Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Sudden Fear Blu-ray Movie Review

Mildred's piercing scream?

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 30, 2016

Joan Crawford had what was probably inarguably one of the steelier personae of major film stars of her era, but it’s not all that unusual to find the legendary actress essaying roles that have at least a hint of vulnerability. Think about Crawford’s sympathetic turn as the wheelchair bound sister in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? or even the emotionally distraught mother in her Oscar winning title role in Mildred Pierce for just two examples (which is not suggest either role didn't also offer Crawford opportunities to show that steely side), but if you wanted to actually see (and hear) Crawford scream in abject terror at some unseen menace, look (and listen) no further than the strangely underappreciated Sudden Fear. Why exactly this film has fallen into a kind of (perhaps appropriately noir-ish) miasma is a bit of a head scratcher, for upon its release in 1952 it was generally acclaimed, did great business at the box office, and ended up with four Academy Award nominations, including Crawford for Best Actress (competing against her once and future arch nemesis Bette Davis, though neither won), Jack Palance for Best Supporting Actor, and two other nominations for Charles Lang’s lustrous black and white cinematography and Sheila O’Brien’s costume design (a perhaps somewhat questionable nomination, given the film’s buttoned down propensities, though pay attention during the credits for one of the most absurdly long list of “managers” for various elements of Crawford’s costumes ever seen in a film of this type). Perhaps Sudden Fear hasn’t fully resonated with some noir fans because it eschews the blonde bombshell trope (at least with regard to its leading lady), and furthermore doesn’t posit a wily female leading a hapless male schlub to his demise. Instead, the film is an increasingly tense cat and mouse game between a sociopathic actor named Lester Blaine (Jack Palance) and the woman who becomes his wife, successful playwright and heiress Myra Hudson (Joan Crawford), though Blaine’s amorous attentions toward Hudson are not exactly honorable or particularly romantic.

Commentator Jeremy Arnold talks about levels of deceit that are apparent throughout Sudden Fear, but one potential one is weirdly unexploited by director David Miller (evidently Crawford’s personal choice for the assignment, according to Arnold). The film opens in a theater where Myra is watching a rehearsal of her latest play, one in which Lester Blaine is starring—for a few more minutes, anyway. I couldn’t help but think how it might have been more “deceitful” for Miller to have staged the “play” as “reality” for at least a moment, ultimately pulling back to reveal the proscenium stage and the fact that it’s all just make believe. That passing qualm aside, the film quickly sets up a number of plot points, including that Myra is not just a successful playwright but also worth scads of money, and that she is a force of nature, as evidenced by the fact that she wants Blaine let go because he’s not in the matinee idol mold.

Blaine gives Myra a bit of blowback as he exits, citing a perhaps questionable historical precedent for homely guys doing okay with the chicks. A bit later, Myra boards the train for San Francisco and in a probably too convenient bit of plot mechanics, meets cute with Blaine again. Crawford’s vulnerable side has already been seen, or at least glimpsed, in her quick response to Blaine’s tirade at the theater after having been fired, and it bubbles to the surface again here, as Myra attempts to make amends with the actor. Needless to say, by the end of the long train trip, they’re more or less a couple.

Palance’s grizzled appearance probably only helps the film’s subtle subterfuges, where Blaine’s apparent love for Myra isn’t all that it seems. There’s a telling scene where he withdraws from Myra when their romance is still in its nascent stages, and Myra shows up to his apartment house after having failed to contact him by phone. It’s made clear that Blaine has the “stage” all set (again), with (probably empty) bags at the ready to suggest he’s hightailing it out of there because he doesn’t fit in with Myra’s high society types. Again, Crawford’s ability to display the cracks in a perhaps aging woman’s psyche is wonderfully on display in a kind of pathetic confession Myra makes that she’s nothing without Blaine. Suffice it to say, marriage ensues, which is when Blaine’s true character is finally revealed.

In yet another piece of overly convenient plotting, a big party for the newly married Mr. and Mrs. Blaine has an unexpected guest, a blowsy blonde named Irene Neves (Gloria Grahame), who it’s more than obvious from the get go has a history with Blaine. That assumption turns out to be correct once Blaine and Irene have their first scene together, but in a really fascinating bit of elision (no doubt done to avoid any censorship issues), Blaine’s masochistic tendencies only seem to confirm to Irene that he still loves her. Without getting into the nuts and bolts of a story too laced with coincidences for its own good, Blaine and Irene decide that it’s best for Myra to suffer a little “accident”, especially when it becomes clear Myra has decided to leave her considerable fortune to charity. Unfortunately for the scheming pair, their plan is discovered by Myra (courtesy of an old fashioned dictation machine, of all things), which is when two sets of murderous impulses seem to be on the verge of colliding.

Sudden Fear gives Crawford a moment or two for downright hysteria (there’s a great and perhaps slightly comical “nightmare” sequence), before the actress’ sterner proclivities take hold. The film has a nicely tense climax that sees Myra attempting to get away from Blaine through the misty streets of San Francisco (though Arnold’s commentary points out that at least some of the sequence was shot in Los Angeles). Again coincidence provides a perhaps too convenient way for things to reach a conclusion, but Crawford of course emerges from the maelstrom as steely as ever.

Sudden Fear Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sudden Fear is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Cohen Film Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Cohen is touting a new 2K restoration without specifying what elements were utilized, but this has the British censor board card, for what that's worth (I haven't been able to track down authoritative information on whether the BFI had elements or not). This is a huge upgrade over the old Kino Lorber DVD, with a much more detailed image and better accounting of Charles Lang's Oscar nominated black and white cinematography, as well as a lack of age related issues like tears, scratches and speckling. Blacks are very deep and convincing and gray scale is nicely modulated. There are a surprising number of opticals scattered throughout the film, including the kind of quasi-hallucinatory sequence (see screenshot 18), and detail levels understandably fall along with an uptick in grain. Occasional stock footage (see screenshot 19) is also a bit more ragged looking than the bulk of the presentation. Grain resolves nicely throughout, but is often on the gritty side. My only (minor) complaint is that I wish contrast could have been just a bit more forceful. At times things look a trifle wan in terms of delineations between lighter gradients and grays and blacks.

Sudden Fear Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sudden Fear features a robust sounding LPCM 2.0 mono track, one which offers great support from the sometimes blistering cues of Elmer Bernstein (sometimes hinting at but not quite getting to the jazz inflected work that would be one of his hallmarks a bit later in the decade). Occasional ambient environmental sounds resonate realistically, and the film's dialogue is rendered very cleanly and clearly. There are no problems with distortion or dropouts.

Sudden Fear Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by film historian Jeremy Arnold is consistently interesting, getting into the production history of the film as well as great anecdotal tidbits like the brief shots of Los Angeles that are visible in the film's supposedly San Francisco set climax.


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:20) is noticeably missing "original" from its description and looks like a Cohen created piece.

Sudden Fear Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I'm not quite sure Sudden Fear rises to the level of "masterpiece" that commentator Jeremy Arnold and some guy named Truffaut quoted on the cover of this release both agree it is, but this is certainly an often taut and exciting film, one which offers both Crawford and Palance great roles. The increasing aggregation of coincidences that propel the plot forward become a bit hard to swallow (including the apparel choices that lead to the film's supposedly shattering climax), but that perhaps niggling qualm aside, the film develops a nice mood of increasing angst and features some really beautiful black and white cinematography. Technical merits are strong, the commentary is very enjoyable, and Sudden Fear comes Recommended.