Out of the Fog - Warner Archive Collection

Irwin Shaw is perhaps best known for his novel Rich Man, Poor Man, which spawned a wildly popular 1976 TV miniseries, but many of his novels and plays received film treatments, including The Young Lions and Two Weeks in Another Town. One Shaw play you might not be familiar with is The Gentle People, which Warner Bros adapted for the screen in 1941, renaming it Out of the Fog. Though it proved to be a successful picture at the time of its release, Out of the Fog fell by the wayside shortly thereafter, but its potent themes remain relevant to this day, and its relatable characters, finely etched performances, and moody presentation make it a Golden Age gem that deserves more attention.

Out of the Fog takes a not-so-subtle swipe at the Nazis and foreshadows the fear and oppression that would define the McCarthy era several years later in the United States. It's a simple tale, but a powerful one that provokes a queasy feeling in the gut, because the petty mob pressure tactics depicted profoundly affect the lives of decent, hard-working, gentle (as the play's title states) people. The strong take from the weak, and they don't care if they devastate someone's life as long as they pad their own coffers. It's an ugly, deplorable cycle that has existed since the beginning of time and continues in many forms today, and Litvak's sensitive direction and the literate adaptation by Robert Rossen, Jerry Wald, and Richard Macaulay drive the points home without belaboring them.

Harold Goff (John Garfield) is a smiling, cocky, utterly despicable, and very petty thug who combs the Brooklyn waterfront looking for human prey. If the humble, poor fishermen who dock their boats along the pier refuse to pay him protection money, he lights their vessels on fire and destroys their livehood. The parasitic Goff thinks he's invincible ("I got rocks inside me," he boasts) and sets his sights on a couple of mild-mannered, middle-aged friends who make meager salaries and relish the leisure time they spend together on the water catching fish. Jonah Goodwin (Thomas Mitchell), a tailor who lives with his invalid wife Florence (Aline MacMahon) and restless, dissatisfied daughter Stella (Ida Lupino), and Olaf Johnson (John Qualen), a short-order cook who endures the advances of his domineering boss, harbor dreams of buying a bigger boat and moving to Cuba, where they can fish full time, but Goff thwarts their plan with his bullying and extortion.

He also catches the eye of Stella, who's blinded by Goff's gangster glamor and thirsty for the life of riches, travel, and adventure she thinks he can offer her. She's so smitten, she's even willing to dump her devoted, heart-of-gold, good-guy boyfriend George (Eddie Albert), who worships her, and ignore the passionate warnings of her father, who hides the fact that Goff is fleecing him to a fare-thee-well. As tensions mount and Goff's grip on Jonah and Olaf grows ever tighter, the pair resorts to drastic measures to escape the asphyxiating noose.

Out of the Fog brings us into the lives of a small group of working-class people who count every penny and eke out a sparse existence. We root for their success and abhor the abuse they must endure as they struggle to make ends meet and carve out a few isolated moments of pleasure in a bleak environment. Though the censors demanded notable changes to Shaw's play, the screenwriters devised acceptable alternatives that don't compromise the tale's message. The formidable trio of Rossen (one of Hollywood's best scribes who would later nab Oscar nods for writing and directing such classics as All the King's Men and The Hustler), Wald (who would soon become one of Tinseltown's top producers, earning Oscar nominations for Peyton Place and Sons and Lovers), and Macaulay fashion a lyrical script that opens up the action without sacrificing intimacy.

Humphrey Bogart was originally slated to play Goff, but Lupino vehemently objected, citing the actor's verbal abuse toward her during the shooting of High Sierra earlier that year. Much to Bogart's chagrin, producer Hal Wallis granted Lupino's wish and replaced him with Garfield. The move proved to be propitious. Garfield is younger, better looking, and more dashing than Bogart, making Stella's attraction to Goff more believable. He also didn't have a history of playing heavies, so his uncompromising portrayal of an unlikable, unredeemable, totally nasty guy wields more impact. Garfield doesn't enjoy a lot of screen time, but he makes the most of every moment.

All the performances are heartfelt and deeply affecting. Lupino incisively projects the angst, ennui, and hopelessness that consume Stella and draw her into Goff's orbit. Though her stubborn resolve to remain with Goff even after she learns he's destroying her father's life doesn't quite ring true, Lupino successfully sells it. As her jilted, perplexed boyfriend, Albert files a sensitive, earnest portrayal; the always marvelous MacMahon is appropriately annoying as Stella's whiny invalid mother; George Tobias and Jerome Cowan supply solid support; and former Dead End Kid, current East Side Kid, and future Bowery Boy Leo Gorcey cracks wise as a mouthy diner employee. (Gorcey's dad, Bernard Gorcey, also appears in the movie.)

The most compelling work in Out of the Fog, however, comes from Mitchell and Qualen. Both contribute finely etched portraits of ordinary people pushed to the brink and forced to make a devastating decision that goes against everything they believe in. They make us care about these men so much, they provoke a palapable feeling of dread when they cross the line and potentially put themselves in danger. Mitchell, relatively fresh from winning a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Stagecoach and portraying Scarlett O'Hara's father in Gone with the Wind, proves those performances were no fluke with an impassioned yet nuanced turn. Despite the star power and magnetism of Garfield and Lupino, Mitchell carries the movie, and the understated, forthright Qualen beautifully complements him. A chameleon who could disappear inside a variety of characters (and appeared in more than 200 films and TV programs, including such classics as Casablanca, The Grapes of Wrath, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance), Qualen memorably played the pivotal death row convict in His Girl Friday, and his work here improves upon that fine effort.

Out of the Fog is a small movie that packs a big punch. The script, direction, performances, and timeless themes combine to create a memorable motion picture that's both entertaining and enriching. If you haven't yet discovered this affecting tale of resistance and resilience, it's time you do.

Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray
Out of the Fog arrives on Blu-ray packaged in a standard case. Video codec is 1080p/AVC MPEG-4, and audio is DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono. Once the disc is inserted into the player, the static menu without music immediately pops up; no previews or promos precede it.

A brand new HD master struck from a 4K scan of the original nitrate camera negative yields a vibrant, sleek, yet very film-like 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 transfer that faithfully honors the gorgeous cinematography of two-time Oscar-winner and 10-time nominee James Wong Howe. Grain is evident during the titular fog scenes, but is otherwise beautifully resolved. Pitch-perfect contrast, superior clarity, inky blacks, solid whites, and an expansive grayscale join forces to produce a picture that brims with detail, luster, and depth. Top-notch shadow delineation enhances the noir feel, especially during nocturnal scenes, and vivid close-ups showcase stubble, sweat, tears, and wrinkles. No age-related nicks, dirt, or scratches mar the pristine print and no digital hiccups could be detected. I don't own any previous home video version of Out of the Fog, but I can't imagine this film looking any better than it does here. Once again, Warner Archive hits the ball out of the park.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track outputs surprisingly clear audio that immerses us in the seedy atmosphere of Brooklyn's pre-World War II waterfront. Sonic accents like fisticuffs and whistles are crisp, while a wide dynamic scale embraces all the highs and lows of the uncredited music score by Heinz Roemheld, who would finally receive the credit he deserved the following year when he won an Oscar for Yankee Doodle Dandy. All the dialogue is well prioritized and easy to comprehend and no age-related hiss, pops, or crackle intrude.

A couple of cartoons and a trailer comprise the disc extras.

• Vintage Cartoon: The Heckling Hare (HD, 7 minutes) - This early Bugs Bunny entry - the last Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Tex Avery (he would jump ship to MGM shortly after its completion) - finds the wascally wabbit heckling a dumb dog who just doesn't know when to cry uncle.
• Vintage Cartoon: Hollywood Steps Out (HD, 8 minutes) - Forty-six Hollywood personalities are caricatured in this rollicking animated short that takes place at the famous Ciro's nightclub. Cary Grant, Edward G. Robinson, Ann Sheridan, Johnny Weissmuller, Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, George Raft, Harpo and Groucho Marx, Clark Gable, Bing Crosby, James Stewart, Dorothy Lamour, Tyrone Power, Sonja Henie, the Three Stooges, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Peter Lorre, and Henry Fonda are just some of the stars you'll spot. There's a lot of interesting trivia surrounding this cartoon, so those interested should check out the entries on IMDb.
• Theatrical Trailer (SD, 3 minutes) - The film's original preview completes the extras package.

An intimate drama that outshines many larger scale films, Out of the Fog blends timeless themes with an absorbing story. Finely crafted performances and sensitive direction also distinguish this memorable movie that's enhanced by a top-notch transfer struck from a 4K scan of the original nitrate camera negative and remastered audio. Highly Recommended. 

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