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By
NICK ZEGARAC
"Rebecca" is Alfred Hitchcock's debut as an American director and the only film by the master of suspense to win a Best Picture Oscar. Creatively, the relationship between Hitch' and producer, David O. Selznick was both tumultuous and tempestuous. Nevertheless, it yielded some of the finest suspense cinema ever made. In "Rebecca" a wealthy playboy, Max de Winter (Laurence Olivier) remarries after his first wife's mysterious death. The second wife, who is deliberately given no name in the story, is played by Joan Fontaine. Based on the novel by Daphne Du Maurier, Hitch' was forced to change a key element in the plot in order to get past the censors. In the novel Max does indeed murder his first wife and is thereafter haunted by that memory. In the film, he merely conceals her body after an accidental death. Dame Judith Anderson is absolutely chilling as Mrs. Danvers, the head mistress and housekeeper of Manderlay, Max's Cornwall estate.
"Rebecca" was previously available through Anchor Bay in a DVD that was fairly impressive in its quality. Criterion then reissued the film as a 2-disc special edition. However, I'd really like someone at Criterion to explain why an alternative main title sequence was used in the remastering of this disc. The original release through Anchor Bay retained the title sequence that audiences saw back in 1940. It also was a heck of a lot cheaper than Criterion's new version, though Anchor Bay's version is also out of print, unfortunately. In comparing the two transfers, they appear, other than the main title sequence, to be virtually identical. Black and white contrast is superb and the original mono tracks have been nicely restored.
Criterion offers a "musical score only" track that I was really looking forward to until I realized that some of the tracks included were in fact not originals but substitutions. That and the main title sequence substitution are two major sticking points with me since Criterion is usually a company that prides itself on "doing things right" and charging the customer royally. Also included is the Lux Radio broadcast of the film and a theatrical trailer and that's about it. There is no making of documentary, which is a disappointment.
A note: MGM/UA has acquired the rights to "Rebecca" and plans to re-release the film again on DVD sometime this fall. What the results will be like is uncertain. I hope that they will have the foresight to restore the Anchor Bay title sequence. |
