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Orson Welles' The Stranger: Kino Classics

Remastered Edition

Edward G. Robinson (Actor), Loretta Young (Actor) Rated:
NR
Format: Blu-ray
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 523 ratings
IMDb7.3/10.0
$25.06
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February 15, 2011
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Product Description

This Academy Award-nominated thriller follows Franz Kindler (Orson Welles), a Nazi fugitive hiding out as a professor in a small Connecticut town. When his new wife (Loretta Young) begins to suspect his past, a detective (Edward G. Robinson) sets out to uncover his identity. BONUS FEATURES: Audio commentary from filmmaker / historian / curator Bret Wood, Original Nazi concentration and prison camp footage (which are featured in the final film) from filmmaker George Stevens, Original Theatrical Trailer.

Product details

  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 5.92 ounces
  • Item model number ‏ : ‎ KV1203BR
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Orson Welles
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ Original recording remastered, Blu-ray, NTSC, Multiple Formats
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 24 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ October 15, 2013
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young, Orson Welles, Philip Merivale, Richard Long
  • Producers ‏ : ‎ Sam P. Eagle
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ Kino Lorber films
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00E5MIM86
  • Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 523 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
523 global ratings
The Stranger 3D DISC DETAILS
5 Stars
The Stranger 3D DISC DETAILS
The Stranger is presented in it's remastered HD version on side-by-side 3d. This disc doesn't include any pair of 3D glasses and it can be viewed on any DVD or Blu-ray player (it doesn't have to be a 3D Blu-ray deck). It can work only on 3D monitors and television screens with both passive or active glasses. You just need to adjust your 3d Television to side-by-side view. Here is a link and a list of 3D monitors compatible with this disc:[...]LG 55LW9800 55"LG 60LW9500 60LG 55LW9500 55"LG 55LW6500 55"LG 47LW6500 47LG 55LW5600 55LG 47LW5600 47LG 60PZ950 60"LG 50PZ950 50"LG 60PZ750 60"LG 50PZ750 50"LG 60PZ550 60"LG 50PZ550 50"LG 50PW350 50"LG 42PW350LG LD920 or LD360LG 55LX6500LG 47LX6500LG 42LX6500LG 47LX9500 seriesLG 55LX9500 seriesLG 50PX950 seriesLG 60PX950 seriesMitsubishi WD-92840Mitsubishi WD-82840Mitsubishi WD-73840Mitsubishi WD-82740Mitsubishi WD-73740Mitsubishi WD-73640Mitsubishi WD-82838Mitsubishi WD-73838Mitsubishi WD-65838Mitsubishi WD-60738Mitsubishi WD-73638Mitsubishi WD-65638Mitsubishi WD-60638Mitsubishi WD-73C10Mitsubishi WD-65C10Mitsubishi WD-60C10Mitsubishi WD-60C10Panasonic TC-P65VT30Panasonic TC-P55VT30Panasonic TC-P65GT30Panasonic TC-P60GT30Panasonic TC-P55GT30Panasonic TC-P50GT30Panasonic TC-P65ST30Panasonic TC-P60ST30Panasonic TC-P55ST30Panasonic TC-P50ST30Panasonic TC-P46ST30Panasonic TC-P42ST30Panasonic TC-L37DT30Panasonic TC-L32DT30Panasonic TC-P50GT25Panasonic TC-P42GT25Panasonic TC-P65VT25Panasonic TC-P58VT25Panasonic TC-P54VT25Panasonic TC-P50VT25Panasonic TX-P65VT20Panasonic TC-P50VT20Panasonic TC-P42VT20Philips 52PFL8605H/12Philips 46PFL8605H/12Philips 40PFL8605H/12Philips 37PFL8605H/12Samsung UN60D8000Samsung UN55D8000Samsung UN46D8000Samsung UN40D8000Samsung UN60D7000Samsung UN55D7000Samsung UN46D7000Samsung UN60D6500Samsung UN55D6500Samsung UN46D6500Samsung UN40D6500Samsung UN55D6400Samsung UN46D6400Samsung UN40D6400Samsung UN32D6400Samsung PN64D8000Samsung PN59D8000Samsung PN51D8000Samsung PN64D7000Samsung PN59D7000Samsung PN51D7000Samsung PN59D6500Samsung PN51D6500Samsung PN51D490Samsung PN43D490Samsung UN55C9000Samsung UN46C9000Samsung UN65C8000Samsung UN55C8000Samsung UN46C8000Samsung UN55C7000Samsung UN46C7000Samsung UN40C7000Samsung LN46C750Samsung LN40C750Samsung PN63C8000Samsung PN58C8000Samsung PN50C8000Samsung PN63C7000Samsung PN58C7000Samsung PN50C7000Samsung PN50C680Samsung PN50C490Sharp LC-60LE835USharp LC-52LE835USharp LC-46LE835USharp LC-40LE835USharp LC-52LE925Sharp LC-60LV3Sharp LC-52LV3Sharp LC-46LV3Sharp LC-40LV3Sony BRAVIA KDL60EX720Sony BRAVIA KDL55EX720Sony BRAVIA KDL46EX720Sony BRAVIA KDL40EX720Sony BRAVIA KDL32EX720Sony XBR-60LX900Sony XBR-52LX900Sony XBR-52HX909Sony XBR-46HX909Sony KDL-60NX810Sony KDL-55NX810Sony KDL-46NX810Sony KDL-55HX800Sony KDL-46HX800Sony KDL-40HX800Sony KDL-40NX710Toshiba 65UL610UToshiba 55UL610UToshiba 46UL610UToshiba 55TL515UToshiba 47TL515UToshiba 42TL515UToshiba 32TL515UToshiba 55WX800UToshiba 46WX800UVizio XVT3D650SVVizio XVT3D554SVVizio XVT3D474SVVizio XVT3D424SVVizio E3D470VXVizio E3D420VXVizio E3D320VXVizio XVT3D554SVVizio XVT3D474SVVizio XVT3D424SVWestinghouse W47S2TCD
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Top reviews from the United States

robin friedman
5.0 out of 5 stars An Early Noir Glimpse Of The Holocaust
Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2020
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This 1946 film "The Stranger" is the first movie in which the Holocaust plays a role. About mid-way through the movie, there is some grainy, horrifying footage of Nazi atrocities at the concentration camps. More importantly, the film centers around efforts to bring a Nazi war criminal to justice who has escaped to a small New England town.

Orson Welles directed "The Stranger" and also played the villian, a mastermind of the Holocaust named Franz Kindler who is passing Charles Rankin, a history teacher in Harper, Connecticut. Edward G. Robinson plays Wilson, an official of the United States War Crimes Commission who is determined to bring Kindler to justice. Loretta Young plays the lovely, innocent, and naive Mary Longstreet, the daughter of a Supreme Court Justice. Mary has married Rankin, blissfully ignorant of his Nazi past.

As the film opens, Wilson tracks down Kindler through releasing and following one of Kindler's associates, Meineke, who has been condemned to death for his war crimes. Kindler is forced to kill Meineke and buries his body in the woods. The cool, methodical Wilson gradually learns the truth and works cunningly to capture his man by allowing Mary slowly to understand the type of man she has unwittingly married.

The film builds in suspense throughout. The apparent peacefulness of the small New England town with it checker-playing proprietor of the general store is contrasted with Nazi brutality and treachery. Welles captures the sinister nature of the war criminal while Robinson's part, which requires him to pose as a connoisseur of art, almost allows him to play himself. Loretta Young is beautiful and understands her role. The supporting cast also is effective.

The film also features shadowy noir photography throughout. It is shown to best effect in the early scenes involving the tailing of Meineke through his arrival in the Connecticut town, in the climactic final scene on an old clock tower, and in scenes between Kindler and Mary in their ornate old New England home.

The May 1, 2020 issue of "The Guardian" included a review of this film by Andrew Pulver as part of a series of under-appreciated films to watch during the pandemic. In his review, "My Streaming Gem: Why You Should Watch
The Stranger" Pulver offered an appreciation of this rare film and pointed out how the film captured the essence of film noir in its depiction of the shadows of post -WW II American life. Pulver wrote:

"The Stranger, principally, brings home the enduring theme of noir: the devastation that the second world war wreaked on the American psyche, and the silent nastiness that proliferated behind the white picket fence. (Nothing new, of course, if you were African American or First Nation.) Unearthing a war criminal as he marries into the family of a supreme court justice is a fairly uncomplicated deployment of the motif – but in these dislocated times it’s a reminder that once the American establishment took exception to Nazis. Somehow that seems a long time ago."

I was glad to have the opportunity to watch "The Stranger" and to enhance my appreciation and knowledge of film noir.

Robin Friedman
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Richard The Buying Hearted
5.0 out of 5 stars Citizen Vain
Reviewed in the United States on June 22, 2013
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Orson Welles took this film over from John Huston (a bud of his) and who knows what it would have become under Huston's direction other than a classic in its own right I'm sure, but Welles knew his subject well after traipsing all over Europe and witnessing the rise of Nazism and fascism firsthand. So he takes his childhood fears and turns them into a trapped animal caught up there on the screen for all to see. A Nazi mastermind hiding in a small New England town pursued by a predatory Edward G. Robinson just as he's about to marry into total respectability with a Judge's daughter (the very very good Loretta Young). Without giving too much away Robinson winds up in the town and highly suspicious of Welle's vain college Professor. A cat and mouse game ensues (tho perhaps a chess game is a better metaphor) that allows Welles to display his genius for such settings and such human weaknesses falling like dominoes until the wonderful climax which comes like clockwork, but of course getting to that clock is a strange and terrifying journey for the entire town and the audience to savor. Welles actually directed very few projects and was relegated to an acting career by the Studios' disdain of his work ethic and distrust of his final product tho few ever reached that 'final' stage. This movie plays on fears that were very much alive when it was released that perhaps some of those Nazi Monsters were hiding in the open among God fearing American Citizens (silly when you think about it because as we all now know they were gainfully employed by the US government in the birth pangs of what our country has become). Visually striking on all levels and moving like a well oiled machine Welles movie takes you on a journey that will fascinate you as only his Genius could. And in the end what brings the Nazi down isn't his desperation or his unflinchingly violent survival instinct..it's his vanity...as Orson knew it would. A true classic. The Blu-Ray transfer is too bright at times and something in the transfer makes the sound quality far too strident....I actually preferred the DVD version but both are included in wonderfully restored glory so decide for yourself if this classic entertained Hitchcock (another Welle's bud and Welle's actually screened it for him during editing) as much as I suspect it did.....
5 people found this helpful
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James Bertin
5.0 out of 5 stars High quality blu ray
Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2023
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I'm not reviewing the movie, rather the high quality blu ray from Olive films. It is the one with Young, Robinson and Welles in black and white on the case cover. You won't likely find a better version and it
offers sub-titles too, a feature that I really must have. Enjoy!
6 people found this helpful
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Tom
5.0 out of 5 stars Happy with my purchase!
Reviewed in Canada on May 15, 2021
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I was happy with my purchase. No problems at all!
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luc
3.0 out of 5 stars de Nazi
Reviewed in Belgium on November 20, 2023
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Altijd leuk om EGR te zien, maar helaas weinig verdieping van en rond het karakter en personage van Orson Welles, waardoor enkel een moordzaak in een plaatselijk stadje overblijft. Toch onderhoudende film.
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5.0 out of 5 stars THE STRANGER [1946 / 2015] [Blu-ray + DVD]
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 5, 2016
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THE STRANGER [1946 / 2015] [Blu-ray + DVD] The Most Deceitful Man A Woman Ever Loved!

Having directed two undisputed masterpieces like ‘Citizen Kane’ and ‘The Magnificent Ambersons,’ Orson Welles delved into the suspense film, crafting a post-war, psychological noir that laid the foundations for his later “film noir” classics, ‘The Lady from Shanghai’ and ‘Touch of Evil.’

Edward G. Robinson stars as a government agent tracking down a sadistic Nazi officer Franz Kindler [Orson Welles], who has evaded justice for running Nazi extermination camps. Rankin has crafted a new identity for himself in a quaint Connecticut town by marrying Mary Longstreet [Loretta Young], the daughter of a local judge, but as his past begins to catch up with him will his wife side with the investigators or her husband…

Circulated in poor versions for decades, this edition of ‘THE STRANGER’ was remastered in HD [1080p] from an original 35mm print preserved by the Library of Congress and this special edition to celebrate the 100th year of the birth of Orson Welles is accompanied by a wealth of extras including “Death Mills” documentary by director Billy Wilder. Original Theatrical Trailer and an excerpt from the TV series: “Around the World with Orson Welles,” plus the radio broadcasts by Orson Welles.

FILM FACT: Awards and Nominations: 19th Academy Awards®: Nomination: Screenplay for an Original Motion Picture Story for Victor Travis.

Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young, Orson Welles, Philip Merivale, Richard Long, Konstantin Shayne, Byron Keith, Billy House, Martha Wentworth, David Bond (uncredited), John Brown (uncredited), Neal Dodd (uncredited), Nancy Evans (uncredited), Fred Godoy (uncredited), Joseph Granby (uncredited), Ethan Laidlaw (uncredited), Ruth Lee (uncredited), Lillian Molieri (uncredited), Isabel O'Madigan (uncredited), Gabriel Peralta (uncredited), Gerald Pierce (uncredited), Robert Raison (uncredited), Rebel Randall (uncredited), Johnny Sands (uncredited), Erskine Sanford (uncredited), Pietro Sosso (uncredited), Brother Theodore (uncredited) and Josephine Victor (uncredited)

Director: Orson Welles

Producer: Sam Spiegel

Screenplay: Anthony Veiller, Decla Dunning (adaptation), John Huston (uncredited), Orson Welles (uncredited) and Victor Trivas (story/ adaptation)

Composer: Bronisław Kaper

Cinematography: Russell Metty

Video Resolution: 1080p [Black-and-White]

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1

Audio: Blu-ray: English: 2.0 LPCM Dual Mono and DVD: English: Dolby Digital Mono

Subtitles: None

Running Time: 94 minutes

Region: Region B/2

Number of discs: 2

Studio: RKO Radio Pictures / OEG Classic Movies

Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: Within just five years, Orson Welles had fallen from the position of Boy Genius with complete artistic control over his work to an industry-wide failure, forced to take on ‘THE STRANGER’ to prove he could work within the studio system as well as anyone. After a four-year hiatus and a lot of bad press, Orson Welles was eager to prove himself capable of bringing in a picture on time and within budget. The result was ‘THE STRANGER,’ Orson Welles's most conventional film but one which nevertheless bears some of his distinctive touches. There are also little jokes buried in each scene, as when Edward G. Robinson is knocked cold by a gymnast’s ring and the camera glances past a sign warning "use this apparatus at your own risk." But perhaps the most remarkable thing about ‘THE STRANGER,’ is that production proceeded without delays, incidents, hassles with studio executives, or the kind of scandals that marked the shooting. In that respect, it's the most un-Wellesian of any Orson Welles's film.

Orson Welles directed what is widely considered one of the all-time greatest films, ‘Citizen Kane,’ among several other acclaimed works, but his only bona fide box office success is the rarely-discussed ‘THE STRANGER.’ After the controversial debut of ‘Citizen Kane’ and the poor performance of his second directorial effort, ‘The Magnificent Ambersons,’ Orson Welles found it hard to get work as a director. He took a few years off to focus on acting and starting a family before returning to the director’s chair for the 1946 film ‘THE STRANGER.’

Orson Welles stars in ‘THE STRANGER,’ where he plays Franz Kindler, an infamous Nazi war criminal and after destroying all evidence of his past atrocities, Franz Kindler moves to a small town in Connecticut where he assumes the identity of a prep school teacher and marries Mary Longstreet [Loretta Young], the daughter of a Supreme Court Justice. He believes himself to be above suspicion, oblivious to the fact that a member of the Allied War Crimes Commission, Mr. Wilson [Edward G. Robinson], is on his trail and Mr. Wilson is charged with the task of convincing the naive Mary Longstreet of her new husband’s true identity in order to capture him.

With its game of cat and mouse and the exciting conclusion atop a clock tower, ‘THE STRANGER’ is ostensibly a standard drama-thriller. But further inspection reveals it to be more complex than that; it serves as a transitory piece in Orson Welles career. The film contains many of the artistic flourishes of his early works where Orson Welles keen direction includes several lengthy, albeit subtle, uninterrupted takes, while laying the groundwork for the “film noir” classics he would go on to create, including his follow-up feature, ‘The Lady from Shanghai.’

‘THE STRANGER’ was produced shortly after the conclusion of World War II, and although the war was over, the American people were still living in fear of another attack. The film plays on that fear, leading audiences to believe that the person sitting next to them could be secretly plotting to strike from within. The sense of unease is perpetuated by the inclusion of actual concentration camp footage; the first film to do so. It’s interesting to see Orson Welles take on a darker role rather than that of the hero, and he delivers a performance that is among his best. Edward G. Robinson’s portrayal of Mr. Wilson is equally commendable.

Years after ‘THE STRANGER’ was released Orson Welles and Edward G. Robinson spoke of how they disliked working with each other. Any conflict the two legendary actors had behind-the-scenes certainly did not show up on camera as they play off each other brilliantly. The strongest performances in the film come when the diminutive Robinson puts the lofty Welles on the defensive as he presses to learn the truth about his past. Another strong performance comes from the beautiful Loretta Young as the innocent Mary Longstreet whose steadfast will to defend her husband leads her gradually into madness.

Blu-ray Video Quality – OEG Classic Movies brings an 1080p encoded image that was mastered from archival 35mm elements which were preserved by the Library of Congress and this high-definition presentation offers a noticeable improvement, and it's apparent there were minimal restoration efforts done to this film and is presented here as is, warts and all, which is more or less a blessing in disguise. The 1.33:1 aspect ratio image displays strong definition and clarity for most of the film's runtime and overall resolution is really excellent. Fine lines and textures in various scenes are nicely detailed with some particularly revealing close-ups. A thin layer of natural grain washes over the picture and remains consistent throughout. Contrast is better balanced and accurate for the most part, as there a few instances of blooming in the highlights. Black levels too, are often rich and true with good gradational details, but some sequences appear a tad faded and murky. In the end, this is a good presentation of this film and you will not get anything better and I wish OEG Classic Movies had spent a lot more money on this classic Orson Welles film, as for me there are far too many white speckles and fine white lines running on the left hand side of the screen that keep appearing, as well horrible film gate dirt down the right hand of the screen, which too me sort of spoilt the enjoyment of the film, but unfortunately I expect other companies who have brought out this Blu-ray had the same problem, so sadly I am stuck with it, which is a shame as it is a totally brilliant tour-de-force espionage thriller film from Orson Welles. Playback Region B/2: This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications.

Blu-ray Audio Quality – OEG Classic Movies brings you a choice of two audio soundtracks and on the Blu-ray it is 2.0 LPCM Dual Mono and on the DVD is Dolby Digital Mono, and very confused why they have done, which is all very strange. Vocals are cleanly and intelligibly delivered in the centre, and overall imaging comes with strong acoustical details. The design is not particularly dynamic, but the mid-range is nicely balanced and well-defined, providing the soundstage with an appreciably broad presence. Bass is pretty limited though there's just enough to give the music and the voices of actors some mild weight. All in all, it's still a good track and an improvement over its counterpart.

Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:

Special Feature: ‘DEATH MILLS’ [1945] [480i] [1.33:1] [32:40] This is an information film about the Nazi Death Camps with footage that appeared briefly in ‘THE STRANGER’ film. The film starts very badly with those countdown numbers and I cannot understand why they could not have edited this out and started it where the main title appears. Also another puzzle that I do not understand is that right at the end of the documentary you get short repeats of the documentary you have just viewed. This was originally made with a German soundtrack for screening in occupied Germany and Austria, this film was the first documentary to show what the Allies found when they liberated the Nazi extermination camps: the survivors, the conditions, and the evidence of mass murder. The film includes accounts of the economic aspects of the camps' operation, the interrogation of captured camp personnel, and the enforced visits of the inhabitants of neighbouring towns, who, along with the rest of their compatriots, are blamed for complicity in the Nazi crimes, one of the few such condemnations in the Allied war records. ‘DEATH MILLS’ [‘Die Todesmühlen’] is a 1945 American film directed by Billy Wilder and produced by the United States Department of War. The film was intended for German audiences to educate them about the atrocities committed by the Nazi regime. For the German version, Die Todesmühlen, Hanus Burger is credited as the writer and director, while Wilder supervised the editing. Wilder is credited with directing the English-language version. The film is a much-abbreviated version of ‘German Concentration Camps Factual Survey,’ a 1945 British government documentary that was not completed until nearly seven decades later.

Special Feature: Bull Fight in Madrid [1955] [1080p] [1.33:1] [15:12] This is an Extract from ‘Around the World with Orson Welles.’ Orson Welles pitches a film about the world of matadors, bullfights, and their spectators. Cast: Orson Welles, Kenneth Tynan and Elaine Dundy. The quality of the black-and-white 1080p image is spectacular; it is such a shame the main film could not of been of high quality standards as this particular special feature.

Special Feature: CBC Orson Welles's Wartime Radio Broadcasts [1941 – 1942] This particular extra includes four WWII-era broadcasts that Orson Welles voiced and was broadcast on Canadian Broadcasting Corporation apart from one, which is a great extra inclusion. Here you have four audio only radio broadcasts, which sadly are of very poor quality and they are as follows:

From The Series: Nazi Eyes on Canada [CBC]: ALAMEDA [29:00] Orson Welles performs in, but did not direct. This dramatization of the Nazi takeover of the small Canadian town of Alameda. It was produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as part of the Third Victory War Drive. This was broadcast on the 25th December, 1942.

From The Series: Hello Americans [CBC]: BRAZIL [29:00] This is the Premiere episode of a lively variety program intended to foster Inter-American relations, and featuring an appearance by Carmen Miranda. The cinematic counterpart of this program was Orson Welles’s ill-fated film ‘IT’S ALL TRUE.’ This was broadcast on the 15th November, 1942.

From The Series: Ceiling Unlimited [CBC]: WAR WORKERS [29:00] In this episode of Orson Welles’s patriotic aviation themed program “He Swipes The Microphone” from a Nazi Spy point of view and broadcast to Berlin with a tour of the Lockheed-Vega Corporation plant. This was a light-hearted spin on “The War of the World” type spoof broadcast, where Orson Welles employs the pseudo-documentary approach for which he had become famous for. This was broadcast on the 14th December, 1942.

From The Series: Orson Welles Commentaries [ABC]: BIKINI ATOMIC TEST [14:00] Airing shortly after the release of ‘THE STRANGER’ film. This particular episode is of Orson Welles’s political opinion program discussing America’s further development of the Atomic Bomb, as well as the demise of The Office of Price Administration. This was broadcast on the 30th June, 1946.

Theatrical Trailer [1946] [480i] [1.33:1] [1:16] This is the original Theatrical Trailer of ‘THE STRANGER.’ Despite the grainy quality, it is still a great dramatic presentation trailer.

Special Feature: Stills Gallery [2015] [1080p] Here you get to view a gallery of black-and-white and colour images of a total of fifteen publicity photos, storyboards sketches, and Cinema Film Posters from different countries. To view them you have to keep pressing next with your remote handset.

Finally, though not as celebrated as Orson Welles's two previous films, ‘THE STRANGER’ is a crucial part of the director's filmography, proving he could create a commercial success without fully sacrificing his artistic integrity. It's a slick, thematically substantial post-war thriller, and it holds up well next to some of the best noir films of its day. ‘THE STRANGER’ has had a chequered history with the home video format like many films in the public domain, Odeon Entertainment has treated this classic film with respect, giving us a detailed high definition transfer, a great audio track, and a disc that includes an informative series of vintage radio broadcasts. It's a definite upgrade from previous Blu-ray releases, which had DNR [Digital Noise Reduction] done to death and also featured an audio track that should have been upgraded. ‘THE STRANGER’ may not be Orson Welles’s best effort, and it’s certainly not his most celebrated work, but it’s a great film worthy of recognition. As it is in the public domain, there are dozens of poor-quality versions of the film floating around on home video, but OEG Classic Movies Blu-ray presentation is slightly let down quality wise, but you do get some nice extras as compensation. ‘THE STRANGER’ is a better-than-average spy-thriller and particularly relevant for the time period of its release and most definitely worth discovering for Orson Welles fans everywhere. Highly Recommended!

Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
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Bruce Hamilton .
5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT
Reviewed in Canada on April 27, 2017
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EXCELLENT
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Alex da Silva
4.0 out of 5 stars Horror at Trumpton
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 26, 2010
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Nazi-hunter Edward G Robinson (Wilson) tracks former Nazi bad guy Orson Welles (Franz Kindler) to a small town called 'Harper' where he is living under an assumed name of Charles Rankin. Welles is a teacher with a passion for clocks and Robinson arrives on the day of Welles's marriage to Loretta Young (Mary). Robinson sets about trying to prove Welles's true identity to those around him. Does he succeed or can Welles outwit him.....?..

The film plays out at a good pace with a good cast. A special mention must go to Edward G Robinson as the likable Nazi-hunter and Billy House as Mr Potter, the general store manager whose main obsession is beating his customers at checkers. These two have some amusing scenes together as they pit their wits against one another although we know that Robinson isn't at all interested in winning the game of checkers. The scene is repeated again with House and Orson Welles to good dramatic effect as we know that Welles also isn't bothered about winning.

There are a couple of stupid moments. The first being a scene at the beginning of the film where a group of grown-up schoolboys run around littering the woods with paper. It seems slightly strange for young men of this age to get so excited by playing paperchase. It's a bit gay and the comment to a woman who walks past is utterly unconvincing as these young men dressed in their gym outfits begin to run around the park chasing each other. They are NOT heterosexual males so don't try to fool us that they are. The second stupid moment is when Robinson sets up Loretta Young to be murdered by Welles. He does this and then tells Philip Merivale, who plays her father, who doesn't seem to mind! What!!! OK - set up my daughter to be killed....thank you. Unbelievable. Still, it progresses the storyline.

However, there are some good, tense scenes, including the murder at the beginning of the film and especially towards the end with the dialogues between Loretta Young and Orson Welles. The film is worth keeping and watching again. Check out the Tower Clock.
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