Out of the Past

Summary

“Build my gallows high, baby.”

When I first began collecting Warner Archive titles a little over a decade ago, I discovered Jacques Tourneur’s phenomenal film noir Out of the Past. The picture blew me away and quickly jumped to the very top of the list of my favorite film noirs. It made great sense to me that Warner Archive would choose to give this exceptional film a 4K UHD upgrade. In the included special features, a strong case is made that it might be the best film noir ever made. I was happy to sit down with my wife the other night to watch it. 

Out of the Past begins in a small and quiet town in California. A mysterious gangster named Joe (Paul Valentine) arrives in town and visits Jeff Bailey’s Garage. The gangster talks with a deaf boy that works as an attendant there and finds out that Jeff (Robert Mitchum) will be back soon. Joe waits at the cafe across the street. When Jeff arrives, Joe informs him that Whit (Kirk Douglas) would like him to come back to San Francisco to settle an old debt. Jeff Bailey decides to tell his beautiful small town love Ana (Virginia Huston) the awful truth: Jeff Bailey was once really named Jeff Markham. Jeff Markham was a private eye that had been hired by a wealthy gangster named Whit to track down a dame named Kathie (Jane Greer) that had left Whit $40,000 lighter in the bank account and four bullets heavier. The plot unfolds in an extended flashback of how Jeff met the beautiful and dangerous Kathie and the events that transpired causing him to lose his identity. Jeff will need to use all of his guile to avoid the past destroying any chance of a future with Ana.

For a film noir enthusiast this film has everything: chain smoking, tough dialogue, suspense, femme fatales, frame-ups, murder, and betrayal all in gloriously lensed black and white. The writing by Daniel Mainwaring (under the pseudonym of Geoffrey Homes) is tightly paced and tough as nails. The original title of the film was Build My Gallows High if that gives any indication into how rough this film intends to be. The script is extremely interesting. The plot careens in numerous directions – crossing from San Francisco to Mexico and elsewhere. On my first viewing of the picture I was impressed by how the plot unfolded without alllowing me to guess what would occur next. While the picture uses some techniques that are fairly standard for a noir film, the direction by Jacques Tourneur makes the film’s dynamic feel fresh and alive. Out of the Past in many respects looks modern thanks to cinematographer Nicholas Musuraka’s choice to have dolly shots follow actors and other modern techniques that were not so common at that time. It is a beautifully realized film and a lot of that is due to the evocative imagery and brilliant use of shadow. The picture was shot partially on location and partially within the studios of RKO. In both cases, Musuraka shows his mastery of light and shadow. When you see the picture, I promise that you will be struck by the imagery.

This is a bit of an aside, but it is worth noting that this film makes great use of cigarettes. This film could have been sponsored by Winston-Salem or Philip Morris. Robert Mitchum smokes like a fiend and uses this character trait to do some interesting stuff. For example, when Jeff knocks out a man and then borrows a cigarette from the pack laying there, or when he throws a lit cigarette onto the carpet of a room to show his displeasure and control of the situation, the writing shines. These little details matter.

Robert Mitchum is electric. This is him in peak performance mode (not quite to the level of Night of the Hunter, but still crazy good.) Kirk Douglas does a great job as the soft-spoken villain Whit. This was only his second film but it was already evident that he had the confidence to tackle juicy roles. Even more impressive is how Jane Greer manages to steal the film from both of them. She was a real knock-out and her layered performance is one of the best of its kind. You will not be able to take your eyes off her. When you combine those performances with numerous great character actors in smaller roles, you have something really special.

Out of the Past is essentially perfect. It is consistently engaging with a ruthless brutality that stands out as rougher than most of its counterparts. Film noirs do not come any better than this. I wish we could see more films of its ilk today. Fans of A History of Violence will find themselves right at home here. I am grateful to Warner for giving this film a 4K release.

Video

Warner Bros. did a truly fantastic job on the transfer of Out of the Past from a new 4K scan of the original nitrate camera elements in gorgeous Black and White. The 2014 Blu-ray was beautiful for its time, but this 4K edition will stand as the definitive way to experience the picture. It is absolutely crystal clear. I love Nicholas Musuruka’s cinematography in this film. It has the same evocative look of other noirs in terms of use of shadow and light, but he managed to mix in so many techniques that were not remotely popular at the time (dolly shots, etc.) It is visually captivating. Fans of the film are going to be very pleased with the meticulous attention to detail that this transfer has been given. Clarity and fine detail are exceptional. I did not notice any room for improvement here. 

Audio

Warner Bros. have provided the same DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track from 2014. It sounds good. As a mono mix, front speakers are used for the entire mix. Clarity is solid. I did not detect any dropouts or overbearing hiss. This is not the most robust mix imaginable, but the score does benefit from the mix. I really thought the work that Warner put in on this track was pretty remarkable overall.

Supplements:

• Introduction – TCM Noir Alley host and Eddie Muller introduces Out of the Past in this short piece from 2022. Muller considers Out of the Past to be one of the best film noirs ever made, and I am tempted to agree with him.
• Commentary by James Ursuni – a film noir expert, James Ursini delves into the film’s history and illuminates some interesting facts. I enjoyed this track. This was originally on the 2004 DVD release.
• Radio Shows – four vintage radio broadcasts featuring stars from Out of the Past.
  • We Were Expecting You at Dakar – Robert Mitchum
  • The Story of Markham’s Death  – Kirk Douglas
  • Death at Live Oak – Robert Mitchum
  • Community Property – Kirk Douglas

Overall Scores:

Video – 5/5

Audio – 4.5/5

Supplements – 3/5

Overall – 5/5

Out of the Past is an outstanding film. I love film noir and this is easily one of the most relentlessly dark film noirs of its era. It is also one of the very best, possibly the best, film noirs ever made. I adore this film and it is wonderful to see Warner Archive bring it to 4K UHD. Robert Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Greer are delightful to watch perform. I really can’t recommend Out of the Past highly enough. The video and audio has been very well preserved and the 4K upgrade outshines the excellent 2014 Blu-ray presentation. I would have been happy to see some more supplements, but what supplements are included are worthwhile. Don’t hesitate to own this brilliant film on 4K. This easily earns our highest recommendation.