The Film:
The Man In Grey is a film that hasn't always been treated very well, with the majority of showings on TV being a half hour shorter than the theatrical version. Thankfully however, the full length thearical version is now available on DVD for the first time in the UK courtesy of Network. Is the extra half an hour needed though, and does it make the film move slowly? Well, the answer to both of these questions is yes. Of course the extra half hour is needed because thats how director Leslie Arliss made the film in the first place. Although the film doesn't get talked about often, how would you feel if someone chopped half an hour out of a film that you had made, just to make it fit into a television slot easier? You wouldn't. Unfortunately however, the extra half hour expands the film into quite a slow moving, unmemorable affair in my opinion, despite being quite good.
Based on Eleanor Smith's original novel of the same name, The Man In Grey predominantly focuses on three characters; Clarissa Richmond, Hesther and the Marquis of Rohan. Clarissa first meets Hesther at school where they become friends. Soon after, the Marquis of Rohan asks Clarissa for her hand in marriage, and despite what she thinks, he is only marrying her so that he gets a heir to his to his title, which happens with the birth of a baby boy. Hesther has since left the school and is now an actress but they happen to have a chance meeting and Clarissa entrusts Hesther to become governess of her child, which is a favour quickly repayed by Hesther doing the dirty and having an affair with Rohan. As Hesther tries to push Clarissa closer to actor Rokeby, she attempts to push herself closer to Rohan.
As I said in the first paragraph, the film is good, but unfortunately there are to many instances where it feels long winded and scenes feel unnecessary. The acting is a plus point and the direction good, but I would only recommend this film to fans of drama or fans of one of the members of the cast or crew present.
The DVD:
Video:
Network have provided the film in it's original 4:3 aspect ratio and they have nothing to be ashamed of what they have presented, but nothing to be ceebrating either. Sometimes old black and white films suffer the problem of not being very defined in the shades of the blacks and whites, however this transfer has managed to be clear in that respect, but there is obvious grain and scratches to the print throughout, most noticeably during the first 25-30 minutes where the bottom right of the screen has a scratch that is small, but doesn't go away.
Audio:
Network have provided us with the original English Dolby Digital Mono track here and again, it's good for the most part. Dialogue is clear at all times and volume levels are consistent throughout. The only real problem with the soundtrack was the noticeable background hiss, present for the duration of the main feature. As is usual for Network releases, no subtitles have been provided.
Extras:
Network have provided several extras for this release.
We start with the James Mason: The Man They Love To Hate documentary which runs for 37 minutes and 36 seconds. This is basically a long nterview with James Mason in which he talks about his career as well as other things such as how he got into acting. A lot of footage from his films are shown, but unfortunately, I am led to believe that the interview is cut somewhat due a screen at the start that says some footage is missing because of contractual reasons which is a real shame, as this is an insightful and informative interview.
We also get a photo gallery and theatrical trailer.
