Arrow Academy has announced that it will release on Blu-ray John Gilling's
Pickup Alley (1957) and Anthony Mann's
The Far Country (1954). The two releases will be available for purchase this November.
Pickup Alley
Synopsis: Stylishly directed by genre film journeyman John Gilling (Plague of the Zombies), Pickup Alley is a long-unseen crime film gem, set amongst the seedy milieu of the international narcotics trade.
Spurred on by the murder of his drug-addicted sister by ruthless crime boss Frank McNally (Trevor Howard, Brief Encounter), US agent Charles Sturgis (Victor Mature, Cry of the City) launches a transnational woman-hunt for McNally's shapely associate, Gina Broger (Anita Ekberg, Killer Nun, La dolce vita). His investigation takes him on a thrill-ride from New York to London, Lisbon, Rome, Naples and finally Athens...
A globe-trotting adventure boasting a top-tier international cast, Pickup Alley affords the viewer shockingly frank portrayals of drug addiction; a glamourous travelogue of exotic locations, and intriguing depictions of sleazy villains. Produced by Irving Allen and Cubby Broccoli's Warwick Films, this British cult classic now makes a welcome return in High Definition with a heavy dose of new extras.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation transferred from original film elements
- Uncompressed Mono 1.0 PCM audio soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- The Warwick Way, writer and curator Josephine Botting on the prolific and successful production company, Warwick Films
- Original 1957 US theatrical release prologue by Congressman Hale Boggs, Chairman of the US Senate Committee of Narcotics
- Original theatrical trailer and TV spot
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring two original artwork options
- First pressing only: Fully Illustrated booklet with a newly commissioned essay by British cinema scholar Robert Murphy
UK STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 4.
The Far Country
Synopsis: An archetypal example of its genre, The Far Country is one of five superb westerns the screen legend James Stewart (Vertigo, Man of the West) made with acclaimed Hollywood auteur Anthony Mann (El Cid, The Man from Laramie).
Mann's film tells of Jeff Webster (Stewart) and his sidekick Ben Tatum (Walter Brennen, My Darling Clementine): two stoic adventures driving cattle to market from Wyoming to Canada who come to logger heads with a corrupt judge (John McIntire, Psycho) and his henchmen. Ruth Romain (Strangers on a Train) plays a sultry saloon keeper who falls for Stewart, teaming up with him to take on the errant lawman.
An epic saga set during the heady times of the Klondike Gold Rush, The Far Country captures the scenic grandeur of northern Canada's icy glaciers and snow-swept mountains in vivid Technicolor. Mann's direction expertly steers the film to an unorthodox, yet thrilling 'all guns-blazing' finale, whilst the imposing landscape takes on a whole new splendour in High Definition.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- Two presentations of The Far Country in both original aspect ratios of 1.85:1 and 2.00:1
- Brand new 4K restoration from the original film elements by Arrow Films
- Original 1.0 audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Limited edition booklet with new writing on the film by Philip Kemp and original reviews
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
DISC ONE
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the film in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1
- New audio commentary by film scholar Adrian Martin
- American Frontiers: Anthony Mann at Universal, an all-new, feature-length documentary with Mann biographer Alan K. Rode, western author C. Courtney Joyner, script supervisor Michael Preece, and critics Michael Schlesinger and Rob Word
- Mann of the West, a newly filmed appraisal of Far Country and the westerns of Anthony Mann by the critic Kim Newman
- Image gallery
- Original trailer
DISC TWO
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the film in the alternate original aspect ratio of 2.00:1
U.S. STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 12.
UK STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 11.