Underground (1928) Blu-ray

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

We have started a Patreon page with the hopes that some of our followers would be willing to donate to keep DVDBeaver alive. We are a small niche, so your generosity is vital to our existence.

To those that are unfamiliar, Patreon is a secure/verified third-party service where users can agree to a monthly donation via credit card or PayPal by clicking the button below.

Search DVDBeaver

S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

Directed by Anthony Asquith
UK 1928

Introduced as a “story of ordinary workaday people,” Anthony Asquith’s Underground (1928) masterfully balances the light and dark sides of city life to evoke the daily existence of the average Londoner better than any other film from Britain’s silent canon. It tells the story of an electrician (Cyril McLaglen) and an underground porter (Brian Aherne) who both fall in love with the same shop girl (Elissa Landi). Asquith (A Cottage on Dartmoor, Shooting Stars) is one of the supreme stylists of the British silent cinema, and Underground is a grand display of his expressionistic talents.

***

Anthony Asquith's second film, Underground is a silent film that tells the triangular story of a young shop girl named Nell (Elissa Landi) and the two men who find themselves in love with her. One of these is Bill (Brian Aherne), a porter for London's underground; the other is Bert (Cyril MgLaglen), who works as an electrician at a power station. Nell chooses Bill for her love, but Bert does not take kindly to this news. He convinces his mistress, Kate (Norah Baring), to lie and pretend that Bill attacked her. Nell knows that this couldn't be true; she confronts Kate, who admits that Bert forced her to act in this way. Angry and with no further use for her, Bert breaks off totally with Kate, who then finds Bill and asks him to please take her to the power station so she can beg Bert to take her back. Bert loses his temper and kills Kate, then runs off to hide in the underground, pursued by Bill. The killer is eventually apprehended, and Bill and Nell are left to themselves at last.

Excerpt from B+N located HERE

Posters/ Theatrical Programme

Theatrical Release: July 1928

Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews

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

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: There was a Dual-Format Edition released by BFI
Distribution	Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:33:17.300
Video	1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 24,664,329,216 bytes Feature: 23,679,055,872 bytes Video Bitrate: 22.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	Score by Neil Brand: DTS-HD Master Audio English 4625 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 4625 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) DTS-HD Master Audio English 1996 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1996 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Alternate Score by Chris Watson: DTS-HD Master Audio English 2060 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2060 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	None (Opening English intertitle)
Features	Release Information: Studio: Kino 1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 24,664,329,216 bytes Feature: 23,679,055,872 bytes Video Bitrate: 22.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Restoring Underground (2009, 08:56) Blu-ray Release Date: April 23rd, 2019 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 12

Comments:

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

"Underground", like Shooting Stars this was restored (in 2009) and released on Blu-ray a couple of years ago by BFI. The 1.37:1 HD image will have come from that same restoration. The single-layered Kino Blu-ray has a supportive bitrate. There are instances of visible scratches and damage throughout, but having watched the included restoration supplement, this is obviously the best that could be done with the surviving elements. The HD-restored image shows a rich, often textured and lush, visual presentation in 1080P with occasional depth, surprisingly, surfacing.

We are given 3 audio track choices here, starting off with either a 5.1 surround or 2.0 channel audio tracks in DTS-HD Master (both 24-bit) from composer Neil Brand (Hitchcock's Downhill),. This is a newly commissioned - conducted and orchestrated by Timothy Brock and performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. This was recorded live at the Barbican on October 5th, 2011. Also nice to have here is the option of watching the film with an alternative score by Chris Watson, also presented in DTS-HD Master audio which gives the film a different flavor and subtle mood. They both sound desirable in the lossless. This is a Region 'A' Blu-ray.

The sole extra here is the 9-minute "Restoring Underground", which shows the lengths the BFI went to in order to achieve the cleaned up image seen on this Blu-ray.

Underground is a British treasure and the restoration exposes this, early, sly romance to many via Blu-ray. It is an accomplished debut from Asquith. Having a choice of an accompanying score is always appreciated for this, historically relevant, genre. Silent Era fans will be delighted.