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directed by Michael Anderson
Ireland, USA 1959
Marian Thompson adapts Reardon
Conner's novel for the screen and Michael Anderson directs this
spellbinding action-packed political film about the complexities
of the 1921 Irish Rebellion against their British rulers. It's
filmed on location in Ireland, which adds to its authentic feel.
Its big problem is that even though the story is riveting, the
acting is first-rate (some of the supporting characters are from
the famed Dublin's Abbey Players and James Cagney gives a
maddening fiery performance), the film is well-crafted, and
there's no question that it caught the disturbing chaos of that
time period, there's still a question about its dubious
political content. Excerpt of review from Dennis Schwartz for Ozus' World Movie Reviews located HERE |
Posters
Theatrical Release: 24 June 1959 (USA)
DVD Review: Shout! Factory (4 Action-Adventure Movie Marathon) - Region 0 - NTSC
Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the Review!
DVD Box Cover |
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Distribution |
Shout! Factory Region 0 - NTSC |
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Runtime | 1:51:04 | |
Video |
1.33:1 Aspect Ratio |
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NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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Audio | Dolby Digital Mono (English) | |
Subtitles | None | |
Features |
Release Information: Studio: Shout! Factory Aspect Ratio:
Edition Details: Chapters 8 |
Comments |
Shake Hands with the Devil has been one of my most wanted titles to be released on DVD, but it never came out until this multi-film package from Shout Factory. I'm still not sure what's the connection between a Roger Corman produced jail-break blaxploitation from 1972 I Escaped from Devil's Island, the Special Forces military actioner from 1982 The Final Option, the Italian Indiana Jones-influenced cheezy actioner from 1983 Treasure of the Four Crowns and a serious action-drama from 1959 about early days if IRA filmed in Ireland and starring James Cagney, Shake Hands with the Devil. What's more confusing, the first 2 films got HD transfer and were released as double-feature on Blu-ray. No such luck for the last 2 films, both of them used ancient transfers from VHS days. Treasure of the Four Crowns is pan-and-scanned as you can see in the capture, but it gets the lone extra of the set - "Audio Commentary With Pop Culture Historian Russell Dyball for Treasure of the Four Crowns". Shake Hands with the Devil fared better with an open-matte transfer - it's not in original aspect ration, but at least nothing is cut off. The film starts with old United Artists logo from the VHS days, there are visible tape tracking on the top of the screen as seen in the captures and some chroma is evident (7th capture). It's unfortunate the film doesn't get the better presentation, but the low price of the set allowed me to purchase it for reviewing. It's still better than any Public Domain release, but only those interested in the last 2 film should consider getting this set since any other release is highly unlikely - others should avoid it. |
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Screen Captures
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Capture for Treasure of the Four Crowns
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Distribution |
Shout! Factory Region 0 - NTSC |
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