The Man with Nine Lives Blu-ray Screenshots (Patreon)

Video

Licensed from Sony, Mill Creek does a decent job compressing Man with Nine Lives, sharing a disc with Before I Hang. While visibly artifacting, grain still retains elements of the film stock; it's not a complete loss, and one of the better efforts from Mill Creek.

The master looks recent, likely a 2K source. It's sharp and reasonably detailed. Texture lacks the same refinement as the best vintage presentations, but Man with Nine Lives delivers in a basic way. Plus, the clean print lacks damage (with a few frames acting as exceptions), an impressive restoration.

Gray scale lacks refinement, the only major letdown on an otherwise excellent presentation. Contrast runs hot, lacking precision in the lightest parts of the screen, even clipping a bit. Black levels fare better, dense and pure at their deepest parts.

Note around 1:04:00, the image dips into sub-HD quality. That's likely from a different print, and the only remaining film elements. Aliasing and flicker increase to a drastic level for the final act.

Audio

Better than expected considering Man with Nine Lives came out in 1940, the DTS-HD mono track captures excellent fidelity in the dialog. The stock score wobbles at the top-end, but generally holds firm. Dated tech at the source limits the potential range.