DVD Beaver‘s Gary W. Tooze is saying “there are some fairly big differences” between Universal Home Video’s new Double Indemnity Bluray (4.15) and the Masters of Cinema Bluray that came out in July 2012. Among these are “less grain and richer black levels” and “an overall darker presentation” in the Universal version. “Have they ‘manipulated’? Quite possibly but I didn’t find any excessive waxiness (perhaps a shade in one late scene) or unnatural flatness to the image. Personally I like the grain textures of the UK disc but I can see the appeal, for some, in the smoother, darker image of the Universal.” A 70th anniversary restoration (i.e., the Universal DCP) of Billy Wilder‘s 1944 classic will screen at the TCM Classic Film Festival on Friday at 6 pm.
