The Film (4/5)

Deluge is one of those rare, unnoticed, under the radar pre-code classics from RKO during the 1930s. One of the earliest post-apocalyptic films, Deluge is the story, about natural disasters, survival and a crazy little thing called love.

A husband Martin Webster (Sidney Blackmer, Duel in the Sun) and wife Helen (Lois Wilson, Nobody’s Children) are separated during the devastating earthquakes and floods happening in New York and other areas along the East Coast. Both of them survive, while each thinking the other one did not. Martin while living on his own on an island, finds Claire Arlington (Peggy Shannon, Back Page) washed ashore on the beach; she had ran away from a murderous gang, led by a brute named Jepsen(Fred Kohler, Frisco Kid) that was keeping her hostage. Jepsen captures her again after a surprise attack on Martin. Martin goes out to save Claire from Jepsen and his gang. An ensuing battle between Jespen’s gang and Martin takes place, now alongside with other people who survived the holocaust. Jepsen and his gang are disposed of by Martin and the others in a violent clash.  Martin then joins the townsfolk on the mainland, formerly New York to live with Claire who he’s fallen in love with, even calling her his wife, still not realizing that his real wife Helen is still alive.  The inevitable happens shortly after he is part of the town; and to his surprise, Martin discovers that his wife and kids are still alive! Martin finds himself in a difficult love triangle that he never expected. He thought Helen was dead the whole time he had been love with Claire, causing extreme awkwardness. And he finds himself unsure of what to do. And as you would expect, the two women share an intense scene together, and boy does Claire hate Helen. 

Deluge is an incredible film certainly way ahead of its time when it comes to both love triangles and ultimate city destruction.  The destruction effects are outstanding which includes New York City crumbling. There is also a scene with The Statue of Liberty somewhat ‘drowning’ at the floods reach her. The love triangle plot in this movie is truly one of a kind, and the performances of Claire, Helen and Martin make it all the better. Then there is the ambiguous ending which seems to leave the ultimate finale in the hands of the viewer. 

Audio/Video (3.5/5)

Kino Lorber has done a fine job with this release.  Deluge is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1:33:1, in 1080p with an MPEG-4 AVC encode. The film elements were not in great shape but it doesn’t deter from the viewing experience. There are plenty of speckles and vertical lines throughout, especially at the beginning, but there is still great detail, sharpness, great texture, and an excellent greyscale. Film grain is present as well. The film’s appearance actual improves during the post-apocalyptic parts of the film. Never has a worn out master looked so good. This is the kind of film you can appreciate just having it on Blu-ray.

For the film’s audio, Kino has gone with their usual English DTS- HD Master Audio 2.0, and everything sounds fine, be it the dialog, the music and special effects. No pops or drop-offs detected.

Extras (3/5)

There aren’t a whole lot of extras, but what there is of them are quality supplements. There is audio commentary from film historian Richard Harland Smith. There is the complete 1934 feature film Black Page starring Deluge’s Peggy Shannon. There are trailers for other Kino Lorber releases including

Overall (4/5)

This is one of the great overlooked films from the thirties. Deluge is a very powerful story that will raise some eyebrows, also boasting some remarkable special effects. The audio and video quality made this a great viewing experience on top of the film just being superb. Some great extras are basically the icing on the cake for this classic.