IT CAME FROM THE BOTTOM SHELF!

Film Movement, a boutique video label, has announced that they will bring two British comedy classics from Ealing Studios to U.S. Blu-ray.  Passport to Pimlico (1949) and The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953) are scheduled for release on December 20th.

Here are the details on the upcoming Blu-ray releases:

Passport to Pimlico
Directed by Henry Cornelius

Pimlico dozes during the worst heat wave for years… until London’s last unexploded bomb goes off with a deafening roar, flinging the people headlong into a fantastic adventure. Arthur Pemberton and his daughter Shirley, investigating the crater made by the bomb, find treasure and an old document decreeing that Pimlico can be recognized in perpetuity as Burgundian soil. The residents, quick to see the opportunities, dispense with licensing laws, and put themselves on the export list of English firms. The British Government steps in, wires off ‘BURGUNDY’, sets up customs barriers and cuts off water and electricity.

Blu-ray Features:

• Interview with BFI Curator Mark Duguid
• Locations featurette with film historian Richard Dacre
• Restoration comparison
• Stills gallery

The Titfield Thunderbolt
Directed by Charles Crichton

This endearing Ealing comedy, the first to be made in color, tells the story of the inhabitants of Titfield, who endeavor to prove that their single-track railway is the only form of transport for the village. The villains of the piece are two unsavory characters who have introduced a smart brand new single-decker bus to Titfield. Crump and Pearce, owners of the bus company, are determined to cease the running of the Titfield train, by fair means or foul. From the director of “The Lavender Hill Mob” and “A Fish Called Wanda.”

Blu-ray Features:

• Making The Titfield Thunderbolt featurette
• Cinematographer Douglas Slocombe Home Movie Footage
• The Lion Locomotive featurette
• Locations featurette
• Douglas Slocombe on Charles Crichton audio interview
• The Titfield Thunderbolt original trailer
• Stills gallery