7.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A young socialite is diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor, and must decide how to spend her final days.
Starring: Bette Davis, George Brent, Geraldine Fitzgerald (I), Humphrey Bogart, Henry TraversRomance | 100% |
Melodrama | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.37:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono (Spain)
English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The three-hanky tearjerker, Dark Victory, was a huge success for Warner Brothers in 1939, even though it was considered an unlikely prospect. The original play bombed on Broadway in 1934. MGM's super-producer, David O. Selznick, had acquired the film rights but failed, after several years of effort, to get the project off the ground; at different times, both Greta Garbo and Merle Oberon were considered for the demanding lead role. Studio head Jack Warner didn't want to make the film, because he thought no one would want to see a story about a woman who goes blind and dies. But Warner was overruled, and ticket sales were brisk, and the reason for both was one person: Bette Davis. By 1939, Davis was firmly established as one of Warner Brothers' most bankable stars. Even if the studio had doubts, it was not about to antagonize so valuable an asset. Once Davis decided that she wanted to play the doomed heroine of Dark Victory, she was relentless in her pursuit of the rights, which were eventually acquired from Selznick by producer Hal Wallis, when Selznick decided to devote himself full time to Gone with the Wind. Edmund Goulding (Grand Hotel ) agreed to direct from a script written by Casey Robinson (Captain Blood). The result was one of those rare films where a single star performance overwhelms the many objections that the material raises at almost every moment. The story is manipulative, the sentiments frequently maudlin, the behavior of many characters questionable and the medical science ridiculous—and no one cared. Davis' turbulent portrayal of a young and formerly carefree woman suddenly confronted with a terminal illness is so complex and involving that it sweeps aside the many objections raised by the film's plot. If anyone wants to list good arguments for dramatic license, Bette Davis in Dark Victory should be near the top.
Dark Victory's cinematographer Ernest Haller had been shooting in black-and-white since the Twenties, but after lensing this film in 1939, he went on photograph his first production in color, which was the film that won him an Oscar (Gone with the Wind). Still, Haller was a master of blacks and grays, and he knew how to light Bette Davis to best effect, having shot her Oscar-winning performance in the previous year's Jezebel. Warner's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray has been sourced from the original camera negative, and it is a good catalog effort, featuring solid blacks, well-delineated grays and good contrast. The grain pattern appears to be natural and undisturbed by electronic manipulation. Sharpness and detail are good enough that it is easy to distinguish between Davis and her stunt double during the riding scenes and, on a positive note, the elaborate wardrobe that Judith can afford looks fabulous, even without the benefit of color. Warner has mastered Dark Victory on a BD-25 with an average bitrate of 20.94 Mbps, but the film looks better than that low number suggests. This appears to be a case where a compressionist made the effort to "massage" the bit allocation to conserve where possible (notably during talking head scenes) and allow more bandwidth for scenes like those of Judith riding or driving.
The film's original mono soundtrack has been encoded as DTS-HD MA 1.0, and it's merely OK. The track has been encoded at a low volume, requiring a boost from one's amplifier or TV set. With that boost comes audible background hiss, which is something you don't usually hear on Warner's mono tracks. It's not a deal breaker, but it is worth noting. With elevated volume, the dialogue is clear and so are the sound effects. The emotional score is by Max Steiner, whom Davis complained about during production, because she didn't want his music to compete with her acting, particularly near the end of the film.
Warner first released Dark Victory on DVD in 2000 with only a trailer. A second DVD release in 2005 added a commentary and featurette. All of these extras have been ported over to this Blu-ray, with the addition of a "Warner Night at the Movies" gallery of short subjects.
If Dark Victory had been made twenty years later, the director probably would have been Douglas Sirk, because the film fits comfortably into the genre of "women's pictures" with which Sirk is most identified. The story of a person dying young and having to grow up fast (and making others do so) remains a perennial in popular culture, and it is revisited regularly, often with startling success. It was the essence of Love Story (1970, both book and film); it was obviously central to Dying Young; and, most recently, it was revived to both critical acclaim and popular acceptance in The Fault in Our Stars. One could write an entire treatise on the cultural significance of this story line, but an essential point of reference would be Dark Victory. Despite weak sound, Warner's presentation is worthwhile and recommended.
1934
Includes "Him", "Her", and "Them" Cuts
2014
2000
2011
2009
2009
1991
Limited Edition to 3000 | SOLD OUT
1997
2003
Fox Studio Classics
1947
Limited Edition to 3000
1959
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
1943
1959
2007
1923
Limited Edition to 3000
1957
Warner Archive Collection
1938
2008
Warner Archive Collection
1936
1942