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 S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka 'Le Secret derrière la porte ')

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/direct-chair/lang.htm
USA 1948

 

The 2024 Kino Blu-ray of Secret Beyond the Door is reviewed / compared HERE

 

Secret Beyond the Door was émigré Fritz Lang's unique contribution to this melodramatic cycle that reached its peak in Hollywood in that tumultuous decade. Working in a genre that might be dismissed as a "weepie" or a "woman's picture" by some of Lang's contemporaries, this movie was adapted from mystery writer Rufus King's magazine story by the director and Silvia Richards, a journeyman radio writer who had gained recognition for the script for Joan Crawford's psychologically insightful Possessed (1947). Not surprisingly for a director who blended psychology credibly into many of his best films, such as M (1931) and Ministry of Fear (1944), the mental state of his stressed characters often took center stage. Richards, whose emphasis on narration may have reflected her radio-writing roots, may have been too intimidated by her distinguished mentor's determination to craft an intellectually challenging movie that was also an unusual and sinister romance--a kind of "boy meets girl" story, Lang-style.

Excerpt from TCM located HERE

***

Joan Bennett is the woman who falls for an architect and promptly marries him, not asking as many questions about his past as she should have done. She soon discovers that he has a few skeletons in his cupboard, maybe even literally. Determined to find out the secret beyond the door of his mansion, she soon believes herself to be in mortal danger.

Another of the Freudian thrillers that were so in fashion in the 1940s, director Lang manages to turn on the suspense but is more interested in the art of film-making than what makes his protagonist tick.

Excerpt from Channel 4 located HERE

Poster

Theatrical Release: January 1st, 1948

Reviews                                                        More Reviews                                           DVD Reviews

Comparison:

Wild Side Vidéo (2-disc) - Region 0 - PAL vs. Olive Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray vs. Llamentol S.L - Region FREE - Blu-ray vs. Arrow Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray

 

Box Cover

 

CLICK to order from:

Single Disc:

 

Also available on Blu-ray from Carlotta in France:

 

 

Reissued September 2020:

Available individually, from Arrow, in June of 2018:
Distribution Wild Side Vidéo - Region 0 - PAL  Olive Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray Llamentol S.L - Region FREE - Blu-ray Arrow - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime 1:34:30 (4% PAL Speedup) 1:39:04.396 1:38:39.371 1:38:38.329
Video 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 5.67 mb/s
PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s		 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 17,901,662,811 bytes

Feature: 17,860,810,752 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 22.00 Mbps

 		1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 18,335,157,362 bytes

Feature: 18,097,020,864 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 22.08 Mbps

 		1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 39,845,867,220 bytes

Feature: 30,217,310,400 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 34.90 Mbps

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

Bitrate: Olive Blu-ray

Bitrate: Llamentol S.L Blu-ray

Bitrate: Arrow Blu-ray

Audio English (Dolby Digital 1.0)  DTS-HD Master Audio English 835 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 835 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 16-bit) Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 256 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 256 kbps / DN -4dB
DTS-HD Master Audio English 835 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 835 kbps / 16-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 16-bit)

LPCM Audio English 1152 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1152 kbps / 24-bit
Commentary:

LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit
Subtitles French, None None Spanish, None English (SDH), None
Features

Release Information:
Studio: Wild Side Vidéo

Aspect Ratio:
Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1

Edition Details (all on Disc 2):

• "The Dinosaur and the Baby": a conversation between Fritz Lang and Jean-Luc Godard (60 min) - mostly French
• The Architecture of Secret Beyond the Door (6:10) - English dialogue of the film with drawings of the sets used
• Printable original script accessible via DVD Rom
• Photos from the Film
• Production Photos

• Filmographies (text) of Lang, Bennett and Redgrave

DVD Release Date: June 3rd, 2003
Keep Case
Chapters: 12

Release Information:
Studio: Olive Films

Aspect Ratio:
Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1

1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 17,901,662,811 bytes

Feature: 17,860,810,752 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 22.00 Mbps

Edition Details:

• none

 Blu-ray Release Date: September 4th, 2012
Standard Blu-ray Case
Chapters: 12  

Release Information:
Studio: Llamentol S.L

Aspect Ratio:
Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1

1080P Single-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 18,335,157,362 bytes

Feature: 18,097,020,864 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 22.08 Mbps

Edition Details:

• none

 Blu-ray Release Date: June 14th, 2013
Standard Blu-ray Case
Chapters: 6

Release Information:
Studio: Arrow Films

Aspect Ratio:
Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1

1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray

Disc Size: 39,845,867,220 bytes

Feature: 30,217,310,400 bytes

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Total Video Bitrate: 34.90 Mbps

Edition Details:

• Commentary on all films by Alan K. Rode
• Barry Keith Grant on Secret Beyond the Door, the author and scholar introduces the film (14:21)
 • The House of Lang: A visual essay on Fritz Lang's style by filmmaker David Cairns with a focus on his noir work (20:09)
 • Radio play "Let's Pretend' - Bluebeard (20:08)
 • Hangman Also Die Trailer (1:45)
 • Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Scott Saslow for all films
 • Hardback book featuring new writing on all the films by noir experts and critics including Michael Brooke, Andrew Spicer, David Cairns and Tony Rayns and more [Limited Edition Exclusive]

DVDs of all 4 films!

 Blu-ray Release Date: November 20th, 2017
Custom Blu-ray Box
Chapters: 13

 

 

Comments:

The 2024 Kino Blu-ray of Secret Beyond the Door is reviewed / compared HERE

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

ADDITION: Arrow Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray - November 17': Arrow's Four Film Noir Classics Limited Edition has The Dark Mirror, Secret Beyond the Door..., Force of Evil, and The Big Combo. They are not sold separately by Arrow at present and are only available in this boxset. There are other Blu-ray releases, like the Olive Film and Llamentol S.L editions here, we have compared a few, exact frame, 1080P captures.

Limited Edition set of only 2000 copies!

The Arrow transfer appears to be from the same source with the same 1.33:1 framing but the UK has a max'ed out bitrate - it is tighter, the damage is less visible and grain is more prominent on the UK edition. The Arrow is, predictably, superior visually.

Like the others in the Four Film Noir Classics Limited Edition, Arrow is also better than the other lossless audio transfers - Arrow's 24-bit linear PCM mono vs. the DTS-HD Master (16-bit) tracks of the Olive Film and Llamentol S.L editions. The film has a dramatic score by the iconic Miklós Rózsa (Eye of the Needle, The Killers, The Lost Weekend, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, Double Indemnity) and its an excellent part of the film experience highlighting suspense, sounding deep and rich in the uncompressed. Arrow also add optional English (SDH) subtitles (see sample below) on their Region FREE Blu-ray disc.

All films in the set have a commentary and Secret Beyond the Door... has an excellent analysis by Alan K. Rode discussing Lang, one of my favorite Noir gals, Joan Bennett, Walter Wanger and much more. Barry Keith Grant (author of Film Genre Reader) does a 1/4 hour introduction on Secret Beyond the Door... and filmmaker David Cairns does a highly rewarding visuals essay entitled The House of Lang running over 20-minutes. There is a radio play "Let's Pretend' - Bluebeard and a trailer for Hangman Also Die Trailer. The package offers reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Scott Saslow for all films and a hardback book featuring new writing on all the films by noir experts and critics including Michael Brooke, Andrew Spicer, David Cairns and Tony Rayns and others.

Another fabulous and complete Noir release of a dark cinema gem... what a great addition to this essential package!

***

ADDITION: Llamentol S.L. - Region FREE Blu-ray - March 2014: I'll say the same thing I said about The Big Heat Spanish Blu-ray. Just a quick note to those that didn't pick-up the Olive release. There is a Spanish - Region FREE - Blu-ray available. It is seems almost the exact same transfer and DTS-HD Master lossless audio. And look at the bitrate graphs! Hmmm...  It has optional foreign language Spanish DUB and subtitle option (see sample) that is removable, crappy menus (see below) and no extras. At current exchange rates it is about $12.00 US. It defaults to the Spanish DUB (but can be changed via the remote.)

I don't know if it is a bootleg of some sort. That is a strong possibility. I will try to inform Olive Films if they wish to pursue some action (if they have not provided the encode themselves.)

***

ADDITION: Olive Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray - August 12': Things certainly tighten up a shade on the new 1080P transfer from Olive. It is a bit brighter and contrast has more layers on the Blu-ray. Of course it is only single-layered but the bitrate seems supportive enough - the larger factor though are the light scratches, speckles and occasional blemishes that are less prevalent, or less noticeable, on the French SD rendering. The BD, being in theatrical running time (no PAL Speedup now) is superior but the marks are notable. Modest, but lossless, sound - clear without major flaws - no subtitles and no extras. I think its worthy of upgrade but there is some noise on the hi-def but not as visible as the DVD. Great film and a pleasure to see it in the higher resolution.

***

ON THE DVD: This is a pretty good image especially for a single layered disc - not quite as sharp as one might have hoped but it still looks quite clean and more than acceptable for tube viewing. The black levels are very rich. Thankfully, the French subtitles are removable (on my Malata's and my computer) so they are definitely player generated. Unfortunately, the Lang/Godard featurette on the 2nd disc has no English subtitles... and neither do any of the extras although many are visual.

NOTE: Individuals have informed me that the subtitles ARE forced on certain machines - but they can be irradiated in a re-burn. The DVD is a less than 4.75 and the subtitles can be removed and the DVD contents re-burned to a blank DVD with standard DVDR hardware (software is free). See instructions HERE.

Paramount have announced this title for 2006 (this year) in Region 1 (as noted in our March 14th Newsletter HERE). It may possibly look superior so I would be patient if I were you. The film is pure Lang, all the way...

Gary W. Tooze

 

 

 

Menus

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL LEFT
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT


DVD Disc 2

 

Llamentol S.L - Region FREE Blu-ray

 

 

Arrow Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray

 

 

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray SECOND
3) Llamentol S.L - Region FREE - Blu-ray THIRD
4) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
 

Subtitle Sample

 

Screen Captures

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray SECOND
3) Llamentol S.L - Region FREE - Blu-ray THIRD
4) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
 

 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
 

1) Wild Side Video - Region 2 - PAL TOP
2) Olive Film - Region FREE - Blu-ray MIDDLE
3) Arrow Film - Region ''B' - Blu-ray BOTTOM
 

More Blu-ray Captures

 

Recommended Reading in Film Noir (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)

 

 

Box Cover

 

CLICK to order from:

Single Disc:

 

Also available on Blu-ray from Carlotta in France:

 

 

Reissued September 2020:

Available individually, from Arrow, in June of 2018:
Distribution Wild Side Vidéo - Region 0 - PAL  Olive Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray Llamentol S.L - Region FREE - Blu-ray Arrow - Region FREE - Blu-ray




 

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