7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Political corruption is vividly depicted as a ruthless WWI veteran takes almost complete control of a state with the help of a crooked lawyer. The film is enhanced by John Payne's persuasive performance as "The Boss."
Starring: John Payne (I), William Bishop (I), Doe Avedon, Roy Roberts, Rhys Williams (I)Drama | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
BDInfo verified
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 2.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Byron Haskin's "The Boss" (1956) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new audio commentary by author and film historian Alan K. Rode as well as vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
It ain't enough to be greeted as a hero. What do I have now?
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Boss arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.
The film has been remastered in 2K and looks quite good in high-definition. However, you should not expect it to have the consistent healthy appearance proper 2K restorations deliver. What does this mean exactly? It means that different parts of the film reveal minor but noticeable surface wear, plus some of the same areas can have less than optimal density levels because of inherited source limitations. There are even a few shaky transitions. But the overall appearance of the visuals is still very good, so the type of organic qualities that we expect to see are definitely there to be seen and appreciated. For example, many close-ups boast good to very good delineation, clarity, and depth. Shadow nuances are usually pretty good, too. Some small ranges of grays and whites can be somewhat uneven, but the grayscale is convincing as well. So, while there is definitely room for various cosmetic improvements, the new 2K master that was struck for this release offers a fine organic presentation of The Boss. (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).
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.
Clarity, sharpness, and stability are very good. Dynamic intensity is quite good too, but the only notable contrasts emerge during the big shootout at the end and in a couple of areas where the music has a prominent role to play. Most unfortunately, the audio track has a pretty big flaw. I do not know whether it is inherited or a byproduct of some encoding anomaly, but it is the type of flaw that makes viewing and enjoying the film almost impossible. What is this big flaw? It is a heavy thumping sound that reappears in various areas. I like to have the volume of my system turned up quite a bit so that I can clearly hear everything that is being said and found this thumping sound seriously distracting. It felt as if someone was constantly hitting my coffee table with a shoe. The thumping sound does not affect clarity and sharpness. It does not produce any distortions in the upper register either. Perhaps some viewers will be able to tolerate it, but I found it extremely annoying. There are digital tools that could be used to remove such flaws, so this master should not have been approved for Blu-ray before the thumping was effectively removed.
Even though The Boss isn't the film I think it was supposed to be, I like it quite a lot. I think that its biggest flaw is the lack of courage to go deep in the rabbit hole that Tom Pendergast's machine created, but for a number of very obvious reasons this was probably an unavoidable scenario. Kino Lorber's release of The Boss is sourced from a good exclusive new 2K master, but there is an audio issue on it that I found quite annoying. It is included in Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema VII, a three-disc box set.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1973
1960
Warner Archive Collection
1993
1950
1948
Limited Edition to 3000
1956
1968
Warner Archive Collection
1953
1943
1996
1958
1955
1997
Warner Archive Collection
1962
Warner Archive Collection
1964
1965
1997
1962
1972
1974