Midnight (1934) in Color — Starring Humphrey Bogart & Sidney Fox

Midnight (1934) — Buy This Classic in Color

Midnight (1934) is a taut, innovative crime drama starring Humphrey Bogart as a gangster whose fate hangs in the balance during a tense, suspenseful night of jury deliberation, with Sidney Fox as the accused woman and Henry Hull as the foreman fighting for justice. Directed by Chester Erskine with a bold, multi-layered narrative structure far ahead of its time, this professionally colorized version brings gripping new life to one of Bogart’s most intense, most electrifying early performances. Buy your colorized copy today for €15.00 and own this riveting classic movie in color.

Plot Summary

On the night a jury deliberates the fate of a woman accused of murder, the film weaves together the stories of the jurors, the accused, and the people whose lives are inextricably connected to the case in a bold, innovative narrative structure that cuts between courtroom drama, atmospheric flashbacks, and tense present-tense confrontations. Ethel Saxon (Sidney Fox) has shot a man, but the circumstances surrounding the killing are far more complicated, far more morally ambiguous, and far more emotionally devastating than they initially appear — the victim was no innocent, the accused had reasons the prosecution cannot or will not fully reveal, and the jury is wrestling not merely with the facts of the case but with the fundamental, deeply uncomfortable question of what justice truly means when a woman’s life hangs in the balance and the dead man may well have deserved his fate. As the jurors argue passionately behind closed doors — some demanding conviction, others pleading for mercy, the foreman (O.P. Heggie) struggling to hold the fractured group together — the film reveals layer by devastating layer the full story of the events that led to the fatal shooting and the complex, tangled web of relationships, betrayals, and desperations that made the killing almost inevitable. This classic movie builds relentless suspense through its cutting-edge structure, moving fluidly between the suffocating tension of the jury room, the shadowy streets and darkened apartments where the crime unfolded, and the present-tense stories of characters waiting in agonized uncertainty for the verdict. Humphrey Bogart delivers a memorable, ferociously intense performance as a tough, dangerous gangster whose connection to the night’s events adds a layer of menace and moral complexity that elevates the entire film. The screenplay refuses to offer easy answers, instead forcing both the jury and the audience to confront the uncomfortable reality that justice and truth are not always the same thing.

Cast & Crew

Director: Chester Erskine

Stars: Sidney Fox, O.P. Heggie, Henry Hull, Margaret Wycherly, Lynne Overman, Richard Whorf, Humphrey Bogart, Granville Bates, Cora Witherspoon, Katherine Wilson

Why Buy This Classic in Color?

This colorized version of Midnight reveals the shadowy courtroom corridors, the claustrophobic tension of the jury room, and the atmospheric nighttime settings with vivid, immersive new detail. The original black and white photography created a mood of oppressive, almost suffocating tension, but the professionally colorized restoration transforms the experience — revealing the warm, sickly amber glow of the jury room’s overhead lights bearing down on exhausted, angry faces, the cold blue-gray of rain-slicked nighttime streets where the crime unfolded, the harsh institutional green of courtroom walls, and the dramatic play of light and shadow across the characters’ faces during the film’s most intense confrontations — all rendered with meticulous frame-by-frame precision. The visual atmosphere powerfully heightens the film’s noir-like tension. Now also available in colour.

Buy Midnight in color today for just €15.00. Your DRM-free MP4 download is available for instant access.

Historical Significance

Midnight is a classic film notable as one of Humphrey Bogart’s most significant early screen appearances before he achieved superstardom with The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca — and his performance here, coiled with the dangerous intensity and smoldering charisma that would make him a legend, offers a fascinating preview of the greatness to come. The film’s boldly innovative narrative structure, weaving multiple storylines together across a single tension-filled night, cutting between past and present with a fluidity that would not become standard filmmaking technique for decades, was genuinely revolutionary for 1934. Based on a stage play by Paul and Claire Sifton, the film exemplifies the pre-Code era’s willingness to tackle morally complex, deeply uncomfortable subjects with an honesty and sophistication that the incoming Production Code would soon suppress. The ensemble cast delivers uniformly excellent work, with O.P. Heggie and Henry Hull particularly powerful as jurors wrestling with their consciences. The restored colorized version allows modern audiences to watch this pioneering, structurally innovative crime drama with the atmospheric visual depth its nighttime settings and tense jury-room confrontations have always deserved.

Technical Details

• Format: MP4 digital download
• Resolution: HD restored
• Colorized: Professionally colorized from original black and white
• Audio: Original mono restored
• Runtime: Approximately 80 minutes
• DRM-free: Yes — watch on any device
• Instant download: Available immediately after purchase
• Price: €15.00

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Movie-Specific Questions

Q: Is Humphrey Bogart the lead in this film?
A: Bogart has a significant, intensely memorable supporting role in this ensemble crime drama, delivering one of the most electrifying performances of his early career — a fascinating preview of the dangerous screen presence that would make him a legend.

Q: Is this the colorized version of the full film?
A: Yes, this is the complete 80-minute feature, professionally colorized frame-by-frame from the restored original.

Q: Is this a courtroom drama?
A: It is much more than a simple courtroom drama — the film uses an innovative, multi-layered narrative structure that interweaves jury deliberation, flashbacks to the crime, and present-tense stories to create a gripping, morally complex thriller.

Q: Is this a pre-Code film?
A: Yes — made in 1934 before full enforcement of the Production Code, Midnight tackles questions of justice, morality, and the legal system with a raw honesty and moral ambiguity that gives it remarkable power.

Digital Download Questions

Q: What format is the download?
A: DRM-free MP4, compatible with virtually any device or media player.

Q: How much does it cost?
A: €15.00 for instant download. The colorization process ensures every scene looks stunning in color.

Q: Can I watch on multiple devices?
A: Absolutely. The file is DRM-free, so you can watch on your TV, tablet, phone, or computer.

Related Colorized Classics

• No Way Out (1950)
• Boston Blackie Goes Hollywood (1942)
• This Gun for Hire (1942)
• The Finger Points (1931)
• A Blueprint for Murder (1953)