Brit Noir Collection II (Blu-ray)

The mighty Jack Hawkins (The Cruel Sea, The Bridge on the River Kwai) takes center stage in this triple feature of brilliant British noir. Home at Seven (1952) – Ralph Richardson reprises his role from R.C. Sherriff’s play as a bank clerk whose inexplicable amnesia leaves him without an alibi after a murder-robbery. Co-starring Hawkins and the marvelous Margaret Leighton, this twisty mystery (a.k.a. Murder on Monday) saw Richardson direct for the first and only time in his illustrious career. The Intruder (1953) – The horrors of war come back to haunt a former World War II colonel (Hawkins) when an armed man (Michael Medwin), who once fought bravely under the colonel’s command, breaks into his home. The gripping second feature from future 007 master Guy Hamilton (Goldfinger). The Long Arm (1956) – Reuniting with his Cruel Sea director Charles Frend, Hawkins leads a Scotland Yard investigation into a spate of safe-cracking crimes across England, beginning with the latest heist in London. Known as The Third Key in the U.S., the film adopts a gritty procedural style made popular by Ealing in 1950’s The Blue Lamp.  Audio Commentary for Home at Seven by Film Historian/Writer Julie Kirgo and Writer/Filmmaker Peter Hankoff | Audio Commentary for The Intruder by Film Historian/Writer Julie Kirgo and Writer/Filmmaker Peter Hankoff | Audio Commentary for The Long Arm by Film Historian Laurence Lerman