|
By
NICK ZEGARAC
In 1939 Bette Davis was at
the peak of her powers as a professional actress.
After an initially rocky start to her career,
Davis proved the old adage that "if at first you
don't succeed, try, try again." Aside from being
one of Hollywood's highest paid actresses, she
also had Jack Warner eating out of the palm of her
hand. And although Davis and Warner often butted
heads over projects and script approval, on these
occasions Warner was usually the one to acquiesce.
"Dark Victory" (1939) was just such a project in
which Warner and Davis didn't see eye to eye. In
fact, after an early consultation, Warner was
rumored to have said, "Who the hell wants to see a
story about a girl with a brain tumor?"
Apparently, a lot of people did. On its initial
release "Dark Victory" was a box office dynamo,
elevating the level of prestige for both Davis and
the studio and earning the actress her second Best
Actress Oscar nomination (Davis lost to Vivien
Leigh, as Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With The Wind).
"Dark Victory" is the story of haughty and
exclusive socialite, Judith Traherne (Davis).
She's generally devil-may-care. However, lately
Judy's been seeing double -- literally. She
confides the deteriorating state of health to her
best friend and personal secretary -- Ann King
(Geraldine Fitzgerald). Unbeknownst to Judith, Ann
tells family doctor and personal friend, Parsons
(Henry Travers) of Judy's condition. Together, the
two suckle the reluctant Judy into a professional
consultation with Dr. Fredrick Steele (George
Brent). Steele's initial diagnosis of a brain
tumor is complicated by a growing affection for
his patient. When he operates on Judy, only to
discover that her case is both rare and terminal
-- he and Ann concoct an elaborate lie to protect
Judith from the truth. But this is a secret that
will not stay buried.
All around the acting in this finely wrought
melodrama from director, Edmund Goulding is first
rate. Davis has never been more poignant, tragic,
sympathetic and understanding. Her performance
throbs with an equilibrium of finely crafted
emotions. As her sympathetic physician/turned
lover, George Brent delivers an understated tour
de force. The other outstanding bit of acting that
deserves mention herein is Geraldine Fitzgerald's
brilliant bit as Judy's most loyal companion. As
Ann, Fitzgerald generates a level of sincerity
that is so unique and mesmerizing, it's a shock
and a wonder she didn't have a more prolific
acting career after this film. Humphrey Bogart, in
an early appearance as Michael O'Leery, makes a
rather unconvincing, if embittered, Irish stable
hand. But Ronald Reagan is quite engaging as
Judy's loyal, if alcoholic, friend, Alec Hamm.
After years of having to contend with downright
shoddy transfers of this classic weepy, Warner
Brothers has gone back to the drawing board and
come up a winner on this newly restored and
remastered DVD. The black in white image is, in a
word, superb. Though age-related artifacts
persist, these have been greatly reduced from
previous transfers. There is no edge enhancement
for a picture that is smooth, yet sharp and most
pleasing on the eyes. The grayscale exhibits an
amazing amount of fine detail throughout with deep
solid blacks and very clean whites. Truly, there
is nothing that will disappoint on this occasion.
The audio has been nicely cleaned up. It's mono,
as originally recorded, but presented without the
nuisance of pops and hiss that accompanied
previous incarnations of this film on home video.
A new audio commentary and production featurette
augment your viewing experience. So break out a
fresh box of Kleenex. "Dark Victory" is at last
worthy of all of your tears on DVD. |
