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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Director Otto Preminger's
slick and polished film noir, "Laura" (1944) has
since become a cornerstone in American cinema.
Yet, under its elegant facade of debutantes and
high-society fashion is a world of ravenous
jealousy, deceptive passions, intriguing
blackmail, and faux murder. The film pits gruff
police detective, Mark McPhereson (Dana Andrews)
against smug and cultured columnist, Waldo
Lydecker (Clifton Webb). McPherson has been
assigned to investigate the murder of Laura Hunt
(Gene Tierney in her best role), a handsome woman
who seemingly had no enemies in life. Through a
series of interviews conducted with potential
suspects, McPherson builds his profile of the dead
girl -- all the while falling under the spell of
her striking portrait. But the puzzle unravels
when the murder victim materializes in a bizarre
twist of fate that forces McPhereson to re-think
his entire case.
Preminger's direction is flawless -- effortlessly
moving from near humorous moments in the dynamic
clash of wills between McPherson and Lydecker, to
haunting segments of full bodied thrills involving
the strangely surreal heroine of the piece. Dame
Judith Anderson turns in a stellar performance as
the diabolical socialite with an agenda; Ann
Treadwell, while Vincent Price's oily performance
as gigolo, Shelby Carpenter is nothing short of
sublime. David Raksin's lush theme has since
entered our collective consciousness and movie
going heritage.
Fox's DVD exhibits a superb transfer. The
grayscale has been impeccably rendered with
exceptional tonality and attention to fine detail.
The picture is generally sharp and pleasing on the
eyes. Blacks are very rich, deep and solid. Whites
are on the whole clean. Occasionally one will
detect a note of edge enhancement and the odd age
related artifact, but these are bare quibbling on
an otherwise flawless presentation. The audio is
mono and very nicely balanced. A hint of
background hiss is detected in quiescent scenes,
but again, for a film element that is pushing 70
years, there's really nothing to complain about.
This DVD comes with well deserved extras;
including two Biography specials -- one on Gene
Tierney, the other on Vincent Price; deleted
scenes, a superlative audio commentary by David
Raskin, Rudy Behlmer and Jeanine Basinger, and the
film's original theatrical trailer. Very nicely
put together, indeed. |
