The Black Tent (1956/DVD)/Genevieve
(1953/Blu-ray)/The History Of Mr. Polly
(1949/DVD/all VCI Entertainment)
Picture: C+/B-/C+ Sound: C+/B-/C+ Extras: C-/B-/C- Films: C+/B-/C+
Here are
three more interesting films from the Rank catalog issued in the U.S. by VCI
Entertainment…
Brian
Desmond Hurst’s The Black Tent
(1956) is basically an exotic melodrama that wants to be a drama and romance,
but the mix gets bogged down somewhat by slow pacing, though it is lavishly
shot (more on that in a minute) and is worth a look just the same. The British are in Libya in 1942 and as they step
back, one soldier (Anthony Steel) joins an Arab tribe and marries the daughter
(Anna-Maria Sandri) of a Sheik (André Morell), but this is far from Dances With Wolves and only lasts 94
minutes. Still, it is a very interesting
production and Rank had high hopes for it considering its then-large
budget. Hurst directed the famous 1951 A Christmas Carol (which VCI has issued
in a fine Blu-ray) and is a good journeyman director. Donald Plesence, Michael Craig, Frederick
Jaeger and Anton Diffring also star.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is of transfer with a little more motion
blur and softness than I would have liked, but the film was shot in great large
frame VistaVision format and you can see how much money and effort was made
into making this a top rate A-movie.
Director of Photography Desmond Dickinson, B.S.C., delivers shots worthy
of Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much
(released the same year and shot in the same format) and Lean’s Lawrence Of Arabia (1962) even if the
film is not the classic those are. The
Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 sound mixes are lossy, but the 5.1 is a little better
and richer by comparison. A photo gallery
is the only extra.
Henry
Cornelius’ Genevieve (1953) is a
forerunner of the 1960s car race films, as well as of several films (including
musicals) where vintage cars from the dawn of motoring are featured. This one has a restored car as the title
character taking part in a two-car race.
John Gregson owns it, Dinah Sheridan is his wife who reluctantly takes
part, Kenneth More has a similarly fine classic auto and Kay Kendall is his
wife in this fun, classic, amusing, witty film that was shot in three-strip
Technicolor and makes for a fine Blu-ray release. I like the actors and the locations,
including Kendall who is a comic natural.
Sure there are forerunners of the film, but not many. Reginald Beckworth, Geoffrey Keen and Arthur
Wontner also star.
The 1080p
1.33 X 1 digital High Definition image has some softness (registry troubles
with the three strips at times?) and minor issues with its print and transfer,
but the print is often in good shape and excellent shots in many places. This also does a fine job of showing off how
good British Technicolor of the time could look and makes watching this a
pleasure. The film was shot by Director
of Photography Christopher Challis, B.S.C., also known for Sink The Bismarck!, A Shot
In The Dark (1964), Arabesque, Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying
Machines, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,
The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes
(one of the best Holmes films that will ever be made) and Evil Under The Sun, so he knew what he was doing.
The PCM
5.1 mix is the first of its kind we have run into on Blu-ray in a while and it
is not bad, but it is just spreading out the original monophonic sound, also
here in PCM 2.0 sound. Extras include a
Photo & Poster Gallery and half-hour Profile
Of Genevieve featurette from British TV.
There you can see how bad an older copy of the film looked.
Anthony
Pélissier’s 1949 film of H.G. Wells’ book The
History Of Mr. Polly has John Mills as the title character, giving a good
performance as a simple man with a simple life until fortune shines upon him
and he tires to do something new and exciting, but some of the people he meets
make him uncomfortable and new thoughts about his life and what he has not done
with it set in. At its best, it captures
the sense of Wells whimsy which is somewhat British, yet something more. Unfortunately, the film also gets sidetracked
with melodrama and does not resolve as I might have liked it too. However, it is ambitious for its time and
holds up considering its age. Hayley
Mills, Sally Ann Howes, Finlay Currie, Betty Ann Davies and Edward Chapman also
star.
The 1.33
X 1 black and white image has been restored and looks good, but there are more
than a few instances of motion blur and softness, but part of that is from the
age of the print. Desmond Dickinson,
B.S.C., also lensed this one. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 Mono shows its age, but that has been cleaned up more effectively
than expected. A restoration clip is the
only extra.
- Nicholas Sheffo
