DVD Releases Out of the Past (Warner Home Video)Out of the Past (1947) is film noir at its best—stylistically and thematically dark, yet full of wit (“Build my gallows high, baby”). Jane Greer plays Robert Mitchum and Kirk Douglas for saps in this complex web of deceit in Northern California that’s exquisitely shot by Nicholas Musuraca.Stage and Spectacle—Three Films by Jean Renoir(Criterion Collection)Famed French master Renoir tackles three theatrical movies in the ’50s: The Golden Coach, French Cancan and Elena and Her Men. The last, awash in warm, vibrant Technicolor, explores the public and private loves and lives of three immortal icons: Anna Magnani, Jean Gabin and Ingrid Bergman. A one-hour, three-part interview with Renoir conducted by New Wave director/critic Jacques Rivette illuminates the gentle, humanistic Renoir ethos “Intelligence is terrible. It makes us do stupid things.” – By Bill Desowitz
Written by Bill Desowitz
