Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

Spotlight on a Murderer Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 3, 2017

In our recent Blackenstein Blu-ray review, I mentioned in my detailing of the supplementary material included on the disc how a rare look inside the old mansion once belonging to Bela Lugosi might make the disc a “must buy” for some horror fans even if they weren’t particularly fond of the main feature being presented. The Lugosi mansion ultimately was owned by Blackenstein writer and producer Frank R. Saletri, and in an interview with his younger sister June Kirk, a number of fun stills are shown which provide glimpses of a once iconic Hollywood home, including a really cool little feature where a bookcase revolved around to provide an opening to a hidden passageway. Kind of weirdly, there’s a very similar plot conceit in Spotlight on a Murderer that sets a cascading series of events into motion, as a wealthy elder named Comte Hervé de Kerloguen (Pierre Brasseur), evidently mortally ill, twists a little doodad on a mirror in his mansion, revealing a secret anteroom behind it, where the Comte retreats to to draw his last breath. Unfortunately for the Comte’s many potential heirs, that throws a wrench into their ability to actually inherit, since in this film’s probably fictional allusion to French civil code, if there isn’t a corpse, any and all potential bequests have to wait for five full years from the date of the presumed death. Despite the fact that this film was the more or less direct follow up to the now legendary Eyes Without a Face by director Georges Franju, for some reason Spotlight on a Murderer hasn’t attained the same renown. That’s understandable in a way, since the film doesn’t present quite the provocative material that Eyes Without a Face does, but Spotlight on a Murderer is a fun and actually quite stylish piece that is fairly traditional in basic plot elements, but which benefits from Franju’s always acute visual sensibilities, and some breezy performances by an eclectic cast that includes Jean-Louis Trintignant, Dany Saval and Pascale Audret.

The writing credits for Spotlight on a Murderer offer the exotic sounding name of Boileau - Narcejac, which is in fact two names, that of the partnership between Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac. For those not acquainted with this legendary if underappreciated duo, a mere recounting of a few films either written by them or based on their writing in other media should serve as a rather potent introduction. Along with Franju’s Eyes Without a Face, the pair was also responsible in one way or the other for Diabolique, Vertigo and Body Parts (hey, three out of four ain’t bad). Spotlight on a Murderer is decidedly more lighthearted, at least at times, than some of these other offerings, and in some ways it plays almost like “parlor room murder mysteries” that are part and parcel for everything from Kind Hearts and Coronets to Poirot.

While there is a murder mystery afoot (it should come as no surprise that potential heirs are on the endangered species list all of a sudden), in some ways some tangential elements of Spotlight on a Murderer might prove to be at least as interesting to some viewers as the vaunted “whodunit” aspect. Chief among the kind of distinctive pleasures of the film is the decision on the part of the family to turn the castle like estate into a tourist attraction, replete with a son et lumiere show (hence the film’s allusion to a spotlight). Franju seems to be making a kind of trenchant point about nouveau riche (or perhaps more appropriately in this case, nouveau riche wannabes) defiling beautiful historic structures in order to make a buck. In another way, though, Franju seems to be almost self deprecatingly referring to this very film’s reimagining of a traditional Agatha Christie-esque setup in a somewhat more astringent, post-modern setting than is usually thought of with regard to the iconic British mystery queen.

There are a number of rather interesting stylistic flourishes that Franju introduces, sometimes quite subtly, throughout the film. Even the opening scene with the elderly count sequestering himself away has a few provocative elements, including the little doll he takes in with him for some unknown reason. He actually reaches up underneath her skirt to wind her up, at which point her hands start manipulating a toy harp she’s holding. It’s an extremely peculiar little moment, just one of several that Franju inserts that keep things feeling just slightly off kilter. Franju’s camera is also fairly peripatetic throughout the film, coasting around the Kerloguen manor to explore various nooks and crannies.

Spotlight on a Murderer Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Spotlight on a Murderer is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Academy with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Arrow's insert booklet offers only relatively generic information about this transfer, stating:

Spotlight on a Murderer was digitally restored by Gaumont from original film elements.

Sometimes these generalist statements don't augur well for the look of a transfer, but in the case of Spotlight on a Murderer, the results are generally excellent, with pleasing contrast, consistent black levels and overall well modulate gray scale. There are some very minor variances in clarity, some of which I attribute to some location shooting, something that also may account for a few isolated moments in dark sequences where detail is understandably minimized. Aside from just a few passing signs of age related wear and tear, elements have been restored to commendable condition. Grain resolves naturally and affords the transfer a nicely organic appearance.

Spotlight on a Murderer Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Spotlight on a Murderer features a French LPCM 2.0 mono mix which offers good support for the film's dialogue and its score by Maurice Jarre. I know I invite brickbats when I say this (and I've said it several times in reviews now), but as much as I enjoy Jarre's melodicism, I often find his scores anachronistic or in fact not all that helpful, and that's at least partially the case with this film, though admittedly that includes the repeated use of pre- existing source cue which is far from what you'd expect from a traditional murder mystery film. All of this said, fidelity on this track is fine, and while things are narrow, they're surprisingly full sounding, without any real attendant boxiness or distortion.

Spotlight on a Murderer Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Le Courrier du Cinema (480p; 27:14) is a neat archival French television piece from 1960 documenting the shoot of Spotlight on a Murderer.


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 3:33) shows evidence that there may have been questions as to how to market this film effectively.

As usual, Arrow has also provided a nicely appointed insert booklet.

Spotlight on a Murderer Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's a slightly subversive quality to Spotlight on a Murderer which makes it clear that Franju isn't exactly wanting to revisit Murder on the Orient Express (so to speak). While none of the characters in the film are especially memorable, things unfold with enough breeziness and occasional sinister scariness that it really doesn't end up mattering that much (ironically one of the most potentially fascinating characters, the old count, dies in the first couple of minutes). Franju is the real star here, choreographing a fun dance of potential victims while keeping his camera extremely active, kind of like a sleuth looking for clues. Arrow has provided a release with nice technical merits, and Spotlight on a Murderer comes Highly recommended.