Things were so crazy the last few weeks before vacation that I neglected to report any film noir Blu-ray/DVD releases for July, but August is looking pretty sweet, thanks largely to Kino Lorber, who’s releasing four noir titles next month. Here’s the full rundown of everything that’s coming out. If you know of any releases that I’ve missed, please leave a comment.
August 4:
Night and the City (1950) – Criterion
Criterion has released some very nice film noir titles of late (Ride the Pink Horse, The Killers), so I’m very excited for the release (actually a re-release/upgrade) of this Jules Dassin film starring one of my noir favorites Richard Widmark. This edition will include both the 95-minute American version and the 101-minute British version.
He Ran All the Way (1951) – Kino Lorber
This John Garfield/Shelley Winters film directed by John Berry is the first of four noir releases from Kino Lorber in August. The script was written by Dalton Trumbo, Guy Endore and Hugo Butler. Those names alone are enough to get my attention.
Big House U.S.A. (1955) – Kino Lorber
Howard W. Koch’s film may be more of a crime/prison-escape flick than a film noir, but it’s still worth checking out if only for the cast: Broderick Crawford, Ralph Meeker, William Talman, Lon Chaney, and Charles Bronson, for cry in’ out loud!
Foreign Intrigue (1956) – Kino Lorber
Robert Mitchum plays a press agent investigating the mysterious death of his millionaire boss. Directed by Harold Jack Bloom.
Storm Fear (1955) – Kino Lorber
Starring and directed by Cornel Wilde, this film may be more of an outlaw-on-the-lam movie than a film noir, but it also boasts an interesting cast, including Dan Duryea, Jean Wallace, Lee Grant, and Dennis Weaver.
August 11:
House of Bamboo (1955) – Twilight Time
This movie is still available as a Fox Film Noir DVD for under $10, but if you want the Blu-ray, get it quickly, since Twilight Time normally only has a print run of 3,000 for most of their titles. Directed by Sam Fuller, this film stars noir mainstay Robert Ryan as well as Robert Stack, Cameron Mitchell, and Dr. McCoy himself, DeForest Kelley.
August 17:
Pickup on South Street (1953) Masters of Cinema/Eureka
If you own a region-free Blu-ray player and love noir, do not miss this dual format release of Sam Fuller’s classic starring Richard Widmark. This film was previously released on a Criterion DVD and maybe they’ll release a Blu-ray upgrade and maybe they won’t. I’m definitely going to pick this one up.
August 18:
This DVD-only set includes New York Confidential (1955), The Naked Kiss (1964), No Orchids for Miss Blandish (1948), and Scarlet Street (1945). All of these films have been released previously by other companies, so if you don’t already have them, the $19.99 price isn’t a bad deal.
August 25:
British Noir Kino Classics
With a retail price tag of $59.95, this collection of British noir films may seem overpriced, especially considering it’s a DVD-only release, but you do get five films, several of which are hard to find anywhere else:
They Met in the Dark (1943)
The October Man (1947) [currently streaming on Amazon Prime]
Snowbound (1948)
The Golden Salamander (1950) [also currently streaming on Amazon Prime]
The Assassin (aka Venetian Bird) (1952)
Again, if you know of other August film noir releases on Blu-ray or DVD, please share.
Journeys in Darkness and Light 
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