Laura Blu-ray Gene Tierney

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Otto Preminger
USA 1944

The sleekest of noirs, the chicest of murders, and deliciously twisted--the detective is a necrophiliac, two of the title character's suitors seem gay, and the Laura all the men are vying for is a corpse with no face. Indeed LAURA, goes the genre one further by taking apart the conventions, then putting them back together, and diving wholeheartedly into them for the finale--a cocktail party denouement to name the killer.

LAURA, based on the novel by Vera Caspary, revolves around the murder of the title character (Gene Tierney)--a shotgun blast completely obliterating the corpse's once-lovely face. Homicide detective Mark McPherson (Andrews) has a trio of suspects--newspaper critic Waldo Lydecker (Webb), who "created" Laura; playboy/parasite and fiancé Shelby Carpenter (Price); and Anne Treadwell (Anderson), Laura's socialite aunt who has been carrying on with Shelby. Just as Mark is beginning to fall in love with a vision of the deceased woman--in the form of an oil portrait--in walks the real Laura . . .

Excerpt from TV Guide Online located HERE

Posters

Theatrical Release: October 11th, 1944

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The Little Black and White Book of Film Noir: Quotations from Films of the 40's and 50's
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Comparison:

Fox - Region 1 - NTSC vs. 20th Century Fox - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Fox - Region 1 - NTSC LEFT vs. 20th Century Fox - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT

Box Cover		A Digibook Edition is available on Blu-ray in France:
Distribution	Fox Home Entertainment - Region 1 - NTSC	20th Century Fox - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:27:00	Theatrical: 1:27:06.428 Extended: 1:28:09.324
Video	1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.91 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 36,673,723,198 bytes Feature: 27,469,068,288 bytes Video Bitrate: 37.48 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Bitrate: Blu-ray
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 1.0), Spanish (Dolby Digital 1.0)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1034 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 1034 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 1.0 / 48 kHz / 768 kbps / 24-bit) Dolby Digital Audio French 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Commentaries: Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps
Subtitles	English, Spanish, None	English (SDH), Dutch, French, Spanish, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Fox Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Edition Details: • Commentary by David Raksin and Jeanine Basinger • Commentary by Rudy Behlmer • A&E Biography: Gene Tierney - A Shattered Portrait (44:20) • A&E Biography: Vincent Price - The Versatile Villian (44:13) • Extended Version (With the Deleted Scene) (1:28:03) • Deleted Scene / with optional Commentary by Rudy Behlmer (1:37) • Theatrical Trailer (2:32) DVD Release Date: March 15th, 2005 Keep Case Chapters: 20	Release Information: Studio: Fox Home Video Aspect Ratio: Original aspect Ratio 1.33:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 36,673,723,198 bytes Feature: 27,469,068,288 bytes Video Bitrate: 37.48 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Commentary by David Raksin and Jeanine Basinger • Commentary by Rudy Behlmer • A&E Biography: Gene Tierney - A Shattered Portrait (44:10) • A&E Biography: Vincent Price - The Versatile Villain (44:03) The Obsession (12:36) • Extended Version (With the Deleted Scene) (1:28:03) • Deleted Scene / with optional Commentary by Rudy Behlmer (2:36) • Theatrical Trailer (2:31) Blu-ray Release Date: February 5th, 2013 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters: 20

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: 20th Century Fox - Region FREE Blu-ray - January 2013: Firstly, I don't think that cover image with Dana Andrews is actually Gene Tierney. I'm unsure who it is BUT it is also on the menus as well as the disc cover. It doesn't look like her at all to me. Tsk Tsk. Just say'in. (Mystery solved HERE - although they did airbrush away all her lovely features - big thanks to Bill L.!)

Fox includes the, minute-longer, 'Extended' version seamlessly branched as an option although you can check the deleted scene as well as a supplement.

Fox's new Blu-ray looks quite good of this Noir masterpiece. the image notably brightens but has more layered contrast so detail definitely rises. It dramatically improves over the SD - as I hope the screen captures relate. There is some fine texture and it gave me a wonderful viewing presentation.

Nice to have David Raksin's (Bigger Than Life, The Big Combo) score in lossless via the, authentic, DTS-HD Master mono track at 1034 kbps. It is modest - which is probably accurate - but also has no flaws and dialogue is audible and consistent. There are optional subtitles and the Blu-ray disc appears to be region FREE.

Supplements duplicate the extensive extras on the 2005 DVD plus an addition. The Blu-ray offers the excellent commentaries from David Raksin and Jeanine Basinger and a second by Rudy Behlmer bombarding us with interesting facts. Included are the two A&E Biographies: Gene Tierney and Vincent Price and a new piece entitled The Obsession running a dozen minutes, plus you get the, aforementioned, Extended Version (With the Deleted Scene) or the Deleted Scene alone with optional Commentary by Rudy Behlmer. There is also a trailer.

Aside from the cover and menu image faux-pas (as I see it), this is still an essential release. One of the all-time classics looking and sounding great in HD - and super extras - albeit mostly duplicated. Some will appreciate the opportunity to watch the 'Extended' version straight through as opposed to just the deleted scene etc. Strongly recommended!

***

ON THE DVD: This is a shade duller than a Warner special, but Fox has done a commendable job with this DVD package. Black levels are excellent and there is a little softened film grain. I noticed some minor scratches and dirt spots on only 2 occasions and a bit of chroma and shimmering, but nothing extravagant. I dislike the yellow subtitles, but there are a host of extras and 2 commentaries to keep you busy for quite a while. out of Gary W. Tooze

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Fox - Region 1 - NTSC LEFT vs. 20th Century Fox - Region FREE - Blu-ray RIGHT

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