7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Lillian Roth has it all: youth, beauty, movie and Broadway fame and a devoted fiance. Then her fiance dies, and Lillian takes one drink to ease her grief. Then another. Then ten. Then thousands. And soon her youth, her career and her life are drowning in an ocean of booze.
Starring: Susan Hayward, Richard Conte, Eddie Albert, Jo Van Fleet, Don Taylor (I)Biography | 100% |
Melodrama | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Not to be confused with -- but obviously based on -- Lilian Roth's autobiography of the same name, Daniel Mann's biopic I'll Cry Tomorrow tells the sad, sorry tale of a child actress-turned Broadway star whose meteoric rise led to a sharp downward spiral after alcoholism took full control of her life. As portrayed by Susan Hayward (who earned an Academy Award nomination for her performance), Roth is painted as a sympathetic figure but I'll Cry Tomorrow isn't afraid to show the less glamorous side of things... or at least what Hays Code rules would allow at the time.
You'll have to see where it goes from there... but at the risk of mild spoilers (and, of course, the fact that Lilian Roth lived another 25 years after the film's premiere), let's just say that I'll Cry Tomorrow is ultimately a hopeful film that, like its source material, aims to give support to those in similar situation. As a relative non-drinker I can't relate much, of course, but this film still remains an accessible drama regardless of the addiction at hand. Though it certainly goes a bit over the top at key moments (a critique that applies to both the film as a whole and Susan Hayward's colorfully committed performance), it nonetheless reels itself right back in when needed. The result is a relatively even-handed biopic that capably toes the line between juicy melodrama and shrewdly-scrubbed Hollywood entertainment.
Not surprisingly given the autobiography's confessional nature (not to mention the fact that Roth was portrayed by someone only seven years her junior, while she was very much still alive) and the small gap between publication and premiere, I'll Cry Tomorrow feels like a very in-the-moment production, one that's peppered with voice-over narration and an almost purely linear structure. Yet it also feels strangely out of time for two reasons: (1) it takes place over the course of several decades but is peppered with anachronisms, and (2) exact years are implied rather than carefully spelled out. For both reasons and several others, I'll Cry Tomorrow is the kind of film you have to accept at face value to fully enjoy, but luckily its considerable strengths more than make up for most potential weaknesses.
Warner Archive kicks off a busy month with I'll Cry Tomorrow and the soon-to-be-reviewed Camille, treating this black-and-white beauty with their typically careful
touch and porting over a handful of short but valuable vintage extras that promote either the film or its real-life subject. It's a worthy tribute to a
film that deserves the extra love.
Any time you hear "new 4K scan from the original camera negative", you can be extra-sure you're getting a fantastic-looking Blu-ray from the reliable Warner Archive. I'll Cry Tomorrow is no exception, as this black-and-white beauty absolutely sparkles even when the subject matter gets a little grim. Fine detail is, as always, superb with wonderfully preserved film grain visible in almost every shot, while their careful treatment also allows a full range of light to deep grays and blacks to flourish with no obvious signs of crush, blooming, or posterization. Speaking of which, as usual this is a perfectly encoded disc with no other visible compression artifacts, with the whole show running at a suitably high bit rate. Also free of dirt and debris thanks to Warner Archive's usual round of manual cleanup, it's another picture-perfect 1080p transfer that easily stands as the film's best-looking home video presentation to date.
Also impressive is Warner Archive's purist-friendly DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mono restoration, a split one-channel mix that captures all the literal and figurative highs and lows here with almost no difficulty. A reliable sourced informed me that only one reel of footage was sourced from alternate means due to possible damage-related issues -- which, to my estimation, occurs around the two-thirds mark -- but you almost wouldn't know it from the overall consistency that this track manages to maintain. This affected stretch of I'll Cry Tomorrow carries with it a few moderate sibilance issues, resulting in a somewhat harsher texture that stands in contrast with the majority of this otherwise perfectly good track, but again it's not all that distracting and was likely the best option available. Elsewhere, it impresses despite a narrow dynamic range, whether during a quiet exchange, a bustling party, or one of a handful of music breaks, showing very few telltale signs of hissing, pops, or other age-related wear and tear. Fine work, under the circumstances.
This one-disc release ships in a standard keepcase with original one-sheet poster artwork and no inserts. Several extras are ported over from older DVD editions, as well as a few small additions to round out the package.
Released barely a year after its autobiographical source material, I'll Cry Tomorrow remains an effective cautionary tale about childhood stardom, impulsive behavior, and how quickly substance abuse can clip even the biggest set of wings. Fully encompassed by star Susan Hayward (for better and occasionally for worse, if I'm being honest), this story of Broadway sensation Lillian Roth is a perfectly accessible roller-coaster ride whether you're familiar with her life or not. Warner Archive's new Blu-ray follows suit with another A+ restoration, polishing its crisp black-and-white visuals to an absolute shine. A few minor audio issues and relatively thin (but thoughtful) extras keep it from scoring higher... but even as-is, this one's a perfectly well-rounded disc worth picking up sight unseen. Recommended.
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