Herb Kane
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Strangers On A Train
Two Disc Special Edition
Studio: Warner Brothers
Year: 1951
Rated: Not Rated – Preview Version: PG
Film Length: 101 Minutes/103 Minutes - Preview Version.
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 Academy
Audio: DD Monaural
Color/B&W: B&W
Languages: English & French
Subtitles: English, French & Spanish
MSRP: $26.99
Package: Two Discs/Keepcase
The Feature:
September can’t come fast enough for fans of legendary British director, Alfred Hitchcock. Warner Brothers is about to release a ten disc (9 films) boxed set entitled, The Alfred Hitchcock Signature Collection. Among the new releases will be Dial M For Murder (1955), Foreign Correspondent (1940), Suspicion (1941), I Confess (1953), The Wrong Man (1956), Stage Fright (1950) and Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941). Also included in the set is the ultimate WB Hitchcock property, North By Northwest (1959) in a new style keepcase, and finally the featured film, Strangers On A Train. Individual titles will list for $19.97, while the two disc SE will list for $26.99 or the entire set lists for $99.92.
Last week I was blessed having spent a week working on a review of titles from one of the greatest living directors, Martin Scorsese. This week, I’m even more blessed working on a number of titles from one of the greatest directors ever – perhaps the greatest! Aside from many of the greats from the period (John Ford, Howard Hawks, John Huston, Billy Wilder, William Wyler, David Lean, Orson Welles, Frank Capra, Charlie Chaplin, and Michael Curtiz among many others), only one stands out - even among these legends; Alfred Hitchcock. While there was a whimsicality to most of Hitchcock’s films, he was perhaps the only director whose work might be defined or even described by his own name. His pictures had a feel that no other films can compare to and while Strangers On A Train for instance is a true film noir, it’s a Hitchcock first.
The film, highly regarded to be among Hitchcock's best, is based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith (1921-1995). Guy Haines (played by Farley Granger), is a famous tennis player traveling by train enroute to an upcoming tennis match with a planned stopover, when he is recognized by fellow commuter Bruno Anthony (played by Robert Walker). Bruno is a rather forward and inquisitive man who surprises the young playboy with his vast amount of personal knowledge about him and his personal affairs, though Guy seems too naïve and polite to simply walk out on him. Guy eventually discloses the fact he is in love with a U.S. Senator’s daughter, Anne Morton (played by Ruth Roman), but in order to marry her, he’ll first have to divorce his unfaithful wife, Miriam (played by Kasey Rogers).
During lunch, Bruno suggests that they help each other out in a “criss-cross” murder scheme as he wants his controlling father dead. I’ll kill yours, you kill mine. He outlines the basic plan to Guy who is flabbergasted, but he assures him that since nobody could connect the pair, neither could ever become suspects. Guy who is appalled at the thought exits Bruno’s room but hastily forgets his monogrammed cigarette lighter.
Guy shows up at Miriam’s workplace with the funds necessary for the divorce proceedings as she has requested, however she quickly changes her mind knowing that Guy is her meal ticket and will provide for her and her unborn child – a child that Guy hasn’t fathered.
Guy starts receiving strange phone calls from Bruno and suddenly winds up as a person of interest in a police investigation when his wife, Miriam, turns up dead in an amusement park, strangled to death. Unfortunately, Guy just finished expressing to his new girlfriend how much he’d like to strangle her and they were seen arguing at her workplace just before the murder. Fearful of being wrongly accused, Guy starts to panic but the campaign of harassment and intimidation by Bruno escalates as he is now looking for his problem to be taken care of after taking care of Guy’s obstacle. What follows, is a taut cat and mouse chase and race to see if Guy can clear his name in time.
It’s said that one of Hitchcock’s biggest phobias was to be accused of something he did not do, a theme that was at the heart of many of his films including this one. Also interesting is the sexual tension that exists throughout the film as Bruno seems rather smitten with Guy whose interaction during his initial encounter with him aboard the train is rather flirtatious. Obviously homosexuality was not yet a topic for open discussion, so the anxiety and tension was rather subtle and subdued, thus the reason for paring down the Preview (British) version by two minutes, removing some of the sexual overtones (among other things). The Preview version is also included in its entirety and can be located on disc two.
For fun, we’ll list the infamous Hitchcock cameo shots throughout the series. In this case, he appears:
At the 11:25 mark of the film as the big guy struggles to load an even bigger standup bass onto the train. Take a close look at Hitchcock’s eyes as he shoots Guy a look while boarding the train. Priceless. It may be only urban legend but it is said that Patricia Highsmith was given a cameo shot and can be seen in the demo room at the record shop where Miriam worked. It’s unknown whether or not that has ever been corroborated for sure.
The Feature: 5/5
:star::star::star::star::star:
Video:
If you have followed my reviews of classic films, you’ll often hear me refer to such titles as The Bad And The Beautiful and Now, Voyager as examples of B&W film that are near perfect. Well, let me add one more to the fray, Strangers On A Train.
In a word – stunning!
While I might be slightly hesitant to compare it to Casablanca (let’s face it, that would garner a score of 5½ out of 5), I can say with the greatest of confidence that this film betters 99.9% of any B&W film that has been released thus far.
The level of image definition was amazing. This was one of those transfers that you could count individual hair and skin pores if you were so inclined. As expected, many of the female close-ups were slightly diffused but overall, this is a beauty. Velvety smooth – gorgeous.
Black levels just couldn’t get any darker and equally impressive were whites that were always stark and clean. The level of contrast and shadow detail was also wonderful. There was an appropriate amount of extremely fine film grain present throughout which presented a beautiful looking film-like picture with loads of depth and dimensionality.
There were only a couple of slight – very slight scratches and the amount of blemishes relating to dust and dirt particles were virtually non existent. The overall image was absolutely rock solid, never suffering from any shimmer or jumping, nor were light specks ever present.
The disc was also free of any compression errors or artifacting and edge enhancement was never an issue. The only time the image became spotty occurred when many of the often used Hitchcock rear projection sequences kicked in. Obviously this isn’t transfer related.
Perfect – absolutely perfect. If you’re not impressed by this transfer, then there is simply no pleasing you. And just so there’s no confusion, I compared this to the previous release and there is a day & night difference, a comparison that took me all of about 6½ seconds to make – it’s that noticeable. Some of the different footage from the “Preview” version looks slightly grainier than the “Final” version but it too is vastly superior to its original release counterpart.
Video: 5/5
:star::star::star::star::star:
Audio:
While I’m not quite as enthusiastic regarding the audio portion, I have very little to complain about.
First off, the track is totally free of any hiss or annoying pops or crackle. The overall tonal fidelity of the track is natural, never sounding edgy or harsh. The overall dynamic range is rather thin but that should be of no surprise considering the limitations of the period.
Most importantly, dialogue was always exceptionally bold and clear even during Dimitri Tiomkin’s score that accompanies throughout the film.
Again, as it relates to the “Preview” release, I’d say there is slightly more hiss than the previous release, but this too is vastly better (cleaner and better fidelity).
A solid job with very little to complain about.
Audio: 4/5
:star::star::star::star:
Special Features:
As we’ve come to expect from WB and their Two Disc Special Editions, this set is loaded with worthwhile special features. They are spread over both discs starting with:
[SIZE=]Disc One:[/size]
[*] The first special feature is a Commentary. A number of participants are featured, including Peter Bogdanovich, Joseph Stefano, Andrew Wilson, Robert Osborne and Kasey Rogers among several others including Hitchcock himself from an interview excerpt. These are a series of individual commentaries, recorded separately as each of them discusses various aspects of the film. Everything from a history of Highsmith, to the cast members of the film are discussed in great detail. Some of the participants come off as a bit scholarly, but overall there is a great deal of information to be gleaned here.
[*] The other special feature on disc two is the Theatrical Trailer which is also included. Clearly it is spottier than the feature film, but is in very good condition. Duration 2:31 minutes.
[SIZE=]Disc Two:[/size]
[*] The first feature on disc two is Strangers On A Train: A Hitchcock Classic. The special features a number of contributing participants including Bill Krohn (Hitchcock biographer), Andrew Wilson (Highsmith biographer), film historians Richard Schickel and Robert Osborne, Robert Walker Jr., Patricia Hitchcock-O’Connell (Hitchcock’s daughter), Mary Stone (Hitchcock’s granddaughter), Farley Grainger, Joseph Stefano, Olivia Douglas (Tiomkin’s widow). This is a superb feature which has each of the participants discussing the film as well as the cast members offering various Hitch recollections. There is also an interesting discussion from Walker’s son describing his father’s death resulting from alcohol abuse (who later died that year in 1951) as well as an in-depth discussion on the “so-called” preview or British version of the film and its alternate endings. Perhaps the best feature included in the set. Duration 36:39 minutes.
[*] Strangers On A Train: An Appreciation By M. Night Shyamalan as the young director talks about many of the qualities of Hitchcock that he appreciates and he discusses various Hitchcock techniques. He also discusses the film itself and comments on the characters as well as the plot. Informal but very interesting. Duration 12:43 minutes.
[*] Strangers On A Train: The Victim’s P.O.V. is a short interview with Kasey Rogers who spends her time reflecting on being chosen for the role of Miriam and her time spent during the shoot. Duration 7:19 minutes.
[*] The Hitchcocks on Hitch is a collection of home movie clips that are interestingly narrated by family members. Duration 11:17 minutes.
[*] Alfred Hitchcock’s Historical Meeting a short clip minus the audio portion. Duration 1:05 minutes.
Special Features: 4.5/5
:star::star::star::star:
**Special Features rated for the quality of supplements, not the quantity**
Final Thoughts:
Strangers On A Train is a brilliant suspense thriller that will have you glued to your seat, perhaps even on the edge of it for 101 minutes. The film ranks among the very best of any of Hitchcock’s pictures, which alone speaks volumes. The writing, performances (including Hitch’s own daughter), not to mention the direction are all wonderful.
I was absolutely amazed with the presentation of this film; among the very best classic films Warner Brothers have released thus far – again high praise indeed and a release that renders the previous disc “coaster worthy”. The film is also complemented with a healthy group of special features, all of which are worthy of your time. Needless to say, my recommendation for this disc couldn’t be any higher. From a price point, purchasing the boxed set should be the easiest DVD purchase of the year if you’re a fan of the “Master Of Suspense”.
Overall Rating: 5/5 (not an average)
:star::star::star::star::star:
Highly Recommended…!!!
Release Date: September 7th, 2004
Looking forward to this and Dial M For Murder.(just can't get enough of Grace Kelly)
