Crossfire Blu-ray - Robert Ryan

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

Directed by Edward Dmytryk
USA 1947

Years of police work have taught Detective Finlay that where there's crime, there's motive. But he finds no usual motive when investigating a mans death by beating. The man was killed because he was a Jew. Hate, Finlay says, is like a gun. Robert Young portrays Finlay, Robert Mitchum is a laconic army sergeant assisting in the investigation of G.I. suspects, and Robert Ryan plays a vicious bigot in a landmark film noir nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Edward Dmytryk (Murder, My Sweet) directs, draping the genres stylistic backdrops and flourishes around a topic rarely before explored in films: anti-Semitism in the U.S. Here, Hollywood takes aim at injustice...and catches bigotry in a Crossfire.

***

Crossfire (1947), one of the best film noirs to come out of RKO Studios, is a film of many firsts. It was executive producer Dore Schary's first film for RKO (he would take over as chief of production at MGM in 1948). It was based on Richard Brooks' first novel, The Brick Foxhole, written while he was still in the Marines (he later became a Hollywood screenwriter/director). And it brought first time Oscar nominations to both Robert Ryan and Gloria Grahame in supporting roles and to Edward Dmytryk for his direction. At the same time, Crossfire marked the last time Dmytryk and his producer Adrian Scott would work together after collaborating on such popular movies as Murder, My Sweet (1944) and Cornered (1945); both men would be called before the House Un-American Activities Committee after completing Crossfire and blacklisted for refusing to answer questions about their alleged Communist Party affiliations.

Excerpt from TCM located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: July 22nd, 1947

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Review: Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:25:38.174
Video	1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 26,931,673,175 bytes Feature: 26,175,891,456 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate Blu-ray:
Audio	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1775 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1775 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentary: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1704 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1704 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Archive 1.37:1 1080P Single-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 26,931,673,175 bytes Feature: 26,175,891,456 bytes Video Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Commentary by film historians Alain Silver and James Ursini, with audio interview excerpts of director Edward Dmytryk • Crossfire: Hate Is Like a Gun featurette (8:58) Blu-ray Release Date: March 16th, 2021 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 32

Comments:

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

ADDITION: Warner Archive Blu-ray (March 2021): Warner Archive have transferred a key Film Noir, Edward Dmytryk's Crossfire to Blu-ray with a max'ed out bitrate. We have compared a couple of captures with the DVD as part of the Warner Boxset #2 from 2005, and the horrible Manga PAL DVD from way back in 2002. You can tell immediately that this is a wonderful upgrade via the 1080P resolution. Accurate 1.37:1 aspect ratio, tight, clean, grain - the film is notable for its brilliant shadow-play which comes across with Noir-ish delight in this HD presentation. Pristine contrast and an overall fabulous advancement in the image from SD. Brilliant.

NOTE: We have added 62 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Warner Archive use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. It is another advancement in the film's audio and score by Roy Webb (Clash by Night, I Married a Witch, This Is Cinerama, Easy Living, The Window, Fixed Bayonets, Journey Into Fear, I Walked with a Zombie etc.) sounding a bit deeper with the one instance of gunshots carry more heft via the lossless. Warner Archive offer optional English subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Warner Archive Blu-ray offers a the previous, excellent, commentary by Alain Silver and James Ursini. It includes, highly interesting, audio interview excerpts of director Edward Dmytryk discussing HUAC, his jail-time, the performers, making the film, later the lighting - it remains relevant and worth indulging in. They talk about the original story by Richard Brooks (In Cold Blood) was really about a homosexual, not Jewish victim of murder and how that was not allowed at the time. Warner Archive also include the same 9-minute Crossfire: Hate Is Like a Gun featurette with Dmytryk and others - that was found on their 2005 DVD.

Edward Dmytryk's Crossfire has some deep Noir atmosphere and the desirable "Robert" trifecta leading the way with support from infectious Gloria Grahame. Kudos to cinematographer J. Roy Hunt (Tourneur's I Walked with a Zombie) and director Dmytryk - it's dripping with dark cinema desirability. An uncomfortable, but important, topic and you only wish there were 100 more murder/crime dramas like it with the same cast and shadowy aura. We are so pleased with the a/v presentation and this Warner Archive Blu-ray is strongly recommended - an essential purchase for Noir devotees.