ADDITION: Criterion Region 'A' Blu-ray - (November 2010) - Firstly, Criterion get the aspect ratio correct (1.66:1) that neither of the DVDs had (both were 1.33) - NOTE: Night of the Hunter is absolutely, unquestionably 1.66. I've run both 35mm and 16mm prints of this film and if you project it 1.37 full-frame, you actually see the top of the soundstage in the sequence where the children land at the barn in the moonlight. The 1.37 DVD carefully crops in several sequences, including that one. It's such a beautifully designed film that it looks perfectly OK when "opened up", except in a few scenes such as the one mentioned. (Thanks Peter!)

NOTE: Criterion released The Night of the Hunter back in the days of LaserDisc - #28 (# CC1128L). It was 2-sided CLV and in 1.33:1 aspect ratio.

Here it is. This is one of the cinephile 'dream films' that for a very long time so many were hoping would be released in a special edition DVD - let alone a Blu-ray by Criterion!! Along with Metropolis - this is one of the most anticipated releases of the entire year.

Looking at the captures it appears as though the DVDs were not 'open matte' as information is cropped from the side edges as compared to the 1.66 Criterion Blu-ray. The image quality is wonderful - darker than the NTSC DVD which now looks a bit boosted. There is beautiful grain visible. It is perfectly clean, very film-like and consistent in-motion.

Criterion remain faithful to the original monaural track with a lossless liner PCM rendering. There aren't a lot of effect sounds and dialogue, and occasional singing, is exceptionally clear and consistent. As usual, Criterion include optional English subtitles and my Momitsu confirms that the disc is region 'A'-locked.

Criterion stack their edition with pure supplement gold - we get a super audio commentary featuring second-unit director Terry Sanders, film critic F. X. Feeney, archivist Robert Gitt, and author Preston Neal Jones. This is like a dream come true listening to this collection of experts reminisce, discuss, point out factual production details and more. I truly enjoyed it. With fans starving for more after the DVDs had nothing but a trailer it seems a real gluttonous feast to get the INCREDIBLE 2.5 hour "Charles Laughton Directs “The Night of the Hunter,” a treasure trove of outtakes, Laughton's coaching of the children, the tension between the director and Shelley Winters, 'rushes', and behind-the-scenes footage available on a second dual-layered Blu-ray disc included in the package. I'm actually grateful that this even existed as an inclusion and that Robert Gitt was able to procure it and edited it over years and years (an amazing story in itself). Magnificent. Tack on a new documentary featuring interviews with producer Paul Gregory, Sanders, Feeney, Jones, and author Jeffrey Couchman (his highly recommended The Night of the Hunter: A Biography of a Film) and a new video interview with Laughton biographer Simon Callow (Charles Laughton: A Difficult Actor). Included is a clip from the The Ed Sullivan Show, September 25th, 1955, in which cast members perform a scene deleted from the film. There is a 15-minute episode of the BBC show Moving Pictures about the film, an archival interview (1984) with cinematographer Stanley Cortez , a gallery of sketches by author Davis Grubb, author of the source novel, The Night Of The Hunter. There is a new 17-minute video conversation between Gitt and film critic Leonard Maltin about 'Charles Laughton Directs' about the discovery and restoration of the material used to make the documentary - on the 2nd Blu-ray - and there is an original theatrical trailer. Lastly we get a 30-page liner notes booklet featuring essays by critics Terrence Rafferty and Michael Sragow. Criterion appear to have gone well beyond their usual high standard for supplements and these are an incredible selection of extra features.

How such a masterpiece film was ever misled into forgotten alleys of obscurity - even its its bare-bones DVD releases - is a mystery we will never be able to solve. This is another instance where Criterion have resurrected an important piece of classic cinema positioning it to its proper place in the digital home theater universe. I feel sorry for those in Europe and Australia who are locked to region 'B' - if ever there was a reason for them to indulge in a region free Blu-ray player - THIS is it. I can guarantee that The Night of the Hunter on Blu-ray won't be forgotten in our year end poll - where I expect many will rank it in the top 5 of the year. This has our highest recommendation. I can't think of anything more enthusiastic to say than 'absolutely essential'. I'll be buying multiple holiday season copies for 'uninitiated' friends. 

Gary W. Tooze

****

ON THE DVDs: The R1 is much sharper, more detailed blacks. Other than that the discs are pretty much the same except the R2 has more dubs and sub-title options including for the hearing impaired. The R1 has double the Chapters. The R1's better image quality is the sole reason to stick with the R1 for this piece of classic cinema.