Firstly, a massive thank you to our Patreon supporters. These supporters have become the single biggest contributing factor to the survival of DVDBeaver. Your assistance is essential to our survival.

 

What do Patrons receive, that you don't?

 

1) Our weekly Newsletter and Calendar Updates sent to your Inbox!
2) Access to over 100,000 unpublished screen captures in lossless high-resolution format!

 

Please consider keeping us in existence with a couple of dollars or more each month (your pocket change! / a coffee!) so we can continue to do our best in giving you timely, thorough reviews, calendar updates and detailed comparisons. I am indebted to your generosity.


 

Search DVDBeaver

S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

 

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XIX [3 X Blu-ray]
 

No Man of Her Own (1950)      Dark City (1950)


Beware, My Lovely (1952)

 

 

No Man of Her Own (1950) – Every Door Closed Against Her…A Woman Faces the Age-Old Problem of Her Sex! The incandescent Barbara Stanwyck (Double Indemnity, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers) shines as a woman torn between a comfortable lie and the painful truth in this heart-wrenching noir classic. Helen Ferguson (Stanwyck), penniless, pregnant and dumped by her slimy boyfriend Steve (Lyle Bettger, Union Station), assumes the identity of a pregnant woman who was killed in a train crash. Eventually Helen’s sordid past catches up to her when Steve arrives demanding money to keep her true identity a secret from the man who loves her (John Lund, Night Has a Thousand Eyes.) Gorgeously shot by cinematographer Daniel L. Fapp (The Big Clock, The Great Escape) and directed by Hollywood ace Mitchell Leisen (Death Takes a Holiday, Murder at the Vanities), this pitch-black masterpiece of harrowing melodrama was adapted from the book I Married a Dead Man by crime-writing king Cornell Woolrich (The Chase, Rear Window).

Dark City (1950) – A Tense, Tough Drama of Underworld Violence and Revenge! After losing his company’s $5,000 cashier’s check in a crooked card game, a stranger in Chicago commits suicide. The other gamblers—including Danny Haley, played by steely screen legend Charlton Heston (Touch of Evil) in his Hollywood debut—worry about the dangers of cashing the check, but this soon becomes the least of their concerns when the head of the group is found hanged. Police Captain Garvey (Dean Jagger, Pursued) concludes the hanging to be a case of homicide and discovers that the stranger had a mentally deranged brother (Mike Mazurki, Murder, My Sweet) who is out for vengeance. Fran (Lizabeth Scott, Pitfall), a torch singer who is desperately in love with Danny, begs him to run away with her before it’s too late. This stunningly cynical morality tale also features the stars of TV’s Dragnet 1967, Jack Webb and Harry Morgan, as Danny’s gambling partners. Directed by the dynamic William Dieterle (Portrait of Jennie, Rope of Sand) and bathed in black-and-white by cinematographer Victor Milner (The General Died at Dawn).

Beware, My Lovely (1952) – Trapped by a Man Beyond Control! Screen heavyweights Ida Lupino (Woman in Hiding) and Robert Ryan (Odds Against Tomorrow) square off in this stylish and atmospheric thriller. Wealthy widow Helen Gordon (Lupino) hires drifter Howard Wilton (Ryan) as a handyman to do chores around her rambling mansion. What she doesn’t know: Howard Wilton is insane. Insecure and paranoid, Wilton thinks everyone, including Helen, is against him. He suffers from memory lapses and extreme mood swings. She’s soon a prisoner in her own home after Wilton locks the doors and tears out the telephone. His mood swings from violence to complacency but after Helen gets a message to the police via a telephone repairman, she finds he is still in the house. Beware, My Lovely is a spine-chilling suspense story shot by cinematographer George E. Diskant (On Dangerous Ground), written by noir specialist Mel Dinelli (The Spiral Staircase, House by the River) and helmed by noted art director Harry Horner (The Heiress, The Hustler).

Posters

Theatrical Release: May 3rd, 1950 - August 29th, 1952

Reviews                                                           More Reviews                                                   DVD Reviews

 

Review: Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

Bonus Captures:

Distribution Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime No Man of Her Own (1950): 1:37:40.062
Dark City (1950): 1:37:37.768
Beware, My Lovely (1952): 1:16:56.945
Video

No Man of Her Own:

1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 23,011,626,618 bytes

Feature: 21,634,775,040 bytes

Video Bitrate: 25.94 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Dark City:

1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 24,282,596,617 bytes

Feature: 22,669,363,200 bytes

Video Bitrate: 27.53 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Beware, My Lovely:

1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 22,289,765,388 bytes

Feature: 21,276,561,408 bytes

Video Bitrate: 33.20 Mbps

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate No Man of Her Own Blu-ray:

Bitrate Dark City Blu-ray:

Bitrate Beware, My Lovely Blu-ray:

Audio

DTS-HD Master Audio English 1556 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1556 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Commentaries:

Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -31dB

Subtitles English (SDH), None
Features Release Information:
Studio:
Kino

 

Edition Details:

• NEW Audio Commentary for No Man of Her Own by Film Historian Imogen Sara Smith
• NEW Audio Commentary for No Man of Her Own by Film Historian/Writer Julie Kirgo and Writer/Filmmaker Peter Hankoff
• NEW Audio Commentary for Dark City by Author/Film Historian Alan K. Rode
• Audio Commentary for Beware, My Lovely by Professor and Film Scholar Jason A. Ney
• Theatrical Trailers (No Man of Her Own - 2:20 / Dark City - 2:14 / Beware, My Lovely - 2:01 low-res)


Blu-ray
Release Date: June 18th, 2024
Standard
Blu-ray Case inside hard case

Chapters 9 / 9 / 9

 

 

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Kino Blu-ray (June 2024): Kino have transferred another three films for their nineteenth edition of Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema series to three, single-layered, Blu-rays. This has 1950's No Man of Her Own and Dark City as well as Beware, My Lovely from 1952. They are cited as being from a "New HD Masters by Paramount Pictures – All from 4K Scans". We reviewed the 2012 Olive DVD of No Man of Her Own, HERE and compared it to the 2022 Imprint Blu-ray (in their Essential Noir Collection #3) HERE. We also compared the Dark City, 2010 Olive DVD and 2012 Blu-ray HERE and have compared some captures for both films below. No Man of Her Own looks superior to the Olive release from over a decade ago. This 1080P has more information in the frame (notably side and bottom edges.) It's really not much of a comparisons as the Kino outdoes the Olive handily - with contrast balance being a key to the improvement. Also showing more information in the 1.37:1 frame is Dark City that is, appropriately darker. It exports a shade of depth and the texture is more consistent. It still has more than average speckles but I judge it to be the better HD presentation. I suspect that the reason Beware, My Lovely has not even had a DVD release until now is that the elements are in imperfect condition. It's not that bad a few spots with damage (se samples below), muddy contrast and softness - that look inherent. It's fully watchable but could do with a film-level restoration. Nonetheless I was thrilled to finally have it on physical disc.      

NOTE: We have added 146 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Kino uses DTS-HD Master dual-mono tracks (24-bit) in the original English language for all three films. There is the anticipated violence that come with the cycle; guns, a train crash, police raid etc.) but nothing extraneous in terms of bass response.  The score for No Man Of Her Own was by Hugo Friedhofer (Plunder of the Sun, One-Eyed Jacks Two Flags West, Man in the Attic, Ace in the Hole, Body and Soul, Gilda, The Bishop's Wife.) The score for Dark City was by Franz Waxman (The Devil Doll, Bride of Frankenstein, Fury, Untamed, Rebecca, Dark Passage, Rear Window, Sunset Boulevard etc.) and there are a few numbers 'performed' by Lizabeth Scott (dubbed by Trudy Stevens); I Don't Want to Walk without You, A Letter from a Lady in Love, That Old Black Magic, I Wish I Didn't Love You So and If I Didn't Have You. I found these numbers kind of a filler in the film and they sound okay in the lossless. The score for Beware, My Lovely was by Leith Stevens (Crashout, When World's Collide, I Married a Monster From Outer Space, Great Day in the Morning, The Gun Runners, Syncopation, World Without End, The Night of the Grizzly, 20 Million Miles to Earth, The Garment Jungle) No flaws - the audio comes through authentically flat for all three, plus consistent and clean with clearly audible dialogue. Kino offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The Kino Blu-ray package offers four new commentaries. There are two for No Man of Her Own - first by one of our favorites - film historian Imogen Sara Smith (author of In Lonely Places: Film Noir Beyond the City) and a second by film historian/writer Julie Kirgo (author of Becoming John Ford) and writer/filmmaker Peter Hankoff (Producer of The Cold Blue). Imogen talks about it being "small town noir" or "domestic noir" and talks about her all-time favorite actress, Barbara Stanwyck and how No Man of Her Own has a  theme that haunts her filmography; a woman's complicated and tortured relationship with home, she states that this is director Mitchell Leisen's only noir, and why she feels he is underrated as well as oodles more about the cast, production and observations about Noir. Julie and Peter talk about this as a "romantic noir" and they discuss No Man of Her Own as a cross between noir and melodrama, Julie's two favorite genres. They talk about Stanwyck's voiceovers, and much more. They make a good pairing. Dark City offers a commentary by noir stalwart Alan K. Rode (author of Charles McGraw: Biography of a Film Noir Tough Guy) who talks about this being Charlton Heston's feature debut and how he would become one of Hollywood's biggest stars in the 1950's and 60s. He states that Hal Wallis was one of the most effective and efficient film producers, and he cites many films, talks of the impressive cast (Lizabeth Scott, Viveca Lindfors, Dean Jagger, Don DeFore, Ed Begley, Jack Webb and Harry Morgan,) director William Dieterle and he fills the running time with interesting information - another gem of 'dark cinema' analysis. There is also a commentary by Professor and film scholar Jason A. Ney on Beware, My Lovely. He talks about how rare this film has been on home video with only a VHS tape in existence before this Blu-ray. He informs us that Beware, My Lovely is based on the 1950 play The Man by Mel Dinelli, (who also wrote the screenplay) and it is far from the first adaptation - including the radio show Suspense - promoted as "To Find Help" in 1945 with Frank Sinatra and Agnes Moorehead and again as an episode of Suspense with Gene Kelly and Ethel Barrymore in 1949. Jason discusses clues of Howard Wilton's (Robert Ryan) cleanliness, and he identifies the number of times that the character's reflection appears in windows, mirrors and a Christmas ornament and what it represents. This is another strong commentary from Jason. Also included are trailers for each film with the last one, Beware, My Lovely, being low resolution. Plus there are trailers scattered across the three discs of, mostly, other noirs. 

Kino's Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema #19 Blu-ray is an all around excellent trifecta of important Noir cinema starring the likes of Barbara Stanwyck, Charlton Heston, Lizabeth Scott, Ida Lupino, and Robert Ryan. Their characters are navigating stories involving murder, mistaken identity, presumed amnesia, illegal gambling, unrequited love, and mental illness including paranoia. Beware, My Lovely is the big attraction never having been on physical disc previously. It's with Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan who had co-starred in Nicholas Ray's On Dangerous Ground, also released in 1952. Beware, My Lovely is a tension-building 'suburban damsel-in-distress noir' with excellent performances. No Man Of Her Own is a fabulous film with Stanwyck at her most vulnerable and compelling. While I love the title of "Dark City" I've only recently gained a further appreciation for the film as noir-crime cinema territory although I will continue to question the DUB'ed torch singer character played by Lizabeth Scott and her abundance of performance numbers utilized in the film. Meh. But I think this is one of the best Kino Blu-ray Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema series groupings in years. Great flics - including a must-own for devotees of the cycle and a desirable assemblage of Noir mainstay actors. Very much recommended.

Gary Tooze

 


Menus / Extras

 

No Man of Her Own

 

Dark City

Beware, My Lovely


CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

No Man of Her Own

 

1) Imprint - Region FREE - Blu-ray TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Olive - Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Imprint - Region FREE - Blu-ray TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Olive - Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


Dark City
 

 


1) Olive - Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


Jack Webb and Harry Morgan who would go on to famously co-star in television series Dragnet, 17 years later.

 

1) Olive - Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


1) Olive - Region 'A' - Blu-ray TOP

2) Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

 


Beware, My Lovely

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


Damage Samples on Beware My Lovely

 

(CLICK to ENLARGE)

 


 

More full resolution (1920 X 1080) Blu-ray Captures for DVDBeaver Patreon Supporters HERE

 

No Man of Her Own

 

Dark City

Beware, My Lovely

 

 
Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

Bonus Captures:

Distribution Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray


 


 

Search DVDBeaver

S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

 

Hit Counter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DONATIONS Keep DVDBeaver alive:

 CLICK PayPal logo to donate!

Gary Tooze

Thank You!