A unique entry in the history of Canadian filmmaking and made-for-TV movies in general, The Heatwave Lasted Four Days is about as perfect a fit for the valuable Blu-ray label Canadian International Pictures as you can imagine. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada, the thriller ended up serving multiple functions after its initial airing in 66-minute form. While it was being made, the film was thought to be ideal as part of the company's Filmglish initiative, which broke up features into smaller episodes tailored to teaching English as a second language to the French Canadian-speaking population in Quebec. The film was then sent over to the U.S. where it appeared as an episode of ABC's Wide World of Entertainment, with its taut depiction of danger within the world of local news reporting making it an ideal fit for the public's appetite for suspense stories.

While covering the start of a record-breaking heat wave that's sent many locals frolicking to the water, news cameraman Cliff Reynolds (Blacula's Pinsent) realizes he's captured footage of fugitive gangster and escaped jailbird Jerry Cuozzo (Scanners' Dane) who now lives a low-key life with Barbara (The Uncanny's Stewart). Susceptible to his own share of vices including booze and womanizing, Cliff snips out a sample frame and sends it to Jerry thinking it could be his big meal ticket. Jerry's in the middle of planning a big heroin score to get out of town for good, and of course Cliff ends up getting pulled in way, way over his head.

Though it works fine as a low-key thriller (a few gunshots and a quick car chase are about as rough as it gets), The Heatwave Lasted Four Days really excels as a snapshot of early '70s television with several real-life Canadian personalities participating in the coverage of Cliff's day job. You also get a lot of coverage around the city with vintage threads and cars galore. The fact that it also doubled as an educational film is especially strange, as this is a lot more entertaining than the fare you'd normally see in a classroom during that decade. Not to be overlooked is the main cast, with Canuxploitation stalwarts like Dane, Stewart, and Al Waxman (Class of 1984) all doing fine work here in support of Pinsent who carries the heaviest dramatic weight.

Pretty much off the radar entirely after it did the rounds on TV, The Heatwave Lasted Four Days looks quite nice on the 2025 Blu-ray special edition which features a 2K restoration from the NFBC's 16mm interpositives of all three versions: the Canadian broadcast cut, the four-part Filmglish version (which features different credits, recaps, and animated interstitials) clocking in at 79 minutes, and an extended 72-minute cut that dispenses with the Filmglish framing and features all of the pertinent scenes from the film itself in what amounts to a kind of supercut. That last option also comes with a new audio commentary by Amanda Reyes, whose vast expertise in made-for-TV entertainment makes her a perfect choice here as she covers the history of the ABC show that imported it, the backgrounds of pretty much all the major players, some other connected TV projects from the time, and lots more. You might as well watch that 72-minute version first if you're new to the film, but all are worth a look for their differences. The DTS-HD MA 2.0 English mono tracks all sound fine and come with optional English SDH subtitles. The featurette "Four Days, Three Versions" (9m42s) uses side-by-side comparisons and other editorial means to show how the three versions all diverge from each other and which footage is exclusive to which. Then 1972's The Huntsman (16m16s) , director Douglas Jackson’s first fiction film, is a cute vignette about a little kid whose racket involving retrieving lost golf balls and turning them back around for a profit gets him some unwelcome attention. Don't miss the surprisingly gnarly car stunt gag on a golf course near the end, too. Jackson's made-for-TV award-winning drama from the same year, The Sloane Affair (53m30s), is also included here and presents a straightforward legal drama about a prominent building contractor (The Slayer's Alan McRae) undergoing an investigation for tax fraud of which he may or may not have been aware. Waxman also pops up here along with onetime Felix Leiter actor Cec Linder. Finally, 1985's Uncle T. (23m46s) is another Jackson short with Linda Griffiths (Lianna) and Pinsent about a recently married Irish teacher (Terror Train's Timothy Webber) and his wife visiting his writer uncle for the first time in Montreal with hopes of using his publishing connections. Featuring a fine turn by early Robert Altman regular Linda Sorensen as Pinsent's less than supportive wife, it's a fine little chamber piece about the high cost of seemingly little lies. A 20-image gallery of press coverage is also included, and the disc comes with a double-sided folded poster.

Reviewed on August 13, 2025