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

ADDITION: Flicker Alley Blu-ray (July 2024): Flicker Alley have transferred Carlos Hugo Christensen's Never Open That Door ("No abras nunca esa puerta") to Blu-ray. It is cited as "Preserved by the Film Noir Foundation in 2013 and now beautifully restored through UCLA Film & Television Archive". These two anthology episodes looks wonderful in 1080P. Blu-ray / DVD authoring was complated by David Mackenzie's Fidelity in Motion, the image is gorgeous with rich black levels and plenty of close-ups with impressive sharpness. There is minor inconsistency with certain shots looking softer than others and there are a few less-perceptible speckles, but no untoward damage.

NOTE: We have added 90 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Flicker Alley use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (24-bit) in the original Spanish language. Never Open That Door (No abras nunca esa puerta) has aggressive scenes with gunfire and "unexpected sound effects" that come through authentically flat but with enough bass to be somewhat shocking. The, occasionally, dramatic score was by Julián Bautista (If I Should Die Before I Wake), advancing the drama and atmosphere. The lossless audio is clear with the only issue being an occasional faint hiss in spots. Flicker Alley offer optional English or Spanish (SDH) subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Flicker Alley Blu-ray offers a new, English-language, commentary by Argentine author and film historian Guido Segal (Notebook of the Sixties: Writings 1958 - 2010.) He talks about Fernando Martín Peña being part of the restoration team, If I Should Die Before I Wake, the moral door "theme" about irrecoverably 'going through', the incredible sets by the art director Gori Muñoz, Ángel Magana being the 'Cary Grant' of Argentina, director Carlos Hugo Christensen and much more. It's an excellent commentary. Flicker Alley include the 1 1/4 hour If I Should Die Before I Wake (Si muero antes de despertar, 1952) - an exceedingly rare archival conservation scan of Carlos Hugo Christensen's third part of the film trilogy. "Existing materials of Si muero antes de despertar, including the original negative, suffered significant deterioration since the film was made in 1952. In 2013, the Film Noir Foundation funded a 35mm preservation of what still existed to ensure the film would not be lost. Since then, the original negative used in that preservation has decayed beyond rescue. This digital restoration, completed in 2023, is based on the FNF's 35mm print, which included embedded subtitles. We believe this to be the only version of the film in existence." It has issues involving contrast etc. The film itself is described as "Lucio's prankster friend reveals a man's suspicious behavior with lollipops. When she's murdered, Lucio must decide between keeping his vow or informing his detective father about the potential killer." Delicious. Cornell Woolrich: Fear Has No Borders is a new 26-minute video produced by Steven C. Smith (Music by Max Steiner: The Epic Life of Hollywood's Most Influential Composer) and writer/film historian Alan K. Rode (author of Charles McGraw: Biography of a Film Noir Tough Guy,) featuring interviews with writer/film historians Gary Phillips, associate professor at the UCLA school of theater, film, and television Maria Elena de las Carreras, Halley Sutton (The Hurricane Blonde,) and Rode. Featuring additional remarks by author, film historian, and "Czar of Noir" Eddie Muller (Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir.) Plenty on the fascinating crime writer spoken in the same vein as Dashiell Hammett, Erle Stanley Gardner and Raymond Chandler. He is credited under his pseudonym 'William Irish' in Never Open That Door credits. Preserving Memory: Fernando Martín Peña on Argentine Cinema is also new; Peña is a cinema historian and Argentina's leading film archivist. It runs over 1/4 hour where he talks about the growth in the Argentinean film industry in the 30's and 40s with six studios built - in the mode of the American Studios. Lastly the, reversible cover artwork, package has a souvenir booklet with rare original photographs and ephemera. There is a second disc DVD included with the features and extras.

Carlos Hugo Christensen's Never Open That Door ("No abras nunca esa puerta") is magnificent. It exceeded my high expectations. It is made up of two parts; Anguish aka "Somebody on the Phone" ('Alguien al teléfono') and Pain aka "The Hummingbird Comes Home" ('El pájaro cantor vuelve al hogar'.) Both episodes are gripping - evoking Hitchcock, full of noir tropes (blackmail, suicide, mistaken identity, robbery / murder etc.) Utilizing whistling and unanswered phone calls as identifiers, and blindness as a perceived weakness - creativity is all over the pulpy Fritz Lang-esque narrative, Gori Muñoz's gorgeous sets and Pablo Tabernero's shadow-soaked cinematography. Flicker Alley are a treasure. With the Film Noir Foundation they have brought Argentine Noirs The Beast Must Die (La bestia debe morir), El vampiro negro (The Black Vampire), and The Bitter Stems (Los tallos amargos) to magnificent keepsake Blu-rays - and we recommend each enthusiastically. Carlos Hugo Christensen's Never Open That Door is my favorite so far and the package includes the brilliant mystery thriller feature by same director; If I Should Die Before I Wake - the third part of the film trilogy. Plus there is an excellent commentary and extensive video pieces on Woolrich and the Golden Age of the Argentine film industry - plus a 20-page souvenir booklet with photos (no essays.) Flicker Alley's new Blu-ray gets our absolute highest recommendation. Own this.

Gary Tooze