I’ The Jury — I’ the Jury( Blu Ray)

From the early 1950’s I’ The Jury is a prime slice of pulpy noir/ comic book-like gumshoe thriller. It’s the first in a series of films that introduced brash and wise-talking private eye Mike Hammer- who originated from the popular series of books by  Mickey Spillane. The film is a pacey, and at points rather tense and taut ride- though it does slip into noir parody from time-to-time, but if you’re looking for pure noir entertainment, this will do the job. Here from Studiocanal’s Cult Classic series, as either a Blu-Ray or DVD, is a release of the film- taking in a new 4k scan, two commentary tracks, and an archive interview with the film's lead actor.

I, The Jury appeared in the year 1953. It was directed by New York-born Harry Essex, who had just four directorial credits, though he has forty screenplay/ writers to his name. I, the Jury was his first time in the director's seat- he went on to helm juvenile delinquent-focused noir Mad At The World (1955), creature feature Octaman (1971), and sci-fi horror The Cremators (1972).

The film jumps straight into tension with a pre-credits/over-the-credits scene- as a man is shot through a jar door. With the dying man crawling and grabbing his way along. Fairly soon neatly moustached police Capt. Pat Chambers (Preston Foster) is at the crime scene, with Mike Hammer (Biff Elliot) bursting into the room soon after- we find out the dead man was one of Mike’s buddies, and he’s going to all he can to track down the killer.

The film is set in and around a very noir-stylised New York City, and it takes place over the festive season- with Christmas postcards for every location used to great effect, as Hammer visits one lead after another. And he meets a nice selection of characters- including twin sisters- one a psych doctor, and one a back-scratching carrying party girl. He meets a heartbroken vet, a hooker working under the pretence of being a dance teacher, and of course a selection of trench-coated henchmen and their bosses

Elliot plays Hammer as a very hothead, wisecracking, and often ready to punch out character. We of course get the classic noir trope of voice-over, as well as good use of shadow and moodiness. With hammer meeting a selection of women- who are either scheming female Fatale, or genuine love interests. The pace over the films just under one hour and half an hour is kept up throughout, with a fair few tense fistfights and gunplay. The mystery of who killed Hammer’s buddy is kept alive and interesting for most of the films unfold, with a nice tense finale. On the whole I, The Jury is a fun and decidedly pulpy noir ride.

 

Moving onto this new release, we get a nice clean and crisp 4K scan of the monochrome film. On the extras side, we get two commentary tracks-one is with lead actor Biff Elliot, and the other with novelist Max Allan Collins- I played the first of these. For the track Elliot is joined by an unnamed interviewer- they talk about why he changed his name from Leon Shalek to Biff Elliot. He points out how the opening scenes was one of the key 3D moments when it played in this format. They talk about how he got the role- and that he insisted on it being a signed and seal deal- before he moved from NYC to Hollywood, and how the film's producer ran a fake competition to play Hammer- even though he already had the role.  He discusses what traits he shares with the Hammer character, and that he pulled the anger from his own life, as he severed in WWII- this also made it natural to handle guns. Later on, he talks about acting alongside other great actors. Points out shots used for cover artwork of the later novel reissues, and recording the voiceover- which was one of the final things done. We find out much of the film's action was captured on Hollywood back lots, how he hated wearing the hat for the part, and more. It's certainly worth a play track- with Elliot having a great memory.  Otherwise, we get a 2006 shot Q& A with Elliot, which runs just under twenty-two minutes- and see the actor getting asked some interesting questions.

 

It’s great to see I’ The Jury getting this reissue. And let us hope it leads to more standalone noir titles appearing in Studiocanal’s Cult Classic series, as I know there are more than a few titles that deserve this treatment.