The Heatwave Lasted Four Days (1975)

While shooting a news report on a Montréal heatwave, TV cameraman Cliff Reynolds (The Rowdyman’s Gordon Pinsent) unintentionally films Jerry Cuozzo (Scanners co-star Lawrence Dane), a recently-escaped convict hiding from police and his former criminal associates on the heels of a rogue heroin deal. With the help of Barbara (Day for Night’s Alexandra Stewart) and Gabriella (Vampire Circus’ Domini Blythe), Jerry schemes to fake his own death, while offering large sums of money to Cliff to hand over his film and help deliver the drugs – with lethal consequences.

Created for the National Film Board of Canada’s Filmglish series – which produced serialized feature films to help teach English as a second language – The Heatwave Lasted Four Days went on to become a surprise hit on American TV as part of ABC’s Wide World of Mystery. Almost entirely unavailable in the decades since its original release, this lost neo-noir classic is offered here in three distinct versions, alongside additional films from director Douglas Jackson, including his award-winning The Sloane Affair.

Special Features:

• Scanned and restored in 2K from the 16mm interpositives by the National Film Board of Canada 

• Three separate versions of The Heatwave Lasted Four Days: the original TV cut (66 min.), the extended cut (72 min.), and the four-episode Filmglish version (80 min.)

• New audio commentary featuring author/film historian Amanda Reyes

• Four Days, Three Versions (2025, 9 min.) – An overview of the differences in the film’s three cuts

• The Huntsman (1972, 16 min.) – Jackson’s first fiction film

• The Sloane Affair (1972, 53 min.) – Jackson TV movie that received four Canadian Film Awards, including Best TV Drama

• Uncle T (1985, 24 min.) – Jackson short featuring Linda Griffiths (Lianna) and Heatwave’s Gordon Pinsent

• Press gallery

• Double-sided poster

• Reversible cover artwork

• English SDH subtitles