1982's The Verdict became a well-regarded tale of an alcoholic attorney who sought redemption. 1946's The Verdict shares a title and nothing else.

Set in the late 1890s, Scotland Yard's Superintendent George Grodman (Sydney Greenstreet) prosecutes a man for murder and wins the case. This leads to the man's execution right before evidence that would've exonerated him.

Embarrassed by the revelation, Grodman resigns and gets replaced by the arrogant and unpleasant John R. Buckley (George Couloris). Eager to prove himself again - and also put Buckley in his place - Grodman pairs with his artistic friend Victor Emmric (Peter Lorre) to solve a separate murder and earn redemption.

Greenstreet and Lorre worked in nine movies together over a short span from 1941's Maltese Falcon through 1946's Verdict. Other than 1942’s Casablanca, I never saw any of their other efforts until Verdict wound up in my Blu-ray player.

Both play against type here – well, at least somewhat. Actors with as many credits as Greenstreet and Lorre got opportunities for a mix of roles, of course.

However, I think we tend to associate Greenstreet with “heavies” and not the crusading law enforcement agent seen in Verdict. Greenstreet brings nice depth to the role.

Though we tend to connect Lorre with sniveling low-lifes, he enjoyed much greater range than that as well and Verdict reminds us of this. He plays Victor with sassy insouciance and charm.

Of course, the two boast delightful chemistry when they appear together. While he acted on stage for decades, Greenstreet resisted Hollywood until 1941’s Falcon, and he retired from films only eight years later, though he worked on radio through 1951.

This left too few opportunities for Greenstreet and Lorre to collaborate. Given the brief time span Greenstreet appeared in movies, we probably should feel happy they joined forces the nine times this occurred.

I wish I could claim that Verdict uses them better than it does. While I like their performances, the movie itself can feel unfocused.

At a mere 87 minutes, I expect a tighter tale than what we find. The movie tends to digress more often than I’d expect and can become an oddly meandering murder mystery.

Best known for later efforts like 1956’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers and 1971’s Dirty Harry, Verdict represented Don Siegel’s first film as director. He brings an inconsistency to Verdict that shows he needed more experience.

Not that I think Verdict flops as a film, but the investigation seems loosely constructed and not especially compelling. Though the movie intersperses thriller elements that try to add spark, these elements seem gratuitous and don’t work.

Occasional comedic bits exist as relief, I suppose, but they also fizzle. Those beats just seem out of place and create tonal confusion.

I like Lorre and Greenstreet enough to view Verdict as a watchable affair. However, the package sputters as a whole.

The Verdict appears in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Despite a few anomalies, this usually became a satisfying presentation.

Overall sharpness worked well, though occasional interiors leaned a bit mushy. Most of the film boasted appealing delineation and accuracy.

Neither jaggies nor moiré effects impacted the proceedings, and the presence of light grain meant it seemed unlikely that digital noise reduction came into play. Edge haloes remained absent and I saw no print flaws.

Blacks seemed deep and rich, while contrast gave the movie a fine silvery sheen. Low-light shots brought us nice smoothness and clarity. Despite some softness, this turned into a more than satisfactory image.

I felt the same about the DTS-HD MA monaural soundtrack, as it held up fine for its age. Music and effects didn’t boast great range or punch, but both came across accurate enough and they lacked distortion or problems.

As usual for older recordings, speech came across as a little tinny, but the lines remained fairly concise and only a few spots of edginess occurred.

The mix lacked hiss, noise or other problems. This turned into a more than acceptable mix for its era.

When we go to extras, the biggest attraction stems from three radio programs that featured Verdict actors. We find an episode of Inner Sanctum called “Black Sea Gull” (aired 3/7/1943, 28:41), an episode of Suspense entitled “Till Death Do Us Part” (aired 12/15/1942, 29:37), and an episode of New Adventures of Nero Wolfe known as “Stamped for Murder” (aired 10/20/1950, 28:44).

In “Sea Gull”, Richard Blake (Peter Lorre) refuses to accept his wife’s death. It offers the prospect she still exists as a ghost and becomes a creepy little tale, especially since it keeps Richard’s sanity up for grabs.

“Death” focuses on Erwin Kraft (Lorre), a man who creates a sinister plot when he believes his wife Cynthia (Alice Frost) cheats on him with Dr. James Craig (David Gothard). It takes some vivid twists and becomes a solid little chiller.

Finally, “Stamped” offers a tale with obese private investigator Nero Wolfe (Sydney Greenstreet). In need of money, the detective reluctantly takes on a case to deal with a case related to a man swindled over a so-called treasure map.

While I like Greenstreet’s arrogant performance as Wolfe, the story to “Stamped” feels oddly insubstantial. We don’t get much tension or intrigue in this surprisingly dull tale.

We also get two animated shorts. The set includes Hair-Raising Hare (7:42) and Birth of a Notion (7:04).

During Hare, an evil scientist who looks/sounds like Peter Lorre tries to lure Bugs to his lair so his horrible monster can eat the rabbit. This one becomes an absolute classic.

With Notion, Daffy Duck cons a dog named Leopold into offering him a stay in his house but he has to hide Daffy from his master, a mad scientist who needs a duck's wishbone. Of course, that “mad scientist” offers another Lorre clone.

This isn’t the ultra-zany Daffy of his early years but he still presents room for plenty of laughs. Though not as terrific as Hare, Notion nonetheless becomes a really good cartoon.

Thanks to the delightful chemistry between Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre, The Verdict manages to keep us with it. However, the narrative rambles and the mystery investigation involve never turns into anything memorable. The Blu-ray comes with generally positive picture and audio along with a few bonus features. Expect a pretty mediocre thriller from The Verdict.