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WARNER

MOVIE INFO

Director:
Raoul Walsh
Cast:
Ida Lupino, Robert Alda, Andrea King
Writing Credits:
Catherine Turney

Synopsis:
A homesick, no-nonsense lounge singer decides to leave New York City to spend some time visiting her two sisters and brother on the West Coast where she falls in love with a down-and-out ex-jazz pianist.

MPAA:
Rated NR.

DISC DETAILS
Presentation:
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio:
English DTS-HD MA Monaural
Subtitles:
English
Closed-captioned
Supplements Subtitles:
None

Runtime: 97 min.
Price: $21.99
Release Date: 6/25/2024

Bonus:
• 2 Animated Shorts
• Trailer


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RELATED REVIEWS


The Man I Love [Blu-Ray] (1947)

Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (June 24, 2024)

More than 40 years after his death, Raoul Walsh lacks “name recognition” among the general public. However, film buffs know his work, primarily for gangster flicks like 1939’s The Roaring Twenties and 1949’s White Heat.

Made in between those two, 1947’s The Man I Love. This one focuses on beautiful torch singer Petey Brown (Ida Lupino).

Petey travels from New York to Southern California to visit her family for Christmas. While there, she gets work as a performer at a club owned by underworld figure Nicky Toresca (Robert Alda).

Nicky makes many passes at Petey, which she avoids. Instead, she maintains a desire for struggling jazz pianist San Thomas (Bruce Bennett), a choice that leads to various complications.

Man often feels more like a showcase for Lupino’s talents than a full-fledged movie. We get ample scenes of her as a singer along with plenty of showy moments in which she gets to make a dramatic impact.

Beyond that, Man struggles to find much of interest. It really just becomes a dreary love triangle and not a lot more.

Actually, I guess Man offers a slight deviation from the formula in that both of Petey’s potential mates come with ample flaws. Normally a movie like this would place the lead in a dilemma where she must choose between a practical but boring suitor and the man she loves passionately who comes with major drawbacks.

In this case, both San and Nicky demonstrate considerable issues that make them less than suitable for Petey. Nicky is a philandering hood, while San is still hung up on a lost love and emotionally troubled.

Despite this potential twist, Man fails to find much of interest, mainly because Nicky offers such a one-dimensional lech. For a love triangle to work, the audience needs to accept both suitors as viable, and we don’t sense that here.

Perhaps because the basic plot of Man comes with these concerns, it dabbles in issues related to Petey’s relatives. We get a mix of concerns connected to their own personal lives.

These offer some cheap melodrama but don’t receive enough exploration to add depth to the movie. Instead, these scenes come across like simple stabs at emotion as well as filler.

Lupino offers a strong lead performance, even though she exhibits a film noir personality in a romantic melodrama. Still, despite the fact her character feels oddly disconnected from many of the others, Lupino gives the part bite that helps move along the flick.

Which it needs since the story and characters don’t offer a lot to captivate the viewer. Scattered and rarely especially compelling, Man I Love ends up as a mediocre romantic drama.


The Disc Grades: Picture B+/ Audio B/ Bonus D+

The Man I Love appears in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This turned into a solid presentation.

In general, sharpness satisfied, as the movie usually appeared well-defined. Some softness popped up for the occasional shot, but the majority of the flick boasted nice delineation.

Shimmering and jaggies remained absent, and edge haloes also failed to appear. The movie’s grain structure felt natural, and print flaws didn’t mar the proceedings.

Blacks appeared deep and dark, and contrast came across well. Shadows held up nicely as well. The movie still gave us a positive presentation.

Similar thoughts greeted the sturdy DTS-HD MA monaural soundtrack of Man, as it held up nicely over the decades. Speech could seem a bit thin, but lines were intelligible and concise enough.

Music and effects displayed the expected restricted dynamic range, but they showed acceptable clarity and didn’t suffer from distortion. The mix lacked pops, clicks, hum, or other defects. This was a more than competent track for a movie from the 1940s.

In addition to the film’s trailer, we get two vintage shorts. From the same era as Man, we locate Rabbit Transit (8:05) and Crowing Pains (6:50).

Depending on your perspective, Transit offers either a sequel to or a remake of 1941's classic Tortoise Beats Hare and features another race between Bugs and Cecil Turtle. While not quite as good as Hare, Transit nonetheless delights.

Pains focuses on Sylvester's attempts to steal a dog's bone and also involves shenanigans with Foghorn Leghorn and Henery Hawk, It seems a bit all over the place, but I always enjoy Henery so it comes with some fun.

Note that the Blu-ray's case mistakenly claims the disc includes the shorts Roughly Squeaking and Slick Hare.

With a noted director and a good cast, The Man I Love boasts solid potential. Unfortunately, the end result feels less than captivating, as the movie never finds a groove. The Blu-ray brings very good picture and appropriate audio but it lacks substantial supplements. Though not a bad film, Man just doesn’t connect.

Viewer Film Ratings: 2 Stars Number of Votes: 1
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