BFI Video has revealed the edition details for the 1961 classic
The Innocents, which, as previously reported (see blu-ray.com,
July 9), will come out in the UK on August 23. Jack Clayton's superbly haunting film retains the ambiguity of Henry James' novella
The Turn of the Screw from which it is adapted, and continues to inspire today's "haunted house" movies. It will be presented in 2.35:1 1080p video, with a mono uncompressed audio track (at 48kHz/24 bit).
Its sinister atmosphere is carefully created through Freddie Francis's beautiful CinemaScope photography, with its eerily indistinct long shots and mysterious manifestations at the edges of the frame; an evocative and spooky soundtrack; and the grand yet decaying Bly House.
Special features include:
- Full-feature commentary by Professor Christopher Frayling
- Filmed introduction by Christopher Frayling, on location at Sheffield Park House – where The Innocents was shot – on the making of the film
- The Bespoke Overcoat: Jack Clayton's 1955 award-winning short, adapted from Gogol's The Overcoat, follows a haunted tailor as he comes to terms with a friend's death
- Naples is a Battlefield: Clayton's rare (and un-credited) directorial debut, made for the RAF film unit, is a documentary account of the wartime destruction and reconstruction of Naples.
- Original US trailer
- Designed by Motley: Gallery of costume designs for The Innocents by prolific British designers Motley. With introduction and audio captions.
- Illustrated booklet with sleevenote essay by the League of Gentleman's Jeremy Dyson, an on-set report, director biography and more