Laura

Rating:
Summary: Creme de la Creme
Review: "Laura" is one of those movies you hear about all your life, it seems, and then when you see it, you know why. It's slick, funny, classy, and luxurient. I recently introduced my sister-in-law to it, and got to experience all the pleasure of my first viewing over again seeing her enjoyment. This movie made a star of Gene Tierney, and why not? She looks beautiful in every shot, and of course especially in that bewitching portrait that commands the living room of Laura's sumptuous apartment, the site of the inexplicable shotgun murder of Laura, the most sought after woman of her set. The mood of the film is created by the wonderful narration of Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb), who recounts how he encountered an ambitious young woman whom he nurtured into a success, socially and professionally. The combination of his words and the accompanying glamour shots of Laura fix for the viewer the indelible image of a woman who transcends class. In contrast to Waldo's word paintings are the world-weary remarks of Mark MacPherson, the detective assigned to investigate Laura's murder, played by Dana Andrews. Though he appears to scoff at the imago of Laura created by Waldo, Mark is secretly seduced by it, aided by reading her private letters and handling her beautiful things in the apartment, and of course studying her portrait. Rounding out the cast are Judith Anderson as Laura's aunt Ann and Vincent Price as Shelby, Laura's on again off again fiance. The affair of these two suggest that things were not perfect in Laura's seemingly fairy tale life. And of course, like all good film noir murder mysteries, "Laura" has a riveting plot twist that makes you throw all your previous ideas out the window. One of the true film classics--you can't go wrong with this one. ....

Rating:
Summary: Finally Fox unleashes Laura, but with middling results....
Review: LAURA is a very popular and enjoyable drama. I've always considered it somewhat overrated, but it has achieved cult status, I think, mostly due to David Raksin's haunting theme that became a hit song afterward.

Fox's transfer leaves much to be desired, but is certainly decent for a 61 year old movie, although not up to Warner or Criterion standards.

Interestingly, after years of U G L Y packaging, Fox decides to copy the exceptional WB packaging by using original key art. Is this rocket science? If it worked then, it will work now. Good iconographic art lasts forever...glad Fox is taking this route now, but it won't make up for their U G L Y studio classics packaging.

The saddest thing about this release is that it deserved some excellent special features. Aside from the commentary, we get none. Instead we get these AWFUL recycled A&E Biography specials from Fox's paint-by-numbers documentary department. I often watched A&E Biography in its heyday, and if I saw a really bad (poorly written and filled with cliches) one, I'd say, "Oh, that must be from Fox", and indeed, it almost always was.

Too bad Fox didn't believe enough in this tentpole title to give it a four-star treatment. Don't get me wrong. It looks "nice" and its better than a Sony/Paramount/Universal/MGM bare bones classic...but Fox could have, and should have...done better!

Rating:
Summary: Classic film noir comes to DVD in deluxe edition
Review: A film noir classic comes to DVD for the first time packed full of more extras than expected, "Laura" tells the story of a society beauty (Gene Tierney in a career defining performance) murdered for no apparent reason. Detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews in a hardboiled strong performance) investigates her murder questioning the men in her life beginning with a witty critic Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb in a deliciously droll performance and in a major come back) and playboy Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price). Seen in flashback, we discover Laura's background and how she rises from the middle class to world class society beauty with the assistance of those men in her life. Things take a surprising twist when McPherson meets the very woman who was murdered as the audience must figure out what's really going on. A marvelous suspense thriller with elements of film noir, "Laura" continues to be haunting sixty years on.

A nicely detailed transfer with rich blacks and a nicely detailed picture, Fox has done an outstanding job transferring this terrific classic to DVD. The DVD has some minor analog blemishes in the form of dirt and there's noticeable grain due to the stock of the film used to shoot the movie and how far removed the film is from the original nitrate negative (like most films from the era, the negative probably doesn't exist any longer although there's no information on the restoration here). The mono sound has nice presence with slight problems with hiss and other analog imperfections but, on the whole, it sounds superior to the previous releases on VHS and laserdisc.

We get the A&E Biography programs on Price featuring interviews with Price biographer Lucy Price Williams, Price's daughter, friends and film co-workers. Price initially joined Orson Welles' Mercury Theater in New York. The droll comments by actor/writer Norman Lloyd about their experience together in the Mercury Theater alone makes this biography worth watching. Price had an easy going and natural style that still seems contemporary and when seeing his performance with other more affected performers of the time. His debut in a 1933 Constance Bennet comedy more demonstrated his flair and versatility. Over the course of seven years Price played everything from Brigham Young to the King of France. One of the cinema's most underrated performers, Price's performances particularly here continue to sparkle with wit and power.

Gene Tierney's A&E Biography is a marvelous biography every bit the equal of the Price biography. Tierney began smoking to lower the pitch of her voice (at the advice of a studio executive) because she didn't like her voice thinking that she sounded like Minnie Mouse in her first film (she died of emphysema as a result of her life long addiction). Tierney's life had its tragic turns comparable to that of other beautiful stars of the day. She tumbled into depression after a failed marriage to costume designer Oleg Cassini and the birth of her mentally handicapped daughter resulting in her absence from the screen for nearly seven years. Tierney discovered that all the money she earned as an actress during the 40's was squandered by her father to support his failing business without her consent.

We also get a deleted scene (a rarity for films from this time) consisting of a montage sequence detailing how Lydecker taught her about the finer things in life. It was feared that the "decadence" on display would offend troops fighting overseas. We also get a theatrical trailer which demonstrates how bad this fine film might have looked like without the fine restoration seen here. This alternate opening deleted after the first screening has been integrated back into the movie so you may watch either the original version or the edited version that's been seen by millions over the years.

Historian Rudy Behlmer's commentary track tends to be the drier of the two tracks. He provides extensive background on the performers, the novel, director Otto Preminger. His comments on how Preminger had to fight for actor Clifton Webb to play Lydecker because of his well known homosexuality are particularly enlightening. Behlmer reads excerpts from Preminger's autobiography giving us insights from the director and writers of the project. Initially the writers wanted "Laura" to be a Broadway play before a film. Derailed; by politics and other issues, the script became a film instead despite lukewarm interest from MGM. MGM wanted to do the film as a "B" movie mystery while Fox had higher aspirations for the project. Preminger convinced the studio to buy the book. Initially working only as a producer on the project (his film failures had damaged his aspirations as a film director), Preminger took over direction from Rueben Mamoulian ("Dr. Jekell and Mr. Hyde") early on during the shooting of the film replacing the director after he butted heads with Preminger.

Film composer David Raskin's commentary track is absolutely charming, involving and although his memories of the film have been colored by time, it's also a lot more inviting. Raskin's haunting, wistful romantic score acts as a perfect counterpoint to the action and, at other times, underlining the emotional core of the moment.

A classic finally comes to DVD with plenty of bells and whistles. With an extremely good transfer, great commentary tracks featuring original film composer David Raskin and two excellent A&E Biography episodes on stars Gene Tierney and Vincent Price, "Laura" was worth the wait. The inclusion of a deleted scene and a version of the movie with and without the scene will delight long time fans of this terrific movie.


Rating:
Summary: A Totally Original Plot
Review: Dana Andrews plays a tough, sexy detective, who falls in love with a murder victim; after reading her diary, gazing at her portrait, and hearing about her from her friends. The dead Laura is seen in flashbacks during her friends' stories. The plot is wonderful until one night while the detective sleeps in Laura's apartment, then the whole story turns EXCELLENT!!!!
Who killed Laura Hunt? Her mentor (Clifton Webb) willingly admits his jealous love for her. Or is it,Laura's cheating fiance (played by the screen legend, Vincent Price)? Another likely suspect is Laura's friend (Judith Anderson, who was the sinister Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca), who loves Laura's likable fiance.
Before the end of this movie you will have suspected everyone at least once. I am a teenage and I loved this movie. One day, my sister and I watched this movie three times and it was better each time around.

Rating:
Summary: Swoon
Review: Let's talk about Dana Andrews, one of the most underrated actors in the film noir genre. Why can't we get the movie Fallen Angel here in the US? I had to buy a British copy and set my computer to play it in order to enjoy another fabulous Dana Andrews noir.
Anyway, you know all about this movie with the music and Gene Tierney, and she's supposed to be dead and her disturbing old geezer sugar daddy/Svengali (Clifton Webb) who entertains policemen while he's in the tub(!)...the story is great, the characters are fabulous as noted in the other reviews. As far as film noirs go, I'm not sure this really counts but why quibble? Really, though, Dana Andrews stands out as the insular policeman who discovers something a little more refined within himself when he falls for Laura. And what red-blooded woman would not prefer him over the curiously fey Vincent Price? There are a lot of interesting interplays between the characters and the movie moves right along. The whodunnit is diverting but it's really the characters that make the whole thing so FAB. Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Best of the Film Noir era
Review: Laura is a well paced, smart movie full of drama, glamour and humour. Gene is stunning as the victim. Dana Andrews is sexy as the detective that falls in love with the muder victim through stories he hears from her friends, family and the man she was going to marry. It has a nice twist and keeps you guessing who did it. Vincent Price is interesting in a rare role that wasn't a horror film. Clifton Webb has a lot of the best lines as a cruel self obessed writer. This is a personal fave and i recommend it to anyone with taste.

Rating:
Summary: Finally!!!
Review: March 15, 2005 is the day my favorite film noir comes out. Why did you take so long Fox? And why can't we pre-order it yet?

I've felt like Det. McPherson (Dana Andrews) waiting for Laura (Gene Tierney) to return. Please don't let this be a tease again (us fans have gone through that three times already).

Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest film noirs of the forties
Review: The title of this review pretty much says it all for anyone curious about seeing this inarguable suspense classic. Along with "Double Indemnity," "The Maltese Falcon," "The Big Sleep," and "Out of the Past," "Laura" is one of the best film noirs released during the 1940's.

Gene Tierney is luminous as the dead woman, seen through the fond recollections of those who knew her, that detective Dana Andrews falls in love with -- and ultimately leading to a twist midway through the film (don't let ANYONE tell you what it is). Clifton Webb and Vincent Price are outstanding in supporting roles as the men who were entranced with Laura, and the engrossing plot builds to a nail-biter of a climax thanks to a wonderful script, absolutely beautiful cinematography, and Otto Preminger's brooding direction.

As of this review (December, 2004), Fox Studios has failed to offer this film on DVD which is an absolute crime (after announcing release dates for two straight years running and then leaving anxious fans empty handed on every occasion). Shame on them.


Rating:
Summary: The Best!
Review: Laura, With Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb and Vincent Price is one of the classiest movies to come out of the 1940s or any other decade. It's got refiniment and good taste written all over it, from the acting to the sets to the clothes to the direction and script. I've seen this movie over and over again and could never tire of it because it's simply very, very enjoyable and passes the test of time with flying colors.

Rating:
Summary: Classic film noir with the beautiful Gene Tierney
Review: Ever since I was a kid I've loved everything about this classic: the perfect, & I do mean PERFECT cast (Gene Tierney, Clifton Webb, Dana Andrews, Vincent Price), the unforgettable music by David Raksin, & of course the suspensful climax. I've always thought Dana Andrews was a highly underated actor & this is one of his best performances. The movie would be nothing, however, without the beautiful Gene Tierney. I was so disappointed when Fox Studios failed to release this on dvd so many months ago & only hope that their new release date for this November will prove to be accurate. The dvd should have tons of great special features so that "Laura"'s many fans might consider forgiving Fox for this awful delay! This movie is a definite must-have for any fans of classic film noir!
Update, Dec. 11: Well, look's like that Nov. release date was just more b.s. from FOX. We'll just have to be patient and keep waiting until FOX gets their act together and releases this classic.
Update, Jan. 8: Finally, this classic is being released, and is loaded with bonus features! Thanks, FOX, for snapping out of it!