I recently watched Hell in the Pacific (1968), directed by John Boorman and starring Lee Marvin and Toshiro Mifune. If you haven’t seen it, you should. Here’s why.
Kino Lorber
Film Noir Releases in February 2019
Wow, there’s some great stuff coming out next month! Prepare yourselves (and your wallets)… Here we go!
Noirvember 2018, Episode 12: The Captive City (1952)
I absolutely love newspaper noir and this little gem needs to get talked about more. Learn why here.
Film Noir Releases in July 2018
If you’re new to my monthly Film Noir Releases posts, welcome! My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. (I also tend to leave out more recent films from the last several years.) Unless otherwise noted, the following are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading.
If you’re not already planning on it, July might be a great month to go on vacation. July might prove to be the slimmest month for new film noir Blu-ray releases since I’ve been covering them. Still, I’ve found a few things that might be worth your time. Let’s take a look…
Film Noir Releases in June 2018
If you’re new to my monthly Film Noir Releases posts, welcome! My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. (I also tend to leave out more recent films from the last several years.) Unless otherwise noted, the following are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading.
As was the case last month, many of June’s must-have film noir releases come from Europe. I know many of you are resistant to purchase a region-free Blu-ray player, but I’ve had at least four people contact me this year about such players. Three of them have made purchases (I think the fourth will take the plunge soon) and have been very satisfied. With all of these great European (especially UK) releases cropping up each month, it’s hard to resist having a player that gives you access to such wonderful films.
Enough of my pitch! Although June is a light month for new releases, we still have plenty of temptations, including several films making their Blu-ray debut. Let’s take a look:
Film Noir Releases in March 2018 UPDATED
If you’re new to my monthly Film Noir Releases posts, welcome! My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. (I also tend to leave out more recent films from the last several years.) Unless otherwise noted, the following are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading.
While March includes a few interesting North American releases, now may be the time to consider a region-free Blu-ray player if you haven’t already done so. But if you want to stay within the U.S. and Canada, Twilight Time, Kino Lorber and ClassicFlix offer some nice titles in March. Let’s get started.
Noirvember 2017, Episode 30: Hangover Square (1945)
Hangover Square (1945) John Brahm
TCM (1:18)
“I’ve worked all my life for this one night.”
This line spoken by composer George Harvey Bone (Laird Cregar) is chilling in the context of the film and even more so as you consider its off-screen significance, which I’ll cover momentarily. Bone is a late 19th/early 20th century London composer who suffers from amnesia, a condition triggered by loud, discordant sounds. We see a spectacular display of this in the film’s opening scene, a great beginning for a gaslight noir that’s impressive on its own merits of decor and costume, but add in a crazed murder and we’re hooked. Director John Brahm knows the period well and proves himself expert in making the era come alive as he also did one year earlier in The Lodger (also starring both Laird Cregar and George Sanders).
Film Noir Releases in December 2017
Photo: Film Riot
If you’re new to my monthly Film Noir Releases posts, welcome. My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. Unless otherwise noted, the following are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading.
Let’s face it: the pickings are quite slim in December, but after the holidays, who really has any money anyway? Yet December does offer at least one must-own disc and an epic collection for those who have a Region B or region free player. So let’s get started:
Film Noir Releases in November 2017
Photo: Film Riot
If you’re new to my monthly Film Noir Releases posts, welcome! My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. Unless otherwise noted, these are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading!
As far as new releases go, November 2017 isn’t exactly a barn burner… But Noirvember does offer a classic from Criterion, a nice UK Region B box set, and maybe a few other temptations for you. Let’s get started:
Film Noir Releases in October 2017
If you’re new to my monthly film noir releases post, welcome! My goal is to cover all the first-time releases to Blu-ray and DVD, usually passing over reissues unless there’s a good reason to include them. Unless otherwise noted, these are all North American Region A Blu-ray discs. I often use the terms “film noir” and “neo-noir” rather loosely, so while you may quibble with some of my choices, I hope these are films you’ll at least consider. As always, if you know of any film noir or neo-noir films I’ve left out, please let me know in the comments below. And thanks for reading!
It should come as no surprise that October is ruled by horror releases, but there are still some nice noir titles to be had including a motherlode box set that will excite most any noir fan provided they can speak and understand French (and own a region-free Blu-ray player). Let’s see what October holds…
Journeys in Darkness and Light 
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