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S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

The Lady in Question (1939)              Framed (1947)

The Undercover Man (1949)              Mr. Soft Touch (1949)            Convicted (1950)

NOTE: Framed is compared to the Blu-ray edition HERE

NOTE: Convicted is compared to the Blu-ray edition HERE

Turner Classic Movies and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment proudly present Glenn Ford: Undercover Crimes—an unprecedented collection of five fully restored and re-mastered crime classics never before released on DVD. One of the most versatile and reliable leading men of the studio era, Ford had a particular talent for crime pictures—playing both sides of the law! It’s non-stop action—much of it under the cover of night—in this special collection of Glenn Ford crime classics, directed by such masters of the genre as Charles Vidor (Gilda) and Joseph H. Lewis (Gun Crazy).

The Lady in Question (1939)
The first film to pair dynamic screen duo Glenn Ford and Rita Hayworth, this movie marked a turning point in both their careers from “B” films to higher-production features. Based on the French film Gribouille (1937), this offbeat comedy/drama tells the tale of a middle-aged Parisian (Brian Aherne) who reports for jury duty and ends up bringing the defendant (Hayworth) home to his family after she is acquitted of a charge of murdering her lover. Anything but innocent, she soon has the man’s son (Ford) committing petty crimes to fund their romantic escape.

Framed (1947)
Fresh from his breakthrough role in
Gilda (1946) Ford delivers another great performance as a tough guy undone by a woman. Femme fatale Paula (Janice Carter) sees a fall guy in Mike Lambert (Ford), who happens to look a lot like her boyfriend Steve (Barry Sullivan) and is prone to blackouts when drinking. With a screenplay by Ben Maddow (The Asphalt Jungle, 1950) and cinematography by Academy Award winner Burnett Guffey (Bonnie and Clyde, 1967), this a tense and atmospheric film noir in the mold of The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946).

The Undercover Man (1949)
Ford stars as an investigator for the Treasury Department who helps bring down a mobster in this superb crime thriller by “B” crime movie master Joseph H. Lewis (
Gun Crazy, 1950). Ford modeled his character on real-life Agent Frank J. Wilson and supporting actor Ralph Volkie based his ruthless gangster on Al Capone, who was finally brought to justice by Wilson and his fellow “number crunchers” at the Bureau of Internal Revenue. The strong supporting cast includes Nina Foch (An American in Paris, 1951) and James Whitmore (The Asphalt Jungle, 1950) in his movie debut.

Mr. Soft Touch (1949)
Showcasing his ability to play both tough noir heroes and likeable comedy leads, Ford carries this uncommon blend of whimsical comedy and hard-boiled crime thriller that was the work of two directors (Gordon Douglas of 1968’s The Detective and Henry Levin of 1963’s Come Fly with Me) and two cinematographers (Charles Lawton Jr., 1947’s The Lady from Shanghai, and Joseph Walker, 1946’s It’s a Wonderful Life). Ford is WWII veteran Joe Miracle, who is torn between evening the score with a mobster (Roman Bohnen) who has taken his nightclub and helping a social worker who has stolen his heart (Evelyn Keyes, in her sixth and final film with Ford).

Convicted (1950)
Sentenced to prison for an accidental killing, Joe Hufford (Ford) is given a second chance at life by a sympathetic warden (Broderick Crawford) and a chance at love by the warden’s daughter (Dorothy Malone) in this adaptation of the 1929 play The Criminal Code by Pulitzer Prize winner Martin Flavin. Thanks to director Henry Levin (Journey to the Center of the Earth, 1959) and, especially, Academy Award winning cinematographer Burnett Guffey (All the King’s Men, 1949), Convicted is ripe with atmosphere and carries the shadowy imprint of film noir.

Posters

 

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

 

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

 

 

 

Comments

NOTE: Framed is compared to the Blu-ray edition HERE

 

NOTE: Convicted is compared to the Blu-ray edition HERE

 

This is a wonderful set for any Glenn Ford or film noir fan. We get a 5-film package from Sony Pictures and Turner Classic Movies sold exclusively at Turner Classic Movies store. It looks like four of the films make their DVD debut -  The Undercover Man was released in Spain in PAL (reviewed by Gregory HERE) and compared below with no question as to the superior transfer. All 5 discs are single-layered but look quite strong. The Lady in Question may have had some black level boosting and is s bit 'thin' and the last film, Convicted has some green infiltration. Otherwise these are near perfect with a touch of grain and solid detail. They remind of the Columbia DVDs of a long time ago - clean, crisp with excellent contrast. Very impressive.

 

 

Audio is simple, and authentic, mono sounding clean and flat with no distracting errors. There are no optional subtitles.

 

Extras consistent of a Digital Image Gallery with Behind-the-Scenes Photos, Lobby Cards, Publicity Stills and Movie Posters. The Lady in Question disc has a 2-minute introduction by Ben Mankiewicz and a text screen TCMDb Article.

 

I really enjoyed watching these five films. I am a huge Glenn Ford fan and the crime/noir aspects are so pleasing to fans of the dark cinema cycle. Convicted, Framed and The Undercover Man are particularly enjoyable. The TCM/Sony transfers supply great presentations and I would consider this a must-own if you have read this far. Enjoy!

 

 

  - Gary Tooze

 

 

 


DVD Menus
 


 

directed by Charles Vidor
USA 194
0

 

Columbia's The Lady in Question is a remake of the French Gribouille, a Raimu vehicle from 1939. Brian Aherne plays Andre Morestan, the seeming contently paterfamilias of a bourgeois Parisian family. Summoned for jury duty, Morestan at first believes that accused murderess Natalie Rougin (Rita Hayworth) is guilty, but eventually takes pity on the homeless girl and invites her to live with his family after her acquittal. Things get pretty dicey when Morestan's impressionable young son Pierre (Glenn Ford) falls in love with the enigmatic Natalie and begins committing petty crimes to finance their elopement-leading to a situation not unlike the one that got the girl arrested in the first place! In the original Gribouille, it was abundantly clear that both father and son had a yen for their pretty guest, but this menage a trois has been toned down in the Hollywood version, with Morestan remaining more or less faithful to his long-suffering wife Michelle (Irene Rich)

Theatrical Release: July 31st, 1940 (USA)

Reviews        More Reviews       DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

 

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

Runtime 1:19:48
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.55 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digital Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Aspect Ratio:
Fullscreen - 1.33:1

Edition Details:
• Introduction by Ben Mankiewicz (1:59)
Digital Image Gallery
- Behind-the-Scenes Photo(s)
- Lobby Cards
- Publicity Still(s)
- Movie Poster(s)
- Scene Still(s)
- TCMDb Article

DVD Release Date: March 18th, 2013
5 Discs in a digipack

Chapters 9

  


Screen Captures

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 


 

directed by Richard Wallace
USA 19
47

 

A man down on his luck runs afoul of a beautiful but dangerous woman in this superior low-budget film noir. Mike Lambert (Glenn Ford), while trained as a mining engineer, has fallen on hard times and is driving a truck when his rig breaks down in a small town. He soon meets the seductive Paula Craig (Janis Carter) at a cafe and is quickly drawn into her web of larceny. Paula encourages her lover, Stephen Price (Barry Sullivan), to rob the bank that he manages, then kills Stephen and takes the ill-gotten money. Paula confesses the killing to Mike and begs him to run away with her, claiming she murdered Price in a fit of passion while she was drunk. Mike considers her offer until he learns that his close friend Jeff Cunningham (Edgar Buchanan) has been accused of killing Stephen -- and that Paula intends to pin the robbery that Stephen committed on Mike. Femme Fatale Janis Carter originally studied to be a classical musician before her career as an actress took off, while Edgar Buchanan's big break would come 16 years down the road, when he was cast as "Uncle Joe" on the television series Petticoat Junction.

Theatrical Release: March 7th, 1947 (USA premiere)

Reviews        More Reviews       DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

Runtime 1:22:12
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.55 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digital Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Aspect Ratio:
Fullscreen - 1.33:1

Edition Details:
Digital Image Gallery
- Behind-the-Scenes Photo(s)
- Lobby Cards
- Publicity Still(s)
- Movie Poster(s)
- Scene Still(s)


DVD Release Date:
5 Discs in a digipack

Chapters 11

 


Screen Captures

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 


directed by Joseph H. Lewis
USA 19
49

 

Eliot Ness may have gotten lots of publicity (especially long after the fact) for breaking the Capone mob, but as Joseph H. Lewis' The Undercover Man reminds us, it was the accountants and the numbers-crunchers that brought down Capone and his mob. Frank Warren (Glenn Ford) started out as an accountant, but now serves as an investigator for the Treasury Department. His job has frequently required him to go undercover, masquerading as a criminal to get the goods on the top-level tax-law violators that his unit targets. But now his assignment is to gather evidence on the operations of the nation's number-one crime boss and get proof of the income that he and his lieutenants are not declaring, and this proves not only frustrating but dangerous. Potential stoolies are murdered and witnesses intimidated, and when one otherwise "respectable" lawyer (Barry Kelley) starts mentioning Warren's wife (Nina Foch) in casual conversation, he takes the hint. He's ready to quit until the mother (Esther Minciotti) of a witness-turned-victim tells him about what life was like in Italy under the Black Hand, and why she came to America to raise her sons. Warren and his men (James Whitmore, David Wolfe) make one last attempt to get the proof they need, tracing signatures and handwriting to get evidence implicating a small man in the operation, using it to turn him and going for bigger fish. Finally, even the shyster lawyer who has been dogging Warren every step of the way ends up in the sights of the feds, and the mob turns its attention to getting rid of this new "liability" and taking care of Warren as well,

Theatrical Release: 21 March 1949 (Los Angeles)

Reviews        More Reviews       DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman PAL Screen Captures!

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

Runtime 1:24:09
Video

1.335:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.55 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digita Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1

Edition Details:
Digital Image Gallery
- Behind-the-Scenes Photo(s)
- Lobby Cards
- Publicity Still(s)
- Movie Poster(s)
- Scene Still(s)


DVD Release Date: March 18th, 2013
5 Discs in a digipack

Chapters 10

  


Screen Captures

 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 


 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 

 


 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 

 


 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 

 


 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 


 

1) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC TOP

2) Columbia Tri-Star - Region 2 (Japan) - NTSC BOTTOM

 

 


 

1) Sony Pictures (Clásicos años 40) - Region 2 - PAL TOP

2) Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC BOTTOM

 


 

directed by Gordon Douglas, Henry Levin
USA 19
49

Theatrical Release: August 1st, 1949

Reviews        More Reviews       DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

Runtime 1:32:57
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.54 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digital Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Aspect Ratio:- 1.33:1

Edition Details:
Digital Image Gallery
- Behind-the-Scenes Photo(s)
- Lobby Cards
- Publicity Still(s)
- Movie Poster(s)
- Scene Still(s)


DVD Release Date: March 18th, 2013
5 Discs in a digipack

Chapters 13

 


Screen Captures

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 


 

directed by Henry Levin
USA 195
0

 

Convicted stars Glenn Ford as a hotheaded young man convicted of manslaughter. Broderick Crawford plays a sympathetic warden (formerly a tough DA) who tries to help Ford adjust to prison life, eventually giving the lad responsibilities in the warden's office. Ford witnesses the killing of a stoolie by another convict (Millard Mitchell), but adheres to the prison "code" and refuses to talk, even though it means he will be accused of the killing. Mortally wounded by a guard in a subsequent fracas, the real murderer confesses and Ford escapes the electric chair--into the arms of the warden's daughter (Dorothy Malone), with whom he has fallen in love. Convicted was the third film version of Martin Flavin's 1929 stage play The Criminal Code.

Theatrical Release: August 1950 (USA)

Reviews        More Reviews       DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies (Glenn Ford Undercover Crimes) - Region 1 - NTSC

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the Review!

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

Runtime 1:30:42
Video

1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.55 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digital Mono (English)
Subtitles None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Aspect Ratio: - 1.33:1

Edition Details:
Digital Image Gallery
- Behind-the-Scenes Photo(s)
- Lobby Cards
- Publicity Still(s)
- Movie Poster(s)
- Scene Still(s)


DVD Release Date: March 18th, 2013
5 Discs in a digipack

Chapters 11

 


Screen Captures

 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 


DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

 

Distribution

Sony Pictures, Turner Classic Movies

Region 1 - NTSC

 




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