The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 29, 2020

Joseph H. Lewis' "The Undercover Man" (1949) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage promotional materials for the film; audio commentary by critic Tony Rayns; and short films. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

What are you selling?

I don’t know anything about the article that reportedly inspired Joseph H. Lewis to direct The Undercover Man. Maybe it was a true eye-opener that inspired a lot of people to start seeing reality from a different angle, and Lewis was one of them. However, I feel very comfortable speculating that the screenplay Jack Rubin and Sydney Boehm delivered to Lewis does some very serious truth-stretching. In fact, I’d say there is a good chance that Lewis, or someone on his behalf, secretly made sure that the IRS approved of it and only then the film got made. Why? Because the film is essentially one big promotional piece for the IRS. No, there is nothing wrong with that, but the manner in which it insists to be taken seriously is, to put it mildly, quite problematic.

IRS agent Frank Warren (Glenn Ford) is a part of a very small team of professionals that have been going hard after The Big Fellow, who runs The Syndicate and its branches across the country. (The film never reveals the true identity of this mysterious character, but makes it crystal-clear that he is a top mafia boss). But thanks to Ed O'Rourke (Barry Kelley), The Big Fellow’s personal lawyer, Warren and his colleagues have been unable to make any progress. Frustrated with their inability to gather legal evidence proving that The Big Fellow is a big tax dodger operating a massive racketeering ‘business’, Warren decides to try a new strategy. He identifies The Big Fellow’s top accountants and then offers the most vulnerable ones a chance to get out of The Syndicate and start a new life in exchange for documents incriminating their boss. A couple of the accountants reveal willingness to consider the offer, but soon after turn up dead. While on the verge of giving up, Warren then tracks down a compromised Italian mafioso-turned-bookie (Anthony Caruso) who has been smart enough to keep a small ledger with a massive number of illegal transactions that can bring down The Big Fellow.

There is a lot to dislike throughout the film but the main source of its troubles is the inexorable intent to promote Warren and the other agents that assist him as underappreciated war heroes. They are left alone to fight an invisible enemy in a dangerous metropolis and while the battle between good and evil rages on many of them crack under the pressure and lose their lives. An old-timer who has assisted the IRS for decades blows his brains out. Another old-timer drops his badge and walks away. Warren nearly quits his job after he is warned that he can lose his wife in an accident as well. Investigating tax fraud as a deadly profession? I am fine with it being an unrewarding, even demoralizing profession, but a deadly one? C’mon. And the idea that the government will just abandon a couple of its agents while they pursue a high-profile target like The Big Fellow is simply laughable. It does not take a genius to figure out that The Big Fellow is Al Capone, and we know for a fact that he wasn’t taken down by a couple of overworked idealists.

Then there is all the soapy melodrama that can give an aspirin a headache. The worst of it comes up towards the end. When the compromised bookie is executed, his teenage daughter and her grandma appear before Warren and while the little girl translates her speech from Italian to English, he changes his mind and decides to stick around and finish a job he hasn’t been able to do right for years. Of course, there is also is an entirely predictable sequence in which Warren meets O’Rourke, breaks his resistance, and proves that persistence is what the IRS heroes need to win their wars.

Ford looks good but the ridiculous situations the script routinely pushes him in make it absolutely impossible for him to convince that his character is legit. Kay Medford, who has a very small part playing a club dancer in love with the compromised bookie, is actually the most believable and likeable character in the entire film.

The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Undercover Man arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

The film has a dated appearance of the type that older masters typically produce. For example, a lot of the background information that should produce fine nuances is very inconsistent -- some of it reveals plenty of crushing, and some is just lacking the definition and clarity that strengthen depth (see screencapture #20 and 23). Contrast is also elevated and as a result a lot of minor issues are exacerbated. The grading job is tad too aggressive as well. Plenty, and in some areas all, of the crushing could have been avoided, which could have given the film a much more pleasing organic appearance. As it is some areas look decent, but elsewhere the visuals becomes quite thick or/and flat. Image stability is good. Some minor spots and blemishes can be seen, but there are no distracting large cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is clear and stable. Considering the age of the film, dynamic intensity is also good. The music can a tad thin at times, but I think that this is an inherited limitation. The upper register is free of distracting age-related imperfections. There are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report in our review.

The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Image Gallery - a collection of vintage promotional materials for The Undercover Man.

• Commentary - in this audio commentary, critic and filmmaker Tony Rayns discusses the narrative construction of The Undercover Man, the different characters and relationships, Joseph H. Lewis' style and legacy, etc.

• Man on a Bus - Joseph H. Lewis directed this short film in 1955. It is about six people who have recently immigrated to Israel. In English, with optional English subtitles. (29 min).

• The Three Stooges in Income Tax Sappy - produced and directed by Jules White in 1954. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles. (17 min).

• Book - a limited edition exclusive 120-page book with new essays by Iris Veysey, Paul Duane, Jill Blake, Wheeler Winston Dixon, Nathalie Morris, and Sergio Angelini;archival interview extracts with Budd Boetticher, Joseph H Lewis, Phil Karlson, and Robert Aldrich; extracts from the autobiographies of Don Siegel and Vincent Sherman; and film credits.

The Undercover Man Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Folks expecting a quality film noir from The Undercover Man will not be impressed. It is a straightforward crime film with a social conscience that is utterly incompatible with authenticity. Frankly, it looks and feels a lot like a big promotional piece for the IRS, and Glenn Ford's talent is completely wasted in it. The disc we have reviewed is included in Indicator/Powerhouse Films' upcoming Columbia Noir #1 box set.