Crossroads - Hedy Lamarr

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

Directed by Jack Conway
USA 1942

With a lovely new bride by his side and a diplomatic appointment imminent, David Talbot sees his life on an upswing – if he is really David Talbot. Blackmailers say he is actually a murderer and thief named Jean Pelletier. As they present their evidence, Talbot, whose past includes incidents of amnesia, begins to wonder if he’s been living a lie. William Powell played an amnesiac for laughs in I Love You Again, but here he invests Talbot with the urgency and stunned disbelief of a man whose life is in sudden upheaval. Hedy Lamarr (as Talbot’s resourceful bride), Basil Rathbone and Claire Trevor cos-tar in this double- and triple-cross tale located on a crossroads of uncertainty.

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Theatrical Release: July 12th, 1942

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DVD Review: Warner Home Video (Warner Archive Collection) - Region 0 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Warner Home Video Region 0 - NTSC
Runtime	1:23:18
Video	1.33:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.30 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:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles	None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Edition Details: • Archive Advert (:59) • Trailer (2:25) DVD Release Date: September 15th, 2009 Keep Case Chapters: 10

Comments:

Hedy has some great outfits on here - wowser! Blackmail and a favorite noir stylistic norm - amnesia - round out the foreign intrigue. This is well directed and a better film that reported. Rathbone and plenty of courtroom drama help the typical MGM proceedings. Thumbs up for the film.

It's another single-layered, but progressive, DVD-R treatment that has more damage and noise than most will appreciate. Even Hedy's iconic visage can't improve the transfer. Not very strong overall but the grain helps the vintage look. It's on the acceptable side of watchable... but not by much.

As usual, no subtitles - and, unremarkable but audible 2.0 channel sound. It's weaker in this area but not enough to dismiss. I'm fairly forgiving considering the age. Extras consist of only the too-oft seen Archive advert that starts the disc presentation and an option to peruse the 2.5 minute trailer of Crossroads with all the suggestive text.

Hedy Lamarr is always so watchable - for me anyway. This is actually a decent film with some subtle directorial flair. It would be nice to see it looking better with some supplement discussion - but, I guess, that isn't in the cards. If you see enough appeal - go for it - the film may surprise you and at least you know what the transfer is like.