Entertainment :: Movies
TCM’s Greatest Classic Films :: Murder Mysteries by Ed Tapper
EDGE ContributorMonday Oct 12, 2009
Wave 3 of TCM’s Greatest Classic Films DVD collections continues to wash up on video shelves everywhere. Last year, the super-studio, in partnership with Warner Brothers, introduced these budget DVD compilations that contain some of the most renowned films of all-time. All of the titles have been available individually, some for quite a while. For the most part, the sets are organized thematically, and include four classics on two double-sided DVDs. Borrowed directly from the individual releases, the films are preceded by the identical home pages, and contain the same special features of the single-sided originals.
The first of the recently released sets was devoted to Science Fiction. This blockbuster box includes such cult favorites as 2001: A Space Odyssey, and The Time Machine. Add into the mix Soylent Green and Forbidden Planet, and attach a price tag of under $20., and you can’t go too far wrong.
Next is an equally impressive second box is devoted to murder mysteries.
Bogie as Sam Spade
Taking on what appears to be a routine case, Spade finds himself mixed up with three ruthless adventurers, each desperate to acquire the priceless title artifact. The first two were Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre, whose deliciously eccentric characterizations landed them several subsequent film roles, both individually and as a team. Mary Astor was the third, the treacherous Brigid O’Shaughnessy, who uses sex in am attempt to win Spade over to her camp. With this role, Astor literally created the prototype of the film noir femme fatale, whose allegiance is constantly in question. John Huston’s colorful script, and vivid direction lend much to this film, which thoroughly deserves its cult status. The print is luminous, one of the most beautiful black and white transfers on DVD. The ultimate edition of the The Maltese Falcon is a 3-disc box with extraordinary special features that include an Offenbach ballet featuring Massine and the Battle Russe. However, the single disc release presented here includes an enjoyable Warner Night at the Movies: 1941, with a newsreel, film short and cartoon.
Bogey is another legendary private-eye, Philip Marlowe, in The Big Sleep. This classic 1946 detective yarn is a prime example of an early film noir, where the hero becomes unwittingly trapped in a sinister labyrinth of blackmail, extortion and murder. Marlowe is hired by a reclusive invalid who is being blackmailed. When he encounters his client’s two shady daughters, the fun begins. With director Howard Hawks at the
Bogie as Philip Marlowe
Bogey is another legendary private-eye, Philip Marlowe, in The Big Sleep. This classic 1946 detective yarn is a prime example of an early film noir, where the hero becomes unwittingly trapped in a sinister labyrinth of blackmail, extortion and murder. Marlowe is hired by a reclusive invalid who is being blackmailed. When he encounters his client’s two shady daughters, the fun begins. With director Howard Hawks at the helm, and William Faulkner contributing to the script, the dialogue is face-paced, pungent, and replete with sexual innuendo. During the shooting, the plot had become so convoluted that even the production staff was not sure of the film’s ultimate ending. None of it matters, since the The Big Sleep is as irresistible as it is incomprehensible. Lauren Bacall portrays another of the 40s most notorious screen femme fatales and the onscreen chemistry between her and Bogey is palpable. The print is excellent, and among the DVD extras is a documentary on the making of the film.
One of Lana’s best
Also from 1946 is The Postman Always Rings Twice, inspired by the James M. Cain novel. Although the story was the inspiration for at least three film versions, this one is the most significant, due mostly to the smoldering sexual tension created by the starring duo, Lana Turner and John Garfield. Both give superb performances, Garfield as Frank, a lonely drifter who is offered work by the middle-aged owner of a diner; and Turner, as the restaurateur’s sex-starved, young wife, Cora. Suspense mounts as the couple plans the murder of Cora’s husband. Like Jules Dassin’s Rififi, Postman... gains in psychological depth after the crime is committed, and the perpetrators are forced to confront each other. Imbued with a dark, fateful tone from its opening, the film benefits from solid direction and an intelligent screenplay. The TCM print is flawless, and the DVD includes a comprehensive featurette on the life and films of John Garfield, hosted by his daughter.
Endgangered Grace
Like "Postman...," Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder is not a mystery at all, since we know from the outset the identity of the culprit. It was produced in 1954, later than the other selections in the set, and is the only one in color; and is a brilliant example of Hitchcock’s art (most welcome at this bargain price).
The story is a faithful adaptation of a popular stage play, and concerns a retired tennis pro, played by Ray Milland, who concocts a complex, diabolical plot to murder his wife when he discovers she has been unfaithful. Grace Kelly is gorgeous, and quite good as a wife torn between her husband and lover. Robert Cummings is an American mystery writer in love with Kelly who, on a return visit to London, finds himself a pawn in Milland’s fiendish plan. Milland and Kelly give the performances of their careers. Hitch is right at home in the tiny London flat in which the entire movie is shot, employing virtuoso camera-work to keep the film vital and suspenseful. The original 3-D conception, may have added more in this department.
Though the color is vibrant, the print is spotty, with some blurry, grainy shots alternating with others in sharp contrast. The extras include a fine documentary on the making of the film, featuring interviews with Pat Hitchcock, and several renowned directors.
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