Foreign Intrigue Blu-ray - Robert Mitchum

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Sheldon Reynolds
USA 1956

Foreign Intrigue is as bland and generic as its title. Its scantily credentialed director/writer/producer, Sheldon Reynolds, did an early-1950s TV series with the same name, so this movie looks like a bid for big-screen immortality. Alas, it's one of those polyglot productions that suggests financing flowed from several European countries, with strings attached to several cast members; there's no other way to account for their presence.

A wealthy man of mystery drops dead in his villa on the Riviera. His American press agent (Robert Mitchum) finds him but suspicions grow when he's asked four times in succession if his employer `said anything' before he died. So Mitchum sets out to discover who the man was and how he accumulated his fortune. He starts with the merry widow (Genevieve Page) and travels on to Vienna and Stockholm, where he falls for the daughter (Ingrid Thulin) of a deceased industrialist whom may have been a blackmail target. Mitchum finds that he, too, is being followed....

Excerpt of review from Bill McVicar at imdb.com located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: 12 July 1956 (USA)

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Comparison:

MGM / TGG Direct (Action 2-Films Pack) - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Kino Lorber - Region 'A' - Blu-ray

1) MGM / TGG Direct - Region 0 - NTSC LEFT

2) Kino Lorber - Region 'A' - Blu-ray RIGHT

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the DVD Review!

Box Covers
Distribution	MGM / TGG Direct Region 0 - NTSC	Kino Lorber Region 'A' - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:38:54	1:39:03.938
Video	1:80:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 4.58 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.82:1 Disc Size: 22,536,081,588 bytes Feature Size: 20,936,484,864 bytes Total Bitrate: 24.95 Mbps Single-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Bitrate Blu-ray
Audio	Dolby Digital Mono (English)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1677 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1677 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 16-bit)
Subtitles	None	None
Features	Release Information: Studio: MGM / TGG Direct Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1:80:1 Edition Details: • 2 Films on 1 disc DVD Release Date: September 4th, 2012 Keep case Chapters 9	Release Information: Studio: Kino Lorber 1.82:1 Disc Size: 24,064,004,235 bytes Feature Size: 19,595,298,816 bytes Total Bitrate: 24.91 Mbps Single-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC Edition Details: • Trailers for 'Foreign Intrigue' (1:55), 'Man with the Gun' (2:24), 'Wonderful Country' (2:57) Blu-ray Release Date: August 4th, 2015 Standard Blu-ray case Chapters: 8

Comments

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

ADDITION: Kino Lorber - Region 'A' - Blu-ray August 15': Same source (same marks) but what this film appears to need is a darn good cleaning. The print looks dirty and there are speckles in almost every frame. I wouldn't say the single-layered 1080P is a dramatic increase over the older, interlaced, DVD. It is superior in-motion but colors don't gain much depth and detail only moderately rises. Audio improves with a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel mono at 1677 kbps (16 bit) but Paul Durand's score is unremarkable although benefits from the uncompressed transfer. There are no subtitles offered on the region 'A'-locked Blu-ray disc. Only 3 trailers as an extra.

I wasn't keen on this odd film when I saw the DVD and I'm afraid the Blu-ray didn't enhance my appreciation very much. I like Mitchum but the film is a bit of a dud and the image quality lackluster on the bare-bones disc. Pass.

***

Foreign Intrigue is owned by MGM, but it was never released on DVD in US until now. It seemed, with the introduction of "MGM Limited Edition Collection", the likely route to all future releases would be through that lineup. Instead, they licensed a number of film to other studios, including many titles, new and already available on DVD from MGM, that were licensed to TGG Direct. They paired Foreign Intrigue with a title that was previously released by MGM in 2005, The Quiet American (1958). Both titles are available on a single-sided, dual-layered disc.

The Quiet American transfer is utilizing the same letterboxed, not anamorphic transfer from 2005 disc reviewed HERE, minus all the extra audio and subtitle options and divided into 12 chapters instead of 16. Foreign Intrigue looks much better in a colorful, anamorphic transfer that is unfortunately interlaced. The print is showing its age with some marks and specs on the print, including some heavily grained scenes, but overall this is a decent transfer for a budget release disc. The 2-channel mono soundtrack is decent, but there are no optional captions or subtitles. There are no extras on the disc, so all you get is 2 movies on a heavily discounted single disc that is recommended if you are only interested in this rare film.

- Gregory Meshman

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