The Beast Must Die (La bestia debe morir)
The Beast Must Die (La bestia debe morir)
BLU-RAY / DVD DUAL-FORMAT EDITION
A long-lost treasure of Argentine noir rediscovered! Thanks to the efforts of the Film Noir Foundation and UCLA Film & Television Archive, director Román Viñoly Barreto’s compelling 1952 thriller has been rescued and restored to its original brilliance.
Mystery writer Felix Lane, played by legendary Spanish actor Narciso Ibáñez Menta, suffers a tragic loss; his nine-year-old son is killed in a hit-and-run car accident. Seeking justice, Lane bypasses the authorities, adopts a new identity, and begins looking for clues that will lead him to the culprit. The suspense reaches hair-raising levels as Felix’s vendetta leads him to infiltrate an affluent family rife with its own intrigues. But who among this highly suspect bunch is the killer? And will Felix follow his mission to its bitter end? Based on Cecil Day-Lewis’ influential 1938 novel The Beast Must Die (written as Nicholas Blake), Viñoly Barreto’s film is a stunning adaptation of one of the true landmarks of crime fiction and psychological suspense.
This landmark release, gorgeously restored, was achieved through the dedicated efforts of the Film Noir Foundation and UCLA Film & Television Archive, with special thanks to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Charitable Trust (The HFPA Trust). The superb The Beast Must Die (La bestia debe morir), formally unknown to the canon of classic international noir, is now presented in this world-premiere Blu-ray edition.
BONUS MATERIALS INCLUDE:
- Introduction to The Beast Must Die (La bestia debe morir) – by author, film historian, and “noirchaeologist” Eddie Muller
- Newly Recorded Conversation – between Argentine film archivist and historian Fernando Martín Peña and Daniel Viñoly, son of visionary director Román Viñoly Barreto
- Profile of Actor Narciso Ibáñez Menta – by film historian Fernando Martín Peña
- Audio Commentary Track – by author and film historian Guido Segal
- Souvenir Booklet – featuring rare original photographs, posters, lobby cards, and advertisements, along with an essay by author and film historian Eddie Muller.
- English Subtitles and Spanish SDH Subtitles
- Reversible Cover Artwork
- Blu-ray / DVD Authoring by David Mackenzie of Fidelity In Motion
- All Region Encoding (A,B,C/0)