The Arsenal Stadium Mystery Blu-ray

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

Directed by Thorold Dickinson
UK 1939

Featuring Arsenal's 1938/39 team line-up and an arguably career-best performance from Leslie Banks as an impeccably eccentric detective, The Arsenal Stadium Mystery remains both a classic whodunit and a high-water mark for pre-war British film. Directed by Oscar-nominated Thorold Dickinson, it is featured here as a High Definition remaster from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.

Amateur football team The Trojans face their toughest challenge: a charity match against Arsenal in front of a capacity crowd. During the game their star player collapses and dies of poison. Inspector Slade of Scotland Yard is assigned to catch the murderer and he has only three days to solve the case before it interferes with his theatre performance!

***

During a charity football match between Arsenal and touring amateur side Trojans, the Trojan's new star player collapses and dies. Inspector Slade of Scotland Yard is called in and declares it was murder. It takes all his ingenuity and another death before the motive is discovered and the killer revealed.

Posters

Theatrical Release: November 1939

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Review: Network - Region 'B' - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Network - Region 'B' - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:26:01.458
Video	1.33:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 19,684,953,749 bytes Feature: 18,142,464,000 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.97 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	LPCM Audio English 1536 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1536 kbps / 16-bit
Subtitles	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Network 1.33:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 19,684,953,749 bytes Feature: 18,142,464,000 bytes Video Bitrate: 24.97 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Image gallery Blu-ray Release Date: September 7th, 2020 Slim Transparent Blu-ray Case Chapters 11

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Network Blu-ray (September 2020): Network have transferred Thorold Dickinson's The Arsenal Stadium Mystery to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from a "High Definition remaster from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio". The 1.33:1 1080P has a few marks and speckles plus it looks to vacillate contrast and a touch of warping - from frame to frame. There isn't a lot of grain texture, there is a touch of gloss, but the presentation is reasonably consistent. A watchable image is a step-up from Network's own DVD from 2005. The stock football match footage is, predictably, rough.

On their Blu-ray, Network use a linear PCM dual-mono track (16-bit) in the original English language. There is no credited score but you might recognize the Gaumont-British Newsreel theme. It's a bit weak - similar to the image quality - functional and nothing fatally poor with audible dialogue. Network offer optional English subtitles (see sample below) on their Region 'B' Blu-ray.

The Network Blu-ray offers only a brief stills gallery as an extra.

The Arsenal Stadium Mystery is a pretty good vintage mystery. It has some less-appreciated humor and I was keen to watch it because of Thorold Dickinson (Queen of Spades and Gaslight.) It wasn't anywhere near the level of those strong efforts but interesting to some degree. Leslie Banks (The Most Dangerous Game) is Inspector Anthony Slade. I was pleased to have seen it on the Network, bare-bones, Blu-ray.

Gary Tooze