Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Compulsion Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf March 9, 2017

1959’s “Compulsion” goes out of its way to avoid naming Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb as its inspiration for a tale of murder and intellectualism, but this adaptation of Meyer Levin book dramatizes most details from the heinous crime committed by the frightfully rational duo. It’s a story that was already worked over in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rope,” but “Compulsion” has a more direct link to the Leopold and Loeb case, with director Richard Fleischer going the “Law and Order” route as the details of a crime are examined in full before the tale turns into a courtroom showdown where punishment is debated, not innocence.

While the opening of “Compulsion” promises a sleazier, exploitation-style study of methodical murder, the feature settles down after a hot sax score subsides. Dealing with Leopold and Loeb, here Judd (Dean Stockwell) and Artie (Bradford Dillman), the story inspects how these brilliant college men decided to buy into their Friedrich Nietzsche education, taking the “superman” concept to vicious extremes, murdering a teenage boy just to pull off the “perfect crime.” A dissection of superiority dominates the first half of the movie, presenting a vivid depiction of psychosis by way of intelligence, grasping how Judd and Artie regarded their capacity for evil. Behavioral cracks are followed professionally, bridging procedural interests with terrific performances, while overall sickness is detailed with steeliness, reflecting the subjects and their cold-blooded understanding of crime as a form of experimentation.

Compulsion Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (2.35:1 aspect ratio) presentation is another "4K restoration" viewing experience from 20th Century Fox and Kino Lorber, and the results are compelling, taking advantage of the feature's extensive use of close-ups to study facial particulars, with Welles a wealth of make-up and aging textures. Detail is also significant for background activity, including campus visits and courtroom events. Cinematographic balance is preserved, providing adequate delineation and stable whites. Compression issues arrive periodically, most pronounced during the main title sequence, which is riddled with banding.

Compulsion Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix handles with straightforward emphasis, putting all attention on dialogue exchanges, which remain clean and clear, capturing levels of intensity and microphone limitations. Scoring isn't robust, but moods are set with agreeable instrumentation. Group activity registers with dimension, and atmospherics are satisfactory.

Compulsion Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features film historian Tim Lucas.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:01, SD) is included.

Compulsion Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Compulsion" switches over to the courtroom in its second half, bringing a visibly bored Orson Welles in to portray Jonathan Wilk (a character based on famed lawyer Clarence Darrow), who argues for life in prison for Judd and Artie, delivering a prolonged argument against the death penalty. Moral and legal interpretations are up to the viewer as Fleischer keeps his distance, electing to highlight interrogations and clue-gathering, which makes for a dry movie, but a fascinating one.