The Lady from Shanghai Blu-ray Review
It’s hard to know exactly how much of Orson Welles’ original script remains in the finished film since, as with other previous projects, it was taken away from him after the fact and recut by the studio. After several viewings, the plot with its shady characters performing crosses and double crosses on one another and rarely being exactly who they pretend to be makes a hazy kind of sense from a mystery angle, but the real glories of the movie aren’t in the plotting or the sometimes abrupt characterizations but in sequences which Welles stages and shoots with unbridled imagination and chutzpah. From the initial meeting between Elsa and Michael (definitely not a meet cute as it’s fairly obviously a set-up to lure him into her clutches) to a lovers’ rendezvous at the aquarium, the three-ring circus of Michael’s trial, a rambunctious free-for-all fight in the judge’s chambers, and the widely celebrated crazy house climactic confrontation between the principals when the murky mystery plot becomes clearer, Welles’ direction has never been more showily impressive. He offers some less showy but equally interesting scenes where Elsa lounges on deck crooning “Please Don’t Kiss Me” (vocal by Anita Ellis) and later a picnic scene where the film’s theme (a story being told about sharks having a feeding frenzy) is stated symbolically. But whether through Welles’ inadequate scripting or later studio intervention, the film is unnecessarily sloppy on occasion with an extended sequence at a Chinese theater performance unnecessary and a massive overuse of close-ups not just of the stars but of the extras as well, sometimes cut in willy-nilly and producing a jarring effect on the viewer.
For his role, Welles has affected a very precious Irish brogue that seems pushed a bit too much (Welles in character also serves as the film’s narrator), and he might have displayed a bit more sexual tension in his interactions with (his real-life wife though they were estranged at this point) Rita Hayworth knowing that her rich, powerful husband could bring him down easily. Hayworth herself falls victim to the spotty writing as she’s so alternately hot and cold toward Michael that one is never sure where her feelings lie (which doesn’t work well for the mystery in retrospect once we are filled in at the climax). Nevertheless, she looks smashing as a blonde, and she plays strongly what’s in the script. Everett Sloane gives a dynamic, outrageously over-the-top performance as the crafty Bannister, and Glenn Anders is eccentricity personified as the semi-maniacal George Grisby (you’ll never forget the expression “target practice” after you hear him say it a few times). One would have liked more scenes with Ted de Corsia as the mysterious Sidney Broome in order to get a better handle on his involvement in the plot.
Orson Welles may not have directed many (any?) box-office successes, but the man knew his way around a camera always turning out movies that had unmistakable, unforgettable looks to them. The Lady from Shanghai has something of a muddled plot and a handful of weird, eccentric characters, and yet it’s so endlessly fascinating to watch with a matchless set of scenes that don’t look or feel like anything else in the entire oeuvre of film noir that a jumbled narrative (that never hurt the popularity of The Big Sleep either) doesn’t stop it from being a classic.
Studio: Sony
Distributed By: Mill Creek
Video Resolution and Encode: 1080P/AVC
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio: English 2.0 DTS-HDMA
Subtitles: English
Rating: Not Rated
Run Time: 1 Hr. 28 Min.
Package Includes: Blu-ray
keep caseDisc Type: BD25 (single layer)
Region: A
Release Date: 03/17/2015
MSRP: $14.98
The Production Rating: 4/5
It’s hard to know exactly how much of Orson Welles’ original script remains in the finished film since, as with other previous projects, it was taken away from him after the fact and recut by the studio. After several viewings, the plot with its shady characters performing crosses and double crosses on one another and rarely being exactly who they pretend to be makes a hazy kind of sense from a mystery angle, but the real glories of the movie aren’t in the plotting or the sometimes abrupt characterizations but in sequences which Welles stages and shoots with unbridled imagination and chutzpah. From the initial meeting between Elsa and Michael (definitely not a meet cute as it’s fairly obviously a set-up to lure him into her clutches) to a lovers’ rendezvous at the aquarium, the three-ring circus of Michael’s trial, a rambunctious free-for-all fight in the judge’s chambers, and the widely celebrated crazy house climactic confrontation between the principals when the murky mystery plot becomes clearer, Welles’ direction has never been more showily impressive. He offers some less showy but equally interesting scenes where Elsa lounges on deck crooning “Please Don’t Kiss Me” (vocal by Anita Ellis) and later a picnic scene where the film’s theme (a story being told about sharks having a feeding frenzy) is stated symbolically. But whether through Welles’ inadequate scripting or later studio intervention, the film is unnecessarily sloppy on occasion with an extended sequence at a Chinese theater performance unnecessary and a massive overuse of close-ups not just of the stars but of the extras as well, sometimes cut in willy-nilly and producing a jarring effect on the viewer.
For his role, Welles has affected a very precious Irish brogue that seems pushed a bit too much (Welles in character also serves as the film’s narrator), and he might have displayed a bit more sexual tension in his interactions with (his real-life wife though they were estranged at this point) Rita Hayworth knowing that her rich, powerful husband could bring him down easily. Hayworth herself falls victim to the spotty writing as she’s so alternately hot and cold toward Michael that one is never sure where her feelings lie (which doesn’t work well for the mystery in retrospect once we are filled in at the climax). Nevertheless, she looks smashing as a blonde, and she plays strongly what’s in the script. Everett Sloane gives a dynamic, outrageously over-the-top performance as the crafty Bannister, and Glenn Anders is eccentricity personified as the semi-maniacal George Grisby (you’ll never forget the expression “target practice” after you hear him say it a few times). One would have liked more scenes with Ted de Corsia as the mysterious Sidney Broome in order to get a better handle on his involvement in the plot.
Video Rating: 5/5 3D Rating: NA
Audio Rating: 4.5/5
Special Features Rating: 0/5
Overall Rating: 4/5
Reviewed By: Matt Hough
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