Gaslight
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Movie Reviews of Gaslight
Movie Review: Both Good, But the Brits Win
Summary: 4 Stars
MGM was probably right to try to do away with the prints of the British Gaslight (if the story is true), released four years before it's own version starring Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer. The story is almost identical; the differences are in the stars and how they're directed.
An old lady in Victorian England is killed for her jewels, but the killer can't find them. Flash forward. The woman's niece, now grown, is newly married and she and her husband move into the old lady's home, now hers. Before long strange things begin to happen, the gas lights dim unaccountably, pictures are moved, the husband finds reasons to be gone at night, and her increasing nervous condition means she must be kept more and more isolated from those who once knew her. There's only her husband, the housekeeper and the maid in the house. Is she going mad? (Here's the spoiler). The husband certainly hopes so, because he's the killer. He's behind the strange happenings and his wife's isolation. He's busily looking for the jewels in the house's attic at night, and he wants his wife out of the way permanently.
The British and the American versions are both good, but (and all these are just my opinions): As the wife, Ingrid Bergman overacts impressively. All that tearing up and clutching at hankies... all those trembling lips and desperate looks. Diana Wynyard does a better job of suggesting deep distress, but Bergman is a joy just to look at. Charles Boyer was, in my view, a great actor, but he is being compared with Anton Walbrook, just as great an actor. Walbrook could be magnificent at showing subtle menace and ruthless charm. In the British version the cop, played by Frank Pettingell, is an older guy, wise and experienced, who has Walbrook's number but needs evidence. This part is now played by Joseph Cotten as a budding love interest for Bergman. He seems, to me, more like a brave puppy nipping at Boyer's shoes. Angela Lansbury, at 19 in her first movie, is terrific as the maid..sweet frosting on the outside but all self-centered tart on the inside. Cathleen Cordell played the role in the Brit version, and was just about as good.
The U.S. version is about 30 minutes longer than the Brit version, and it shows. A lot of the time is spent caressing Bergman with the camera. Cukor directed, but I wish Hitchcock had. He'd probably have spent as much time focused on Bergman, but I think the movie would have moved faster and with more tension. The ending (possible spoiler ahead ), when Bergman faces down a tied-up Boyer, is all Bergman and all "acting."
I think it was great that Warner released the DVD of Cukor's Gaslight with the British version. The comparisons are almost as interesting as the movies themselves. Both movies are well worth a watch.
Movie Review: Psychological Semi-thriller
Summary: 4 Stars
"Gaslight" is a 1944 movie that delves into the idea that the criminal mind can gradually take control of another human being. It makes its' case in the form of Charles Boyer playing a murderer who, for reasons not initially known, seeks to exert such control over his wife, played by Ingrid Bergman. Identifying Boyer as a murderer is not giving anything away in this movie. The strength of the movie is in watching this control slowly and steadily take shape. Knowing the good guys and the bad guy enables us to focus on these developments without being distracted by "who done it." There are some mysteries that are solved during the course of the movie which do add to its'impact.
With a psychological drama such as this, the acting is critical for success. In this case, the cast is exceptional. Charles Boyer lokks and acts the part of the evil manipulator. Ingrid Bergman won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the manipulated wife. Her descent into bewilderment is impressive to watch. The movie is well-directed by George Cukor and must have been a big hit in its' day.
I limited my rating to four stars for the same reason I referred to it as a semi-thriller. I felt that could have been a bit more done to effectuate a greater sense of impending doom. I previously noted that the strength of the movie lies in its' psychological development. However, I thought there was room for more suspense. Knowing "who done it" from the start was OK; it was the not knowing who done what or why that I felt could have been better developed.
Movie Review: Been wanting to watch this for a long time...
Summary: 4 Stars
I have passed by this movie many times in the library, and finally decided to pick it up. I was glad that I did! It satisfied my need for something subtle and suspenseful.
Paula was living in London with her aunt, a famous singer/actress, Alice. Her aunt was violently killed and Paula was traumatized. So she fled, as her aunt was the only parent known to her. While she is trying to become a singer herself, she falls in love with the piano player after only having known him for two weeks. After lots of pressure, Gregory pursuades Paula to move back to her house, the one her aunt died in. After all, it was left to her.
It is then that Paula seems to change from an active, full of life woman, to someone who is ill, isolated, and depressed. Every night, she hears footsteps in the attic, (no one else does, especially the half-deaf cook)and the gaslight appears to go down, when no one in the house is touching another. Her husband is also not the same man she married. The maid and the cook don't understand what is wrong with her. She doesn't have anyone to turn to, and slowly goes mad. But, why?
Though you realize pretty early what will happen at the end and who the killer is, it doesn't ruin the movie for you. The acting is excellent, especially by Nancy (played by an adorable 18 year old Angela Lansbury) the sardonic, and slightly tarty maid.
Though there are many times when I have to be "in the mood" for old movies, but I don't know why...because every time I see one, I am pleasantly surprised! Recommended!
Movie Review: Just saw this film
Summary: 4 Stars
and I really enjoyed it! "Gaslight" is a suspense thriller with a Hitchcock eeriness to it - I was hooked. I felt as though I was being driven out of my own mind just watching Charles Boyer cunningly captivate Ingrid Bergman and manipulate her thoughts and emotions. I was burning with fury as he was so agrivatingly sly, and so subtle. Meanwhile, Bergman was perfect at playing the downslide from independence to vulnerable destruction. What was great about it was the two were believable as husband and wife - there was a sexual tone and moments of redemption on Boyer's part that complicated my sympathies. It's films like this that make you question your own sanity just a little as you realize how blurred the line is between what you think you know and don't know at all...
Angela Lansbury was also a real surprise, playing a brilliantly cheerful maid who manages to brighten this otherwise chilling drama. Excellent entertainment, my mother and I were hooked. If you like Hitchcock-style thrillers, this one is for you!
Movie Review: C'Mon Baby,Light My Fire
Summary: 4 Stars
One of the old black and white classics,never seen by most.Boyer plays an all but forgotten jewel thief who marries Bergman to gain access to the house in which she lived as a child. In the process of jewel hunting, Boyer deliberately tries to drive his bride insane; he loves only hidden wealth. Enter Cotten to help save the day,and Bergman's life.Look for Angela Lansbury, age 17, in her first movie,doing all her shots barefooted because of Boyer's 5ft.5in. stature. "He was such a dear, but Charles was just so short", Lansbury recalls.Watch also how quickly Lansbury ages; she was only in her mid thirties in 1962, when she played Laurence Harvey's mother in "The Manchurian Candidate". Meanwhile, if superior acting is your forte, see "Gaslight".