The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (1965) Warms Up On Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection has announced the addition of the drama thriller The Spy Who Came in from the Cold to their upcoming slate of Blu-ray releases. The film is directed by Martin Ritt and stars Richard Burton, Claire Bloom, Oskar Werner, Sam Wanamaker, and George Voskovec. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is currently available for pre-order online and will be available in stores everywhere beginning on September 10th.
The acclaimed, best-selling novel by John le Carré, about a Cold War spy on one final dangerous mission in East Germany, is transmuted by director Ritt into a film every bit as precise and ruthless as the book. Burton is superb as Alec Leamas, whose relationship with a beautiful librarian, played by Bloom, puts his assignment in jeopardy. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is a hard-edged and tragic thriller, suffused with the political and social consciousness that defined Ritt’s career.
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was released in December of 1965 and was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Art Direction/Set Direction (Black & White) and Best Actor (Burton).
The Blu-ray will include several special features, including:
- New, high-definition digital film restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
- New, exclusive, wide-ranging interview with author John le Carré
- Selected-scene commentary featuring director of photography Oswald Morris
- The Secret Center: John le Carré, a 2000 BBC documentary on the author’s life and work
- Interview with actor Richard Burton from a 1967 episode of the BBC series Acting in the ’60s, conducted by critic Kenneth Tynan
- Audio conversation from 1985 between director Martin Ritt and film historian Patrick McGilligan
- Gallery of set designs
- Trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Michael Sragow