Review: Nightfall

Blu-ray: Nightfall (1956)

Based on a book written by David Goodis, and Directed by Jacques Tourneur  (Cat People, Night of the Demon), Nightfall is a quirky little ‘Noir’ starring  Aldo Ray as Jim, Brian Keith as bad guy John, Anne Bancroft as love interest Marie and James Gregory as Ben; an insurance investigator whose case isn’t so open and shut.

Jim meets Marie in a restaurant, chats her up, lends her $5, then just as he’s about to escort her home he’s accosted by two heavies John and Red (Keith and Rudy Bond). They scare Marrie off and drive Ben to the desert demanding to know where their money is.

Several flashbacks later and we find our erstwhile hero on the run. Did he take their ill gotten money, or is he as innocent as he seems to be?

A very young and beautiful Bancroft plays the love interest as a spikey gal who can take care of herself, and Keith is, despite being a bad guy, a charming ‘everyman’, while the then gorgeous Aldo Ray, all smokey voiced and all American (take a look at his photo, you’d never believe his mum and dad were Italian) positively steals the film with cheeky smile and his believable \”is he? or isn’t he the hero?\” Persona. 

A really enjoyable tale that keeps you guessing till its…very abrupt end.

Yet again a disc packed with fantastic extras and a collectors booklet only available on the 1st pressing…get it while you can.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS

• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation, restored from original film elements
• Original lossless mono soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• New audio commentary by author and critic Bryan Reesman
• White and Black, a new video appreciation of Nightfall by film historian Philip Kemp
• Do I Look Like a Married Man?, a new video essay on the themes of Nightfall by author and critic Kat Ellinger
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jennifer Dionisio

FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Amy Simmons.

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Review by Tina from a disc kindly supplied by Arrow Films.