Bogie on Blu-ray

Tomorrow, Oct. 5th, Warner Bros. will release on Blu-ray two classics starring Humphrey Bogart, The Maltese Falcon (1941) and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948). This will be the Blu-ray debut for both films.

The Maltese Falcon was writer/director John Huston’s directorial debut. It was an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett and had already been brought to the big screen before, in 1931 and again in 1936 as Satan Met a Lady starring Bette Davis. Huston’s film was nominated for three Academy Awards, Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Sydney Greenstreet), and Best Adapted Screenplay, but was awarded none.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was also written and directed by John Huston, adapted from B. Traven’s novel of the same name. The film won three Academy Awards, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor (Walter Huston, director Huston’s father), and was additionally nominated for Best Picture.

Bogart may have not been recognized by the Academy for either performance, but they are undoubtedly two of his best and make for a splendid double feature. The Blu-ray presentation for both films is outstanding. Skeptics, take note: the high definition transfer is not a glossy, superficial manipulation of the images. Instead, the movies are crisp and free of scratches, like they have simply been polished, and complete with strong, beautiful sound quality.

Each Blu-ray release comes loaded with special features. There are features on both films, as well as an audio commentary by biographer Eric Lax, who is thorough and highly informative. An hour-long radio broadcast of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre with Bogart and Walter Huston is featured on the Blu-ray, with two shorter radio shows of The Maltese Falcon (starring the film’s original cast) and a third one with Edward G. Robinson. There are also various shorts, cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny and one with Porky Pig, newsreels, and trailers (including one for Satan Met a Lady).

Standout features include a profile on John Huston on the Sierra Madre Blu-ray and Becoming Attractions: The Trailers of Humphrey Bogart on the Falcon disc, a TCM special hosted by Robert Osborne. My personal favorite of all the features is Breakdowns of 1941, which is essentially a collection of outtakes featuring James Stewart, Gary Cooper, Bette Davis, and Bogart in a couple of bloopers. James Cagney appears in the majority of the outtakes, from the 1940 film, Torrid Zone, and his outtakes, primarily with frequent co-star Pat O’Brien, are hilarious.

The special features vary in quality, and some of them have been included in previous DVD releases, but they are essential additions for Bogie enthusiasts. Many of Bogie’s fans may already own a copy of The Maltese Falcon or The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, but if one is looking to upgrade or is a Bogart completist, these Blu-rays will make wonderful enhancements to a Bogie collection.

For discussions on both films, see The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.

They Sold Their Souls for: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) is John Huston's film version of B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name. The identity of B. Traven was unknown at the time. Some believe that he was Jack London, living in Mexico, after faking his own death. He really was a ex-patriot German named Rex Marut. When John Huston went down to Mexico to film The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, he met with Hal Croves, Traven's represetative. As he talked with Croves, Huston began to believe that he was really talking to B. Traven himself. Years later, Huston found out that Hal Groves was another alias for Ret Marut, a.k.a. B. Traven. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre's ,cast consists of: Humphrey Bogart, Tim Holt and Walter Huston, (the director's father). It was one of the first Hollywood films to be filmed almost entirely on location outside the United States (in the state of Durango and street scenes in Tampico, Mexico).

Dobbs and Curtin are both victims of a swindle in which workers are hired, but not paid by a corrupt businessman. They spend their evenings listening to the stories of Howard, an old gold prospector. When Dobbs wins the lottery, they hook up with Howard and the three friends set out for adventure and to strike it rich in the Sierra Madre mountains. Once out in the desert, Howard quickly proves that he knows what he is talking about and he is the one to discover the gold. Greed soon sets in and Dobbs becomes paranoid that he will be killed by his partners. In one of my favorite scenes, Curtin sees a Gila monster run under a rock and goes to lift the rock to shoot it, but when Dobbs sees Curtin looking in his hiding place, he believes his goods are being stolen.

Soon, a fourth American shows up. Before they can decide what to do with the new stranger, bandits appear, pretending to be Federales. This is where Gold Hat says: "Badges? We ain't got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any stinking badges." After a gunfight, the fourth American is killed and a real troop of Federales show up just in time. Howard is called away to help a young boy in the village. Dobbs and Curtin have a argument and Dobbs leaves Curtin laying shot and believed to be dead. What will happen to these three friends and their treasure?

What I loved most about this classic adventure story is it showed how lack of trust and greed, can sometimes turn your plans into nothing but.. dust in the wind .. I also love director cameos: John Huston is the man who Dobbs begs money from early in the film.