To Catch a Thief - Hitchcock

USA 1955

One of the most lightweight (and not even particularly deceptively so) of Hitchcock's comedy-thrillers; a retreat from the implications of Rear Window into the realm of private jokes and sunny innuendo, with a Côte d'Azur romance that hinges on Kelly's testing of retired high-line thief Grant, to find whether 'The Cat' has indeed been neutered or is still able to prowl the Riviera rooftops. Even determined analysts Rohmer and Chabrol had to take comfort in celebrating Hitch's 'flowers of rhetoric': the famous image of the cigarette stubbed out in an egg, and the cheeky cliché of cross-cutting foreplay and fireworks.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film Guide located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release Date: August 5, 1955

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DVD Comparison:

Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC vs. Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC

(Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC LEFT vs. Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT)

DVD Box Cover
Distribution	Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC	Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:46:20	1:46:20
Video	1.78:1 - Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.48 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1.78:1 - Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.66 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate: Paramount Original
Bitrate: Paramount Special Collector's Edition
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), Dub- French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), DUB: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Subtitles	English, None	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Paramount Home Video Aspect Ratio(s): Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • 4 new featurettes: "Writing and Casting" ( 9 minutes ), • "The Making of To Catch a Thief" ( 17 minutes ), • "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" ( 7 minutes ) • "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette ( 14 minutes ) • Photo gallery slideshow format with music ( 50 + images and posters ) • 4:3 Trailer ( 2:08 ) DVD Release Date: November 5th, 2002 Keep Case Chapters: 18	Release Information: Studio: Paramount Home Video Aspect Ratio(s): Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by: Peter Bognanovich and Laurent Bouzereau • 4 new featurettes: "Writing and Casting" ( 9 minutes ), • "The Making of To Catch a Thief" ( 17 minutes ), • "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation" ( 7 minutes ) • "Edith Head: The Paramount Years" featurette ( 14 minutes ) • 4:3 Trailer ( 2:08 ) DVD Release Date: May 8th, 2007 Keep Case Chapters: 18

Comments:

ADDITION: Collector's Edition - Region 1- April 07': A significant improvement... in every area. The restored image is far smoother, less artifacts, less damage marks and colors are dramatically different - a strong improvement especially noted in skin tones. There is also some movement in the frame with many scenes showing less on top but more on the bottom of the frame. Unlike the original release the news Collector's edition is tight to the frame edges. In regards to image I think the screen captures give a good representation of the differences. It is a huge improvement.

Menus are the same but the supplements have added a Peter Bognanovich and Laurent Bouzereau commentary. I always like listening to Bognanovich and he casually relates some good information. The old featurettes are still there and this is definitely the definitive edition to date and the price is a steal.

***

On the original release: This release has been much anticipated by the Home Theater crowd and initial reviews showed disappointment. It may possibly have been because many of us have been spoiled by technically superior transfers such as 'Vertigo' and 'North by Northwest'. The elements of 'To Catch a Thief' were not in very good condition to start with and it is obvious that a full restoration at this point was not totally cost effective for Paramount. The image quality is quite poor indeed... not tight to the frame edges (losing horizontal resolution), many scratches and rife with artifacts, colors at times look awful - Ughhhh. The Trailer in the extras is in Full Screen format, which I was not particularly happy with, but the featurettes are a nice touch. out of

Gary Tooze

DVD Menus

(Paramount Home Video Region 1 - NTSC LEFT vs. Paramount Home Video (Special Collector's Edition) Region 1 - NTSC RIGHT)

Screen Capture