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

ADDITION: Kino Blu-ray (December 2021): Kino have transferred another three films to their 'Dark Side of Cinema' series on Blu-ray. This is Volume 5 with Because of You (1952), Outside the Law (1956) and The Midnight Story (1957.) We've reviewed all the previous entries by Kino; Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema I Blu-ray with Big House, U.S.A., A Bullet For Joey, He Ran All the Way, Storm Fear, Witness to Murder - Film Noir: The Dark Side Of Cinema II Blu-ray with Thunder On The Hill, The Price Of Fear and The Female Animal - Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema III Blu-ray with Abandoned, The Lady Gambles and The Sleeping City - Kino's Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema IV with Calcutta, An Act of Murder and Six Bridges to Cross.

In regards to the 1080P image quality, the 1.37:1 Because of You has the most grain, and it is fairly consistent, showcasing the Russell Metty cinematography probably looking the best of the three films presentations. The 1.85:1 Outside the Law transfer has the highest bitrate and supports the film's darker scenes looking decent, if less remarkable than Because of You. The last film, black and white and 235:1 CinemaScope, The Midnight Story, with Tony Curtis, has an issue. Shot, again by Metty, that visual facet is strong but in the second half of the film, the source appears to lose density looking paler and flat - possibly a rendering error. Black levels weaken. The difference is notable.   

NOTE: We have added 100 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Kino use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. The audio is flat without extensive aggression in any of the films. Because of You has a score by Frank Skinner (The Spiderwoman Strikes Back, The Appaloosa, Madame X, Magnificent Obsession, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, All That Heaven Allows, Thunder Bay, and The Naked City) plus there is the love theme, 'Because of You', used instrumentally throughout and Here's Your Kiss by Milton Rosen sung by Betty Reilly. Jack Arnold's Outside the Law has stock music by the likes of Henry Mancini (Days of Wine and Roses, Oklahoma Crude, Wait Until Dark, Operation Petticoat, Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation, Experiment in Terror, Charade), Hans J. Salter (The Killer that Stalked New York, The Strange Door, Cover Up, Man Without a Star, Scarlet Street, The Land Unknown, The War Lord, The Mole People), Herman Stein (Horizons West, Six Bridges to Cross, Son of Ali Baba, Man in the Shadow, Female on the Beach, This Island Earth, It Came From Outer Space, War Arrow, Tarantula, There's Always Tomorrow) etc. With Salter and Henry Vars (The Leech Woman, Seven Men From Now) uncredited for the music in The Midnight Story. Dialogue and effects are consistent and clean in all three films via in the lossless transfers. Kino offer optional English subtitles on all three Region 'A' Blu-rays.

The Kino Blu-rays offer new commentaries for all three films. Samm Deighan discusses Because of You and other films about 're-marriage' where married couples have conflict and reconnect, the female prison aspects of Because of You, its noir-ish influences and the career of director Joseph Pevney and much more including showing a different side of Loretta Young's usual roles in the beginning eventually adopting her more wholesome persona as the film evolves. Richard Harland Smith does the commentary for Outside the Law and talks about Jack Arnold's high point of his career in genre films, the film's short production time, it's potential names including 'Johnny Salvo' and the many 'Johnny' films of the era, prisoners serving in the military etc.. He covers a lot of ground in a relaxed tone. It's worth the indulgence. Film scholar Jason A. Ney for The Midnight Story analyzes the film's weaknesses, discusses the San Francisco shooting locations, how it blends elements of film noir and melodrama, where the film fits into the careers of Tony Curtis, Marisa Pavan and Gilbert Roland, its production and release strategy and how it was received by critics and audiences. I think the inclusions of commentaries is very valuable for these lesser 'dark cinema'-related efforts.

Kino's Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema V Blu-ray box is veering further away from 'Essential Noir' (none qualify as 'essential') but the films have definite value. There are desirable 'dark' conventions; women in prison, gangsters, ex-cons, police procedures, solving a murder etc. plus a Loretta Young / Jeff Chandler romance, the 'incredible shrinking man' as a nasty villain, and tough-guy Tony Curtis (but his lips are a bit too red on the boxcover!) playing cat-and-mouse with imposing Gilbert Roland. I probably liked 'Because of You' the most, but many might consider 'The Midnight Story' the more complete and most Noir-like or crime-centric film. This is not to dismiss 'Outside the Law' with an ex-con given the opportunity to redeem himself, and exact revenge for the murder of an old army buddy. All three have strong commentaries and fans of the dark cinema cycle should find them rewarding viewing. Far-afield from strict Noir but still recommended!

Gary Tooze