Customer Reviews

Out of the Past

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Out of the Past... What can one say?... Just watch it late at nite like its meant to, everyone's asleep and it's four in the morning... Just like Mitchum looked in most of his best roles ...If you love old black and white movies like me, especially noir, this is one of the top ten movies of all time...Dialogue, Come on! Some of the best you'll ever hear. Photography, Ditto! Especially the rain scene in Mexico with the shadows of palms in the cabina...Sum it up, They don't make em like this anymore. Get it!!!

I Remember Jane Greer talking about Mitchum in his bio and the fact that Kirk Douglas was trying to " underact" Mitchum. Greer says " Nobody Could Underact Mitchum.

Its true, and this is one of his great films. As noted the sparkling dialogue such as.... Rhonda Fleming and Mitchum are walking down a corrider towards an elevator..after just leaving her boyfriend..she says ' What did you think of him" Mitchum says " He,s a jerk" Fleming then asks " Why do you say that"?

Mitchum says .." He,s in love with you isnt he! Look for Paul Valentine and Dickie Moore as the mute.Classic Mitchum..

Among the spate of b&w noir films recently released by Universal and Warner's is this classic. Directed on a somewhat higher budget than most noirs of the 40's, Jacques Tourneur used his considerable skill honed on his 40's noir horror films with Val Lewton to fashion a first class thriller of deceit, lies, double crosses, murder, blackmail etc. all wrapped up with a first rate cast. One time gum shoe Robert Mitchum (now running a small town gas station) is tracked down and hired by Kirk Douglas to find his runaway mistress (Jane Greer) who shot him and ran off with $40,000. He finds her in Acapulco and immediately falls for her deceptive charms. She's a femme fatale with more traps in her web than a black widow spider. Of course, things get complicated (there's a murder and Mitchum disposes of the body) and soon Greer is back with Douglas and Mitchum is up to his neck again with another "job"...from Douglas. Mitchum is torn between his love for a good girl (Virginia Huston) and the wily machinations of Greer. And this time, he suspects he's being set up as a fall guy by Greer and Douglas. But Greer has her hooks in him good and it looks as if no one will win. Rhonda Fleming is another bad girl Mitchum contends with and there's more murder and mayhem to be dealt with as the walls close in on everyone. "Out of the Past" is an incredibly entertaining film that pulls you in and doesn't let up. Mitchum narrates the first part of the story (telling how he got involved to Huston) in typical fatalistic deadpan style. This is one of the all-time greats and the DVD print is really crisp and clean. A definite collector's item.

One of the best movies ever made. Intense, witty, dark, moody - all desribe this masterpiece. Probably the greatest "break the silence" line ever is to be found here - courtesy of Kirk Douglas, as he pulls a surprise visit on his hired man, Robert Mitchum. Definitely a must see.

RKO Radio Pictures presents "OUT OF THE PAST" (13 November 1947) (97 min/B&W) (Fully Restored/Dolby Digitally Remastered) -- Jeff Bailey, small-town gas pumper, has his mysterious past catch up with him one day when he's ordered to meet with gambler Whit Sterling --- En route to the meeting, he tells girlfriend Ann his story --- Flashback: Once, Jeff was a private eye hired by Sterling to find his mistress Kathie who shot Whit and absconded with $40,000 --- He traces her to Acapulco, where the delectable Kathie makes Jeff forget all about Sterling --- Back in the present, Whit's new job for Jeff is clearly a trap, but Jeff's precautions only leave him more tightly enmeshed.

Classic example of 40's film noir with dialogue a particular standout.

Under the production staff of:
Jacques Tourneur [Director]
Daniel Mainwaring [Novel/Screenplay]
Frank Fenton [Screenwriter]
James M. Cain [Screenwriter]
Warren Duff [Producer]
Robert Sparks [Executive Producer]
Roy Webb [Original Film score]
Nicholas Musuraca [Cinematographer]
Samuel E. Beetley [Film Editor]

BIOS:
1. Jacques Tourneur [Director]
Date of Birth: 12 November 1904 - Paris, France
Date of Death: 19 December 1977 - Bergerac, Dordogne, Aquitaine, France

2. Robert Mitchum
Date of Birth: 6 August 1917 - Bridgeport, Connecticut
Date of Death: 1 July 1997 - Santa Barbara, California

3. Jane Greer
Date of Birth: 9 September 1924 - Washington, District of Columbia
Date of Death: 24 August 2001 - Los Angeles, California

4. Kirk Douglas [aka: Issur Danielovitch Demsky]
Date of Birth: 9 December 1916 - Amsterdam, New York
Date of Death: Still Living

5. Rhonda Fleming [aka: Marilyn Louis]
Date of Birth: 10 August 1923 - Hollywood, California
Date of Death: Still Living

the cast includes:
Robert Mitchum - Jeff Bailey
Jane Greer - Kathie Moffat
Kirk Douglas - Whit Sterling
Rhonda Fleming - Meta Carson
Richard Webb - Jim
Steve Brodie - Jack Fisher
Virginia Huston - Ann Miller
Paul Valentine - Joe Stephanos
Dickie Moore - The Kid
Ken Niles - Leonard Eels

Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 5 Stars
Performance: 5 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 5 Stars
Overall: 5 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]

Total Time: 97 min on DVD ~ RKO Radio Pictures ~ (07/06/2004)

This is without a doubt one of the best film noirs ever made, & with a very impressive cast. The director brilliantly cast Mitchum & Douglas as rivals & of course the beautiful yet deadly Jane Greer as the femme fatale. Mitchum is perfect as the private detective who loses control of his life after falling for Douglas' "girlfriend", played by Jane Greer. Douglas, although virtually unknown in Hollywood at the time of this film, also gives an incredible performance as a ruthless mobster determined to own Greer at all cost. I've seen dozens of film noirs but I can't think of one with as much snappy dialogue as this one. The screenwriter, Geoffrey Homes was truly gifted & made this film timeless. And of course, the talented Jacques Tourneur flawlessly directed this great classic & created one of the most memorable film noirs ever. The picture quality of the dvd is excellent & there's very informative commentary that helped me fully understand the complicated plot. This masterpiece is a must-have for any fan of film noirs. In fact, it'd be hard for anyone to not like this movie!

If you want to define film-noir, OUT OF THE PAST has it all. Standout performances from Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, and Kirk Douglas, magnificent direction by Jacques Tourneur, and a screenplay full of more twists than a super-pretzel.

Warner Home Video has given this film an outstanding transfer, as good as, or even surpassing any presentation of a noir film on DVD hitherto.

Oh yes, the FILM has GRAIN. It was shot that way. It's supposed to look that way. Pay no attention to dweebs on these boards who don't understand that. This DVD is sure to please any true film fan who knows what they're supposed to be looking at, and OUT OF THE PAST has never looked better!

Jacque Tourneur's "Out of the Past" is one of the quintessential film noirs. Everything, from Robert Mitchum's musings - "Build my gallows high, baby" to the darkly mysterious environment is fraught with subtle entendre and troubling meaning. yet so fascinating that you can't turn away. Robert Mitchum is at his sleepy-eyed, dry and brooding best as Jeff Bailey, the ultra-cool, ultra savvy former P.I. hiding out from his former life as a gas station owner in a little alcove of existence that itself is absent from the mainstream world. But the past catches up with Bailey in the embodiment of callous, calculating career criminal, Whit Sterling (Kirk Douglas). Whit and Jeff had some spurious goings on once upon a time, an old score that Whit isn't willing to overlook or concede once he finds Jeff. If that was not bad enough, Kathie Moffat (Jane Greer) enters the picture as the atypical femme fatale, whose bite is more venomous than the poisonous web of destruction and deceit that she manages to ensnare everyone in. This is a palpable taut thriller with few equals, an intellectual crime drama that puts its remake "Against All Odds" to shame. As is to be expected, the plot is anything but straight forward, leading to twists of convention that the first time viewer will be hard pressed to figure out or see coming.
In keeping with Warner's current trend to not really do all that is required to completely remaster classic movies for DVD, the transfer of "Out of the Past" is just a bit above average. The gray scale is nicely balanced with deep solid blacks and whites that are relatively clean. There's a considerable amount of film grain and age related artifacts for a visual presentation that, while a considerable improvement over previously issued VHS tapes, is still below par. Edge effects, pixelization and shimmering of fine details are all present and sometimes distract. The audio is mono but nicely balanced. The more intent listener will notice some hiss. There's a very thorough audio commentary by James Ursini to round out your appreciation of the film. A good disc to add to your library.

Out of the Past is one of the 5 best noir films of all time, and this fills a BIG hole in dvd-land. Now if The Asphault Jungle would just come out...

This is one of the best examples of Film Noir ever produced. Everything about the production is dark and troubling, yet so fascinating that you can't turn away. The trio of Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, and Kirk Douglas are central to the plot, and all are brilliant in their roles. Mitchum is perfect as the cool and smart former Private Investigator turned gas station owner who finds out that he still has entanglements from his previous life, Kirk Douglas is the absolute embodiment of a cold, calculating career criminal, and beautiful Jane Greer manages to ensnare everyone in her web of mystery and deceit.

This is the ultimate intellectual crime drama, and a viewing of this film could teach contemporary directors how suspense is supposed to be executed. The plot is so intricate and involved that I won't even discuss it, other than to say this: pay attention. The abrupt plot twists rarely, if ever, turn out like a first time viewer would expect, and the suspense created by director Jacques Tourneur is palpable.

The DVD is going to be released soon, and I will be sure to augment my VHS copy with the new DVD. This film really is one of the classics of American cinema, and is definitely as absorbing and engrossing as anything made in the last fifty years. For a wild and suspenseful ride, with a plot full of twists, turns, and surprises until the very end, don't miss "Out of the Past!"