Leave Her to Heaven

Media:	DVD
Directed by:	John M. Stahl
Starring:	Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde
Release date:	22 February, 2005
List price:	~~$14.98~~
Our price:	$11.80 that is 21% off!

Leave Her to Heaven

Average rating: Stars

Easy On The Eyes But Difficult To Watch

I was so excited to see and enjoy Leave Her To Heaven because of all of the praise heaped upon it and because of Gene Tierney's presence. However, after watching it, I feel misled. The central motivating factor of this movie, a woman's psychotic obsession with a man is extraordinarily hard to believe at any moment because the object of her obsession is so unremarkable (the likable but uncharismatic Cornel Wilde). His character is so flatly played and written, it undercuts all that follows. Perhaps if Gene Tierney were obsessed with Clark Gable it would have worked. Vincent price makes the film come alive in his brief moments and Gene Tierney is visually stimulating even when the long-winded plot is not. The photography is perhaps the most stunning element of the entire piece. Still, all of those things do not a great film make. The commentary was unusually insightful and, at times, more engaging than the film itself. I find it difficult to recommend this film unless you are an aspiring cinematographer or gaffer.

Leave Her to Heaven - Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde

"What's Wrong With Ellen?" ...

Movie: ***** DVD Transfer: ***** Extras: *****

20th Century-Fox's highest-grossing film of the 1940's showcases exquisite leading lady Gene Tierney in a mesmerizing, Oscar-nominated performance as a femme fatale whose placid beauty masks a murderously possessive heart. Based on the best-selling novel by Ben Ames Williams, the astonishingly perverse screenplay by Jo Swerling touches on such then-taboo (and still-shocking) subjects as incestuous obsession, the victimization of the disabled, self-induced abortion, and suicide disguised as homicide! Pretty potent stuff for its time, and it's all presented in lush candy-box Technicolor by Oscar-winner Leon Shamroy, whose masterful cinematography skillfully emphasizes a central theme of the film: that a beautiful surface can sometimes hide a thoroughly rotten core.

By design and through her acting skills, Miss Tierney's tour de force performance dominates the film; she especially shines in two challenging sequences, one involving a rowboat and another which takes place on a staircase. Among the supporting cast, solid work is turned in by Cornel Wilde as the object of Tierney's intensity; Jeanne Crain as her sweet-natured cousin and adopted sister; and Mary Philips as her alienated mother; but it is Vincent Price who stands out in a bravura performance as Tierney's former suitor. Price's character takes center stage throughout the final twenty minutes of the movie, and he plays some very long and difficult scenes with aplomb.

Fox Home Video's DVD presentation of this classic drama is truly impeccable, featuring a gorgeous, digitally restored print and remastered soundtrack. I've seen this movie dozens times over the past thirty years - in theatres, on video, and on cable - and it's never looked or sounded so magnificent. The bonus features include the film's 1952 Theatrical Re-release Trailer; Fox Movietone News segments featuring footage of the film's Los Angeles premiere and the 1945 Academy Awards; a fascinating stills gallery featuring photos taken during the film's location shooting at Bass Lake; and a restoration comparison demonstrating how the film was remastered for DVD. The disc also features an audio commentary by film critic Richard Schickel, who clearly was unprepared for the job: he refers to Price's character by the wrong name; mistakenly identifies two child players as boys (one, played by Betty Hannon, is obviously a girl); and vacillates back and forth in his opinions regarding the film's qualities. Additional commentary is also offered by actor Darryl Hickman, who played Cornel Wilde's brother in the film. Hickman clearly loathed making the movie, and snipes ungraciously about Tierney as an actress and as a human being, ignoring the fact that she was struggling with the devastating prospect of institutionalizing her mentally enfeebled 18-month-old daughter during the course of the film's production. Hickman also takes potshots at Jeanne Crain (appearing in her fifth film role of any size), director John M. Stahl, and the personality of cameraman Leon Shamroy (although he is clearly an admirer of the latter's work). The sour and ineffective commentary aside, the DVD presentation of "Leave Her to Heaven" is a superb example of 1940's Hollywood moviemaking and the DVD format at their very best, and is most highly recommended for your viewing pleasure.

Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde - Leave Her to Heaven

Great color cinematography for a film from this era

This review is for the 2004 DVD release by 20th Century Fox.

I enjoyed this film overall. Color films from early post-WWII era are rarely found, so it was a great pleasure to just enjoy the outdoor scenes and elaborate interior shots. Each of the four outdoor locations selected for the movie are stunning.

The story is about a nationally known fiction author (played by Cornel Wilde) who meets a woman (played by Gene Tierney) on a train, both on their way to the same resort in rural New Mexico. They have a whirlwind romance, get married, and then serious problems surface. Without giving away too many details of what happens next, it becomes obvious that one of the characters is psychologically unstable as a series of tragic events occur. The script itself is overall very good, but it loses a little momentum towards the very end, but I still give it a strong recommendation. To me it seemed more like a melodrama than a noir film.

The DVD transfer approaches superb. The color is vivid and the picture quality seems adequately sharp for a color film from that era. The added documentary by actor Darryl Hickman and film critic Richard Schickel is a nice bonus feature and provides a lot of interesting insight to the making of this film and the characters who played in the film.

Movie: B

DVD Quality: A