The Naked City (1948) Criterion 1080p BluRay x265 HEVC AAC-SARTRE

“There are eight million stories in the Naked City,” as the narrator immortally states at the close of this breathtakingly vivid film—and this is one of them. Master noir craftsman Jules Dassin and newspaperman-cum-producer Mark Hellinger’s dazzling police procedural, The Naked City, was shot on location in New York. As influenced by Italian neorealism as by American crime fiction, this double Academy Award winner remains a benchmark for naturalism in noir, living and breathing in the promises and perils of the Big Apple, from its lowest depths to its highest skyscrapers.

Criterion Extras

• James Sanders - In this archival interview, author James Sanders (Celluloid Skyline: New York and the Movies), who is the co-writer of Ric Barns' documentary series New York, discusses how Jules Dassin's film has preserved the authentic image of 1940s New York. The interview was conducted in 2006.

• Dana Polan - In this archival interview, New York University film studies professor Dana Polan discusses the 'blandness and directness' of The Naked City, the 'little eccentricity' of its characters, and the social fabric of the city as depicted in the film.

• Stills Gallery 1 - Presented here is a collection of production stills, posters, and rare behind the scenes photos from the shooting of The Naked City.

• Audio Commentary - In this audio commentary, writer Malvin Wald, who wrote the original story that inspired The Naked City and worked on the script for the film, discusses his contribution to it, Jules Dassin's directing style and precisely how various parts of the film were shot in New York City, the social overtones in the film as well as the blacklisting of its director and other cast and crew members, the unique structure of the story, etc. This audio commentary was also included on Criterion's DVD release of The Naked City.


Arrow Extras

• New York and The Naked City - In this new video piece, film critic and lifelong New Yorker Amy Taubin discusses the production history of Jules Dassin's film, the socio-political climate in America at the time when the film was made and the changing landscape of the film industry, the film's unique quality and success, how New York City has changed during the years, etc. The video piece was produced in August 2014.

• The Hollywood Ten - Presented here is a short documentary film which focuses on the ten documentary filmmakers that were blacklisted from Hollywood during the McCarthy era. The ten men that appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee and refused to answer questions about their political affiliations were Alvah Bessie, Herbert Biberman, Lester Cole, Edward Dmytryk, Ring Lardner, Jr., John Howard Lawson, Samuel Ornitz, Adrian Scott, Dalton Trumbo, and Albert Maltz (co-writer of The Naked City).

• Jules Dassin at LACMA - Presented here is footage from Jules Dassin's appearance at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in April 2004. The director recalls how he was offered to shoot Rififi, his initial impressions of Auguste Le Breton's novel which inspired it, and his discussions with composer Georges Auric during and after the shooting process, and discusses his relationship with producers Mark Hellinger and Darryl F. Zanuck, the shooting of The Naked City in New York City, etc. (11 min Longer than the Criterion version)

• Stills Gallery 2 - A collection of production and archival stills.

• Theatrical Trailer