Break in the Circle

4K UHD, Limited Collector's Edition, Region Free

Hollywood heavyweight Forrest Tucker stars as a low-level smuggler playing for high stakes in this slick Eurocrime espionage thriller from acclaimed Hammer director Val Guest. 

Set against the atmospheric backdrops of Hamburg and Cornwall, Break in the Circle co-stars Eva Bartok as a determined undercover agent and Marius Goring as a millionaire harbouring a dark secret.

Break in the Circle makes its debut on physical media in 4K for the very first time!

A fascinating outlier in the Hammer library, this stylish crime thriller has been painstakingly restored in 4K from the original film negatives for the highest quality viewing experience possible.

Though Hammer is best known for horror, Break in the Circle represents the studio’s sole full-blooded Eurocrime espionage thriller – released at the same time as The Quatermass Xperiment - it gives a glimpse into what the studios output might have looked like, had it not been for the boxoffice success of its horror output. This makes Break In the Circle an essential discovery for collectors, noir enthusiasts and Hammer completists alike.

A must-have for fans of classic crime cinema, espionage thrillers, and Hammer’s lesser-known gems.

3-disc 4K UHD & Blu-ray Limited Collector’s Edition 

Discover three distinct versions of the film alongside a wealth of brand-new extras and archival material: 

• Three versions of Break in the Circle:  
• As-filmed version  
• UK cinema widescreen version  
• Black-and-white re-edited US cinema version  
• Presented across one UHD and two Blu-rays, with content duplicated across both formats  
• Subtitles in English, French, Italian, Spanish and German across every version of the film 

 Special Features 

• Eurocrime – a new feature exploring Hammer’s unique contribution to European crime thrillers, with Sergio Angelini, Laura Mayne and Barry Forshaw
• Hammer in Hamburg – then-and-now comparison of the film’s German locations  
• Hammer in Cornwall – then-and-now comparison of the film’s UK locations  
• Brand-new commentary with film historian Richard Holliss and author/screenwriter Gavin Collinson  
• Brand-new commentary with film critic Adrian Martin  
• Gallery of stills and publicity material, accompanied by selections from Doreen Carwithen’s score  

Collector’s Booklet 

Featuring new writing and archival material, including: 

• Wayne Kinsey on the making of this fast-paced thriller  
• Miriam Balanescu on Forrest Tucker’s small-but-significant British film output  
• Wayne Kinsey on the use of Bray Studios in Hammer productions  
• Neil Sinyard comparing the original novel with the finished film  
• Sarah Morgan profiling Eva Bartok  
• Archive interview with director Val Guest