MADIGAN, Don Siegel, director/Indicator Kim Newman and I provided the commentary for this crucial Don Siegel crime movie, an essential link in the director’s stellar career leading from his classic earlier studio work to his phenomenal success with Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. Many of the tropes in the latter film are to be seen in embryo in this fascinating crime outing starring the always watchable Richard Widmark.
RAW DEAL, John Irvin, director/StudioCanal Now that Arnold Schwarzenegger is a late middle-aged actor who is prepared to take on character parts (rather like his once-equally muscular colleague of the day, Sylvester Stallone), it’s instructive to look back at films made in his heyday – high octane thrillers in which the violent action is delivered with energy. As here – and the success of Raw Deal (which shares a title with an earlier Anthony Mann crime classic) is much enhanced by the directorial presence of John Irvin, a neglected but considerable talent. StudioCanal’s disc is a new 4K restoration available in 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-Ray and DVD across their territories.
THE POLICE STORY TRILOGY, Jackie Chan, director/Eureka While Bruce Lee represented the violent apex of martial arts movies, his colleague and rival Jackie Chan has had a far longer career, channelling knockabout humour in his tongue-in-cheek action movies. The much-loved Police Story trilogy is a prime example of Chan’s remarkable acrobatic skills – along with many examples of the well-known stunts which left Chan and his unlucky stuntmen in hospital. The trilogy comes to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray for the first time as part of the Eureka Classics range in Ultra HD Blu-ray debuts from 4K restorations. The Limited-Edition set (4000 copies only) will feature a Hardbound Slipcase & 100-page Collector’s Booklet.
VENGEANCE IS MINE, ALL OTHERS PAY CASH, Edwin, director/Arrow This is a real curio — phantasmagoric, full-fat example of Southeast Asian action cinema, crammed with strange linguistic line readings that will bring the viewer up short. Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash, from the acclaimed Indonesian director Edwin (no surname!) and based on the novel by Eka Kurniawan. The film won the Golden Leopard at the 2021 Locarno Film Festival, and it’s a loving tribute to vintage South East Asian film. The uncompromising films of Takashi Miike, are in the mix here, with striking cinematography and razor-sharp editing. However it should be noted that the fractured intonation and articulation of the dialogue may not be every taste – but it does add to the individual character of the film
NEW FROM 88 FILMS THE VIOLENT PROFESSIONALS, HUMAN LANTERNS, ZEDER, FLYING GUILLOTINE PART II, MARTIAL CLUB, various directors/88 Films. A final heads up for four films for which I provided booklet essays. All represent precisely the kind of eccentric, larger-than-life, colourful fare from abroad that is an 88 Films speciality. Writing essays for these films was particularly pleasurable, because the films themselves – all with a variety of exploitation virtues — look so good in these splendid Blu-ray transfers. If you seen any of them in fuzzy VHS copies, put those memories out of mind and reacquaint yourself with this intriguing batch.
COMING FROM INDICATOR: UNIVERSAL NOIR #1 Indicator follows its series of Columbia Noir box sets with the first in a new series dedicated to the noir output of another major Hollywood studio – Universal Pictures (once again with commentaries by me and Kim Newman). Starring such high-profile talent as Burt Lancaster, Joan Fontaine, Shelley Winters, Dan Duryea, Vincent Price, Edmond O’Brien, Sterling Hayden, Gloria Grahame and Jeff Chandler, UNIVERSAL NOIR #1 features embezzlement and murder (THE WEB), confidence tricksters (LARCENY), lovers on the lam (KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS), an adoption racket (ABANDONED), transatlantic criminals (DEPORTED), and police brutality (NAKED ALIBI). This stunning collection marks the UK Blu-ray premieres of all six films, and contains an array of fascinating contextualising extras, including newly recorded commentaries for each film, critical appreciations, archival short films, and a 120-page book. Then, on 20 September, Indicator adds to its growing collection of US releases with Anthony Asquith’s riveting wartime thriller ORDERS TO KILL. Mastered from the finest available materials, each of these essential releases contains expertly encoded presentations, a range of new and archival extra features, English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing, and booklets with new essays, historical articles, contemporary reviews, and film credits.
ESSENTIAL FILM NOIR COLLECTION 3, various directors/Imprint The third ‘Essential’ noir collection includes the work of such directors such as Lewis Milestone, Mitchell Leisen, William Dieterle and William Wyler, with stars including Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Lisabeth Scott, Kirk Douglas, William Holden, Alexis Smith, Edmond O’Brien, Humphrey Bogart, Fredric March. The films? THE STRANGE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS, NO MAN OF HER OWN, THE TURNING POINT AND THE DESPERATE HOURS. For commentaries, Imprint has turned to (you guessed it!) Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw.
