Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.5

Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown December 11, 2024

Marking another high-definition debut in the Frank Capra at Columbia Collection is Platinum Blonde, which tells the story of a heartless heiress who seduces a hard-working reporter into a disastrous marriage. The Blu-ray features a strong 4K UltraHD video presentation and lossless mono audio mix, only falling short in the supplemental department with zero extras.

When reporter Stew Smith (Robert Williams) is assigned to write about a "breach of promise" suit being filed by chorus girl Gloria Golden (Jean Harlow) against wealthy power player Michael Schuyler (Don Dillaway), he cons the man's wife (Louise Closser Hale) into admitting Gloria was indeed paid to keep quiet. Michael's sister Ann tries to woo Stew, who prints the story anyway. (Woo Stew who. Whew!) Complicating matters in Capra's screwball comedy is Michael's chum and ace colleague Gallagher (Loretta Young), who he sees as one of the boys but is actually desperately in love with him. Rounding out the budding love triangle, Ann falls for Stew and the two get married, which doesn't go over so well with the rest of the Schuyler clan, particularly when the duo move into the family's mansion. Their fondness for one another eventually fades, though, and Stew has two choices to make: reporter or playwright, and Ann or... another. Gallagher perhaps? Of course!

Even at a brisk 90 minutes, Platinum Blonde sags a bit at the midsection with a second act that plays more redundantly than intended. Created as escapism for its audience, it spends too much time with Stew and Ann, disregarding the real romance budding at its core between Smith and Gallagher. The film's endgame and Stew's not-so-surprising final choice is presented almost as a throwaway subplot, which is a shame considering Young and Williams have the best chemistry of all the on-screen pairings. The titular platinum blonde is perhaps the most overused and under-interesting element in the story, yet constantly returns to center stage to diminishing returns. That's not to say the screwball comedy isn't, well, screwy. It has its share of laughs and quite a collection of solid twinges for the funny bone. But only insofar as fans of the era's comedies will enjoy. Modern audiences may find themselves yawning and glancing at their phone's too often, even if the performances and writing are on par with better Capra efforts.

Still, there's an earnestness and light-footedness to the proceedings that somehow work, if only as setup and payoff bookends of the film. Stew is such a blind, hapless love interest that you can't help but root for him, and even Ann earns affection, despite being a red herring of sorts. Love is in the air throughout the comedic misgivings and it delivers some memorable encounters and mis-encounters. Stew not only fights against his lesser demons, he struggles to come of moral age, leading to a happy ending that's as succinctly earned as any other in Capra's repertoire. Platinum Blonde strikes me as less of a crucial piece of the filmmaker's evolution as others, but you can imagine how Jimmy Stewart and a rewrite might have elevated the film to higher places.

Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Platinum Blonde gets the full 4K restoration and treatment, wowing with an at-times stunning 2160p presentation sure to delight fans of the film who have been eagerly awaiting its high definition debut. The oldest of Sony's native 4K Capra transfers -- several films in the Columbia Collection released prior to Platinum Blonde are presented in 4K SDR -- the screwball comedy looks great, with clean edge definition and relatively refined textures that all but thumb their nose at the softer shots and scenes in the picture. Joseph Walker's black and white photography looks great as well, with more than satisfying contrast levels, rich blacks and notable delineation. Perfect midtones deliver a smooth, faultless array of grays and brighter "colors," and there isn't any banding, blocking or other encoding issues present that might disrupt the image. There are a handful of easily dismissible instances of print wear and blemishes, but nothing offensive or all that distracting, and it becomes pretty obvious why Sony chose the 4K route for the film.

Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Platinum Blonde's DTS-HD Master Audio Mono mix delivers the goods with one of the more proficient tracks among the earlier films in the Frank Capra at Columbia Collection box set. Voices are intelligible and nicely prioritized at all times, more bouyant sounds are bright and punchy, effects sound great, and the music, while a tad flat and tinny, holds its own.

Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

No extras are included.

Platinum Blonde 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Aside from its complete lack of extras, Sony's 4K edition of Platinum Blonde defies its age with aplomb, looking and sounding like a newer production than one that hails from the early '30s. The film itself is dated, both in story efficiency and script prowess, but it remains a decent screwball comedy of the era all the same.