Four film noir classics from two iconic and distinctive directors are coming to DVD in Dark Crimes: Film Noir Thrillers Vol. 2, a brand new collection from Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Universal. The set includes two Fritz Lang films: You and Me (1938), starring George Raft and Sylvia Sydney; and Ministry of Fear (1944), starring Ray Milland. The collection also includes two William Castle movies: Undertow (1949), starring Scott Brady and John Russell, and Hollywood Story (1951), starring Richard Conte.
Dark Crimes: Film Noir Thrillers Vol. 2, which will mark the U.S. DVD debuts for You and Me, Undertow and Hollywood Story, is an ideal collection for any noir aficionado. Born at the dark crossroads of the hard-boiled crime writing that thrived in mid-century American pulp magazines and the shadow-saturated, off-kilter camerawork of European émigré directors, film noir perfectly captures the gloomier moods of wartime America – while somehow making danger and desperation seem irresistibly attractive.
Dark Crimes Vol. 2 contains multiple digital bonus features, including an introduction by TCM host Ben Mankiewicz, behind-the-scenes photos, production stills, poster and lobby card galleries, an original essay by Film Noir Foundation founder and president Eddie Muller, and interviews with Muller and actress Julie Adams. The collection, is set to go on sale Monday, July 7, exclusively through TCM's online store at shop.tcm.com.
TCM and Universal previously dove into the world of film noir with the original Dark Crimes: Film Noir Thrillers collection released in December 2012. The collection, which is also available for sale through shop.tcm.com, features films adapted from the works of three of the greatest hard-boiled mystery writers: Dashiell Hammett, Cornell Woolrich and Raymond Chandler. The set includes The Glass Key (1942), starring Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, Brian Donlevy and William Bendix; Phantom Lady (1944), starring Ella Raines, Franchot Tone and Elisha Cook Jr.; and The Blue Dahlia (1946), with Ladd, Lake and Bendix starring alongside Howard da Silva and Hugh Beaumont.
Dark Crimes: Film Noir Thrillers Vol. 2
Fritz Lang
Born in Vienna, Fritz Lang was responsible for some of the most technically and visually groundbreaking films of the silent and early sound era, including Metropolis (1927) and M (1931). Landing at MGM after fleeing Germany, he would make dozens of gut-wrenching features for various studios, including such iconic films noir as The Blue Gardenia (1953) and The Big Heat (1953).
You and Me (1938)
You and Me stars George Raft and Sylvia Sydney as Helen and Joe Dennis, two former convicts who find honest work in a department store and love with one another—until a dark secret from Helen’s past drives them apart and drives Joe back to his criminal ways.
Ministry of Fear (1944)
In Ministry of Fear, Academy Award® winner Ray Milland stars as Stephen Neale, a man just released from an asylum who struggles to convince anyone that he has uncovered a Nazi spy ring. Based on a novel by Graham Greene, with a score by Miklós Rózsa, this atmospheric film is part noir, part spy thriller.
William Castle
Best remembered as the director and creative promoter of such campy horror films as The House on Haunted Hill (1959) and The Tingler (1959), Castle was a multi-talented director, producer, screenwriter and actor who helmed many competent B films for Columbia Pictures, including four titles in The Whistler franchise.
Undertow (1949)
B western and TV regulars Scott Brady and John Russell star in Undertow as old friends who reunite, and discover they have more in common than either would have suspected. Dorothy Hart and Peggy Dow play the love interests in this complicated tale of mob and moll double crosses.
Hollywood Story (1951)
Hollywood Story takes aim at the darker side of the movie business. It stars Richard Conte as Larry O’Brien, a stage producer with dreams of being in the movie business who decides to shoot a documentary about the mysterious death of a silent film director, only to find himself in danger of suffering the same fate. With cameos by silent film stars such as Helen Gibson and Francis X. Bushman, this film is reminiscent of Sunset Blvd., released a year prior.
