Synopsis
After the lavish Technicolor spectacle of The Red Shoes, British filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger retreated into the inward, shadowy recesses of this moody, crackling character study. Based on the acclaimed novel by Nigel Balchin, The Small Back Room details the professional and personal travails of troubled, alcoholic research scientist and military bomb-disposal expert Sammy Rice (David Farrar), who, while struggling with a complex relationship with secretary girlfriend Susan (Kathleen Byron), is hired by the government to advise on a dangerous new German weapon. Deftly mixing suspense and romance, The Small Back Room is an atmospheric, post–World War II gem.

The.Small.Back.Room (1949).mkv

General
Container:  	Matroska
Runtime: 	1 h 47 min
Size: 	2.09 GiB
Video
Codec: 	x264
Resolution: 	1444x1080 
Aspect ratio:  	4:3
Frame rate: 	23.976 fps
Bit rate: 	2 500 kb/s
BPP: 	0.067
Audio
#1:  	English 2.0ch AAC LC @ 224 kb/s
#2:  	1.0ch (Audio commentary featuring film scholar Charles Barr)

https://nitro.download/view/DBBC36A07C1DE0F/The.Small.Back.Room_(1949).mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English

The post Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger – The Small Back Room (1949) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Synopsis :
After settling his differences with a Japanese PoW camp commander, a British colonel co-operates to oversee his men’s construction of a railway bridge for their captors – while oblivious to a plan by the Allies to destroy it. (imdb)

General
Container:  	AVI
Runtime: 	2h 41mn
Size: 	2.47 GiB
Video
Codec: 	XviD
Resolution: 	704x272 
Aspect ratio:  	2.588
Frame rate: 	23.976 fps
Bit rate: 	1 797 Kbps
BPP: 	0.391
Audio
#1:  	5.1ch AC-3 @ 384 Kbps

https://nitro.download/view/958D699F85AEAF0/The_Bridge_on_the_River_Kwai_(1957).BDRip.avi
https://nitro.download/view/BA1BAA90D6EC905/The_Bridge_on_the_River_Kwai_(1957).eng.srt

Language(s):English, Japanese, Thai
Subtitles:English (srt.)

The post David Lean – The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Quote:
What happens when we die? Probably nothing, and we damn sure can’t take anything with us. But just try telling that to Pharaoh Khufu (Jack Hawkins), who has amassed an ungodly amount of wealth in Howard Hawks’ soapy historical drama Land of the Pharaohs and wants nothing more than to buried with it. Enlisting the help of aging architect/slave Vashtar (James Robertson Justice) to design an intricate robber-proof tomb, Pharaoh Khufu spares no expense — and by that I mean “works thousands of slaves to death and raises taxes” — to ensure that it’s built exactly to spec and will preserve his body and treasures for all eternity. But when his second wife Princess Nellifer (Joan Collins) secretly plots to separate the two of them, a chain of lies and deceit as big as the Great Pyramid itself is set in motion.

Land of the Pharaohs was director Howard Hawks’ largest-scale assignment to date, the first and only time he worked in 2.55:1 Cinemascope (an ultra-wide format used to lure new television owners out of their homes) and, perhaps most importantly, it was his last collaboration with longtime friend William Faulkner, a creative partnership that had flourished since 1933’s Today We Live. Faulkner is listed as one of three credited writers on the film, but you probably wouldn’t know it from the mushy and uneven script that serves as Land of the Pharaohs’ most obvious weakness: its overcooked twists and turns work in tandem with campy dialogue delivery and sweeping historical inaccuracies (which actually got it banned in Egypt) to create an honestly kind of disarming atmosphere that’s nonetheless a bit more “pleasure” than “guilty”, in my opinion… yet I wouldn’t blame first-time viewers for flipping those adjectives around.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Land of the Pharaohs turned out to be a commercial failure and the first of Howard Hawks’ storied career, leading to a brief hiatus for the director that would mercifully end with his exceptional return on the 1959 Western classic Rio Bravo (not coincidentally coming very soon to 4K UHD from Warner Bros.). Yet it’s the film’s reputation as a guilty pleasure — never more evident than in its 2007 DVD debut from WB, who branded Land of the Pharaohs as part of its “Cult Camp Classics” series — that has earned it a surprisingly long life and one that’s long past ripe for re-evaluation, having been championed by the likes of Martin Scorsese as a personal favorite. I can’t share that same level of enthusiasm due to my lack of nostalgic attachment, which I believe you have to have in some capacity to truly fall for its charms. Yet the film’s obvious technical strengths, stunning location cinematography, and extravagant production design certainly elevate Land of the Pharaohs beyond an unearthed minor curiosity.

Aiding its legacy — and timed perfectly to tide Hawks fans over until Rio Bravo comes out — is Warner Archive’s new Blu-ray edition of Land of the Pharaohs, which will absolutely delight apologists of this sword-and-sandal soap opera. Its new 4K-sourced restoration is a cause for celebration by itself, but this disc also comes equipped with a brand new 5.1 audio mix sourced from original four-track stereo elements and a few lightweight bonus features.

Land of the Pharaohs.1955.576p.BDRip-AVC.ZONE.mkv

General
Container:  	Matroska
Runtime: 	1 h 44 min
Size: 	2.48 GiB
Video
Codec: 	x264
Resolution: 	1024x402 
Aspect ratio:  	2.547
Frame rate: 	23.976 fps
Bit rate: 	3 000 kb/s
BPP: 	0.304
Audio
#1:  	English 2.0ch AC-3 @ 224 kb/s
#2:  	English 2.0ch AC-3 @ 160 kb/s (Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich)

https://nitro.download/view/C7F8F2CE3E7660E/Land_of_the_Pharaohs.1955.576p.BDRip-AVC.ZONE.mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English

The post Howard Hawks – Land of the Pharaohs (1955) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

After a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.

6.18GB | 3h 42m | 1024×372 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/8E75F23AAEAD6F8/Ben-Hur.1959.576p.DD5.1.x264-REZ.mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English

The post William Wyler – Ben-Hur (1959) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Synopsis:
Bribery, robbery and an escaped homicidal patient. Just one day in the life of Chief Inspector Gideon of Scotland Yard.

2.96GB | 1h 30m | 1280×688 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/3DBEF6807143B52/Gideons.Day.1958.720p.AMZN.WEBRip.DD2.0.x264-SEV.mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English, French

The post John Ford – Gideon’s Day AKA Gideon of Scotland Yard (1958) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

At the start of World War II, Cmdr. Ericson is assigned to convoy escort HMS Compass Rose with inexperienced officers and men just out of training. The winter seas make life miserable enough, but the men must also harden themselves to rescuing survivors of U-Boat attacks, while seldom able to strike back. Traumatic events afloat and ashore create a warm bond between the skipper and his first officer

1.86GB | 2h 06mn | 756×576 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/6FEC78FC080F5BE/The.Cruel.Sea.1953.576p.BluRay.x264.mkv

https://rapidgator.net/file/37b105b04077278e983be5deac5f70c7/The.Cruel.Sea.1953.576p.BluRay.x264.mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English

The post Charles Frend – The Cruel Sea (1953) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Alistair MacLean’s two-fisted, no-holds-barred adventure yarns are a natural for the screen. When Eight Bells Toll brings in more slugging, quick action twists, sharp dialog, amusing acting than many pix twice its length.
Anthony Hopkins has a role that creates a character full of resource, courage, cheek and personality. A kind of James Bond, without the latter’s trademarks. Character is a naval secret service agent assigned to find out how millions of pounds in gold bullion are being pirated. He starts his explorations in the bleakness of the Western Highlands of Scotland. Hopkins and his pal (Corin Redgrave) posing as marine biologists find mystery and hostility among the natives and the obvious suspect is a suave, rich Greek tycoon (Jack Hawkins) whose luxury yacht guests some odd characters.

Main femme appeal comes from Nathalie Delon as the mystery woman who is allegedly Hawkins’ wife but apparently goes over to the Hopkins camp. Hawkins, himself, as the Greek tycoon retains his usual stature and his voice (lost to throat cancer) is very shrewdly dubbed [by Charles Gray] . Comedy relief comes from Robert Morley, as Hopkins’ snobbish, stuffy chief.

2.66GB | 1 h 34 min | 1024×436 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/94EC5D94B2A8C08/When.Eight.Bells.Toll.1971.576p.BluRay.AAC.x264-HANDJOB.mkv

Language(s):English
Subtitles:English (muxed)

The post Etienne Périer – When Eight Bells Toll (1971) first appeared on Cinema of the World.