The Long Haul Blu-ray - Victor Mature

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

directed by Ken Hughes
UK 1957

Harry Miller (Victor Mature) is an Ex-GI living in a tiny, rundown flat in Liverpool with his English bride and young son. Harry feels trapped in his life there: the best job he can get is driving a truck for his wife’s uncle, and his desire to return to the States is a constant source of friction between the couple. When he lends a hand to the gorgeous, petulant girlfriend of big-time racketeer Joe Easy (Patrick Allen), Harry finds himself tempted by more than just the lovely Lynn (Diana Dors). Similar in theme to They Drive by Night and the great Thieves’ Highway, this little known noir gem has more twists and turns than the English countryside; written and directed by Ken Hughes (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Casino Royale) who specialized in British suspense stories (or Brit Noir) before resettling in Hollywood.

Posters

Theatrical Release: August 27th, 1957 (UK)

Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews

Comparison:

Sony Pictures (Screen Classics by Request) - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Kit Parker Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Thanks to Gregory Meshman for the DVD Review!

Box Cover		The Long Haul is part of the Noir Archive Volume 3: 1957-1960 9-film Collection Bu-ray
Distribution	Sony Pictures (Screen Classics by Request) Home Video - Region 0 - NTSC	Kit Parker Films - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:28:06	1:28:19.502
Video	1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 4.32 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,906,578,723 bytes Feature: 18,009,096,192 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	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 834 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 834 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	None	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Sony Pictures Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.85:1 Edition Details: • Theatrical trailer (2:27) DVD Release Date: September 21st, 2010 Keep Case Chapters 9	Release Information: Studio: Kit Parker Films 1.85:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 48,906,578,723 bytes Feature: 18,009,096,192 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Shares disc with The Shadow on the Wall and Pickup Alley Blu-ray Release Date: September 17th, 2019 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 14

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Kit Parker Films Blu-ray (September 2019): Kit Parker Films in association with Millcreek Entertainment have released the last (of three) of these 3 Blu-ray / 9 Film Noir features Boxsets. Volume Three has:

The Crimson Kimono (1959), The Lineup (1958), Man on a String (1960), The Shadow in the Window (1956), The Long Haul (1957), Pickup Alley (1957), The Case Against Brooklyn (1958), The Tijuana Story (1957) and She Played with Fire (1957)

Volume One was described as "Stalwart noir directors and casts highlight these hard to find features Address Unknown (1944) dir/William Cameron Menzies, cast/Paul Lukas, Carl Esmond, Peter Van Eyck; Escape in the Fog (1945) dir/Oscar (Budd) Boetticher cast/Otto Kruger, Nina Foch, William Wright; The Guilt of Janet Ames (1947) dir/Henry Levin cast/Rosalind Russell, Melvyn Douglas, Sid Caesar; The Black Book (aka The Reign of Terror) (1949) dir/Anthony Mann cast/Robert Cummings, Richard Basehart, Arlene Dahl; Johnny Allegro (1949) dir/Ted Tetzlaff cast/George Raft, Nina Foch, George Macready; 711 Ocean Drive (1950) dir/Joseph M. Newman cast/Edmond O'Brien, Joanne Dru, Otto Kruger; The Killer That Stalked New York (1950) dir/Earl McEvoy cast/Evelyn Keyes, Charles Korvin, William Bishop; Assignment Paris (1952) dir/Earl McEvoy cast/Dana Andrews, Marta Toren, George Sanders; The Miami Story (1954) dir/Fred F. Sears cast/Barry Sullivan, Luther Adler, John Baer - all in high definition presented in their original aspect ratios."

Volume Two has:

Bait (1954), The Crooked Web (1955), The Night Holds Terror (1955), Footsteps in the Fog (1955), Cell 2455, Death Row (1955), 5 Against the House (1955), New Orleans Uncensored (1955), Spin a Dark Web (1955), and Rumble on the Docks (1956)

So again, 3 films on a dual-layered Blu-ray, with a decent bitrate (almost 6X that of the SD DVD) in 1080P and this is in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The Long Haul has a greenish overcast not as present on the DVD, but otherwise shows some variable, uneven, grain texture and looks pretty sweet in-motion with far more impressive detail - notable in close-ups. The differences will be notable dependant on how large your system is.

The audio is 24-bit lossless (DTS-HD Master 1.0 channel mono) exporting The Long Haul's score by Trevor Duncan (1958 TV series "Quatermass and the Pit" Fire Maidens of Outer Space, Chris Marker's La Jetée) and it is quite boisterous and effective in the lossless. The Blu-ray offers optional English subtitles (see sample) on this Region FREE Blu-ray package.

No supplements - but the disc is shared with The Shadow in the Window and Pickup Alley. Crime-genre fans get to revisit these 50's germs in a far more film-like presentations and with optional subtitles. The Long Haul has scenes evoking Henri-Georges Clouzot's The Wages of Fear and has the appeal of a stalwart Mature and sexy Dors love affair. The negative on the sets are the lack of extras but the value with these packages is the number of, usually modest, 50's crime dramas (many with Noir cycle approximation). I'm a big fan and whole-heartedly endorse.

Gary Tooze

***

ON THE DVD: Columbia Pictures made some fine thrillers in United Kingdom in the 1950's with Hollywood stars at the helm - Faith Domergue in Spin a Dark Web, Arlene Dahl in She Played with Fire and, here, Victor Mature in The Long Haul. To add some spice, the film co-stars a great femme fetale of British 1950's cinema - Diana Dors (for example, Yield to the Night and Tread Softly Stranger.

Per usual high standards of Sony Pictures made-on-demand releases, the newly remastered progressive transfer is excellent quality. There is no damage on the print, very good contrast and grain doesn't overpower the transfer. English mono soundtrack is load and clear and there is a trailer available as an extra. An excellent effort by Sony Pictures and very enjoyable ride!