7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Englishwoman Susanne Mallinson visits postwar Berlin as the guest of her brother, Major Martin Mallinson, and his wife Bettina, whom he met during his initial stay in Berlin as a British Army doctor. Their union seems content, but Susanne soon notices Bettina has a closely guarded secret, one she is hiding both from her and from Martin. The secret involves a suave former German soldier who was wrongly presumed dead after 1944.
Starring: James Mason (I), Claire Bloom, Geoffrey Toone, Ernst Schröder, Hildegard KnefFilm-Noir | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Mystery | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 16-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Carol Reed's "The Man Between" (1953) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include new interview with star Claire Bloom; archival audio interview with James Mason; audio commentary by critic and author Simon Abrams; and vintage documentary. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
We are going to reach the other side -- and we will do it tonight.
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Man Between arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.
This film was digitally remastered before it made its high-definition debut via StudioCanal in the United Kingdom. This release is sourced from the same restored master that was used to produce this Region-B release.
Virtually the entire film looks really good, often even excellent, but there are a few spots with small age-related imperfections. For example, some of these spots reveal extremely light fading, though the overall balance of the visuals remains convincing. Minor density fluctuations can be spotted as well, but they are the type of inherited fluctuations that are either extremely difficult or impossible to address even with the latest digital tools. A few small blemishes and tiny cuts remain as well. The rest looks great. Delineation and clarity are quite wonderful and plenty of the darker footage from the chase boast excellent depth. I also like the grading job. The blacks are solid but balanced properly, plus the ranges of grays and whites look very convincing. There are no traces of problematic digital adjustments. Predictably, the entire film has a very pleasing organic appearance. 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).
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.
The audio is stable and very clear. The upper register is also clean and stable. I had the volume turned up quite a bit and did not detect any weaknesses to report in our review. On the contrary, I was actually somewhat surprised by the nicely rounded and thick sound that was coming out of my speakers.
Less romantic melodrama and a lot more Cold War suspense would have made The Man Between a vastly superior film. I doubt it would have matched the brilliance of The Third Man, but it could have been much closer to the type of film Carol Reed wanted it to be. So as it is, I find The Man Between attractive only because it has some pretty incredible footage from post-war Berlin, which is essential for period spy thrillers from its era, but I also see a lot in it that could have been managed much better. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a very nice restored master that was supplied by StudioCanal. RECOMMENDED.
1955
1952
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1963
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1948
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1952
Warner Archive Collection
1943
1945
1955
Reissue
1957
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1948
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1954
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1950
1950
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1940
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1947
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