This July, Indicator will be releasing an eclectic selection of films dealing with passion, loyalty, and conflict, including rip-roaring nautical tale H.M.S. Defiant, ravishing Shakespeare adaptation The Taming of the Shrew, Palme d’Or winner The Hireling, and poignant tale of theatrical life The Dresser. Also – for the US and Canada only – the label presents the world UHD premiere of an all-time classic from Ealing Studios, Saraband for Dead Lovers. Full details below.

H.M.S. DEFIANT (aka DAMN THE DEFIANT!) (UK 1962)

Limited Edition Blu-ray | UK only | 21 July 2025 | £17.99

Alec Guinness (Kind Hearts and Coronets) and Dirk Bogarde (The Gentle Gunman) lead the all-star cast of H.M.S. Defiant, a rip-roaring tale of mutiny on the high seas from the great British action director Lewis Gilbert (Sink the Bismarck!, The Spy Who Loved Me).

During the French Revolutionary Wars, Crawford (Guinness), Captain of the Defiant, enters into a battle of wills with his sadistic First Officer Scott-Padget (Bogarde). When Crawford is injured during a skirmish with French forces, Scott-Padget takes control, but the crew begin to rebel against his brutal command, whilst remaining loyal to Crawford and to their country.

Adapted by Edmund H North (The Day the Earth Stood Still) and Nigel Kneale (The Quatermass Experiment) from Frank Tilsley’s best-selling novel Mutiny, H.M.S. Defiant – originally released in the US as Damn the Defiant! – does not water down its depiction of the harsh realities of naval life.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES:

• High Definition remaster
  
• Two presentations of the film: H.M.S. Defiant, with the original UK title sequence; and Damn the Defiant!, with the alternative US titles
  
• Original mono audio
  
• The Guardian Interview with Lewis Gilbert (1995): archival video recording of the prolific director in conversation with Tony Sloman at the National Film Theatre, London
  
• The BEHP Interview with Lewis Gilbert(1996): archival audio recording, made as part of the British Entertainment History Project, featuring the director in conversation with Roy Fowler
  
• Cast Adrift (2022): actors Brian Phelan, Peter Gill, and Roger Mutton recall their work on the film
  
• Defiant Crew (2022): interviews with a selection of original members of the production team
  
• Original theatrical trailer
  
• Image gallery: publicity and promotional material
  
• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
  
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with new essay by Sheldon Hall, archival interviews with Dirk Bogarde and Murray Melvin, extracts from the film’s pressbook, and film credits
  
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
  
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK

THE TAMING OF THE SHREW (ITALY/USA 1967)

Limited Edition Blu-ray | UK only | 21 July 2025 | £17.99

Richard Burton (Absolution) and Elizabeth Taylor (Secret Ceremony) star in The Taming of the Shrew, a vibrant and bawdy adaptation of Shakespeare’s immortal romantic comedy from director Franco Zeffirelli (Romeo and Juliet).

Nobleman Baptista (Michael Hordern, Girl Stroke Boy) seeks husbands for his two daughters. Bianca (Natasha Pyne, The Devil-Ship Pirates) has no trouble attracting suitors, but the headstrong and acerbic Kate (Taylor) drives men away... until the nobleman Petruchio (Burton) is inspired by a sizeable dowry to take on the challenge.

This lavish production’s all-star cast is rounded out by Cyril Cusack (Gideon’s Day), Michael York (Cabaret), Alan Webb (The Third Secret), and Victor Spinetti (A Hard Day’s Night), and features a lush soundtrack by the great Nino Rota (The Godfather, 8½).

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES:

• High Definition remaster
  
• Original mono audio
  
• Audio commentary with film historians Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson (2025)
  
• Matthew Sweet on The Taming of the Shrew (2025): the broadcaster and writer examines the background behind the film’s production
  
• Royal Film Performance screening (1967): newsreel footage capturing an audience of special guests, including Princess Margaret and a who’s who of British cinema greats
  
• French premiere (1967): newsreel footage of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton attending the film’s Paris premiere
  
• Original theatrical trailer
  
• Teaser trailer
  
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
  
• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
  
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with new essay by Bethan Roberts, a contemporary on-set report by John Francis Taylor, an overview of critical responses, and film credits 
  
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
  
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK

All features subject to change.

THE HIRELING (UK 1973)

Limited Edition Blu-ray | UK only | 21 July 2025 | £17.99

Robert Shaw (Young Winston) and Sarah Miles (Blowup) star in The Hireling, a devastating exploration of emotional repression, trauma, and class relations from director Alan Bridges (The Shooting Party).

In the years following the First World War, the widowed Lady Franklin (Miles) establishes an unlikely friendship with her working-class driver, Ledbetter (Shaw), a traumatised former sergeant major. But, as Lady Franklin develops a relationship with a scheming former officer (Peter Egan, Ever Decreasing Circles), Ledbetter’s precarious mental state rapidly deteriorates.

Adapted from the novel by L P Hartley (The Go-Between) by acclaimed playwright and screenwriter Wolf Mankowitz (The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll), The Hireling was awarded the Palme d’Or at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES:

• High Definition remaster
  
• Original mono audio
  
• Interview with actor Sarah Miles (2025)
  
• Interview with actor Ian Hogg (2025)
  
• Interview with composer Marc Wilkinson (2025)
  
• Interview with production manager Hugh Harlow (2025)
  
• Interview with wardrobe mistress Brenda Dabbs (2025)
  
• Original theatrical trailer
  
• Larry Karaszewski trailer commentary (2021): short critical appreciation
  
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
  
• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
  
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with new essay by Peter Cowie, selected interviews with screenwriter Wolf Mankowitz on his adaptation of L P Hartley’s novel, an overview of critical responses, and film credits 
  
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
  
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK

All features subject to change.

THE DRESSER (UK 1983)

Limited Edition Blu-ray | UK only | 21 July 2025 | £17.99

Peter Yates (Summer Holiday, Murphy’s War) directs Albert Finney (Charlie Bubbles), Tom Courtenay (Otley), and Edward Fox (Force 10 from Navarone) in The Dresser, a heart-rending yet darkly humorous tale of life in the theatre.

During the Second World War, a group of actors take Shakespeare across the industrial north, led by an ageing and imperious actor known only as ‘Sir’ (Finney), against a background of air-raid sirens and exploding bombs. With his mental and physical condition deteriorating, selfless dresser Norman (Courtenay) struggles to ensure that the show – Sir’s 227th performance as King Lear – goes on.

Based on the experiences of screenwriter Ronald Harwood (The Pianist), assistant to legendary Shakespearean actor Sir Donald Wolfit (90° in the Shade), The Dresser is a moving exploration of loyalty and unrequited love.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES:

• High Definition remaster
  
• Original mono audio
  
• Interview with actor Claire Harrison (2025)
  
• Interview with director of photography Kelvin Pike (2025)
  
• Interview with camera operator Dewi Humphreys (2025)
  
• Interview with sound mixer John Hayward (2025)
  
• Interviews with property master John Chisholm and property buyer Jill Quertier (2025)
  
• Original theatrical trailer
  
• Image gallery: publicity and promotional material
  
• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
  
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with new essay by Thirza Wakefield, a selection of interviews with director Peter Yates and actors Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay charting the film’s production, an overview of critical responses, and film credits 
  
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
  
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK

SARABAND FOR DEAD LOVERS (UK 1948)

Limited Edition UHD | US and Canada only | 22 July 2025

From the celebrated director-producer team of Basil Dearden and Michael Relph (The Gentle Gunman, The Ship That Died of Shame) comes Saraband for Dead Lovers, the first colour production from Britain’s legendary Ealing Studios.

In this sumptuous historical romance, a teenage princess (Joan Greenwood, Girl Stroke Boy) is trapped in a loveless marriage to Prince George Louis of Hanover (Peter Bull, The Old Dark House), heir to the British throne. To escape the boredom, she begins a dangerous affair with Count Philip Konigsmark (Stewart Granger, Footsteps in the Fog), an affair with potentially terrible consequences for the pair...

Adapted from a novel by Helen Simpson (Under Capricorn) by Alexander Mackendrick (Whisky Galore!) and John Dighton (Kind Hearts and Coronets), scored by acclaimed composer Alan Rawsthorne (The Cruel Sea), and shot in ravishing three-strip Technicolor by the great Douglas Slocombe (The Young Ones, Murphy’s War), Saraband for Dead Lovers is a glorious feast for the eyes and ears.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 4K UHD FEATURES:

• 4K HDR restoration
  
• 4K (2160p) UHD presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
  
• Original mono audio
  
• A Sense of Loyalty (2025): director and screenwriter James Dearden introduces his father’s work
  
• The BEHP Interview with Michael Relph (1990): archival audio recording, made as part of the British Entertainment History Project, featuring the producer-director-set designer and long-term Dearden collaborator in conversation with Sidney Cole and Alan Lawson
  
• A Technicolor Dance (2023): film historian Josephine Botting delves into the production of Saraband for Dead Lovers
  
• A Strange Adventure (2023): broadcaster Matthew Sweet and film critic Phuong Le discuss the film’s themes and reception
  
• Restoring Saraband for Dead Lovers (2023): a look behind-the-scenes of this glorious three-strip Technicolor film restoration by those involved in its process
  
• Original storyboards
  
• Image galleries: promotional and publicity material, and production book
  
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
  
• Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with new essay by Robert Murphy, archival pieces by Basil Dearden, producer Michael Balcon, art director Michael Relph, director of photography Douglas Slocombe, costume designer Anthony Mendleson, and conductor Ernest Irving, archival profiles of the film’s cast, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and full film credits
  
• World premiere on 4K UHD
  
• Limited edition of 5,000 individually numbered units (3,000 4K UHDs and 2,000 Blu-rays) for the US