities between the two TV shows. However, The Baron is a lot easier to compare to Man in a Suitcase, which has another charismatic chameleon who does jobs for high-ranking government officials in London and Washington D.C. In The Saint, Roger Moore plays an early version of the James Bond that will replace the then-current version of it that Sean Connery legitimized.

Something else that makes The Baron unique is its reluctance to be glamorous, particularly considering the rather striking appearance of its male lead. In The Saint and especially The Persuaders!, Moore and the camera rarely miss a good opportunity to emphasize that his profession offers great perks -- like exciting travel, seemingly endless credit lines, and of course spending time in the company of many gorgeous ladies. In The Baron, Forrest is stuck with Lloyd, so he rarely gets a decent opportunity to loosen up and claim that it is work-related.

*A third disc offers another episode of The Baron and three additional episodes of other TV shows with contributions from Lloyd. They are: Something for a Rainy Day (from The Baron), The White Rat (from Gideon's Way), Island of Chance (from The Saint), and Black Out (from Department S).

The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in aspect ratios of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted 1080p transfers, The Man in a Looking Glass and Mystery Island arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films.

Both films have been fully restored from original 35mm elements and look very good in high-definition. Some visuals look just a tad softer than I would have preferred, but not because they are filtered. This softness is inherited from the 35mm and somewhat exacerbated by the less-than-ideal encoding. Still, even on a very large screen, all visual boast very pleasing delineation, clarity, and depth. Color balance is good. Perhaps select primaries could be slightly better saturated, but there are no anomalies and the overall color balance of both films is very convincing. Image stability is good. I did not encounter any troubling anomalies introduced by digital correction. Both films produce healthy visuals. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: All three Blu-ray discs in this box set are Region-Free).

The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Man in a Looking Glass and Mystery Island are presented with LPCM 2.0 tracks. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for each film.

Both films have good soundtracks. However, it is very easy to tell that when they were created dynamic variety was not a top priority. Also, because the two films were completed in the early 1960s from TV material, it is just as easy to tell that continuity was managed differently, too. What does this mean? Sometimes the music is just a decoration that is easily and quickly added and removed. All exchanges are very clear, sharp, and easy to follow. I did not encounter any issues to report.

The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

DISC ONE - THE MAN IN A LOOKING CLASS

• Episodic Versions - presented here are the two original TV episodes that were used to create the feature film.
  
  1. Masquerade. In English, not subtitled. Fully restored. (52 min).
  2. The Killing. In English, not subtitled. Fully restored. (52 min).

• Commentary - this new audio commentary was recorded by restorer Jonathan Wood and ITC historian Rick Davy.

• The Man with My Face - alternate titles for The Man in a Looking Glass. Music only. (2 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a fully restored original theatrical trailer for The Man in a Looking Glass. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Interview with Sue Lloyd - in this archival program, Sue Lloyd reveals that she knew "the Americans wanted her in" and recalls what it was like to work with Steve Forrest during the filming of The Man in a Looking Glass. The program was produced in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (9 min).

• Interview with Johnny Goodman - in this archival program, production supervisor Johnny Goodman explains when and how he was invited to work on The Man in a Looking Glass and discusses his initial impression of Steve Forrest and the shooting process. Apparently, after arriving from America, Forrest had a pretty difficult time adjusting to the more relaxed working environment in the United Kingdom. The program was produced in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (5 min).

• Photo Gallery - presented here is a large collection of production stills. Silent. (5 min).

DISC TWO - MYSTERY ISLAND

• Episodic Versions - presented here are the two original TV episodes that were used to create the feature film.
  
  1. Storm Warning. In English, not subtitled. Fully restored. (52 min).
  2. The Island. In English, not subtitled. Fully restored. (52 min).

• ITC Entertained the World: The Baron - presented here is an audio podcast discussion about the TV show, played over Mystery Island. In English, not subtitled.

• The Mysterious Journey - presented here are alternate titles for Mystery Island. Music only. (2 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a fully restored original theatrical trailer for Mystery Island. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Sue Lloyd and Johnny Goodman in Conversation - in this archival program, Sue Lloyd and Johnny Goodman share funny stories from decades earlier, when they were hired to work together on The Baron. The program was produced in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Photo Gallery - presented here is a large collection of production stills. Silent. (3 min).

• Ad-Break Bumpers - with music only. (1 min).

• Opening Titles with Sponsorship Tag - with music only. (1 min).

• Restoration Comparison - presented here are several before-and-after comparisons. With music. (1 min).

• Memorabilia Gallery - presented here is archival promotional material from across the world. Silent. (6 min).

DISC THREE - SUE LLOYD

• Episodes - presented here is another episode of The Baron and three additional episodes of other TV shows with contributions from Lloyd. They are:
  
  1. Something for a Rainy Day (from The Baron).
  2 The White Rat (from Gideon's Way).
  3. Island of Chance (from The Saint).
  4. Black Out (from Department S).

• Photo Gallery - presented here is a large collection of stills featuring Sue Lloyd. With music. (8 min).

ADDITIONAL CONTENT

• Booklet - 80-page booklet featuring an essay on The Baron by television writer/historian Andrew Pixley, and press/ story information from the original studio files.

The Baron: The Feature Films Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Baron exists for the same reason The Saint and Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond do. All of these guys aspire to be like James Bond. Make of this what you will. It is easy to declare that they copy some of Bond's tricks to impress, but how could they not? Bond and his adventures cover a lot of territory. The two feature films in Imprint's three-disc box set are created with material from the TV show and have a vintage appearance that I think is wonderful. Both are fully restored and look lovely on Blu-ray, too. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.