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

ADDITION: Flicker Alley Blu-ray (January 2024): Flicker Alley have transferred Robert Siodmak's The Whistle at Eaton Falls to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "new 2K restoration was undertaken by the Louis de Rochemont estate and spearheaded by Tom H. March and David Strohmaier". The HD presentation can look a shade sanitized with heavy brightness and solid black levels. The grain is unusually fuzzy but overall the image was quite striking on my system. I don't know if it looked this good theatrically and there are instances of depth. It's prisinely clean. Thee may be faint high-frequency edge enhancement but I was not at all deterred by the potentials of digitization. I was floored by the video 'luminescence' on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. The strong brightness intensifies shadows. Enjoy. 

NOTE: We have added 52 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Flicker Alley use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. The Whistle at Eaton Falls has few aggressive moments; a bustling factory and group get-togethers but nothing requiring extensive bass. The score was by Louis Applebaum (Walk East on Beacon! The Mask.) Also part of the film is Carleton Carpenter's Ev'ry Other Day performed by Anne Francis and the Saturday Square Dance sung by Carpenter. It all sounds authentically flat and extremely clean. Flicker Alley offer optional English subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Flicker Alley Blu-ray offers a new commentary by film historian Alan K. Rode (author Michael Curtiz: A Life in Film.) He discusses the production of the film, the principle players and associated history and all the attributes of what was considered a 'lost film'. Alan talks about how this was Ernest Borgnine's first film appearance although it was released after 1951's China Corsair. He describes Robert Siodmak as the most consequential director of classic film noir of the 40's. It was his last film in America. He states that de Rochemont essentially made The Whistle at Eaton Falls in his home town. He gives history on much of the cast including Lloyd Bridges, Dorothy Gish, Murray Hamilton, Anne Francis, Arthur O'Connel and others. “Louis de Rochemont Remembered” is a 6-minute personal reminiscence from grandson Pierre de Rochemont. There is a video piece on Insights into the Restoration - a demonstration of the digital restoration and reconstruction process running shy of 4-minutes. There are segments of an isolated soundtrack with the original 1951 orchestral score used for the film for almost 1/2 hour to an image gallery slideshow featuring the original script, budget details, and promo materials. Carleton Carpenter Sings are two archival audio recordings of "Ev'ry Other Day" and more It's a Million to One You're in Love. Lastly, is an original theatrical trailer and the package has a booklet essay covering LDR's career during the time The Whistle At Eaton Falls was produced.

Robert Siodmak's The Whistle at Eaton Falls is a Union-drama - a passive precursor to Kazan's On the Waterfront. It addresses the harsh realities of competitive, cost-effective, industrialization - machines making human jobs redundant. Today we have AI looming. The Whistle at Eaton Falls is not Noir despite the legacy of the director.  It's a small town (tranquil New Hampshire) drama about labor disputes between management and the union - kind of a docu-drama feel - with the personalities that surface; often mercenary. I enjoyed it - the performances remain effective. Great seeing Lloyd Bridges, Dorothy Gish, Anne Francis, early Borgnine, Arthur O'Connell etc. The Flicker Alley Blu-ray is highly remarkable for the restored a/v, excellent commentary, booklet and extras - all of a film we thought was lost forever. Dang. I'm guessing that you haven't seen it if you don't own the Blu-ray. Recommended! Thanks Flicker Alley!

Gary Tooze