Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		2.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

The Red House Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 23, 2012

Edward G. Robinson enjoyed an incredibly long and relatively varied career which spanned almost six full decades, from the apparently lost silent Arms and the Woman in 1916 to 1973’s kitschy but beloved Soylent Green. While Robinson acted in a huge gamut of films, he, like his early Warner Brothers stable mate James Cagney, is often best remembered for his tough gangster roles from the thirties. What’s interesting about Robinson’s first claim to fame is how he parlayed that gritty, sometimes violent bent into a series of really interesting character roles in a number of films noirs in the forties. These roles could either be solid but questioning supporting types (as in the iconic Double Indemnity or the noir-esque The Stranger), or more troubled (even neurotic) souls, as in his two collaborations with Fritz Lang, The Woman in the Window and Scarlet Street. The Red House came out in 1947, smack dab in Robinson’s noir era, and while it may not be a traditional noir (much like The Stranger), it’s a moody, tense piece of filmmaking that shows what a remarkably versatile actor Robinson really was, one who could segue from sweet tenderness to murderous rage at the drop of a thundering Miklos Rozsa score cue. While the film doesn’t exactly keep its secrets hidden especially artfully, it’s an often spooky little film that casts an interesting light on post-War rural America and the roiling passions not so subtly buried underneath calm exteriors, something somewhat similar to Hitchock’s Shadow of a Doubt in a way. Robinson portrays one-legged farmer Pete Morgan, who works his large spread with his devoted sister, Ellen (Judith Anderson in a rare sympathetic role), and their adopted ward Meg (Allene Roberts). Meg has a crush on local boy Nath Storm (Lon McCallister) and gets him a job on the farm as a hand, leading to an almost Freudian explosion of emotion and unbridled Id. Playing out against this rather odd ménage a trois of Pete, Meg and Nath is another convoluted intertwining of romances, including local hussy Tibby (Julie London in an early role), who is playing the field both with Nath and local tough guy Teller (Rory Calhoun).

George Agnew Chamberlain is a largely forgotten name in the annals of American literature nowadays, but in the mid- 20th century he enjoyed significant popularity, with a number of bestselling novels and regular serializations of his stories in such legendary magazines as The Saturday Evening Post. Chamberlain’s pieces had been optioned for film going back to the early years of the 20th century, but in the forties his agrarian themed work seemed especially potent in a world rent asunder by global war. (In a kind of funny aside, it’s amusing to note that Chamberlain’s “rural” area was usually New Jersey, which in those days hadn’t become the teeming series of metropolises it is today.) Chamberlain experienced some mainstream film success with Home in Indiana, adapted from his novel The Phantom Filly, a film which also began a kind of interesting “collaboration” of sorts with actor Lon McCallister. McCallister is another name now largely forgotten in the annals of film, but for a few years in the forties he made a name for himself in a number of strong supporting or co-starring roles as the juvenile lead, and a number of those were based on Chamberlain pieces, as was The Red House. Chamberlain was a master at crafting calm exteriors which barely covered tempestuous inner lives, and that is certainly the case with the 1947 film, a textbook study in psychological thrillers, albeit one whose seams probably show more clearly today than they did when the film was first released.

The Red House is really a film about relationships rather than any overt plot mechanics, but it plays out in a sort of quasi-Gothic atmosphere after Nath comes on board as farm hand and wants to take a shortcut home at night which will lead him through some supposedly haunted woods and near the titular structure. Pete becomes almost frantic in his attempts to keep the boy from going that way, which raises the suspicions of Meg, who starts asking perhaps a few too many questions. Something obviously happened there, something that may have led to Pete losing his leg and something that may in fact involve Meg. Modern day mystery buffs probably won’t have an overly hard time figuring out what’s going on in The Red House, but perhaps rather surprisingly, it really doesn’t matter that much and takes away little of the film’s inherent moodiness and subtext of emotional undertow.

The film is probably best appreciated as a showcase for some nicely nuanced performances. Robinson evinces growing paranoia brilliantly, and he manages to walk a fine line between curmudgeonly gruffness and tender sweetness. It’s almost bracing to see Anderson, so nefarious in Rebecca, work a homespun character like Ellen here, and she does remarkably fine work. If the “kids” are a bit too callow and inexperienced, they, too, have their moments, and Calhoun is especially effective (and actually kind of frightening) in a glowering, hulking performance as a backwoods predator who briefly ends up on the lam with London. Like McCallister, Allene Roberts’ name has been largely lost to the ravages of time, but The Red House shows the then young girl to be rather well modulated as she traverses emotional territory that needs to see Meg evolve from peaceful security to increasing fear and ultimately hysteria.

The Red House is well directed by journeyman Delmer Daves, a solid craftsman who never drew much attention to himself in his role as helmsman, but almost always assembled top flight pictures with strong performances. The film also boasts a moody and highly effective score by Miklos Rozsa, working in somewhat the same quasi-Romantic idiom that he brought to Double Indemnity. If The Red House doesn’t ultimately shock and surprise as it probably did in 1947, it nonetheless provides a neat little window onto a burgeoning melodramatic streak that would increasingly inform post-World War II cinema, a streak that started to show the cracks in the placid demeanor that had come to define America after years of roiling conflict.

The Red House Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Red House is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Film Chest and HD Cinema Classics with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. As with other Film Chest – HD Cinema Classics releases, those who can't stand digital noise reduction had best stay far away from this release, as it has been vigorously scrubbed, leaving it with a quasi-video looking ambience that will no doubt drive a lot of people slightly batty. The restoration demo does show that significant improvement was made in contrast and sharpness despite the aggressive DNR, though it must also be admitted that blacks are still often pretty milky in several scenes, robbing the film of at least a little of its chiaroscuro lighting scheme. The elements here were either in pretty decent shape or have been digitally restored, as there are surprisingly few damage issues to report here, other than occasional flecks and couple of small scratches.

The Red House Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Red House features a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio Mono audio mix delivered via DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Unfortunately there's some consistent distortion on this track that keeps it from receiving a higher score. While dialogue comes through mostly cleanly and clearly, Rozsa's score suffers, with audible fuzziness especially in the midrange in several key cues. The problems seem to be worse at the very beginning and especially end of the film, with things somewhat better in the bulk of the middle section. Fidelity is acceptable if never fantastic, and dynamic range is quite good, all things considered.

The Red House Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with William Hare. This is one of those "and here we have [fill in the blank]" commentaries which spends too much time describing what we're seeing on screen rather than giving background and context. There's really not much real information in this commentary, but it's obviously done by someone who loves this film, for whatever that's worth.


• Movie Trailer (HD; 1:24) doesn't seem to be the original theatrical trailer, but a modern approximation of what it might have been like.


• Before and After Restoration Demo (HD; 1:05)

The Red House Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Red House is a moody little thriller that may be predictable to modern day mystery lovers but which still manages to be surprisingly effective. The best thing about this film is the performances, especially Robinson, who is simultaneously sympathetic and terrifying, no mean feat to pull off. Anderson is something of a minor revelation in a completely atypical role for her, and the supporting cast of young players also does very fine work for the most part. Some may think of perhaps better films (like Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt) which similarly pull off the thin veneer of respectability to divulge sins of the past (and, frankly, present), but The Red House has its own charms which can't be denied. DNR-phobes will most likely hate this release, and unfortunately the audio here has some noticeable issues as well. For those who can get past that, there's quite a bit here to enjoy, but cautious consumers may want to check this out as a rental first.