Blu Review: ‘The Shakedown’ (Early Universal Vol. 1, Eureka)

by Ruairí McCann The Shakedown (1929) has just found its way to a Blu-ray release, via Eureka’s Masters of Cinema line and the boxset Early Universal Vol.1, where it’s presented in its silent version with a lively jazz score by Michael Gatt. This finely forged and unabashedly felt movie is no small example of the late silent era on its plinth, when it comes to … Continue reading Blu Review: ‘The Shakedown’ (Early Universal Vol. 1, Eureka)

Blu Review: Two Silent Films by John Ford (Eureka!)

by Ruairí McCann Produced and released by Eureka Entertainment’s Masters of Cinema line, this new Blu-ray boxset of two early silent John Ford westerns is most welcome. Not only because it makes readily available two very fine movies; it also offers a chance to pull at a thread that is too often ignored.  The received critical approach to the western genre is to fasten its iterations … Continue reading Blu Review: Two Silent Films by John Ford (Eureka!)