The Criminal Code (1931) (Blu-ray) (UK Import)

Howard Hawks made his first film for Columbia Pictures with this pre-Code prison movie. The great Walter Huston stars as a district attorney-turned-prison warden who gets to witness first-hand the effects of his convictions, especially Phillips Holmes, imprisoned after killing a man in a drunken brawl. Co-starring Boris Karloff, The Criminal Code is tough, no-nonsense, quintessential Hawks.

Specials

High Definition remaster
Original mono audio
Audio commentary with film historian Nora Fiore (2021)
Behind the Mask (2021, 26 mins): author and critic Kim Newman discusses the non-horror career of actor Boris Karloff
Codes and Convictions (2021, 30 mins): video essay by Jonathan Bygraves on the many adaptations of Marvin Flavin’s The Criminal Code
The Howard Hawks Masterclass with John Carpenter (1997, 36 mins): archival audio recording of a presentation by the cult filmmaker from the British Film Institute’s 1997 Howard Hawks retrospective at the National Film Theatre, London
Lux Radio Theatre: ‘The Criminal Code’ (1939, 59 mins): radio adaptation starring Edward G Robinson, Beverly Roberts and Paul Guilfoyle
Image galleries: on-set and promotional photography from The Criminal Code and its lost Spanish-language version, El código penal
New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing

Rezensionen

Lexikon des Int.​Films: "Der Gefängnisfilm gehört mit seinem humanitären Engagement und der Kunst seiner Darstellung zu den bedeutendsten des Genres.​"