Screen great Alan Ladd (China, O.S.S., Calcutta, Shane) stars as a wise guy who finds himself in one predicament after another in Lucky Jordan. When he discovers that he can no longer avoid the draft, a self-serving New York racketeer (Ladd) fails at his half-hearted attempt at military life. He goes AWOL, stealing a car that happens to contain a briefcase full of valuable military plans. What follows is an escapade filled with Nazi spies, espionage, assassins, saboteurs…and a beautiful member of the WAC determined to reform the gangster. Directed by Frank Tuttle (This Gun for Hire) and co-starring Helen Walker (Murder, He Says), Lucky Jordan is tough…trigger mad…and terrific!

For thoughts on Lucky Jordan, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/ryBLRvEkLeE?t=1157]

Video Quality

Kino Classics presents Lucky Jordan with a gorgeous Blu-Ray in 1.37:1 from a new 2K scan of the 35mm Fine Grain that holds up really well. The presentation is quite enjoyable throughout the duration of the runtime with image stability and delineation being handled without issue. This transfer retains the natural film grain of the presentation with only fleeting moments of it seeming slightly clumpy. The picture has a few odd moments of softness, but the striking black-and-white photography has a firm handle on the gradients. Black levels hold up pretty well with little in the way of crush. Instances of print damage such as nicks and lines still occasionally pop up, but there is little doubt that there has been significant cleanup and overall clarity and detail is formidable. Kino Classics has brought new life to this classic gangster film.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with a worthy DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track that should satisfy most fans. This track shows no major age related wear and tear such as dropouts, hissing or popping. Dialogue and background noises are balanced with all complementary elements. You are bound to notice the great fidelity of the Adolph Deutsch score and the way it enhances the narrative. Despite the strength of this element, nothing ever overshadows the dialogue or other important information. All of the sound effects and music appear to be accurate to the intent of the creative team. You could not ask for better from Kino Classics. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Film Historian Samm Deighan provides a very informative commentary track in which she discusses how this fits into the career of Alan Ladd, the background of the ensemble players, the American attitude towards the Nazi uprising in the early days of the war, how McCarthyism ruined many careers and much more.

Trailers: The minute-and-a-half trailer for Lucky Jordan is provided here. There are also trailers provided for China, O.S.S., Calcutta, Whispering Smith and Murder He Says.

Final Thoughts

Lucky Jordan is a film that easily could have become heavy-handed in highlighting one’s duty to their country, but the script does a nice job of letting its central character grow naturally without becoming a boy scout. Alan Ladd handles this journey with great nuance, and thankfully not everything can be attributed to his desire to win the affection of a woman. The film is very entertaining and never loses your interest with its careful pacing. Kino Classics has released a new Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation and a cool commentary track. Fans of old school film noirs and gangster films should give this one a shot. Recommended

Lucky Jordan is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.