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The Deep End  

Dark Passage

The third of the four films pairing Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Dark Passage employs a unique storytelling approach by shooting the first segment of the film from the lead character's perspective -- meaning the audience hears Bogart's voice, but does not see his face until 45 minutes into the film. This technique, while not groundbreaking (MGM's Lady in the Lake was shot entirely in first-person perspective earlier that year), gives the film an intriguing edge, bringing the audience into the action and making them sympathize with the protagonist almost immediately, without even knowing what sort of person he is. The film opens with the daring prison escape of Vincent Parry (Bogart), a man convicted of murdering his wife. Via radio bulletins and newspaper articles, as well as his conversations with Irene (Bacall), a painter who happens upon him and takes him in, we learn that he has risked the jailbreak in order to prove that he was wrongfully convicted. After having plastic surgery to disguise his face, Parry heads out into the streets of San Francisco to find his wife's killer, encountering both strangers and old acquaintances (including Agnes Moorehead in a terrific performance as a jealous busybody) that gradually help him piece together who really committed the crime. As always, Bogart and Bacall create a compelling bond between their characters, with Vincent's post-plastic surgery bandages are no match for Bogart's amazingly emotive eyes. The film also offers a nice look at the streets of San Francisco circa 1947, revealing a city that looks amusingly quaint compared to today.

Starring: Sandra Bullock, Ellen Burstyn, Fionnula Flanagan, Shirley Knight, Judd Ashley, Maggie Smith
Director: Callie Khouri

                           Encoding: Region 1 (US and Canada only)

       Dogma   Special Edition

          With Ben Affleck

Dogma not only maked the first time director Kevin Smith filmed in widescreen but it also made for the first time Smith got the real contraversy he deserved over one of his films. The film about two fallen angels trying to get back into heaven, is a great work of writing, direction, and comedic acting.

 

Dangerous Liaisons

To watch Stephen Frears' film version of Dangerous Liaisons is to see the amazing metamorphosis of a story that took innumerable turns on its way to the screen. The tale of avaricious French aristocrats began its life as an 18th century French epistolary novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, by Choderlos De Laclos. Roger Vadim co-opted the story for his Les Liaisons Dangereuses 1960 starring Jeanne Moreau, updating it to the ski slopes of the Alps and the continental jet set. It wasn't until Christopher Hampton adapted the novel for the stage in 1985 that the world started paying close attention to the devious machinations of its characters, ultimately culminating in the 1988 Academy Award-winning movie, with its translated title to make it more palatable for American audiences. Frears' adaptation stars Glenn Close and John Malkovich, both of whom first trained for the stage, and Michelle Pfeiffer, a movie star who started her career in front of the camera. It's believed that Frears chose Pfeiffer because her acting style - unforced and natural - contrasted sharply with the highly studied mannerisms of Close and Malkovich, highlighting the chasm between their rich, duplicitous characters, the Marquise de Merteuil and Vicomte de Valcomt, and Pfeiffer's innocent, unworldly Madame de Tourvel.

Dark City   New Line Platinum Series

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Email: frankObrain@angelfire.com