U.K. 1935
The best known of Hitchcock’s British films, this civilized spy yarn follows the escapades of Richard Hannay (Robert Donat), who stumbles into a conspiracy that involves him in a hectic chase across the Scottish moors—a chase in which he is both the pursuer and the pursued. Adapted from John Buchan’s novel, this classic Hitchcock “wrong man” thriller encapsulates themes that anticipate the director’s biggest American films (especially North by Northwest), and is a standout among his early works.
Posters (Click to enlarge)
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Theatrical Release Date: 1 August, 1935
DVD Comparison:
Criterion Region 1 - NTSC vs. Carlton Region 2 - PAL
BIG thanks to Pavel Borodin for the Carlton screen caps!
(Criterion Region 1 Left, Carlton Region 2 Right)
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| Distribution |
Criterion Region 1 encoded ( North America ) |
Carlton Visual Entertainment Ltd Region 2 - PAL |
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(click titles for DVDBeaver reviews) Criterion (without any extras) also available in The Essential Art House - 50 Years of Janus Films - a 50-disc celebration of international films collected under the auspices of the groundbreaking theatrical distributor. It contains Alexander Nevsky (1938), Ashes And Diamonds (1958), L'avventura (1960), Ballad Of A Soldier (1959), Beauty And The Beast (1946), Black Orpheus (1959), Brief Encounter (1945), The Fallen Idol (1948), Fires On The Plain (1959), Fists In The Pocket (1965), Floating Weeds (1959), Forbidden Games (1952), The 400 Blows (1959), Grand Illusion (1937), Häxan (1922), Ikiru (1952), The Importance Of Being Earnest (1952), Ivan The Terrible, Part II (1958), Le Jour Se Lève (1939), Jules And Jim (1962), Kind Hearts And Coronets (1949), Knife In The Water (1962), The Lady Vanishes (1938), The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp (1943), Loves Of A Blonde (1965), M (1931), M. Hulot's Holiday (1953), Miss Julie (1951), Pandora's Box (1929), Pépé Le Moko (1937), Il Posto (1961), Pygmalion (1938), Rashomon (1950), Richard III (1955), The Rules Of The Game (1939), Seven Samurai (1954), The Seventh Seal (1957), The Spirit Of The Beehive (1973), La Strada (1954), Summertime (1955), The Third Man (1949), The 39 Steps (1935), Ugetsu (1953), Umberto D. (1952), The Virgin Spring (1960), Viridiana (1961), The Wages Of Fear (1953), The White Sheik (1952), Wild Strawberries (1957), Three Documentaries By Saul J. Turell plus the hardcover, full color 240-page book. |
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| Runtime | 1:26:24 | 1:22:27 ( 4% PAL speedup ) |
| Video | 1.33:1
Academy Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.6 mb/s NTSC 704x480 29.97 f/s |
1.33:1
Academy Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.9 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s |
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Criterion: |
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| Bitrate
Carlton: |
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| Audio | English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) |
| Subtitles | English or none | English or none |
| Features |
Release Information: Studio: Home Vision Entertainment Aspect Ratio: Full Screen (Standard) - 1.33:1 Edition Details: |
Release Information: Studio: Carlton Visual Entertainment Ltd Aspect Ratio: Full Screen (Standard) - 1.33:1 Edition Details: • Special Features:
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| Sundry | DVD Release Date:
November 2, 1999 Keep Case Chapters: 12 |
DVD Release Date:
13 August, 2001 Custom Case Chapters: 23 |
| Comments: |
This is a tough one to call on
the image, but I think the Criterion is more true. It may be grainer but I
don't see evidence of contrast boosting like I do with the Carlton disc. The
R2 picture is softer and therefore slightly less sharp. The Criterion
wins big-time with the extras. Both transfers are excellent, but I think the
Criterion is the overall winner.
Gary W. Tooze Pavel Borodin notes:
There are a lot of dark
scenes in this movie and during some of them Criterion has some
compression problems. For example, in the chapter No. 9 (of Criterion)
there are one of the central scenes of the movie, the night scene with a
lot of fog when Hanney and Pamella escape. The moving fog causes those
quite annoying compression artifacts. The Carlton is also not perfect in
this scene, but looks much better.
Since otherwise both
transfers are quite similar, I suppose the Carlton is better.
The documentary on the
Criterion consists almost only of scenes from different British
Hitchcock movies with a narration (which makes it not so interesting in
case you know and have all this movies), and the image quality is really
awful.
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DVD Menus
(Criterion
Region 1 Left, Carlton Region 2 Right)
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(Criterion
Region 1 NTSC - TOP,
Carlton Region 2 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Criterion
Region 1 NTSC - TOP,
Carlton Region 2 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Criterion
Region 1 NTSC - TOP,
Carlton Region 2 - PAL - BOTTOM)
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(Criterion
Region 1 NTSC - TOP,
Carlton Region 2 - PAL - BOTTOM)
 |
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| DVD Box Covers |
|
|
| Distribution |
Criterion Region 1 encoded ( North America ) |
Carlton Visual Entertainment Ltd Region 2 - PAL |
|
(click titles for DVDBeaver reviews) Criterion (without any extras) also available in The Essential Art House - 50 Years of Janus Films - a 50-disc celebration of international films collected under the auspices of the groundbreaking theatrical distributor. It contains Alexander Nevsky (1938), Ashes And Diamonds (1958), L'avventura (1960), Ballad Of A Soldier (1959), Beauty And The Beast (1946), Black Orpheus (1959), Brief Encounter (1945), The Fallen Idol (1948), Fires On The Plain (1959), Fists In The Pocket (1965), Floating Weeds (1959), Forbidden Games (1952), The 400 Blows (1959), Grand Illusion (1937), Häxan (1922), Ikiru (1952), The Importance Of Being Earnest (1952), Ivan The Terrible, Part II (1958), Le Jour Se Lève (1939), Jules And Jim (1962), Kind Hearts And Coronets (1949), Knife In The Water (1962), The Lady Vanishes (1938), The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp (1943), Loves Of A Blonde (1965), M (1931), M. Hulot's Holiday (1953), Miss Julie (1951), Pandora's Box (1929), Pépé Le Moko (1937), Il Posto (1961), Pygmalion (1938), Rashomon (1950), Richard III (1955), The Rules Of The Game (1939), Seven Samurai (1954), The Seventh Seal (1957), The Spirit Of The Beehive (1973), La Strada (1954), Summertime (1955), The Third Man (1949), The 39 Steps (1935), Ugetsu (1953), Umberto D. (1952), The Virgin Spring (1960), Viridiana (1961), The Wages Of Fear (1953), The White Sheik (1952), Wild Strawberries (1957), Three Documentaries By Saul J. Turell plus the hardcover, full color 240-page book. |
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Report Card:
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Image: |
Criterion |
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Sound: |
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| Extras: | Criterion |
| Menu: | Criterion |
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