The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection (NTSC)

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     In the late 1940s and early 1950s Rita Hayworth was one of the most popular female stars in Hollywood. This box set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection contains 12 of her films at Columbia showcasing the development of her career from her earlier musicals with co-stars such as Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, to more mature “femme fatale” roles in noir thrillers such as Gilda and Affair in Trinidad with Glenn Ford and The Lady from Shanghai with then husband Orson Welles, to Biblical epics and melodramas. The collection also includes Cover Girl, a Technicolor extravaganza, the first Columbia musical to be shot in colour and the highest grossing Columbia film of 1944 that really made Rita a star.

     The films in this collection have been sourced from a variety of places; all the prints look very good indeed with Technicolor musicals such as Cover Girl stunning. All audio is Dolby Digital 2.0 mono. Some of the films have minor extras including appreciations or introductions while a couple include audio commentaries.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection is an excellent compendium of her films and her talents that Rita’s fans, or those interested in classic Hollywood moviemaking, will appreciate. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection comprises The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously but if you are interested and have not those earlier releases this release represents excellent value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

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Extras
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Overall

Music in My Heart (1940) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Musical Comedy	Trailer-Rita Hayworth films x 3
Rating
Year Of Production	1940
Running Time	69:56
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Joseph Santley
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Tony Martin Rita Hayworth Alan Mowbray Edith Fellows George Humbert George Tobias Eric Blore
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	None Given

     Bob Gregory (Tony Martin), perennial understudy to the lead in a Broadway hit musical, is told by US Immigration that his visa is not being renewed and that he is being deported that night. The lead, Ray Barrett (Martin Lamont), graciously allows Bob to sing the main role that night and after the performance Bob is put into a taxi. Hurrying to the pier to catch his boat, Bob’s taxi collides with another taxi that is taking Patricia O’Malley (Rita Hayworth) to the same pier to meet with her very wealthy fiancé Charles Spencer Gardner III (Alan Mowbray) and catch the boat. Because of the accident, they miss the boat; Bob is now a wanted man and Pat, not too disturbed at losing her fiancé, takes Bob back to her house until he can give himself up to the authorities in the morning.

     Pat lives with her kid sister Mary (Edith Fellows) and Uncle Luigi (George Humbert) at the café run by Sasha (George Tobias). Very quickly Pat and Bob become attracted to each other, encouraged especially by Mary who never wanted Pat to marry Charles in the first place. Charles, feeling jilted by Pat, had got off the boat before it sailed, but he still feels in love with her so sends his valet Griggs (Eric Blore) to Sasha’s café to talk to Pat to try to get her back. At the café Bob (in a false beard) and Mary try everything to sabotage the meeting between Pat and Griggs; they succeed and Bob and Pat acknowledge their love for each other. But Griggs has recognised Bob from a newspaper report and surreptitiously plants a newspaper story that convinces Pat that in Europe Bob has a wife and three children so Pat rejects Bob and decides to return to Charles. At the same time Sasha and the others learn they are to be evicted for non-payment of rent. Bob makes a deal to sing on CBS radio on the Andre Kostelanetz and his Orchestra Hour to pay Sasha’s rent after which he will turn himself in to be deported. But, this being a 1940’s musical comedy, it is no spoiler to report that Charles Spencer Gardner III turns out to be a very decent chap and that it all ends well with a song and with “music in my heart”.

     Music in My Heart was Rita Hayworth’s first musical for Columbia although, at this stage only an up and coming actress, she gets second billing behind Tony Martin. Rita, born Margarita Carmen Cansino into a family of dancers, had been signed by the Fox Film Corp when she was 16 but was let go after a handful of bit parts under the name Rita Cansino. She was, however, picked up by Columbia head Harry Cohn who changed her name to Rita Hayworth (Hayworth being her mother’s maiden name) and, by the early 1940s, she became Columbia’s most popular female star. In With Music in My Heart Rita gets to briefly dance on a table, showing the grace and the promise of things to come, but she plays second fiddle to handsome singer Tony Martin, who certainly looks the part and sings all the songs, including the Oscar nominated It’s a Blue World (the song lost out to what has become a Disney classic When You Wish Upon a Star from the animated film Pinocchio (1940)). Remembered more in later years as a recording star (and for being married to Cyd Charisse for 60 years) than as an actor although he appeared in over 30 films and did sing the next year in the Marx Bros.’ The Big Store (1941).

     Music in My Heart was directed by journeyman director Joseph Santley; a decade previously he had co-directed the Marx Bros.’The Cocoanuts (1929), drawing the observation from Groucho that Santley didn’t understand comedy! His direction in Music in My Heart is competent if uninspired, especially static in the songs and production numbers, but the more gentle comedy in Music in My Heart, mainly the repartee between his charismatic leads, is allowed to flow nicely.

     Some things in Music in My Heart would not be to current tastes, such as the extended musical finale that stops the story dead in its tracks or the “humorous” ethnic stereotyping of Italian and Russian emigres, but the cracking dialogue, the handsome leads and gentle humour (when it is not ethnic based) can still be appreciated. The result is that Music in My Heart is a frivolous and light-hearted musical comedy that is delightful, entertaining and a heap of old fashioned fun.

Video

     Music in My Heart is presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not 16x9 enhanced.

     I don’t know what I expected from an almost forgotten black and white film from 1940, but Music in My Heart is a revelation. There is some blur with motion and some slight specks on the print but otherwise there are no scratches or larger marks. Grain is light. Blacks are solid black, shadow detail very good and grey scales and detail excellent for an 80 year old film; take a look at the musical number at the start of the film around 3:59 where the silver in the costumes and the set absolutely glistens. Brightness and contrast are consistent.

     English and Japanese subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue sparkles and is easy to hear. Effects are minimal but the songs (there is no credit for incidental music), generally with music and lyrics by Bob Wright and Chet Forrest performed by Tony Martin with Andre Kostelanetz and his Orchestra, comes over loud and clear.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine although the hand / music synchronisation when Rita is “playing” the piano in one sequence is less so!

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Previews

     Previews for other Hayworth films: Gilda (2:09),The Lady from Shanghai (1:49) and You Were Never Lovelier (2:07).

     Music in My Heart is available as a stand-alone DVD in both the US and UK but I don’t think it has been released as a stand-alone here in Australia. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Music in My Heart is an early Rita Hayworth film for Columbia, made before she became Columbia’s top female star. With second billing she shows glimpses of her emerging grace and talent and her interaction and wry dialogue with a dashing Tony Martin is good fun. Music in My Heart may be light-weight, and the songs not particularly memorable, but it is a delightful old fashioned musical that I enjoyed far more than I thought I would.

     The video is very good indeed for an 80 year old film, the audio is the original mono. The only extras are a few trailers for other Hayworth films.

     Music in My Heart is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value for fans of Rita, musicals or classic cinema.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

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Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

You'll Never Get Rich (1941) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Musical Comedy	None
Rating
Year Of Production	1941
Running Time	88:29
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Sidney Lanfield
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Fred Astaire Rita Hayworth John Hubbard Robert Benchley Frieda Inescort Osa Massen
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Morris Stoloff Cole Porter

     On his 15th wedding anniversary philandering theatre owner Martin Cortland (Robert Benchley) stops on 5th Ave to buy an engraved diamond bracelet, not for his long suffering wife Julia (Frieda Inescort), but for a sexy new girl in the chorus line at the theatre who has caught his fancy, Sheila Winthrop (Rita Hayworth), who herself is keen to catch the eye of the show’s choreographer Robert Curtis (Fred Astaire). When Mrs Cortland finds the engraved bracelet in her husband’s pocket, Martin tells Julia that it had been purchased by Robert, who was in love with Sheila, but she does not believe him. Martin persuades Robert to ask Sheila out that night and contrives to take his wife to the same restaurant to show her the pair in love. Sheila quickly catches on that Robert is not interested in her, but was using her to please Martin and leaves, but not before a press photographer takes their picture together which appears in the paper the next day with “a new romance for Robert Curtis” headline.

     Next day both Robert and Sheila think the other was responsible for the picture and headline and are equally furious. Robert goes to Sheila’s apartment. She is being visited by a potential suiter, army Captain Tom Barton (John Hubbard), who has dropped in to see Sheila on his way to his new posting at Camp Weston. When Robert arrives they pretend that Tom is her brother who is angry at the slur to his sister’s reputation; he banishes an (unloaded) revolver and Robert frees the room in panic. Believing that his life is in danger Robert decides the safest place to be is in the army (as you do) so he enlists and, of course, is posted to Camp Weston for recruit training where he runs into Tom and learns that he is not, in fact, Sheila’s brother. By now Robert has realised that he is in love with Sheila so when she comes to visit Tom he tries to get her back, with mixed results, ending up in the guardhouse more often than not. If things are not complicated enough, Martin arrives with his singers and dancers and his new “squeeze” Sonya (Osa Massen), but without his wife, to put a show on for the soldiers and he wants Robert to choreograph it. Robert agrees, but only if Sheila dances the lead. But, as usual, things don’t go to plan. Will true love ever find a way?

     You’ll Never Get Rich was the first of two musicals Rita Hayworth made with dancing superstar Fred Astaire (the other was You Were Never Lovelier the next year). In the years between 1933 and 1939 Astaire had made nine films with the partner he is most remembered for, Ginger Rogers, commencing with Flying Down to Rio in 1933 and finishing with The Barkleys of Broadway in 1939, although they did team up once more ten years later in The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle in 1949. The paring of Astaire with Columbia’s rising star Hayworth was perhaps inevitable, although You’ll Never Get Rich is still very much a Fred Astaire picture: he gets top billing, most of the gags and sings and dances most of the musical numbers with Hayworth only accompanying him I think three times. Rita, born Margarita Carmen Cansino into a family of dancers, holds her own very well; she moves beautifully and looks gorgeous, and glamorous, on screen, although she really does not have much acting to do. But really Astaire doesn’t either! It is a musical after all.

     You’ll Never Get Rich was directed by Sidney Lanfield. He had a number of musicals on his resume including one with Ginger Rogers before she teamed up with Astaire, The Hat Check Girl in 1932. Also on his resume was the classic The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) which introduced Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and he also directed a number of Bob Hope comedies including My Favorite Blonde in 1942. In You’ll Never Get Rich his direction of the musical numbers is energetic, thanks primarily to the energy of Astaire, some impressive camera angles and set ups and the music of Cole Porter; the film received two Oscar nominations, one for the Cole Porter song Since I Kissed My Baby Goodbye and one for the score of (the uncredited) Morris Stoloff, winning neither.

     Outside of the musical numbers, You’ll Never Get Rich is rather pedestrian with a predictable plot, broad slapstick, juvenile comedy and the deliberate unintelligible dialogue of a character called, appropriately, Swivel Tongue (Cliff Nazarro), that is annoying and not a bit funny. But this is not high art, but a musical comedy, and the production numbers, Fred and Rita just about carry the day.

Video

     You’ll Never Get Rich is presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not 16x9 enhanced.

     I recently reviewed Music in My Heart from this same Rita Hayworth collection and it looked fabulous. You’ll Never Get Rich is a year younger and while it looks fine it is not as good as the earlier film. There are frequent small marks, a couple of vertical scratches, including one at 1:15 over the director’s credit, a couple of contrast variations and some blur with motion (which does not, however, effect the production numbers). On the other hand, grain is light, blacks solid, shadow detail good while grey scales and detail are excellent; Rita’s dark gown in one dance scene glistens with highlights. So for an almost 80 year old film it is still pretty good.

     No subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. Effects are minimal except for the sound of the tap dancing, which is loud. The music of Morris Stoloff and especially the production numbers and Cole Porter songs come over loud and clear. Which is really what you want in a film of this genre.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     Nothing. The silent menu offers only “Play”.

     You’ll Never Get Rich is available in other regions in both stand-alone versions and as part of various collections of the films of both Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     You’ll Never Get Rich is another of the earlier Rita Hayworth film at Columbia in which Fred Astaire, the established star, gets first billing and most of the musical numbers. The humour in You’ll Never Get Rich is forced and juvenile, the plotting predictable and merely incidental to the production and dance numbers. But with the energy of Fred Astaire and the glamour, beauty and grace of Rita Hayworth fans of either star, or of 40s musicals, should be happy.

     The video is good for an almost 80 year old film, the audio is the original mono. No extras of any kind.

     You’ll Never Get Rich is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection which itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have an interest in the stars or musicals and have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

You Were Never Lovelier (1942) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Musical Comedy	Trailer-x 3
Rating
Year Of Production	1942
Running Time	97:15
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	William A. Seiter
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Fred Astaire Rita Hayworth Adolphe Menjou Xavier Cugat Leslie Brooks Adele Mara
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Leigh Harline

     Wealthy Buenos Aires hotel owner Eduardo Acuna (Adolphe Menjou) has four beautiful daughters and has decided that they will marry in order of their age. The wedding of his eldest daughter, Julia, is tomorrow, and daughters three and four, Cecy and Lita (Leslie Brooks / Adele Mara) both have suitors and want to marry. The problem is daughter number two, now the eldest unmarried daughter, Maria (Rita Hayworth), who has rejected all her beaus, leaving her sisters in limbo. Meanwhile, American dancer from New York Robert Davis (Fred Astaire) has, again, lost all his money at the racetrack and visits an old friend Xavier Cugat, who with his orchestra are playing at Eduardo’s hotel, looking for a job. Eduardo wants nothing to do with him so Xavier invites Robert to sing at Julia’s wedding the next day so that he can get noticed by Eduardo and offered work. However, at the wedding Robert manages to insult both Eduardo and Maria, so his chances don’t look great.

     Eduardo is determined to awake Maria’s romantic streak so her decides to send her orchids with cards starting “Dearly Beloved” many suitors. His plan both works and comes unstuck; after a couple of weeks of notes and flowers Robert accidentally delivers one of them and Maria thinks that he is the mystery suitor and starts to fall in love with him. Robert is certainly not the suitor Eduardo had in mind so he makes a deal with Robert; Robert must disappoint Maria without actually breaking her heart then leave the county with Maria ready for a more suitable husband. It is not a stretch of any viewer’s imagination to see how that plan will end up.

     You Were Never Lovelier was the second of two musicals Rita Hayworth made with dancing superstar Fred Astaire (the other was You’ll Never Get Rich the year before). In the years between 1933 and 1939 Astaire made nine films with the partner he is best remembered for, Ginger Rogers, commencing with Flying Down to Rio in 1933 and finishing with The Barkleys of Broadway in 1939, although they did team up once more ten years later for The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle in 1949. In You Were Never Lovelier Astaire still gets first billing but unlike You’ll Never Get Rich, which was very much an Astaire film, Hayworth gets her fair share of the comedy, she sings (or rather her character does as Hayworth’s singing voice was dubbed by Nan Wynn) and she and Astaire perform some excellent dance routines together, Rita, born Margarita Carmen Cansino into a family of dancers, very much holding her own.

     You Were Never Lovelier was directed by William A. Seiter who ended up with 149 credits on the IMDb from 1915 until 1960. In this long career he was more known for light comedy. He directed, for example, Laurel and Hardy in Sons of the Desert (1933), a number of Shirley Temple films including Stowaway and Dimples (both 1936) and Susannah of the Mounties (1939), and Abbott and Costello in Little Giant (1946) although he also directed Astaire, with Ginger Rogers, in Roberta (1935). Perhaps as a result You Were Never Lovelier is less a musical comedy and much more a romantic comedy with music and dance numbers; for example Astaire does not dance until about 40 minutes into the film. However, it was in music and sound categories that You Were Never Lovelier received its three Oscar nomination, winning none; best sound, best song for the Jerome Kern / Johnny Mercer penned Dearly Beloved and best music for Leigh Harline (although credited only as Musical Director). Harline a few years previously had shared two Oscars; best score and best song When You Wish Upon a Star in the Disney animated Pinocchio (1940).

     While Fred and Rita handle the light comedy well, mention should be made of the delightful performance of Adolphe Menjou as the crotchety, self-opinionated but loving father. Born in Pittsburgh from French / Irish parents Menjou in his long career was often cast as foreigners in films such as Lewis Milestone’s A Farewell to Arms (1932) or Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory (1957) but he received his only Oscar nomination in the original The Front Page (1931). He is great fun to watch when on screen in You Were Never Lovelier!

     You Were Never Lovelier is light, frothy, funny and harmless, with some fun dance routines, nice songs, Fred and Rita in good form and a happy ending. What more could one want?

Video

     You Were Never Lovelier is presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not16x9 enhanced.

     There are minor blemishes but on the whole this is a nice print of an almost 80 year old film. Establishing shots of Buenos Aires city and the racetrack are softish, here are regular tiny marks, occasional motion blur and a vertical scratch at 22:07 but interiors and the production numbers are clear with solid detail, grain is light, blacks solid black, shadow detail good and grey scales and detail excellent.

     English and Japanese subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. Effects are minimal but the sound of the tap dancing, music, the production numbers and songs come over loud and clear.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Previews

     Previews for Hayworth films Gilda (2:09) andThe Lady from Shanghai (1:49) plus the Oscar winning A Man for All Seasons (3:20).

     You Were Never Lovelier is available in other regions in both stand-alone versions and as part of various collections of the films of both Fred Astaire andRita Hayworth. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two, which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     You Were Never Lovelier is light, frothy and harmless entertainment with Fred, Rita and Adolphe Menjou in good form, pleasant songs and energetic dance numbers. It is instantly forgettable, but good fun while it lasts.

     The video is good for an almost 80 year old film, the audio is the original mono. A few trailers are the only extras.

     You Were Never Lovelier is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have an interest in the stars or musicals and have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Cover Girl (1944) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Musical	Featurette-Baz Luhrmann on Cover Girl (4:18) Trailer-The Pillars of the Earth (1:55).
Rating
Year Of Production	1944
Running Time	106:57
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Charles Vidor
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Gene Kelly Phil Silvers Lee Bowman Eve Arden Otto Kruger Leslie Brooks
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Jerome Kern / Ira Gershwin Morris Stoloff Carmen Dragon

     Rusty Parker (Rita Hayworth) is a dancer and singer at Danny McGuire’s (Gene Kelly) place in Brooklyn; another vaudeville act there is her friend, comedian Genius (Phil Silvers). Danny and Rusty are in love but Rusty feels dissatisfied so when her fellow dancer Maurine (Leslie Brooks) notices that Vanity Magazine are looking for a new face to be their cover girl for their special anniversary wedding edition and goes to try out, Rusty also decides to go. The magazine is owned by John Coudair (Otto Kruger) but the interviews are conducted by his rather cynical assistant Cornelia Jackson (Eve Arden), nickname “Stonewall”, and neither of the girls impress her. However, time is running out so as Maurine is a possibility John and Cornelia that night go to Danny McGuire’s to see the show. Where John is dumfounded when he sees Rusty for she is the exact image of a woman he loved and lost 40 years ago. They leave a message asking Rusty to come next day to the magazine.

     It turns out that the woman John fell in love with was Rusty’s grandmother Maribelle (also Rita Hayworth), who had also been a singer and dancer. He decides that Rusty will be the magazine’s cover girl and the photoshoot takes place, making Rusty an overnight sensation and bringing customers in droves to Danny’s place to see her perform. One such person is Noel Wheaton (Lee Bowman), wealthy owner of a large theatre on Broadway, who wants Rusty to headline his latest extravaganza. He also falls in love with Rusty, fostering jealousy, resentment and misunderstandings between Rusty and Danny that threatens their love. Of course, Cover Girl being a romantic musical with comedy, it is no spoiler to reveal that it all works out in the end.

     After appearing with Fred Astaire in a couple of films including You Were Never Lovelier in 1942, Rita Hayworth’s next film was Cover Girl with the other superstar male dancer of the period Gene Kelly. At this stage Kelly was not fully in his ascendency (he was Oscar nominated the next year for Anchors Aweigh (1945) but his star would really soar a few years later with classic films such An American in Paris (1951) and Singin’ in the Rain (1952)) but even so he still had complete control of the Cover Girl dance sequences. By now, however, Rita was the top female star at Columbia so she receives top billing, gets to sing (or rather her character does as Hayworth’s singing voice was dubbed by Martha Mears), play both light comedy and dramatic scenes, although she is not fully convincing as either a drunk or as a dramatic actress, and dance, both by herself without a male lead on screen and with others including Gene and Phil Silvers, where her presence on screen is stunning. In Technicolor she looks gorgeous, her trademark long red hair flying as she dances.

     Hayworth is supported by a very strong cast. Kelly is athletic, handsome and charismatic, Phil Silvers, later of Sergeant Bilko fame as well as appearing in hit films like A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966), is funny and dances very well indeed, while Eve Arden, shortly afterwards Oscar nominated for her performance in Mildred Pierce (1945) but later better known for her Emmy winning role in the long running TV series Our Miss Brooks (1952-56), is wryly funny in Cover Girl, getting most of the best lines. Cover Girl was directed by Charles Vidor who has an impressive resume among his 36 listed credits on the IMDb. He directed Hayworth twice more, in Gilda (1946), perhaps Rita’s most iconic role, and The Loves of Carmen (1948); among his other films is A Farewell to Arms (1957).

     Cover Girl is a Technicolor extravaganza, the first Columbia musical to be shot in colour. The result is, simply put, amazing The colours in the costumes are vibrant reds, blues, greens and gold, the chiffons simmer, the production numbers are a kaleidoscope of colour and movement. The cinematographers Allen M. Davey and Rudolph Mate were nominated for an Oscar but lost out to Leon Shamroy for a now forgotten film produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, Wilson. It might be noted that Shamroy did win another three (perhaps more deserving Oscars) for The Black Swan (1942), Leave Her to Heaven (1945) and, two decades later, for Cleopatra (1963). Cover Girl was nominated for 5 Oscars, including sound, art direction (again losing out to Wilson), best song for the Jerome Kern / Ira Gershwin song Long Ago and Far Away but it did win best score for the (uncredited) Carmen Dragon and Morris Stoloff.

     Cover Girl is on the cusp of those more familiar “realistic” musicals such as those of Rodgers and Hammerstein that became popular in the 1950s. Thus in Cover Girl there are elaborate and extravagant stage production numbers as well as more “realistic” routines in the street set such as the sequences danced by Hayworth, Kelly and Silvers as well as a sequence danced by Kelly that is a precursor of his famous dance in Singin’ in the Rain, but without the rain. In any case, the combination of Hayworth and Kelly worked a charm and Cover Girl was the highest grossing Columbia film for 1944. It remains a spectacular, colourful and fun musical.

Video

     Cover Girl is presented in Technicolor in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and is not16x9 enhanced.

     There is something special about those old Technicolor films that can never be duplicated. Cover Girl looks simply gorgeous. The colours on the gowns and costumes are rich and vibrant, chiffon colours shimmer and there is a wonderful depth of field with both foregrounds and backgrounds strongly detailed. Skin tones can be somewhat lush and rosy and a couple of scenes feel overbright if one is being picky. Blacks are solid, shadow detail very good. There may have been some minute marks that were hardly noticeable and the picture was solid in motion.

     English subtitles for the hearing impaired are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. When a single person is singing the audio sound is rather thin but the sound of the tap dancing and the orchestra in the production numbers comes over loud and clear. Other effects are minimal.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is generally fine with an occasional lapse during singing.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Baz Luhrmann on Cover Girl (4:18)

     Australian director Baz Luhrmann, who is certainly no stranger to spectacular dance and music routines in his films, discusses Rita Hayworth’s presence on screen as a dancer and as a performer.

Previews

     Includes a montage of Columbia’s films The Treasures of Columbia Classics (3:34) and a trailer for the 8 part Starz miniseries The Pillars of the Earth (1:55).

     Cover Girl is available in other regions in both stand-alone DVDs , a UK Blu-ray and as part of various DVD collections of the films of Rita Hayworth. None of the DVDs have more than the short Baz Luhrmann piece as extras. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     By the time Cover Girl was made Rita Hayworth was a bona-fide star, the most popular Columbia female star and apparently a favourite pin-up girl for the American forces overseas. Cover Girl is colourful and extravagant, a rousing Technicolor musical entertainment with dancing, singing, chorus lines, a touch of glamour and a romance, the pairing of Hayworth and Kelly working a treat and making a killing at the box office. It remains a charming, entertaining old fashioned romantic musical.

     The Technicolor video is stunning, and this film is almost 75 years old film! The audio is the original mono. A trailer is the only extra.

     Cover Girl is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have an interest in the stars or musicals and have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

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Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Tonight and Every Night (1945) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Featurette-Patricia Clarkson on Tonight and Every Night (4:20) Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	1945
Running Time	91:50
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Victor Saville
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Lee Bowmen Janet Blair Marc Platt Ernest Cossart Florence Bates Leslie Brooks Jim Bannon
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Morris Stoloff Marlin Skiles

     Towards the end of WW2 a photographer for Life Magazine (Jim Bannon) comes to London to do a spread on the Music Box Theatre, its owner Mrs Tolliver (Florence Bates) and its star, American Rosalind Bruce (Rita Hayworth). The Music Box Theatre is famous for never having stopped performances, even at the height of the Blitz. While taking his pictures, long time stage hand Sam (Ernest Cossart) tells the photographer about the triumph and tragedy of those years starting before the war when dancer Tommy Lawson (Marc Platt) first came to London from Manchester and teamed up in the theatre with Rosalind and her friend and fellow singer / dancer Judy Kane (Janet Blair).

     Later, during the Blitz when London is being bombed every night, Squadron Leader Paul Lundy (Lee Bowmen) of the RAF Coastal Command and his crew come to a show at the Music Box and Paul is immediately smitten by Rosalind. When a bombing raid forces a suspension of the performance and the cast and patrons seek shelter in the theatre’s basement, Paul finds a way to talk to Rosalind and later asks her out. Their relationship has its misunderstandings and ups and downs, with the Blitz, and the bombings, always a threat. Then, just as it seems all will be fine, and Rosalind marry Paul and accompany him to Canada on his next posting, tragedy strikes.

     By 1945 when Tonight and Every Night was released Rita Hayworth was a bona fide superstar, especially after the runaway box office success of her previous film Cover Girl (1944). Her name now appears above the film’s title and she sings (or rather her character does as Hayworth’s singing voice was again dubbed by Martha Mears), dances and plays light comedy and the more serious scenes with aplomb; although as Rita was pregnant after marrying Orson Welles her singing and dancing sequences were filmed first in the schedule before the pregnancy became too obvious. She is the clearly the main attraction: while in previous films she had been teamed with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly this time the primary male dancer is Marc Platt in his first feature role. Although Platt did appear in a film with Janet Blair in a leading role the next year in Tars and Spars (1946), again with Rita in Down to Earth (1947) and was one of the seven brothers in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) his career never really took off. Indeed, the most prominent second singing / dancing performance in Tonight and Every Night is by Janet Blair who acquits herself very well in her routines, whether alone or with others, including Rita. Blair was another whose career was mostly as a support actress in features or on TV, not really fulfilling the potential she shows in Tonight and Every Night.

     The male lead in Tonight and Every Night was Lee Bowman who was fated in his two films with Hayworth not to get the girl! In Cover Girl (1944) he lost out to Gene Kelly and although in Tonight and Every Night he won Rita’s heart, the war and tragedy intervened. Bowmen was not the only one who was in both Cover Girl and Tonight and Every Night; the others were Leslie Brooks, who was actually in her third film with Rita, as she was also in You Were Never Lovelier (1942), and Dusty Anderson, although her part in Cover Girl was a cameo as a “Cover Girl”. Such is the closeness of the old Hollywood studio system.

     Tonight and Every Night is based on the play Heart of a City by Leslie Storm, itself inspired by the real Windmill Theatre in London which did stay open during the Blitz. Tonight and Every Night was directed by Englishman Victor Saville; he is probably best known as a producer of films such as Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939) but he keeps the performances flowing nicely.

     Tonight and Every Night is another Technicolor extravaganza by Columbia, filmed by Rudolph Mate who had been co-cinematographer of Cover Girl the previous year. While the costumes look dazzling, with stunning deep red, green, blue, yellow and gold gowns, and the sequins sparkle, Tonight and Every Night is darker and not as vibrant as Cover Girl, perhaps reflecting London in wartime. As a result it was not nominated for a best cinematography Oscar, unlike Cover Girl, receiving nominations only for best music score (Marlin Skiles / Morris Stoloff) and best song for Anywhere (Jule Styne / Sammy Cahn) but winning neither.

     The set piece performance numbers of Tonight and Every Night are colourful and well-staged, there is light comedy, romance, cockney humour, a touch of tragedy, sadness and Hayworth looking gorgeous and in fine form; it is a good, entertaining musical although it does not quite have the magic of Cover Girl. Mind you, that film set the bar pretty high.

Video

     Tonight and Every Night is presented in Technicolor in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not 16x9 enhanced.

     This is another of those old Technicolor films that look wonderful. The colours on the gowns and costumes are rich and vibrant, sequins sparkle and there is an impressive depth of field with both foregrounds and backgrounds strongly detailed. Skin tones can be somewhat rosy if one was being picky. In the Blitz scenes, blacks are solid, shadow detail very good. Some minute marks were hardly noticeable and the picture was solid in motion.

     English subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. The sounds of the dancing and the orchestra in the production numbers comes over loud and clear. The effects of the Blitz, such as the explosions of bombs and the antiaircraft fire, are very decent for a mono audio and have some depth.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is generally fine except for an occasional lapse during songs.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Patricia Clarkson on Tonight and Every Night (4:20)

     Clarkson touches on the source material of the film, the story, Hayworth, the director and the cinematographer.

Original Theatrical Trailer (2:12)

     Tonight and Every Night is available in other regions in both stand-alone DVD or as part of various DVD collections of the films of Rita Hayworth. None of the DVDs as far as I can see have more than the short Clarkson featurette and a trailer as extras. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Tonight and Every Night is a dazzling Technicolor musical set in the London Blitz with dancing, singing, chorus lines, glamour, cockney humour, a romance, a touch of tragedy and, of course, the beautiful Rita Hayworth at the height of her popularity. They certainly don’t make them like this anymore.

     The Technicolor video is excellent, the audio is the original mono. A short feature and the film’s trailer are the only extras, but there is nothing more elsewhere.

     Tonight and Every Night is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have an interest in the stars or musicals and have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

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Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Gilda (ViaVision) (1946) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Film-Noir	Featurette-Martin Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann on Gilda (16:05) Audio Commentary-by author / filmmaker Richard Shickel Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	1946
Running Time	110:03
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Charles Vidor
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Glenn Ford George MacReady Joseph Calleia Stephen Geray
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	M. W. Stolorf

     In the final days of WW2, professional gambler and cheat Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) is in Buenos Aires where he is saved from a mugging by wealthy casino owner Ballin Mundson (George Macready). Gambling is illegal in Argentina but the casino has been allowed by the police to stay open, although it is being monitored closely by Detective Maurice Obregon (Joseph Calleia). Johnny goes to the casino, and wins, which is not exactly due to luck; after a confrontation, Ballin ends up giving Johnny a job and soon he is Ballin’s confidant and right hand man, running the casino. Ballin leaves Johnny in charge when he goes on a business trip and surprises everyone when he returns with a wife, Gilda (Rita Hayworth). It does not take Ballin, or the audience, long to figure out that Johnny and Gilda have a lot of bad history together.

     Ballin is not only a casino owner; he is also the head of a cartel seeking a monopoly on tungsten and using patents sent from Nazi Germany during the war for safekeeping; now, with the end of the war, remnants of the Nazis in Argentina want their patents returned, creating a problem for Ballin. In addition, while Ballin has married Gilda out of love, his love is not returned and Gilda is determined to have a good time in Buenos Aires with his money. Johnny is caught between protection of, and loyalty to, Ballin and his feelings for Gilda. Between hate and love there is a very fine line.

     In her films prior to Gilda Rita Hayworth usually played a “nice” girl; Gilda changed that and then some! By 1946 Hayworth was at the height of her popularity and the role of Gilda, a woman who is certainly not a nice girl, gave her plenty of opportunity to display her dramatic talents. She also looks glamorous, sensuous and very sexy; her song number Put the Blame on Mame wearing a backless and strapless clinging black gown (when later asked what held the gown up she merely said “two things”) is sensational and justly famous. Gilda is shot in glorious black and white by Rudolph Mate, his third film with Hayworth, and the camera adores her, dwelling on her face, flashing eyes and long hair, which frequently frames her face. This is beauty and glamour of the highest order.

     Glenn Ford as Johnny Farrell is also very good and, in fact, Gilda is even more his story than Gilda’s. Ford and Hayworth appeared in five films together, the first The Lady in Question in 1940 was directed by Charles Vidor. He is also the director of Gilda and also directed Hayworth in Cover Girl (1944) and Hayworth and Ford again in The Loves of Carmen (1948); the final Hayworth/ Ford film was almost two decades later, The Money Trap (1965). Also good in the cast are George Macready, who often played aristocratic villains and was superb in Kubrick’s Paths of Glory (1957), and Stephen Geray as the all-knowing washroom attendant Uncle Pio, who is perhaps the most likeable person in the film and who gets many of the best lines.

     Gilda is a very different type of film from the musicals that Hayworth had been making in the previous couple of years such as Cover Girl (1944) or Tonight and Every Night (1945); it is a film noir complete with light and shadows, a voiceover, smart dialogue, secrets, betrayals, a manipulating woman and death. The film was an enormous box office success, cementing Hayworth’s position as the leading Columbia female star, but the film was ignored by the Academy and received no Oscar nominations. As often happens, Gilda was better appreciated overseas and director Charles Vidor was nominated for the Grand Prize at Cannes, although he didn’t win.

     Gilda is probably Hayworth’s most iconic screen role, allowing her to display both acting and sensuality. In the days when sexuality on screen was suggested rather than overt, Hayworth positively sizzles! The scores on rottentomatoes.com for this almost 75 year old film, critics 97%, audience 88%, accurately reflect just how good this film is.

Video

     Gilda is a black and white film presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not16x9 enhanced.

     Text screens before the film starts advise that Gilda was restored by the UCLA Film and Television Archive with other partners, funded by Sony Pictures. Although there are blemishes such as a small splotch (10:03), a vertical scratch at 38:49, some tiny marks and aliasing against louvers, on the whole this is a nice print of an almost 75 year old film. Detail is firm, grain nicely controlled, blacks solid, including Rita’s black gown, shadow detail fine and grey scales good. Even in the swirl of bodies and decorations such as in the carnival scenes, the print is solid in motion.

     English subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. Effects are minimal except for during the car chase and the aircraft taking off, plus crowd noises during the celebrations of Germany surrendering and the carnival sequences with their buzz of voices. The music and Gilda’s singing (Rita dubbed by Anita Ellis) comes over loud and clear.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine except from some slight lapses when Gilda sings.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Audio Commentary by author / filmmaker Richard Shickel

     Shickel provides information about the careers of the main cast and the director, the change to Hayworth’s screen persona in Gilda, the script, the three way love triangle, ambivalent characters and the period when the film was made just after WW2 with the emerging independence of women leading to a new expression of sexual tension in films and the emergence of film noir. There are a number of silences and Shickel does occasionally describe what is on the screen but this is still a decent commentary and well worth a listen.

Martin Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann on Gilda (16:05)

     Made in 2002, directors Martin Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann, recorded separately and edited together, offer insights into the sensuality of Rita Hayworth as Gilda, the influence and cinematic language of Gilda, film noir and that gown!

Original Theatrical Trailer (2:11)

     Gilda was released in Australia a couple of decades ago on DVD (our review is here) plus more recently on Blu-ray (review here). The film is also available in other regions on Blu-ray as well as both stand-alone DVDs and as part of various collections of the films of Rita Hayworth. No DVD release has anything more as extras than this release of the film (except for the short featurette on our earlier DVD) which is part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection, which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Gilda is Rita Hayworth in bad girl mode in a film full of flawed characters, light and shadows. Her introduction in Gilda is classic; from the door Macready asks “Gilda, are you decent?”: the camera moves to Hayworth, who tosses her head into the frame, her hair flying, to reply with a smile “Me?” telling the audience all we need to know about her. Gilda is probably Hayworth most iconic role and she is fabulous. The film is essential Hayworth by any reckoning.

     The video is fine for an almost 75 year old film, the audio is the original mono. The extras are worthwhile. Fans of Hayworth or film noir most likely would already have the film, but its inclusion in this The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection is a bonus for those fans who don’t, and a reminder of how good Hayworth could be for those who do.

     Gilda is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been available previously.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

The Lady From Shanghai (ViaVision) (1947) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Film-Noir	Introduction-by Robert Osborne (2:38) Audio Commentary-by filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich Gallery-Photo and Poster Galleries Audio-Only Track-noircast.net Audio Podcast (30:01) Trivia-TCMDb Article on The Lady from Shanghai Biographies-Crew-Orson Welles Biography Featurette-Comments on the film by Eddie Muller (film noir expert)
Rating
Year Of Production	1947
Running Time	87:24
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Orson Welles
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Orson Welles Rita Hayworth Everett Sloane Glenn Anders Ted de Corsia
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Heinz Roemheld

     Seaman Michael “Black Irish” O’Hara (Orson Welles) saves a beautiful woman from a mugging in Central Park. She turns out to be Elsa Bannister (Rita Hayworth), the wife of top criminal defence lawyer Arthur Bannister (Everett Sloane). The next day the Bannisters are leaving New York on their yacht to sail to San Francisco and Arthur turns up at the Seaman’s Exchange to hire Michael to sail with them. Michael is very reluctant, but he is already entranced by Elsa so ends up agreeing to sign on. Also on the voyage are Arthur’s sleazy business partner George Grisby (Glenn Anders) and Sidney Broome (Ted De Corsia), who we later discover is a private detective Arthur has hired to watch Elsa.

     The yacht sails through the Caribbean and the Panama Canal and up to Acapulco in Mexico. Michael tries to resist Elsa but fails; he wants her to run away with him. While in Mexico Michael receives a startling proposition and told to think about it; he is offered $5,000 by Grisby to pretend to murder him. When the yacht arrives in San Francisco, plots, betrays and double crosses occur, people are indeed killed and Michael finds himself arrested and on trial for his life for murder, defended by Arthur. But the betrayals, and deaths, are not quite completed.

     The Lady from Shanghai had a rather checkered shoot, production and post-production. Welles as writer, producer, director and actor was apparently writing script pages as they went along and going way over the budget he had agreed with Columbia chief Harry Cohen. It was Cohen who insisted that Rita Hayworth, Welles’ estranged wife and the most popular Columbia female star, be in the picture, and indeed she receives top billing. Welles, perhaps in a push back to Cohen and Rita’s glamorous image, had her trademark long red hair cropped short and dyed blonde and did not shoot any close-ups of Rita on location; any close-ups of her now in the picture where filmed at Cohen’s insistence after the production had returned to California. Welles’s original rough cut ran 155 minutes, but the studio cut it back to the current 87 minutes for release. They also changed the sound effects and used music by Heinz Roemheld that Welles disliked and added a song for Rita (again dubbed by Anita Ellis) Please Don’t Kiss Me against the wishes of Welles. Not surprisingly Welles disliked the film and the box office when The Lady from Shanghai was finally released two years after filming left a lot to be desired and was Rita’s first box office failure.

     And yet, The Lady from Shanghai remains a fascinating film to watch, a film noir about wealth, greed and corruption complete with double crosses and triple crosses, manipulation, a beautiful woman, a chump way in over his head, a voiceover, light, darkness and shadow and a classic shattering climax in a hall of mirrors. This may be Welles’ picture, but nothing can stop Rita Hayworth from looking gorgeous in dresses or a black swimsuit, and she does get the chance to act, turning in one of the best dramatic performances. Indeed, under Welles’ direction all the major actors are excellent; Welles himself despite a dodgy “Irish” accent, Everett Sloane in crutches, his mind as crippled as his body, while a grinning, manipulative, sleazy and profusely sweating Glenn Anders is superb, and indeed gets more close-ups than Hayworth!

     I have read a number of comments to the effect that The Lady from Shanghai (loosely based on the novel If I Die Before I Wake by Sherwood King) is overly complex and does not make a lot of sense. The film is certainly complex, with layers upon layers, crosses, double crosses and triple crosses in the final act, but it is certainly not incomprehensible or unintelligible. It may have been easier to understand in Welles’ original cut of the film although, as it is Welles, that is not a given! In any case, one can chose to enjoy the snappy dialogue, the shady characters and the visuals including the yacht, the Mexican locations, the innovative way Welles shoots the courtroom sequences and finally the shattering climax in the hall of mirrors. The result is that The Lady from Shanghai is never less than intriguing, a beautifully shot film noir that cannot help but keep your attention until the final fade out.

     The Lady from Shanghai may not have been appreciated on its release, but it has since become recognised as an essential and influential part of film noir; the scores on rottentomatoes.com, critics 82%, audience 85%, reflect its stature today.

Video

     The Lady from Shanghai is a black and white film presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not 16x9 enhanced.

     For DVD this is an impressive presentation. I did not see any marks or artefacts and while long shots of the yacht at sea or the Chinese opera performance can be softer, detail during the rest of the film was strong showing, for example, every bead of sweat on the characters’ faces. Blacks and shadow detail were very good, the hall of mirrors sequence with blacks, mirrors and shattering glass finely detailed. Grain is nicely controlled, grey scales good throughout although there is occasional slight variations in contrast.

     No subtitles are available.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. Effects are not extensive but they include the crowds in sequences in Mexico and at the picnic. Gunshots are loud and together with the smashing of mirrors are very effective in the climax. The music of Heinz Roemheld that Welles referred to as “Disney music” comes over loud and clear.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     This DVD has all the extras that were on the local Blu-ray release of the film.

Introduction by Robert Osborne (2:38)

     Osborne, host of TCM, introduces the film talking about Welles’ reputation and money troubles and the issues between Welles and Cohen.

Audio Commentary by filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich

     Author and director Peter Bogdanovich first met Orson Welles in 1968 and later wrote a biography of Welles. He admires Welles and quotes from conversations they had about a wide range of topics including Welles’ views about life, his techniques, his legacy and his ideas so that this commentary is often more Welles than The Lady from Shanghai although Bogdanovich does quote from a memo Welles sent to Columbia chief Harry Cohen about the film. Bogdanovich also touches on Cohen, Rita, Glenn Anders, the yacht and the influence of the film but this is really his memories of Welles.

Photo and Poster Galleries

     A wide range of stills and posters in five different sections. In each section the stills advance automatically or you can use the remote to advance. The sections are:

• Publicity Stills – 42 stills
• Scene Stills – 36 stills
• Behind the Scenes Photos – 11 photos
• Movie Posters – 10 posters
• Lobby Cards – 10 cards

noircast.net Audio Podcast (30:01)

     An audio podcast originally broadcast as an episode of Out of the Past; Investigating Film Noir by Shannon Clute and Richard Edwards. The podcast does not discuss the making of The Lady from Shanghai as such but is more about the influence of the film on later noir films, its themes, conventions and the structure of noir, the dialogue and the language of the film, the complex plot and structure of the film, Hayworth’s blonde hair, the acting and the characters.

TCMDb Article on The Lady from Shanghai

     21 silent text screens, use the remote to advance to the next screen. Includes some succinct and forthright information about issues to do with the filming, music, editing and release of the film.

Orson Welles Biography

    11 silent text screens.

Comments by Eddie Muller (film noir expert)

     Muller’s comments are in three sections, each one must be selected from the menu individually:

    An Epic Noir Poem (2:33): Muller warns that The Lady from Shanghai should not be viewed as a traditional narrative film because if you do it is not going to make sense.

     Back Story (12:58): The legends of how the film came about, the casting of Rita Hayworth, anecdotes about the crazy shoot on board Errol Flynn’s yacht in Mexico.

     It’s Film Noir Distilled (4:52): Why The Lady from Shanghai continues to be fascinating and compelling to this day, despite its flaws.

     The Lady from Shanghai was released in Australia a couple of decades ago on DVD and more recently on Blu-ray (our review is here). The film is also available in other regions on Blu-ray as well as both stand-alone DVDs and as part of various collections. Our DVD release has the same extras as the Blu-ray released here and is part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection, which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Any film of Orson Welles is worth watching. But when the female lead is the stunningly beautiful Rita Hayworth in full on femme fatale mode surrounded by shady characters, exotic locations, betrayals, double crosses and a chump ready to be manipulated, The Lady from Shanghai becomes a film that is essential viewing for fans of film noir, Welles or Hayworth.

     The video is very good for a 70 year old film, the audio is the original mono. The extras are worthwhile. Fans of Hayworth, Welles or film noir would most likely already have the film, but its inclusion in this The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection is a bonus for those fans who don’t.

     The Lady from Shanghai is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been available previously.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Down to Earth (1947) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Musical	None
Rating
Year Of Production	1947
Running Time	100:42
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Alexander Hall
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Larry Parks Marc Platt Roland Culver Edward Everett Horton James Gleason George MacReady
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Doris Fisher George Duning Heinz Roemheld

     Broadway producer Danny Miller (Larry Parks) is in rehearsals to put on a burlesque type show featuring the nine classical Greek Muses with the muse / goddess Terpsichore in the main part. In the clouds above Mount Parnassos the real goddess Terpsichore (Rita Hayworth) is aghast at the vulgarity of the depiction of herself and her fellow muses and is determined to do something about it. She goes to Mr. Jordan (Roland Culver), who is sort of a heavenly gatekeeper with lists of those going to the next world after death, and persuades him to send her to Earth. Accompanied by Messenger 7013 (Edward Everett Horton), Terpsichore arrives in New York and in short order has acquired an Agent, Max Corkle (James Gleason), and under the name Kitty Pendleton has manoeuvred herself into playing herself in Danny’s show.

     The show needs to be a financial success because Danny owes money to mobster Joe Manion (George Macready) and without repayment his life would be on the line. Kitty / Terpsichore, however, is determined to elevate the quality of the show above the vulgar; she gets Danny to fall in love with her and change the show’s content substantially despite the opposition of Danny’s friend and fellow performer Eddie (Marc Platt). At the out of town preview the new show, more opera and ballet than burlesque, fails badly. With so much at stake, and with Kitty falling in love with Danny, the show reverts to the burlesque original and is a triumph on Broadway. But a goddess muse cannot remain on Earth and Mr. Jordan summons her back.

     Down to Earth was directed by Alexander Hall and is a semi-sequel to his earlier hit film from 1941 Here Comes Mr. Jordan that won two Oscars, for best writing – original story and best writing – screenplay. That 1941 film was based on the play by Harry Segal Heaven Can Wait (under which title a film version was made by Warren Beatty in 1978!). Two actors from the 1941 film reprised their roles in Down to Earth, Edward Everett Horton as Messenger 7013 and James Gleason as Max Corkle (he was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in Here Comes Mr. Jordan). In Down to Earth, however, Mr. Jordan is played Roland Culver instead of Claude Rains.

     Rita Hayworth said that Down to Earth was her least favourite of all her films. The reason may be that as a light, frothy musical comedy with singing and dancing Down to Earth was a throwback to the sorts of wholesome musicals Hayworth had been making in the first half of the 1940s, such as You Were Never Lovelier (1942), Cover Girl (1944) or Tonight and Every Night (1945) that allowed her no latitude to act as anything but a nice girl. Her performance in Gilda had changed that image, and then some, and it may be that Hayworth thought of Down to Earth as a backward step. However, she does give her all in a strong and glamorous performance. Her co-star Larry Parks was coming off the success of his performance in The Jolson Story (1946), for which he was Oscar nominated, and while he looks handsome his charisma is lightweight and any spark between himself and Hayworth is lacking. The other male lead is dancer Marc Platt who had appeared with Rita in Tonight and Every Night and was one of the seven brothers in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) although his career never really took off. George Macready, so menacing in Gilda, is wasted.

     Down to Earth is not a particularly good film, nor a good musical. It is a succession of musical numbers and performances hung on a threadbare plot, although that is not much of an issue in this genre. As well, a lot of the humour is forced, silly and ham-fisted, including comments about artistic snobbery. But a greater issue is that a number of the songs (music Doris Fisher / lyrics Allan Roberts) are discordant and the choreography of the production numbers lacks fluidity; indeed, some are the most jarring in execution I think I have seen in a 1940s or 1950s musical. Two things, however, save the picture. The first is the Technicolor photography of the set piece performances by cinematographer Rudolph Mate. Mate had shot a number of Rita films including her earlier musicals for Columbia, Cover Girl and Tonight and Every Night and the performances and costumes in Down to Earth are a dazzling swirl of colour. The second treason, of course, is Rita Hayworth; she is glamorous, mischievous and beautiful, so one can indeed believe that she could be a goddess!!

Video

     Down to Earth is presented in Technicolor in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not16x9 enhanced.

     This is another of those old Technicolor films that looks wonderful. The colours of the costumes, especially some of the reds and golds, are rich and vibrant, and there is a great depth of field with both foregrounds and backgrounds strongly detailed. Skin tones are fine, blacks are solid. The film was solid in motion in the production numbers although some aliasing crept in against vertical lines elsewhere. There were some minute marks. Grain is nicely controlled.

     No subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. Effects are limited to crowd and audience voices and in one scene with the train engine. The orchestra in the production numbers and the songs come over loud and clear.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation was pretty good given that this picture is unusual because the singing of both leads was dubbed; Rita again by Anita Ellis and Larry Parks by Hal Derwin.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     Nothing. The menu offers “Play” as the only option.

     Down to Earth has been available in other regions as well as in Australia as a stand-alone DVD. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Down to Earth is a light, silly and rather forgettable Technicolor musical only made worth watching by some dazzling Technicolor photography and a gorgeous Rita Hayworth as a goddess. Typecasting anyone?

     The Technicolor video is excellent, the audio is the original mono. No extras of any kind.

     Down to Earth is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. If you have an interest in the stars or musicals and have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

The Loves of Carmen (1948) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Theatrical Trailer-Gilda,The Loves of Carmen, Pal Joey Biographies-Cast & Crew-Talent Files Featurette-Rita Hayworth: The Columbia Lady (8:49) Gallery-Six movie posters
Rating
Year Of Production	1948
Running Time	96:32
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Charles Vidor
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Glenn Ford Ron Randell Victor Jory Bernard Nedell
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco

     The Loves of Carmen is another retelling of the tale made popular by Bizet’s opera but rather than a remake of the opera, without the music, the film is based on the original novel Carmen by Prosper Merimee. Don Jose (Glenn Ford), a shy and naïve young dragoon from an aristocratic family, is posted to Seville where he quickly falls for the undoubted charms of Carmen (Rita Hayworth), a brazen, unscrupulous gipsy without inhibitions or morals. Although Jose is warned, a number of times, about Carmen’s character he cannot get her out of his mind. Ensnared by Carmen, he kills his commanding officer (accidentally it must be said) and escapes with her into the mountains to join a group of robbers and smugglers led by Garcia (Victor Jory) that includes Andres (Ron Randell) and Pablo (Bernard Nedell).

     Carmen had neglected to tell Jose the important fact that Garcia is her husband which creates anguish and jealousy for Jose, although Garcia takes it in his stride. The tension is there, however. During robberies and ambushes Carmen plays on Jose’s obsession for her until, finally, Jose kills Garcia in a knife fight and takes control of the gang, and Carmen. The gang rob coaches and mule trains until the reward for Jose is so high that he is unable to show his face anywhere. Carmen, being Carmen, tires of Jose and finds another admirer in the bullfighter Lucas (John Baragrey). Tragedy follows.

     The Loves of Carmen is a rather stodgy melodrama with clumsy dialogue and an uneven tone; in some places the dialogue is so preposterous the film feels like it should be a situation comedy on TV which is greatly at odds with a story of jealousy, obsession, amorality and death. Rita Hayworth was coming off her first box office failure, The Lady from Shanghai (1947), and the studio might have thought that in the ultimate femme fatale, Carmen, they could duplicate the success of Gilda (1946), teaming her again with her co-star from that picture, Glenn Ford, and the director Charles Vidor. Alas, it didn’t quite work the same magic. Hayworth’s character Gilda had some subtlety, depth and a backstory, Carman is completely over the top amoral without any subtlety, her character only given some depth by her superstition and premonition of her death at the hands of a lover. In the role of Carmen Hayworth feels too wholesome to be convincing and one of her greatest strengths, her dancing, is only utilised a couple of times. Rita (or her character as her singing voice was again dubbed by Anita Ellis) also only gets to sing one song, in Spanish no less. It probably does not help that Glenn Ford also looks uncomfortable for most of the picture as the obsessive, jealous but weakling, Jose. Ford may have got the girl in Gilda but that was never going to happen here!

     There are things to enjoy in The Loves of Carmen. Charles Vidor had first directed Ford and Hayworth in The Lady in Question in 1940 and then in Gilda and he also directed Hayworth in Cover Girl (1944) thus having a hand in two of Hayworth’s biggest hits. He adds some nice touches to The Loves of Carmen, including the single red rose of the steps at the end, and his direction of the couple of fight scenes, the brawl between Carmen and another girl with hair pulling and biting and the knife fight between Jose and Garcia, are well staged and energetic. The Technicolor photography of The Loves of Carmen resulted in an Oscar nomination for cinematographer William E. Snyder and although the film did not win its costumes, the street set representing Seville and the scenes in the mountains look beautiful. At times The Loves of Carmen, complete with horses, gunfights and holdups of coaches, feels like a western and it looks like one as well considering the outdoor scenes were filmed amid the barren landscapes, rocky outcrops and desert of the Alabama Hills near Lone Pine California where many westerns were shot, including all the Bud Boetticher / Randolph Scott classic western films.

     Other positives in The Loves of Carmen include the performances of Victor Jory, who does manage to bring some menace to the role of Garcia, and Australian born, recently moved to Hollywood, Ron Randell, whose Andres is the philosopher of the film. After completing The Loves of Carmen Hayworth quit Hollywood to marry the playboy Prince Aly Khan, becoming a princess before that other Hollywood star Grace Kelly, but the marriage was not a success and four years later she was back at Columbia making movies; it is perhaps no surprise that her first film back was Affair in Trinidad (1952), again with co-star Glenn Ford.

Video

     The Loves of Carmen is presented in Technicolor in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and is not16x9 enhanced.

     This is another of those old Technicolor films from the 1940s that look wonderful. The colours of the costumes and uniforms are deep and rich, the street set representing Seville has impressive detail and the scenes shot on location amid the barren landscapes, rocky outcrops and desert near Lone Pine California give the film a scale that feels different to most of the set bound pictures Hayworth made at Columbia. Skin tones can be rosy, but blacks are solid, shadow detail very good, brightness and contrast consistent. There are tiny specks at various places and at 50:29 a quick green splotch but otherwise the print is good and was solid in motion.

     English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and Thai subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio choices are English or Portuguese Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 256 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. The effects including castanets and feet during the music numbers, galloping hooves and gunshots are good for a mono audio. The score by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco was predictable with Spanish themes and energetic orchestral arrangements during the action.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is generally fine except during the Spanish song number.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Theatrical Trailers

     Trailers for Hayworth films: Gilda (2:09), The Loves of Carmen (2:43) and Pal Joey (4:56).

Talent Files

     Two screens of text, one biography and one filmography, for each of Charles Vidor, Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford and Victor Jory. Silent, use the remote to advance.

Rita Hayworth: The Columbia Lady (8:49)

     A decent short piece in which an unnamed narrator, footage from many of Rita’s films from her first bit part in Meet Nero Wolfe (1936) to Miss Sadie Thompson (1953) as well as a couple of inserted audio comments by Fred Astaire and Orson Welles, give an overview of Rita’s life and career in the years until 1953.

Vintage Advertising

     Six movie posters. Silent, use the remote to advance.

     The Loves of Carmen is available in other regions in both stand-alone DVD or as part of DVD collections of the films of Rita Hayworth. I can find no details of any extras. This release of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     The Loves of Carmen is not top notch Rita Hayworth but the Technicolor presentation is very good and fans of Rita will find things to enjoy.

     The Technicolor video is very good, the audio is the original mono. The short featurette on Rita is welcome, together with the other, minor, extras.

     The Loves of Carmen is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously. Nevertheless, if you have not picked up the earlier releases, this collection is great value.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Affair in Trinidad (1952) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	None
Rating
Year Of Production	1952
Running Time	98:03
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	?
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Vincent Sherman
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Glenn Ford Alexander Scourby Torin Thatcher Valeria Bettis Steven Geray George Voskovec Karel Stepanek
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	George Duning

     American Steve Emery (Glenn Ford) flies into the British colony of Trinidad to meet his artist brother only to find that his brother has died in mysterious circumstances and that his brother’s widow Chris (Rita Hayworth), a singer at the nightclub run by Wittol (Steven Geray), seems to be overly friendly with the wealthy and shady Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby). What the audience knows, and Steve doesn’t, is that Max is suspected by the island police of being both a security risk and of involvement in his brother’s death so Inspector Smythe (Torin Thatcher) has asked Chris to get close to Max to try to find out what he is up to. Things get complicated when Steve falls for Chris, and she him, but Chris is prohibited by the police from telling Steve what she is doing, so misunderstandings and jealousy arises. The arrival at Max’s house of a German scientist who had been involved in the Nazi V2 rocket program, Dr. Hanz Huebling (George Voskovec), his wife Veronica (Valeria Bettis) and an agent for a foreign country (Karel Stepanek) brings matters to a climax.

     Affair in Trinidad was Rita Hayworth’s return to filmmaking after four years of absence during an unhappy marriage to playboy Prince Aly Khan. For her return Columbia deliberately evoked her earlier success in Gilda, perhaps Hayworth’s most iconic role. Like that film, Affair in Trinidad is a film noir set in an exotic location, filmed in black and white and co-starring Glenn Ford. Indeed, the camera move when Rita is introduced in Affair in Trinidad, her head moving upward into frame with hair flying, is very reminiscent of her introduction in Gilda. Another connection is that her gowns are again designed by Jean Louis, who had designed “that” classic gown in Gilda; indeed, he received an Oscar nomination for his costume design in Affair in Trinidad, but didn’t win.

     In their previous film together, and her last before Rita left Hollywood to get married The Loves of Carmen, neither Ford nor Hayworth were particularly convincing. In Affair in Trinidad they are on much firmer ground, Ford as the tough guy hero and Hayworth, while appearing to be a femme fatale, is in reality no such thing. Ford and Hayworth by this time had appeared in four films together, the first The Lady in Question in 1940 (the fifth and last was a decade later, The Money Trap (1965)) and the chemistry between the two is excellent. Affair in Trinidad is rather more of an espionage thriller that a film noir, although it has many of the noir trappings; light and shadows, a nefarious villain, a convoluted plot, betrayals, an all knowing servant character played by Juanita Moore to push the plot along, the type of shifty character played here by Steven Geray that Peter Lorre often played, and a tough guy hero who finally figures it out.

     Director Vincent Sherman also directed films such as Adventures of Don Juan (1948) with Errol Flynn and Lone Star (1952) with Clark Gable and in Affair in Trinidad he does a solid job of keeping things moving along through the convoluted plotting. Indeed, Affair in Trinidad loses no time at all in reintroducing the movie going public to Hayworth in a dance and song (her voice dubbed by Jo Ann Greer) routine in another Jean Louis gown, although her number later, I’ve Been Kissed Before, is even better in another black show-stopping Louis gown. Hayworth may have been six years older than in Gilda, and had been through two divorces since then, but she still has glamour, charisma and she positively sizzles on screen. Welcome back Rita!

Video

     Affair in Trinidad is a black and white film presented in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and not16x9 enhanced.

     Although there are some tiny marks and minor motion blur this is a good print of a film coming on to 70 years old. Grain is evident in some scenes but is generally nicely controlled, detail is firm including Rita’s black gown and flowing long hair in close-ups, shadow detail good and grey scales fine.

     No subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. There is really nothing much by way of effects except the rain, voices in the party scene and the gunshots at the climax but they are effective enough. The music by an uncredited George Duning (Oscar nominated for From Here to Eternity (1953)) is appropriate and rather good.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is fine except from some slight lapses during songs.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     Nothing. The silent menu offers only “Play”.

     Affair in Trinidad is available in other regions as a stand-alone DVD; the Region 1 US version is listed on Amazon UK for ₤75! This release here of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Affair in Trinidad is a return to Hollywood, and a return to form, by Rita Hayworth. It is an interesting noir thriller with a convoluted plot, a duplicitous villain, betrayals, murder, and a tough guy hero. It may not be as good as Gilda, Hayworth’s most iconic role, but that film set the bar pretty high. However, Affair in Trinidad is an underrated film that is well worth checking out.

     The video and audio are fine. No extras.

     Affair in Trinidad is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been available previously.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Salome (1953) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	1953
Running Time	102:51
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	William Dieterle
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Stewart Granger Charles Laughton Judith Anderson Basil Sydney Cedric Hardwick Alan Badel
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	George Duning

     Because the court of King Herod (Charles Laughton) and Queen Herodias (Judith Anderson) in Galilee is so wanton Queen Herodias sends her young daughter Princess Salome (Rita Hayworth) to grow up in Rome. There she falls in love with Marcellus (Rex Reason), the nephew of Emperor Tiberius (Cedric Hardwick). Marcellus makes the mistake of partitioning Tiberius to allow him to marry Salome. As Salome is not a Roman, but a barbarian, Tiberius not only refuses permission but exiles Salome back to Galilee on the ship that is carrying the new Roman governor of the province, Pontius Pilate (Basil Sydney), and the commander of his guard Claudius (Stewart Granger), who takes an immediate shine to Salome.

     In Galilee Herod and Herodias are being denounced for adultery by the prophet John the Baptist (Alan Badel) who is fermenting unrest because Herod, in marrying Herodias, had married his brother’s wife which was against the religious law. Herodias implores her husband to have John killed, but he refuses; Herod thinks that John may be the promised Messiah and he knows of a prophesy that if the Messiah is killed by a member of the house of Herod, terrible and painful retribution will be inflicted upon him.

     This is the situation when Pilate, Salome and Claudius arrive in Galilee. We learn the Claudius, sickened by the warfare and killing he has witnessed and participated in, has become a secret adherent of the new religion prophesised by John and he warns John not to preach in the city as it will be seen as sedition. As well, Claudius and Salome are falling in love. On their arrival at his palace Herod is immediately besotted with desire for his stepdaughter.

     John, of course, ignores Claudius’ warning. He continues to preach and is arrested and tried by Herod; John is imprisoned but Herod will not order his execution, despite the urging of Herodias. At first hostile to John, Salome comes also to believe in his message of peace. At the banquet celebrating Herod’s birthday Salome dances the “Dance of the Seven Veils” for her stepfather, believing that she can entice Herod to free John. But Herodias gets to Herod first and lusting for Salome he orders the death of John whose head is brought into the banquet on a platter.

     In the late 1940s and 1950s Biblical epics were popular in Hollywood, including those that depicted stories from the bible about wicked, manipulative and lustful women including Samson and Delilah (1949) or David and Bathsheba (1951). The seductive New Testament Salome seemed perfect for another epic film. Salome was very much in the public imagination with paintings, the scandalous 1891 play by Oscar Wilde, the 1905 Strauss opera (which introduced the concept of the “Dance of the Seven Veils” into public consciousness) and numerous films about her including four silent films dating back to 1908.

     This 1953 Technicolor version of Salome was directed by William Dieterle. He had received an Oscar nomination for The Life of Emile Zola (1937) but before that had had a long career directing films in his native Germany, his first in 1923 with a young Marlene Dietrich, before coming to Hollywood. Another notable film he directed was The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) with Charles Laughton. The Technicolor presentation of Salome is impressive but the undoubted star is the gorgeous Rita Hayworth again wearing gowns by Jean Louis; while best remembered for the clinging black strapless gown Louis designed in Gilda (1946), Rita’s costumes in the Technicolor Salome are stunning, none more so than the blue, yellow, red and mauve veils and skirts in the Dance of the Seven Veils segment. This is about as seductive as a strip tease could get in mainstream Hollywood of 1953! However, unlike many of the earlier depictions of Salome as a manipulative and wanton woman, Hayworth’s Salome is more innocent, the death of John the Baptist manipulated by her mother Herodias who is really the villain of the film. Other cast in Salome are not as effective; Charles Laughton, an actor who is larger than life, had won an Oscar in 1933 for The Private Life of Henry VIII while his other memorable performances include in Mutiny of the Bounty (1935) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957) but here he seems to be mostly sleepwalking while Stewart Granger is a rather wooden hero.

     It is not only the costumes that look spectacular in Technicolor. Salome was filmed partly in Israel by cinematographer Charles Lang. His career in Hollywood stretched almost 5 decades from 1923 to 1973 during which he was nominated 18 times for Oscars, including for films as diverse as Some Like it Hot (1959) and Butterflies Are Free (1972), but he only won once, way back in 1932 for A Farewell to Arms. In Salome the exterior landscapes and the palaces, the marching soldiers and colourful crowds, are all beautifully rendered.

     Salome may be a toned down version of the biblical wicked princess but it is an entertaining film with a swirl of spectacular colours, never more so than in the Dance of the Seven Veils, and Rita Hayworth looking as gorgeous as ever.

Video

     Salome is presented in Technicolor in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, in NTSC and is not16x9 enhanced.

     These old Technicolor movies shot on film still look special. The colours are deep and rich; chiffons in red, yellow, blue and mauve shimmer, Roman burnished breastplates sparkle and red cloaks float, jewels and gauze twinkle. Exterior locations with their sparse vegetation and rocky hillsides have a nice depth, interiors within Herod’s palace have a good range of colours and textures. Detail is always strong, whether in exteriors of marching soldiers or the close-ups of Rita’s stunning face. Skin tones can be somewhat lush, blacks are solid, shadow detail very good (the night scenes were shot day for night). There was some motion blur but I did not see any artefacts other than a few tiny spots.

     English subtitles are provided.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. The sounds of marching feet, horses’ hooves or the voices of the crowds in the market, during sermons or at Herod’s party had a pleasant resonance. The score by George Duning (Oscar nominated for From Here to Eternity (1953)) was suitably epic and Biblical! .

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is generally fine with an occasional lapse.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Theatrical Trailer (3:08)

     Salome is available in Region 1 as a stand-alone DVD without extras and as part of a DVD collection of the films of Rita Hayworth, which has only the same theatrical trailer as this release. This release here of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Salome as a character continues to fascinate; there have been at least another 8 films featuring her that followed this 1953 version. By 1953 Rita’s star at Columbia was fading due to their next rising female star Kim Novak. Nevertheless, you would not know it from Salome where Rita is as beautiful and beguiling on camera as ever. She still dances, and moves, wonderfully and her performance and the Technicolor presentation of Salome result in a film that is entertaining and well worth watching.

     The Technicolor presentation is excellent, the audio the original mono. A trailer is the only extra.

     Salome is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Miss Sadie Thompson (ViaVision) (1953) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Introduction-by Patricia Clarkson Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	1953
Running Time	90:23
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Curtis Bernhardt
Studio Distributor	ViaVision	Starring	Rita Hayworth Jose Ferrer Aldo Ray Russell Collins
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	None Given

Video (NTSC)		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	480i (NTSC)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     Soon after the end of WW2 the blood pressure of a group of US Marines on American Samoa, especially Sergeant Phil O’Hara (Aldo Ray), is increased substantially by the arrival on the island on a freighter that stops for a couple of hours of Miss Sadie Thompson (Rita Hayworth). Sadie, who is free spirited, brash and brassy, quickly gets a party going with the Marines, much to the ire of missionary Alfred Davidson (Jose Ferrer) who was also on the freighter making an inspection tour of the islands. Davidson, whose missionary father had established the church and hospital on the island, is an uptight religious zealot who comments to the island’s Doctor MacPhail (Russell Collins) that tropical diseases are easier to fight than immorality and evil. And he has his sights on Sadie, for he is sure that she had worked in a well-known red light bar in Hawaii and had fled the island when that establishment was closed down by the Police.

     When a crewman on the freighter is diagnosed with typhus everyone is quarantined on Samoa for at least a week. There is only one hotel, that owned by ex-Marine Joe Horn (Harry Bellaver) and his Samoan wife Ameena (Diosa Costello), so the proximity forced on Sadie and Davidson can only create trouble, especially as Sadie is determined to have a good party with the Marines. O’Hara starts to fall in love with Sadie but Davidson is determined to eradicate evil, as he sees it, from the island so he forces the Governor to issue an order for Sadie’s deportation. In the tropical heat, and the tropical rain, feelings are inflamed and something has to give.

     Miss Sadie Thompson was based on a story by W. Somerset Maugham. The story had been filmed twice before, a 1928 silent directed by Raoul Walsh that starred Gloria Swanson and Lionel Barrymore and a 1932 version with Joan Crawford and Walter Huston. This 1953 Technicolor version was directed by Curtis Bernhardt and shot in Hawaii by cinematographer Charles Lawton Jr. in 3D and released in 3D and flat screen versions, although the 3D version was withdrawn after two weeks.

     Charles Lawton Jr. had filmed the Orson Welles / Rita Hayworth The Lady from Shanghai (1947) and who later would film the original 3:10 to Yuma (1957). Miss Sadie Thompson often feels like a travelogue with lingering shots of the sea, surf, lush vegetation and the islanders’ grass huts and exotic costumes. There are also lingering shots of Rita; she has put on some weight about her face and in Miss Sadie Thompson looks less out and out glamorous than usual, befitting her role Sadie, a women who has witnessed a fair bit of life. However, she is still a very beautiful and sexy woman; no more so than in another of her signature song and dance numbers, this one, The Heat is On performed in a tight orange dress in the middle of a mass of appreciative Marines, got Miss Sadie Thompson banned in a number of US States!

     As well as her usual dance and song numbers (this time Rita is dubbed by Jo Ann Greer - suggestions she was dubbed by India Adams seem generally to have been refuted) Miss Sadie Thompson gives Hayworth a role in which to produce one of her strongest, most dramatic and compelling performances, one that Maugham reportedly approved of. As a woman running from her past, given a chance of a possible better future but being hounded by a religious zealot, Rita is very good, and her performance should be watched by those who say her acting talent is limited to her beauty and dancing. Jose Ferrer, as a man with strongly held beliefs and hidden passions, is also strong, giving depth to what could have been a one note character. Also of interest is the unmistakably craggy features of a younger Charles Bronson, credited as Charles Buchinsky, as one of the Marines.

     Miss Sadie Thompson is a rather overheated melodrama, toned down because of the Hayes Code that was still in place in Hollywood but still sufficiently raunchy for its time to be banned in several US States. Rita certainly stretched the rules, and looks stunning, and the film is worth watching for her, some good performances and the Technicolor tour of some beautiful island scenery.

Video

     Miss Sadie Thompson is presented in the 1.85:1 original aspect ratio, in NTSC and16x9 enhanced.

     Shot in Technicolor on location in Hawaii, close-ups show strong detail and deep colours; Rita’s orange Jean Louis gown, the green of the palm leaves and vegetation but many of the wider shots of the sea with the freighter in the distance, the palm trees, the beach and the island buildings look soft, with sometimes obvious grain and muted colours. The opening red titles are glary and again grain is obvious. Skin tones are however good, blacks are solid, shadow detail very good (the night scenes were shot day for night) and brightness and contrast consistent. There was some motion blur and minor artefacts but nothing serious.

     English subtitles for the hearing impaired are provided.

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Audio

     The audio is English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono at 192 Kbps.

     The dialogue is easy to hear. There are not a lot of effects; some rain and thunder, whistles and calls during the main song sequence, an Islander song/ dance. There is no credit for the score as such; the musical director is Morris Stoloff, background music by George Duning and songs written by an uncredited Lester Lee / Allan Roberts. Some of the music is lush, some jazzy, which works fine in the context of the film.

     There was no hiss or crackle.

    Lip synchronisation is good except for an occasional lapse during the songs.

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Introducing Miss Sadie Thompson with Patricia Clarkson (4:23)

     Clarkson touches on the source story, censorship and Rita Hayworth’s life.

Original Theatrical Trailer (3:00)

     Miss Sadie Thompson is available in Region 1 as part of a DVD collection of the films of Rita Hayworth which has the same extras as this release. Also available is a US Region A Blu-ray that has an audio commentary by film historians David Del Valle and Steven Peros and an isolated music track as well as the above extras. I cannot find any record of a stand-alone DVD with those extras however. This release here of the film is as part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two which collection itself forms part of The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. See the summary section below.

     Miss Sadie Thompson is a colourful, if overheated, melodrama which feels dated. Rita is starting to look more her age but she is still as seductive and beguiling on screen as ever. She can still dance up a storm to raise blood pressures and in addition Miss Sadie Thompson is one of her strongest, most dramatic performances, worth watching for her alone.

     The Technicolor video is muted in places, the audio is fine. A short feature and the film’s trailer are the only extras.

     Miss Sadie Thompson is included in the 12 disc / 12 film set The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection. The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection itself comprises the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection and the The Films of Rita Hayworth Collection Two. Both of these individual Collection packs have been released previously.

     The Films of Rita Hayworth Platinum Collection was supplied for review by ViaVision Entertainment. Check out their Facebook page for the latest releases, giveaways, deals and more.

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