This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 17, 2020

Frank Tuttle's "This Gun for Hire" (1942) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage trailer for the film; two archival radio adaptations; new audio commentary by critic Adrian Martin; and more. Also included with the release is an illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by film writer and journalist Barry Forshaw, and film writer Craig Ian Mann, as well as technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Even folks that regard Frank Tuttle’s This Gun for Hire very highly will often admit that it did not turn out as well as it should have. But in order to have them capitulate, you will have to engage them the right way. You can start with the fact that the film takes a lot of liberties with the original material from Graham Greene’s book, and then slowly move toward the casting choices and ultimately the chemistry between its stars. You will not be taken seriously, especially by film noir fans and experts, if you initiate your criticism with the film’s most obvious flaw, which is the inability of its stars to craft strong genre characters that connect the right way. Your criticism will immediately be dismissed if you pointed out that the plot is an unbelievable mish-mash of strange coincidences as well. In other words, you have to tread lightly so that at least initially it looks like there is a lot that you like about the film.

I am not a fan of this film and will instantly agree with anyone insisting that it is deeply flawed, but I enjoy it quite a bit. Here’s why:

The script that Albert Maltz and W. R. Burnett delivered actually isn’t right for a conventional film noir. It blends political drama with undercooked romance in a way that makes it virtually impossible for the stars to appear legit and act like rational human beings, but they are forced to do it because of the nature of their relationships. As a result, there is an ongoing, very unusual overlapping of contrasting realities that make the film seriously unpredictable. In the noirish reality, a hired killer (Alan Ladd) does a dangerous job for a high-roller (Laird Cregar) in San Francisco but after he gets paid realizes that he has been double-crossed, so he vows to terminate his employer no matter the cost. Somewhere along the way, the killer then bumps into a beautiful night club performer (Veronica Lake) who is about to audition for the high-roller and they connect while her boyfriend (Robert Preston), an ambitious detective, is tracking him down. In the other reality, the high-roller turns out to be a much bigger player selling military secrets, while the club performer meets a U.S. senator who wants the traitor captured the right way so that his contacts and clients are identified and neutralized as well. Because things move very quickly all of these people then begin making mistakes that seriously complicate their lives.

As you can tell from the above description, the film pulls in completely different directions while expecting its characters to remain entirely legit. Not only is this an impossible requirement, but there is something else that makes their ordeals even more bizarre. As the characters begin pursuing their goals the script introduces splashes of humor, which erodes the drama in a variety of unexpected ways. So, this is no longer noir territory, or political espionage territory -- it is anything goes territory.

By the time the action moves to LA the film shamelessly manipulates the audience into accepting the killer as a cool outsider who has been dealt a bad card and therefore deserves to walk away unharmed, which is another seriously unexpected twist. Keep in mind that this killer isn’t one of those soft professionals that have scruples, he is cold-blooded and ruthless, the type of professional that would always perform his duties as well as expected. The film just chooses to see him differently after he becomes involved with the night club performer. She does not like or love him either, she is just trying to stay alive and see that the killer’s target gets what he deserves. A strange film, full of even stranger flaws that make it surprisingly entertaining.

This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, This Gun for Hire arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a recent 4K master that Universal Pictures reportedly struck from the best surviving elements. However, I am not too impressed with the quality of this master. First, there is quite a bit of room for surface repairs that would have made the entire film look a lot healthier. Scratches, blemishes, and a few pretty big marks frequently pop up, so obviously the film was not 'fully restored'. There are plenty of fluctuations in terms of delineation and especially depth, and in certain areas there are visuals that actually look disappointingly noisy, exhibiting the type of flatness that you would typically encounter on masters from the DVD era. So, if viewed on a larger screen or projected, the film definitely reveals signs of aging. There is even some minor but noticeable frame instability that a proper restoration would have addressed. The good news is that the master is free of problematic digital corrections, so even with the above inconsistencies the entire film still has a very pleasing organic appearance. The grading job is convincing as well. There are strong but not artificially boosted blacks with proper ranges of gray and white nuances. (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).

This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

While viewing the film, I had the volume on my system turned up quite a bit and did not notice any distracting anomalies to report in our review. Even the upper register, where older films typically exhibit weaknesses, was very solid. The dialog is clear, stable, and always easy to follow. There were no pops or dropouts either.

This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for This Gun for Hire. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Stills Gallery - a collection of archival stills and promotional materials.

• Radio Adaption One - this archival radio adaption by Lux Radio Theatre features Alan Ladd and Joan Blondell. It was produced by Cecil B. DeMille and first aired on January 25, 1943. In English, not subtitled. (60 min).

• Radio Adaption Two - this archival audio adaptation by Screen Guild Theatre features Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. It first aired on April 2, 1945. (29 min).

• Audio Commentary - in this new audio commentary, critic Adrian Martin discusses some of the notable differences between Graham Greene's novel and Frank Tuttle's film, the cinematic style and tone of the film, the unique qualities of the main character and some of the more peculiar ways in which they engage each other, etc. The commentary was recorded exclusively for Eureka Entertainment.

• Booklet - an illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by film writer and journalist Barry Forshaw, and film writer Craig Ian Mann, as well as technical credits.

This Gun for Hire Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Most and probably all of the criticism that you will encounter while reading honest older reviews of This Gun for Hire is entirely legit because it is a very strange and full of odd flaws film. Believe it or not, it is precisely why I enjoy it. It takes off in different directions without worrying about the integrity of its characters and at one point even shamelessly manipulates its audience into accepting Alan Ladd's killer as a cool outsider who has been dealt a bad card and therefore deserves to walk away unharmed. Eureka Entertainment's release is sourced from a recent 4K master which has strong organic qualities but could have been healthier. RECOMMENDED.