Double Indemnity & Touch of Evil Blu-rays

Posted January 28, 2014 05:00 PM by

Universal Studios Home Entertainment will bring Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944) and Orson Welles' Touch of Evil (1958) to Blu-ray this Spring. The former arrives via a 70th Anniversary Limited Edition Blu-ray/UltraViolet combo pack, while the latter arrives via a Limited Edition BD/UV combo. Both highly anticipated catalog classics make their Blu-ray debuts on April 15th.

Double Indemnity

Synopsis: Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck star in the gripping film noir classic Double Indemnity, directed by Academy Award winner Billy Wilder. A calculating wife (Stanwyck) encourages her wealthy husband to sign a double indemnity policy proposed by smitten insurance agent Walter Neff (MacMurray). As the would-be lovers plot the unsuspecting husband's murder, they are pursued by a suspicious claims manager (Edward G. Robinson). It's a race against time to get away with the perfect crime in this suspenseful masterpiece that was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Double Indemnity is presented in 1080p with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. Special features include:

Introduction by Robert Osborne
Commentary with Film Historian Richard Schickel
Commentary with Film Historian/Screenwriter Lem Dobbs and Film Historian Nick Redman
Shadows of Suspense Documentary
Double Indemnity (1973) TV Movie
Theatrical Trailer

Touch of Evil

Synopsis: Directed by Orson Welles, Touch of Evil is a film noir masterpiece whose Hollywood backstory is as unforgettable as the movie itself. Starring Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh and Welles himself, this dark portrait of corruption and morally compromised obsessions tells the story of a crooked police chief who frames a Mexican youth as part of an intricate criminal plot.

The Blu-ray features three versions of the film: the Preview Version, the Theatrical Version and the Reconstructed Version, based on Orson Welles' original vision. All three are presented in 1080p with a English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. Special features include:

Preview Version Commentary with Welles Historians Jonathan Rosenbaum and James Naremore
Theatrical Version Commentary with Writer/Filmmaker F.X. Feeney
Reconstructed Version Commentary with Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh and Reconstruction Producer Rick Schmidlin
Reconstructed Version Commentary with Reconstruction Producer Rick Schmidlin
Bringing Evil to Life
Evil Lost and Found
Theatrical Trailer

Source: Blu-ray.com | Permalink |

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News comments (30 comments)

Top contributor

Grethiwha

Jan 28, 2014

yesyesyes!

So excited for Double Indemnity! And oh wow – I didn't even notice the physical extras!

L.A. Guy

Jan 28, 2014

Great news!!!

BluBonnet

Jan 28, 2014

This is awesomely good news! Let's hope Universal might have a few more similar surprises with other major classic titles

stlcards

Jan 28, 2014

Want both!

krasnoludek

Jan 28, 2014

Took them long enough! I'm curious how these compare to the UK releases of both films.

dsman71

Jan 28, 2014

Great news - but we are also getting Godzilla movies from Universal as well !

Top contributor

MrClarke

Jan 28, 2014

FINALLY!!!

The Valeyard

Jan 28, 2014

What's this about Godzilla????

Top contributor

repete66211

Jan 28, 2014

Not a big fan of either but this is great news for classic films fans.

Top contributor

Whirlygig

Jan 28, 2014

My pants are no longer dry.

Top contributor

noirjunkie

Jan 28, 2014

Very excited for both. "Touch of Evil" will probably be the same 1.85.1 AR from Universal's DVD edition.

MattPerdue

Jan 28, 2014

While I am excited for Touch of Evil I, like most I'm sure, do worry that it won't have both aspects ratios for the films. Or worse, it's another VC-1 encoded recycle of a DVD-era transfer.

Michael24

Jan 28, 2014

Saw both of these years ago in one of my college film classes. Didn't care for "Touch of Evil," but I loved "Double Indemnity" and will definitely get it.

Terrifyer

Jan 28, 2014

The MoC version of Touch of Evil is without a doubt one of the best blu rays since the format came out. If Universal's is anything like it, you region A only people are in for an absolute treat.

widegambler2012

Jan 28, 2014

Great Stuff what are the physical extras ?? Pre-Ordered Both I haven't seen Touch of Evil but I've always wanted too :-)

Alex82

Jan 28, 2014

F-I-N-A-L-L-Y... Geez, they sure took their time.

qb2333

Jan 28, 2014

Man this is great news. Double Indemnity is one of my all time favorites

JHas

Jan 28, 2014

Finally two of the greats released in the states!

Top contributor

BluPat

Jan 28, 2014

Excellent news!!!! YAY!!!!

Top contributor

vdmello

Jan 28, 2014

Double Indemnity!!!!!!! Touch of Evil!!!!!!!!!!! Finally!!!!!!!!!!

OldPangYau

Jan 28, 2014

I love Double Indemnity, and have been meaning to check out Touch of Evil... this is perfect! The former I've even had the luxury of seeing a 35mm print in theaters! Can't wait to finally own both of these on blu!

Bucky

Jan 29, 2014

Awesome! Any idea how limited these editions will be?

montyb

Jan 29, 2014

It will be tough to top the Eureka editions of these two classics. They did a marvelous job on these transfers. Universal is still "wait and see" for me. They sometimes use too much DNR on these older classics and it ruins finer detail while removing grain. Too bad Criterion didn't pick these up and do a stellar 4K restoration on these two great classics. Think I will just stick with my UK imports and wait to see what happens once these two are released here in the states.

Top contributor

RBBrittain

Jan 29, 2014

OK Universal; you finally caught us up with the UK on Double Indemnity & Touch of Evil. Now where's The Lost Weekend, Billy Wilder's next film after DI, which MoC released together with it and is one of the last Best Picture winners not available in *any* high-def format in the U.S. (not even download)???